Assessment of the stiffened panel performance in the OTEC seawater tank design:Parametric study and sensitivity analysis

Ocean thermal energy conversion(OTEC)is a process of generating electricity by exploiting the temperature difference between warm surface seawater and cold deep seawater.Due to the high static and dynamic pressures that are caused by seawater circulation,the stiffened panel that constitutes a seawater tank may undergo a reduction in ultimate strength.The current paper investigates the design of stiffening systems for OTEC seawater tanks by examining the effects of stiffening parameters such as stiffener sizes and span-over-bay ratio for the applied combined loadings of lateral and transverse pressure by fluid motion and axial compression due to global bending moment.The ultimate strength calculation was conducted by using the non-linear finite element method via the commercial software known as ABAQUS.The stress and deformation distribution due to pressure loads was computed in the first step and then brought to the second step,in which the axial compression was applied.The effects of pressure on the ultimate strength of the stiffener were investigated for representative stiffened panels,and the significance of the stiffener parameters was assessed by using the sensitivity analysis method.As a result,the ultimate strength was reduced by approximately 1.5%for the span-over-bay ratio of 3 and by 7%for the span-over-bay ratio of 6.

Optimization of an Underwater Wireless Sensor Network Architecture with Wave Glider as a Mobile Gateway

This paper presents an original probabilistic model of a hybrid underwater wireless sensor network(UWSN),which includes a network of stationary sensors placed on the seabed and a mobile gateway.The mobile gateway is a wave glider that collects data from the underwater network segment and retransmits it to the processing center.The authors consider the joint problem of optimal localization of stationary network nodes and the corresponding model for bypassing reference nodes by a wave glider.The optimality of the network is evaluated according to the criteria of energy efficiency and reliability.The influence of various physical and technical parameters of the network on its energy efficiency and on the lifespan of sensor nodes is analyzed.The analysis is carried out for networks of various scales,depending on the localization of stationary nodes and the model of bypassing the network with a wave glider.As a model example,the simulation of the functional characteristics of the network for a given size of the water area is carried out.It is shown that in the case of a medium-sized water area,the model of“bypassing the perimeter”by a wave glider is practically feasible,energy efficient and reliable for hourly data measurements.In the case of a large water area,the cluster bypass model becomes more efficient.

Assessment on Development of Wind Energy in Offshore Regions of Estonia

Up to now legislation of economical usage of Estonian sea shelf is lacking, what breaks development of wind farms. Therefore it is expedient to look the potential of wind resources and prablems to use it. In this paper the potential resource of four characteristic offshore regions in Estonia are assessed. Two different approaches have been used to assess the dynamic quality of the wind power, both of which lead to the same result. The dynamic quality of the load of the grid is also assessed since any consumer will be affected by the total influence of both these dynamic processes. These processes do limit the usage of wind power due to peculiarities of the Estonian electrical grid.

Experimental Study on a Cascade Flapping Wing Hydroelectric Power Generator

A hydroelectric power generator, which is able to extract the water flow energy from the hydroelastic response of an elastically supported rectangular wing, is experimentally investigated. An electric motor is used to excite pitching oscillations of the wing. Both the wing and the electric motor are supported by leaf springs which are designed to work both as a linear guide for the sway oscillations and as elastic elements. The wing mass in sway direction necessary to achieve a hydroelastic response is obtained by utilizing a mechanical snubber mechanism. The appropriate load to generate electricity is provided by magnetic dampers. In the previous paper, the generating power rate and the efficiency were examined through the experiments with a single wing model, and the feasibility of the flapping wing hydroelectric power generator was verified. In this paper, the influence of the neighboring wings is examined by using two experimental apparatuses, with the intention of achieving a practical cascade wing generator. Tests revealed that the cascade moving in-phase with the neighboring wings at narrower intervals has a higher rate of electric power generation.