Document Type
Article
Publication Date
4-15-2026
Department
Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
Abstract
As multiple-degree-of-freedom (3-DOF) wave energy converters (WECs) have demonstrated the ability to produce more power than single-degree-of-freedom devices, the challenge of designing buoys for efficient energy harvesting has increased in complexity. In this paper, a cylindrical WEC is designed to naturally resonate in surge, pitch, and heave modes at a specific target frequency of 0.2 Hz. By utilizing a penalty-based optimization method to balance buoyancy requirements with natural resonance, the design achieves minimal control force input, thereby reducing fluctuations in energy output and local energy storage requirements. The performance is evaluated under irregular sea states using a Bretschneider spectrum. Results indicate that a buoy optimized to naturally resonate at the modal frequency of a sea state provides consistent power with significantly reduced reactive power demand compared to non-optimized designs.
Publication Title
Applied Sciences Switzerland
Recommended Citation
Ballen, G.,
Wilson, D.,
Robinett, R.,
Zou, S.,
&
Weaver, W.
(2026).
Three Degree of Freedom Wave Energy Converter Design for Resonant Motion.
Applied Sciences Switzerland,
16(8).
http://doi.org/10.3390/app16083834
Retrieved from: https://digitalcommons.mtu.edu/michigantech-p2/2508
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Version
Publisher's PDF
Publisher's Statement
Copyright: © 2026 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. Publisher’s version of record: https://doi.org/10.3390/app16083834