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Calcimator

Offshore Wind Foundation Calculator

Estimate wave energy resource and power output of a wave energy converter. Calculate wave power flux, captured power, and annual energy production.

Inputs

%
%

Results

Wave power flux (W/m)

8,379.72

Captured power (kW)

37.71

Annual energy (MWh/yr)

313.81

Total incident power (W)125,695.8
Energy period Te (s)8.1
Deep-water wavelength (m)126.5
Deep water? (1=yes, 0=no)0
Capacity Factor95
How to Use This Calculator
  1. Enter significant wave height Hs (m) and peak period Tp (s) for the site.
  2. Enter WEC capture width (m), PTO efficiency (%), and device availability (%).
  3. Read annual energy production (MWh) and capacity factor (%).
  4. Review wave power density (kW/m) to assess site resource quality.
  5. Use results to compare WEC performance across candidate sites for feasibility screening.

How the result changes with Significant wave height Hs (m)

Significant wave height Hs (m)Wave power flux (W/m)Captured power (kW)Annual energy (MWh/yr)
1.595,296.1923.83198.34
5.3159,068.86265.812,212.07
9.79200,786.7903.547,519.26
14410,606.321,847.7315,376.8

What each input means

Significant wave height Hs (m)
Mean significant wave height at the site.
Peak period Tp (s)
Peak spectral period of the sea state.
WEC capture width (m)
Effective capture width of the wave energy converter.
PTO efficiency (%)
Power take-off efficiency of the WEC system (wave to wire).
Availability (%)
Fraction of time the device is operational.
Water depth (m)
Water depth at deployment site for depth correction.
Water density (kg/m³)
Seawater density, typically 1025 kg/m³.

What each result means

Wave power flux (W/m)
Wave power per meter of crest width, corrected for water depth.
Total incident power (W)
Total wave power incident on the WEC capture width.
Captured power (kW)
Electrical power output after PTO efficiency losses.
Annual energy (MWh/yr)
Estimated annual energy production accounting for availability.
Energy period Te (s)
Energy period ≈ 0.9 * Tp for a JONSWAP spectrum.
Deep-water wavelength (m)
Wavelength in deep water from linear dispersion relation.
Deep water? (1=yes, 0=no)
1 if d/L0 > 0.5 (deep water), 0 if intermediate/shallow.

How this is calculated

Worked example, using the default values

  1. Identify Input Parameters
    4 parameters
    Significant wave height Hs (m) = 2, Peak period Tp (s) = 9, WEC capture width (m) = 15, PTO efficiency (%) = 30 = 7 input(s) provided
  2. Calculate Wave power flux
    Wave power flux = powerPerMeter * depthCorrectionFactor
    8379.72 = 8379.72
  3. Calculate Captured power
    Captured power = round((capturedPower / 1000) * 100) / 100
    37.71 = 37.71
  4. Calculate Annual energy
    Annual energy = aepKwh / 1000
    313.81 = 313.81
  5. Calculate Total incident power
    Total incident power = powerPerMeter * depthCorrectionFactor
    125695.8 = 125695.8
  6. Calculate Energy period Te
    Energy period Te = 0.9 * Tp
    8.1 = 8.1

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