Education & MSc Projects
Education The lab is actively contributing in the education at Delft University of Technology (TU Delft) and with visiting lectures in Dutch and International Universities. At the Delft University of Technology (TU Delft), MREL members teach at the " Marine Renewables (CIEM4210) " a module at the Civil Engineering MSc . CIEM4210 concerns the design, monitoring and assessment of offshore wind and ocean energy farms, in general, and different technologies (both bottom-fixed and floating), specifically, in an integrated manner, including control, installation, maintenance and economics. Regarding the development of offshore energy farms, this means that all relevant aspects and stakeholders are addressed and their implications for design assessed. MREL members teach also at the " Offshore Renewable Technologies (OE44170) ", a course given in collaboration with the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, at the Master of Offshore and Dredging Engineering. This course introduces students to the offshore renewable resources of the ocean environment and the technologies for renewable energy conversion, with the main purpose of developing comprehension of the first principles of offshore renewables engineering. In addition, students are trained on transferable skills, relevant for their professional development. MREL is also an associated partner in the Master in Renewable Energy in the Marine Environment (REM PLUS) , an Erasmus Mundus Joint Master Degree (EMJMD). Where we contribute with topic lectures and MSc supervision. MSc graduation topics We collaborate often with companies for graduation topics, and it is feasible to undertake such a project. Prior to that please get in touch with the lab to align a topic of interest. The lab has several MSc graduation topics that aim to enhance the academic and professional skills of our students. Assessing the power production and economics of multi-size Point absorber WEC arrays Introduction In the process of energy transition towards zero-carbon, the conversion of wave energy will play an important role, contributing to the climate neutrality of the energy supply. In order to keep the Levelized Cost Of Energy (LCOE) low, wave energy converters need to be deployed in multiple numbers and thus study of wave energy farms is essential. While a number of studies have focused on Point Absorber (PA) wave energy farms with the same type and size of WEC, there are no studies that assess both, the power production and economics of multi-size PA WEC arrays. In one of our recent studies, it was observed that multi-size WEC arrays can immensely boost power production over a wide array of operating sea states. Aim(s) This project aims to understand multi-size PA WEC arrays from two perspectives – power production and economics. A few configurations of multi-size PA WEC arrays will be investigated, with the following objectives - Assess the effects of array interactions on the power production Preform a techno-economic analysis comparing single size and multi-size PA WEC arrays Establish a methodology that relates local sea state characteristics to the number of WECs of different sizes to find an optimal balance between power production and LCOE Amongst the methods available, frequency domain method would be utilized for modelling the WECs. Supervisor Contact information Ir. Vaibhav Raghavan ( v.raghavan@tudelft.nl ), Dr. Matias Alday Gonzalez (m.f.aldaygonzalez@tudelft.nl), Dr. George Lavidas ( g.lavidas@tudelft.nl ) Techno-Economic Assessment of Wave Energy Converters with Different Power Take-Off Systems Introduction In the process of energy transition towards zero-carbon, the conversion of wave energy will play an important role, contributing to the climate neutrality of the energy supply. As a core compoenet in WECs, Power Take-Off (PTO) systems convert the absorbed mechnical energy to usable electrical energy. However, the selection of PTO systems is presenting an obvious divergence, which is hindering the advancement of WECs. Aim(s) This project aims to provide a comparison among the three predominant PTO mechanisms for the use in a heaving point absorber WECs. The three mechanisms are considered as a hydraulic PTO system, a mechanical direct-drive PTO system and a linear generator. A time-domain modelling combined with an economic analysis is expected to be applied to assess the levelized cost of energy of WECs with different PTO systems. For a fair comparison, the PTO system sizing can be conducted to optimize the techno-economic performance for each system in a European sea site of interest. Supervisor Contact information Dr. Jian Tan ( j.tan-2@tudelft.nl ), Ir. Vaibhav Raghavan ( v.raghavan@tudelft.nl ), Dr. George Lavidas ( g.lavidas@tudelft.nl ) Impact of wave resource on performance of a wave energy converter array Introduction In the process of energy transition towards zero-carbon, the conversion of wave energy will play an important role, contributing to the climate neutrality of the energy supply. In order to keep the Levelized Cost Of Energy (LCOE) low, wave energy converters need to be deployed in multiple numbers and thus study of wave energy farms is essential. While a number of studies have focused on wave energy farms in either low, moderate or high resource, there is no study that compares all of these with respect to the performance of wave farms. Aim(s) This project aims to analyse the impact of the wave resource on the performance of wave energy converters deployed in the form of an array. Frequency/Spectral /Time domain modelling approaches should be utilized for the analysis of WEC arrays also considering different types of PTO conditions, Investigate the most efficient scaling method for the adaptation of WEC across different locations and examine the impacts on the wake of structures, proposing mitigation strategies that may beyond energy production. Supervisor Contact information Dr. Jian Tan ( j.tan-2@tudelft.nl ), Ir. Vaibhav Raghavan ( v.raghavan@tudelft.nl ), Dr. George Lavidas ( g.lavidas@tudelft.nl ) Optimizing point absorbers based on translational modes Introduction In the process of energy transition towards zero-carbon, the conversion of wave energy will play an important role, contributing to the climate neutrality of the energy supply. While there are a number of Wave Energy Converters (WEC) available in literature, one the most popular WECs are the point absorbers since these use the simple principle of converting translational motion into electricity. Furthermore, these can be deployed both in shallow and deep waters. Aim(s) This project aims to analyse the wave energy converters based on the power produced via the translational modes of surge and heave and understand which sea states are beneficial for either modes. This knowledge would be utilized to then optimize the wave energy converter for such motions based on the PTO system. Amongst the methods available, frequency/time-domain methods would be utilized for modelling the WECs. Supervisor Contact information Ir. Vaibhav Raghavan ( v.raghavan@tudelft.nl ) Dr. George Lavidas ( g.lavidas@tudelft.nl ) Evaluating the performance of multi-size WECs in varying resource regions Introduction In the process of energy transition towards net zero-carbon, the conversion of wave energy will play an important role, contributing to the climate neutrality of the energy supply. When designing a WEC for optimal power extraction, it is important to optimize the geometry of the WEC depending on the resource, with the size of the WEC playing a pivotal role. Aim(s) This project aims to develop of framework to evaluate multi-size WECs of varying geometries in different resource regions. The framework would involve building a parametric model for different WEC geometries using Grasshopper and Python. Utilizing this as the input, the performance of the WEC will be evaluated utilizing the frequency domain BIEM solver HAMS-MREL and optimized. Supervisor Contact information Ir. Vaibhav Raghavan ( v.raghavan@tudelft.nl ), Dr Avni Jain ( A.jain-1@tudelft.nl ), Dr. George Lavidas ( g.lavidas@tudelft.nl ) Marine energies in the European Energy System, moving towards a 100% Renewable future Introduction The need to move away from fossil fuels is imperative, at the same time we have to ensure that the quality of living will not decline. Onshore technologies like wind and solar spearheading the renewable energy contribution in energy grid. However, with the massive amounts of installed capacity required, and the large spatial, social and environmental issues onshore capacities will not be able to move us into the future. Marine renewables can access a larger amount of energy dense renewable resources, with minimal (if any) visual impacts, hence reducing Not In My Back Yard (NIMBY) opposition. The target at a European level are to have at least 340 GW of marine and offshore renewables by 2050. At the same time environmental and cost considerations have to be balanced in order to unlock the massive potential of marine renewables. Aim(s) This project aims to focus on the role, impacts and economics consideration of marine renewables in a European Energy System context, through coupling climate and system modelling. The techno-economic conditions and relevant financial indices for the different marine technologies will have to quantified. The added value of temporal and spatial power production capabilities of marine renewables with their onshore counterparts, will be quantified in terms of energy costs, avoided emission, and avoided environmental costs. Supervisor Contact information Dr. George Lavidas ( g.lavidas@tudelft.nl ) Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) impacts for marine renewables Introduction Wave energy is amongst the highest energy dense and predictable offshore resources, European targets aim for the development of 40 GW by 2050, and 1 GW by 2030. Currently there are several different wave energy converters (WECs), each with distinct principle of operation and deployment characteristics. The foreseen target require a rapid development and adaption of wave energy converters. Apart for the power and deployment considerations, WECs have to ensure that their embedded carbon and energy content will be compensated on time, and is using sustainable methods and materials. Aim(s) This project aims to use a cradle to grave LCA approach to assess and model the “true” environmental cost for renewable wave energy converters. We aim to assess the supply chain environmental costs and quantify the carbon payback periods. Different WEC design will require different deployment zones, and sourcing of material and supply chain by different locations. The study aims to highlight the areas at which WEC LCA costs are more prevalent, and suggest alternative material and/or supply chain selections, promoting sustainability. Supervisor Contact information Dr. George Lavidas ( g.lavidas@tudelft.nl ) Tidal assessment & impacts of metocean conditions Introduction Tidal energy is characterised by tidal stream and tidal barrages, both with use of distinct technologies for power production. Tidal energy is highly predictable but has a major dependence on local bathymetric, coastal and metocean conditions. The tidal resource potential of some regions are lacking proper quantification (i.e. Netherlands, Mediterranean) hence the true energy potential is often uncertain. The project entails characterisation for different forms of tidal resource, that can ultimately use for decision making. It will also have to address the impact of CC and raising sea levels on this consistent resource. This in turn will allow the project to assess the expected energy levels, variations and flow modelling requirements for each distinct technology. Aim(s) This project aims to investigate the coupling of tidal and wave models, with an aim to improve the characterisation of tidal resource assessments. Investigation for the regional adaptation of bottom friction and sediment conditions, will be looked at through non-linear shallow water equations. Metocean and tidal constituent boundaries will be used to drive regional models. The aim is to provide a more accurate range for bottom friction in coupled models, that will benefit metocean and tidal characterisation. Supervisor Contact information Dr. George Lavidas ( g.lavidas@tudelft.nl ) Wave energy and offshore renewables persistence to contribute in the Energy transition Introduction Climate Change and the need to decarbonise the European electricity grid, In order to achieve carbon neutrality and move closer to high renewable energy system offshore indigenous renewable energies have to utilised. Wave energy is amongst the highest energy dense and predictable offshore resources, European targets aim for the development of 40 GW by 2050. However, the impacts of changing climates on the future energy density of the resource, and it connectivity to robust wave energy converter designs has not been assessed. Aim(s) This project aims to shed light and investigate results from numerical modelling, identification of wave energy resource and trends based on spatio-temporal distributions of varied scales. Amongst the methods use may be the use multivariate energy analysis of resources that examines the persistence and quantify multi-renewable power generation over varied domains and timescales. Supervisor Contact information Dr. George Lavidas ( g.lavidas@tudelft.nl ) Maximising LCoE reductions in wave energy by limiting power production, impacts and pitfalls Introduction Wave Energy Converter (WECs) are devices that are used to produce power and can be combined to form large scale arrays. There are several various WEC designs, which utilise different techniques for energy extraction. Their production depends on their capture ability and the power-take-off (PTO) system used to convert captured energy into electrical power. As in the case of any other renewable energy generator, we need to compare the economic performance and consider it within the Energy Transition. Aim(s) This project will focus on the techno-economic evaluation of different WECs by comparing their uncapped and capped power performance. Power production capabilities will differ for each case, and it may skew the perceived benefits. The study will need to investigate cost based on geometry characteristics the expected capital expenditure. To compare the capped and uncapped techno-economic performance, various approaches will need to be taken into account, such as LCoE, VALCOE etc. the goal will be to provide an unbiased approach, to whether limiting power production, benefits the economic performance. The project will investigate non-linear effects on WECs, and production. Subsequently, will look into the economics aspects based on the hydrodynamics and key selection metrics chosen for the design. Supervisor Contact information Dr. George Lavidas ( g.lavidas@tudelft.nl ), Ir. Vaibhav Raghavan ( v.raghavan@tudelft.nl ) Wave Energy arrays as adaptation methods Introduction Wave Energy Converter (WECs) are devices that are used to produce power and can be combined to form large scale arrays. There are several different WEC designs, hence, there are opportunities for very different approaches in the deployment of wave farms. Similar to wind farms , wave energy arrays will have wake effects that will be affected by the device selected, latitude and longitude distances, as well as incident wave energy direction. The impacts of wave energy farms on the wave resource, and subsequently at the coastlines have not been fully investigated so far. Aim(s) The project aims to develop/enhance a fully spectral numerical wave model with the introduction of different WEC devices. It also aims to develop a methodology to assess the impacts of different array configurations on overall power production versus an individual WEC, known as a q-factor. It also aims to assess the impact of wake effects in reducing the incoming waves and estimate the impacts at coastlines. The approach will allow to develop the most optimal strategies for deployment of WEC arrays at large scale, with aims to enhance power production but also use WEC farms as mitigation methods for coastal impacts. Supervisor Contact information Dr. George Lavidas ( g.lavidas@tudelft.nl ), Ir. Vaibhav Raghavan ( v.raghavan@tudelft.nl )
