Nonlinear Control of Wave Energy Converters

Energy-maximizing control of wave energy converters (WECs) has been shown to be one of the fundamental potential contributions towards efficient clean energy production. Linear dynamics are virtually always assumed when designing optimal controllers for wave energy converters. However, unlike traditional tracking control applications, the assumptions under which the linearization of WEC models is performed are challenged by the energy-maximizing controller itself, which intrinsically enhances device motion to maximize power extraction from incoming ocean waves, as shown in the video.

Recent research in the group has proposed a novel framework for nonlinear control of WECs which is efficient to implement and outperforms current linear techniques, as shown in the figure representing absorbed power of the linear (diamonds) vs nonlinear (circles) control laws. One of the resulting papers received the IEEE Transactions on Control Systems Technology Outstanding Paper Award from the IEEE Control Systems Society.

Big thanks to Giordano Scarciotti, Imperial College for providing the slide and congratulations to the research team for the IEEE Transactions on Control Systems Technology Outstanding Paper Award 2023