Innovator: Oregon State University School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Headquarters: Corvallis, Ore.
Team members: 15
Focus: Research, development and testing of wave power
Interviewees: Dr. Annette von Jouanne, Dr. Alan Wallace

Wind and solar power are the current winners in a high-stakes battle to take the “alternative” out of alternative energy.

In 2004, more than 7,000 MW of new wind power capacity was installed and more than 1,000 MW of solar PV modules were manufactured globally. Both the wind and solar sectors are expanding by more than 30 percent per year and are in the headlines on a near daily basis.

In comparison, ocean power (wave, tidal, and thermal conversion) is like a long-lost stepchild. Globally, less than 1 MW of offshore grid-connected wave power is currently in operation. Until recently, there was general consensus among most energy experts that wave power solutions, while promising, were far-off science projects with little chance of near-term success.

But lately, the tide seems to be turning. Last August, Ocean Power Delivery, a wave power company, successfully unveiled the world’s first commercial-scale grid-tied wave energy converter off the coast of Orkney, Scotland. The system is currently being tested and providing power for about 500 U.K. households serviced by energy giant ScottishPower (ScottishPower is parent company of PacifiCorp).

A range of other announcements have been touted in respected international newspapers, on web sites and in the blogosphere. China announced plans to build a wave power station to meet the electricity needs of a small fishing village. Verdant Power announced plans to place six underwater turbines at the bottom of New York City’s East River. And the United Kingdom unveiled a new financing scheme to provide £42 million to wave power development.

The amount of wave energy available off the coasts of the United States is nine to 10 times the energy currently generated by all of the country's hydroelectric dams, according to a 2004 report issued by the respected Electric Power Research Institute, an independent think tank based in Palo Alto, Calif. The study determined that wave energy conversion may be economically feasible within the United States as soon as wave technology reaches a cumulative production volume of 10,000-20,000 MW.

The report also identified a number of ideal U.S. locations for the development of offshore wave power. Near the top of the list was Reedsport, Ore.

Industry experts point out that water power could have several advantages over wind power, including visibility advantages (unlike wind turbines, water turbines are mostly hidden under water or located just above the surface) and the compelling fact that water currents have about 1,000 times more energy density than wind currents.

How can the Northwest exploit this potentially rich resource?

If the dedicated and ambitious folks at Oregon State University’s (OSU) School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science are successful, Oregon might end up being one of the key global players in the emerging wave energy sector.

Dr. Annette von Jouanne and Dr. Alan Wallace, who are leading the charge, started researching opportunities in the wave energy space nearly seven years ago. They began submitting research proposals five years ago, and they launched their first project two years ago, after raising about $350,000 in initial grant money.

Their efforts are starting to pay off. To date, their team of 15 (the two professors plus three graduate and 10 undergraduate students) have developed three low-scale wave buoy prototypes which convert the linear movement of waves into electricity. One was built and tested late last year, and the second and third prototypes are likely to be tested in April.

Now they’re working to establish the U.S. Ocean Energy Research and Demonstration Center, which would be based out of OSU and an offshore wave demonstration facility in Reedsport.

Von Jouanne and Wallace said the wave power industry can be likened to the wind power industry of 20 to 30 years ago. Back then, there were no standards or preferred designs for wind turbines. Today, the wind industry is built upon proven, reliable, and near-ubiquitous three-blade horizontal-axis technology.

The goal of the OSU team and the new research center is to help industry discover the optimal topology for wave turbines. They aim to do this by streamlining the design, development, and testing of emerging wave technologies, and by applying lessons learned from the wind industry. Von Jouanne and Wallace said the research could take years off the development and commercialization cycle of a new generation of wave power technologies.

OSU might have hit upon a winning trifecta for the development and deployment of wave power. The university claims to be home to the highest-power energy systems laboratory of any university in the nation. It hosts a world-class wave research laboratory with a 340-foot wave flume, and it is within easy reach of the coastal areas off Reedsport.

But a thriving wave power future will take considerable effort to develop. There are a host of challenges facing the development of wave power, not the least of which include environmental disputes (potential fish kill and other ecological issues), limited financial and political support, and a history of technological fits and starts.

Indeed, it will take a confluence of technological, political, and market forces for the center, and a vibrant wave power industry, to come to fruition. But if the professors at OSU are able to reach their goal -- a wave power revolution may soon be coming to an Oregon coast near you.