Natural frequencies of vertical cylindrical oscillating water column devices

Abstract This paper deals with the evaluation of the natural frequencies in heave motion of a single floating Oscillating Water Column device along with the natural frequencies of the water column inside the oscillating chamber. Two types of OWCs are examined, a simple-type device, consisting of a partially immersed toroidal body and a novel-type device, consisting also of a partially immersed toroidal body supplemented however by a coaxial interior truncated cylinder moving in phase with the outer chamber, thus forming a floating unit. Numerical results are given concerning the three boundary value problems, namely, the diffraction, the motion- and the pressure- dependent radiation problems, obtained through an analytical solution method using matched axisymmetric eigenfunction expansion formulations. The effect of the air pressure distribution inside the oscillating chamber on the natural frequencies in heave motion of the two examined types of OWCs and on the natural frequency of the water column motion inside the chamber, is presented and discussed thoroughly. It is demonstrated that the heave natural frequencies are strongly dependent on the type of the examined OWC and the device’s inner air pressure and should be taken into consideration when designing a floating OWC device.