198 



When you apply these factors, the wave energy could potentially 

 supply about 1,300 megawatts in the Washington-Oregon area. This 

 is between 5 and 10 percent of the power generated in that region. 



Mr. Studds. Let me interrupt you one second. Dr. Katz. 



If there are members of the audience — I know there are many in 

 the audience who have seen these slides, but if there are people in 

 the audience who have not seen the slide presentation being made 

 and wish to do so, feel free to sit around the lower rung of chairs 

 here, if you think your reputations can stand being confused with 

 Members of Congress. You would be perfectly welcome to do so. 



Go ahead. 



Dr. Katz. Before I discuss the Department of Energy's program 

 in wave energy, it is important to note that there is a significant 

 international effort in the development of wave energy. It is an 

 important element of our program to maintain an effective liaison 

 with the international community, both to minimize duplication of 

 effort, and also to get the maximum technical return on the invest- 

 ment of the U.S. research and development dollar. 



Because the British have one of the best wave energy resources, 

 the United Kingdom pursues a broad spectrum of wave energy 

 development. They have expended in 1979, as well as in 1980, 

 approximately $8 million a year in R. & D. funds for wave energy 

 development. Most of their early research has been in the develop- 

 ment of devices that are generally deployed parallel to the wave 

 front. These are called beam sea devices, and two of them are 

 shown in the chart. 



The British have determined that the delivered electric power 

 costs of their initial designs were exceptionally high. In fact, they 

 were about 1000 mills per kilowatt hour. These costs were primar- 

 ily due to the high structural costs and high mooring costs that are 

 needed for such beam-sea devices. 



Redesign of the British devices is now reported to bring the 

 electric power cost estimates at the Scottish coastline down to 

 about 100 to 300 mills per kilowatt hour. While these costs are still 

 generally uneconomic, they may be reasonable for small, isolated 

 applications where the resources are exceptionally good. 



The Norwegians also have a very interesting program in the 

 development of wave energy. They are emphasizing two systems 

 which enhance power production by concentrating wave energy 

 through focusing. I will be saying a little bit more about focusing 

 when I talk about our program. 



One of the systems seen here uses a set of submerged pilings that 

 bend the wave front and focus it to one point. As seen in the 

 diagram it is somewhat analogous to the way an optical lens focus- 

 es light rays to one point. 



Another technique they use is a resonant heaving buoy which is 

 designed to maximize the amplitude of its vertical motion, and 

 thereby capture as much energy as it can from the wave. 



To date the Norwegians have conducted both analytical studies 

 and also model tests of these devices. 



The Japanese, on the other hand, are emphasizing systems in 

 which air is driven through turbines by wave action, as shown in 

 that chart. They have been testing navigation buoys utilizing this 

 concept since the 1960's, and this approach is also under investiga- 



