Mooring Solutions for Large Wave Energy Converters

The desire for utilizing the sea waves as an energy source has a long history, but the wave energy sector did not experience concentrated focus until the seventies. With today’s growing world population and living standard, and the resulting increase in energy consumption, the need for production of renewable energy, such as wave energy, is more important than ever. Despite the relatively long development history and a significant untapped wave energy potential, none of the patented concepts have yet reached a commercial level that allows for feasible deployment and energy production. In this matter, mooring of wave energy converters forms an important topic, as it has not yet been optimized to the wave energy sector, and has given rise to an undesirably high cost and several strandings of devices due to mooring failures.

This thesis investigates mooring solutions for large wave energy converters by taking its basis in existing solutions for a number of devices. The work develops from the initial starting point and uses it to discuss and explore different system layouts and materials in order to find promising solutions. Different design approaches are assessed and compared through validation against physical tests to improve the mooring safety and reliability. Finally, an optimization routine is applied in the design process in the search for cost optimized and durable solutions.