Advanced WEC Dynamics and Controls MASK3 Test

Abstract

Sandia National Laboratories and the Department of Energy (DOE) have completed on a multi-year program to examine the effects of control theory on increasing power produced by resonant wave energy conversion (WEC) devices. The tank tests have been conducted at the Naval Surface Warfare Center Carderock Division (NSWCCD) Maneuvering and Sea Keeping Basin (MASK) in West Bethesda, MD. This report outlines the "MASK 3 " wave tank test within the Advanced WEC Dynamics and Controls (AWDC) project. This test represents the final test in the AWDC project. The focus of the MASK 3 test was to consider coordinated 3 -degree-of-freedom ( 3 DOF) control of a WEC in a realistic ocean environment. A key aspect of this test was the inclusion of a "self-tunine mechanism which uses an optimization algorithm to update controller gains based on a changing sea state. The successful implementation of the self-tuning mechanism is the last crucial step required for such a controller to be implemented in real ocean environments.