Positive Drift of Backward‐Bent Duct Barge

Abstract

Results of an experimental and theoretical study of the positive drift of a 1.7-m model of a backward-bent duct barge (BBDB) wave energy conversion system are presented. The results show that the positive drift of the BBDB model is experienced over a rather wide range of wave frequencies. This frequency range depends on a number of parameters that include the water depth and the weight distribution of the barge. The driving force for the positive drift is at the 90° bend in the internal water-column duct located at the bow, while the direction of the drift is a function of the phase difference between the water-column oscillations and the external wave at the bow.