Numerical Analysis of Wave-induced Motion of Floating Pendulor Wave Energy Converter

In this paper, the wave-induced motion characteristics of a floating pendulor are investigated numerically. A floating pendulor is a movable-body-type wave energy converter. This device consists of three main parts (floater, pendulum, and damping plates). In order to obtain the hydrodynamic coefficients and wave exciting forces acting on floating bodies, a higher-order boundary element method (HOBEM) using a wave Green function is applied to the present problems. The hinged motion of a pendulum is simulated by applying the penalty method. In order to obtain a more realistic motion response for a pendulor, numerical body damping is included. First, the wave force and motion characteristics of just a floater are observed with respect to different shape parameters. Then, a coupled analysis of a floater, pendulum, and damping plates is carried out. The relative pitch velocity and wave forces acting on the floating pendulor are compared with those of a fixed pendulor.