As waves crash into its hull, The Penguin rotates in place, gyrating around a central point transferring and capturing the energy from the waves crashing into it,” Wello explains. “The unique asymmetrical shape of the device is designed to capture the energy in the waves from all sides of the device. The first full scale prototype of the Penguin was ready for action shortly thereafter, in 2011, designed to maximize the rotational forces. “During these test phases, Heikki came to a realization, if a device has the correct shape, it should move a stored mass within the device to rotate,” Wello Oy explains on its website.Īfter assessing other available wave energy conversion devices on the market Heikki was convinced that no-one else was pursuing that pathway, leading him to found Wello Oy in 2008. The design approach comes from Wello founder and CEO Heikki Paakkinen, who spent his early years growing up in Finland, building boats and experimenting with non-motorized propulsion. Instead of designing the hull for maximum stability, the company’s “Penguin” wave energy converter is designed to be as unstable as possible. Wello has flipped the boat design approach on its head, though. Part of the solution is to encapsulate the working components in a sheath or hull, which is basically how any boat builder would protect the innards of a boat. The main challenge is how to convert the kinetic energy of waves into an electrical current without exposing the mechanical systems to salt water. utility-scale electricity generation in 2021,” says the US Energy Information Administration. “The theoretical annual energy potential of waves off the coasts of the United States is estimated to be as much as 2.64 trillion kilowatthours, or the equivalent of about 64% of total U.S. The US is among the nations hungrily eying wave energy for rapid decarbonization. A Wave Energy Converter Disguised As A Boat Among the latest developments is a new design approach so simple and intuitive it almost hurts, from the Finnish company Wello Oy. The wave energy field has been lagging far behind wind and solar, but the pace is finally beginning to pick up.
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