A review of ocean wave energy conversion systems

The start of the new millennium has been co-incident with an energy crisis. With the price of energy increasing and concerns about environmental damages as a result of using fossil fuels, there is a growing attention toward utilization of renewable energy sources. In particular, ocean energy conversion has been of interest for many years. In this paper, different types of wave-energy converters are presented, and certain issues related to design, implementation and control strategies are discussed. Energy storage for ocean wave energy converters is investigated. An outline of available laboratory prototypes and commercial ocean wave energy converters are also presented.