Wave Energy Conversion in Restricted Waters by a Heaving Cylinder/Linear--lnductance System

Results of an experimental study of a heaving wave energy converter are presented. The heaving system consists of a vertical, right, circular cylinder equipped with a linear-inductance electro-mechanical energy conversion device. The results show that open circuit resistance has little effect on the response of the heaving system. Furthermore, by closing the electrical circuit with a variable resistor, the performance of the wave energy conversion system can be optimized by matching the sum of the mechanical and open circuit impedances.