Sustainable Energy: Wave Energy Potential Analysis, Death Coast Report

This report presents an analysis of wave energy potential along the Death Coast in Spain, leveraging a 44-year dataset and wave buoy data. The study focuses on the coastal area from Cape Finisterre to the Sisarga Isles, examining wave climate and energy resources. The research includes the analysis of 18 sites, with 2 wave buoys and 16 SIMAR-44 points. The findings reveal an average annual wave power of 50 kW/m and yearly energy exceeding 400 MWh/m. A coastal wave propagation model was implemented and validated to investigate nearshore energy patterns. The report discusses the current state of wave energy technology, the model of the coastal wave, offshore energy resources, impact on energy systems, barriers, and opportunities, technical developments, and the author's personal view. The study highlights the significant wave energy potential in the region and provides insights into its assessment and utilization.

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The newly available data set of SIMAR which covers up to a period of 44 years has been used
alongside the wave buoy data in the assessments of the resource of wave energy along the Death
Coast in this particular paper. This is specifically an area which covers the craggy stretch to the
Sisarga Isles from Cape Finisterre. Its coastline configuration together with the location at the
north-western corner of the Iberian Peninsula has led to the exposure to a wide range of
directions of the wave over the Atlantic fetch which is very long. The study has included analysis
of at least 18 sites of the study two of which are wave buoys and the rest 16 are SIMAR-44
points. The average power yearly power of the wave in the area of the Death coast has been
found to be of the order 50 kWm1 with the yearly energy of the wave exceeding 400 MWhm-1.
The model of the wave propagation of coastal wave was later implemented and its subsequent
validation based on the measurements of the wave buoy. This was very crucial in the
investigation of the nearshore energetic patterns.

Contents
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY.................................................................................................................................2
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................................3
Case Study: Wave energy potential along the Death Coast (Spain..............................................................3
Data of the wave.....................................................................................................................................3
Current State of the Technology.................................................................................................................4
The model of the coastal wave................................................................................................................4
The resources of the offshore energy......................................................................................................7
Impact on the energy system and other fuels.......................................................................................15
Barriers and Opportunities....................................................................................................................16
Technical Development now and in the future.....................................................................................17
Personal View of the technology...........................................................................................................17
CONCLUSION.............................................................................................................................................18
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................................20
INTRODUCTION
Wave energy is known as one of the renewable sources of energy with the highest potential for
adoption and growth in the next few years. Several solutions have been developed in terms of the
technology and have become the objective of the intensive research. It is interesting to note that

the technological challenge despite its importance is not only the criteria for effective wave
energy exploitation. A thorough assessment of the resource is necessary in regard to the view of
crucial spatial variations within the context of the wave climate. The coastlines of the Atlantic in
the case of Western Europe are a representation of large energy resource of the waves
(Ringwood Bacelli and Fusco 2014).
Case Study: Wave energy potential along the Death Coast
(Spain)
Data of the wave
The data of the wave applies in the study consist of the numerical data as well as the onsite wave
buoy data. The numerical data consist of the SIMAR-44 set of data, which include the level of
the sea, hindcast wind as well as the data of the wave which start from 1st January 1958 to 31st
December 2001 in the frequency of three hours, therefore covering the Iberian Peninsula. This
set of data was provided by puertos del estado who was a Spain state port. He did the numerical
modelling framework of the European project that is the Hindcast of Dynamic Process of the
ocean and Coastal Area of Europe (HIPOCAS) (Veigas, López and Iglesias 2014).
The data of the waves were computed using the third generation model of the wave WAM that is
the wave prediction model. The fourth cycle having forced with the data of the wind got from the
REMO (the regional atmospheric model). The model was the forced to access the result of about
44 years’ atmospheric reanalysis that was done in U.S. NCEP (The national center for
environmental prediction, used in the integration of instrumental as well as satellite data. This
was running within the grid of latitude of 30 x longitude of 30 thus covering the North Atlantic

as use similar as the WAM model. The current works in the sixteen points of the SIMAR-44 data
set near to the cost of northwest Spain were applied (Veigas, López and Iglesias 2014).
Additionally, the numerical data were also measurements from two wave’s buoys operations as
per Puertos del Estado model. The set of data from both buoys cover the same ten years’ duration
as per the approximation from 13may 1998 to 30th august 2008 while considering Vilian-Sisargas
case from 7th may 1998 up to 18th December 2008 in consideration of Langosteira case of the
hourly frequency.
The Villain Sisargas is one of the deepest water buoy (moored within 386m of water), while the
Langosteira is a near shore buoy moored about 40m of water (Zodiatis et al.2014). Therefore, it
should be exercised with care, though, when the integration of a certain value that were got from
the wave records such as the average and even the maximum wave power value, then these
record may present blank periods because of malfunctioning as well as the buoy maintenance
which was not evenly distributed all over the year (Zi et al 2016). In most cases they only
correspond to the winter season, thus the conditions of winter are underrepresented which may
be later.
Current State of the Technology
The model of the coastal wave
Most of the process always affects waves within their propagation starting from deep water
towards the coastline. In consideration to the indication in the first section, most of the result of
these processes confirms that there are different properties of wave in the nearshore and even
sometimes significant from those of deep water (Carballo et al.2015). From this point of view,
the nearshore wave energy pattern within the death coast area as per the investigation of this

work was done by SWAN (Simulating Waves Nearshore). And even that of the well proven
spectral coastal propagation model which is based on the wave action conservation considered
power of waves as per the computation of SWAN on the x-axis as well as on the components of
y-axis (Zhang et al 2017).
Figure 1: The SWAN mode computational grid (Carballo et al.2015).
In this case x and y are the geographical coordinates, the density of water p, the acceleration
gravity g, the velocity of the group cg as well as directional spectral density S(f,0), helping in the

specification on how the is being distributed over frequencies f as well as in directions 0. The
magnitude of the wave power is given by:
, having units of Wm-1 within the SI (the power of wave /wave energy flux
per unit length of the front property of wave itself (Abanades, Greaves and Iglesias 2014).
The grid of the computational covers Iberian Peninsula to the corner of north western, starting
from Cape Curbed up to Cape Prior having a very varying resolution that is six hundred to seven
hundred offshore as well as two hundred to three hundred near the shore (Wen et al.2014). At the
nodes of the grid, the water depth reference was interpolated rom the nautical charts 927, 412 as
well as 928 of the Spanish Hydrographic Institute and the Admiralty chart 1111. The bathymetry
resulting as from the model was shown in the figure below.
Figure 2: The region bathymetry as used in the application of the SWAN model (Carballo et
al.2015).

The area of Wave energy along the Death Coast (Spain) utilizes wave energy converters which
are capable of capturing the energy contained in the waves of the oceans and use it in the
generation of the electricity. Generally there categories of the system exists in various location of
the Wave energy potential along the Death Coast (Spain). Oscillating columns of water which
uses trapped pockets of air in driving of turbines during electricity generation (Aydoğan, Ayat
and Yüksel 2013). Secondly, oscillating body converters which are submerged or floating
devices are depending on the specific type of the wave motion in the generation of the electricity.
The resources of the offshore energy.
The assessment of the offshore wave climate that was done within ten sites of the study covered
areas in and the ones adjacent to the Death Coast area in eight SIMAR- 44 points as well as two
buoys. Eight additional SIMAR-44 points along the Galician shoreline were also studied during
the study so as to grasp how the area of the death coast can be compared to the other region when
considering the energy of wave. 16 SIMAR -44 point as well as the two wave buoys that are the
villain Sisargas and Longosteira have been illustrated in the table below.
The table has given presentation on both coordinates as well as the depth of the study site within
the parameters that are very relevant to the characterization of resources of the wave energy from
the area of the study. The mean represents the height of the wave having a standard deviation,
the significant maximum height of the wave, the power of the mean wave as well as maximum
power of the wave (Mustapa et al.2017). The figures in the table indicate the very significant
resources of wave energy within the region, having the annual mean wave power value that
exceeds 25KW/m as well as maximum power of the wave which value above 1000KW/m al
most of the sites if not all.

The highest potential of the wave energy is found in the area along the Death cost and followed
with the area around cape Estacio de Bares ( Sierra et al.2013). The site of the Death Coast gives
the annual power of mean wave in the order of 50KW/m, having a maximum value more than
1700KW/m. Having a maximum significant wave height of 15m which correspond to maximum
wave height of 27m was therefore, the highest values found in the site seven which is 400m
deep. This is due to the fact that in this point the energy dissipating processes also associate with
the reducing depths of water which have partly join the play (Veigas, López and Iglesias 2014).
Table 1: The table showing the study site overview.

Figure 3: Showings seasonal wave roses taken from villain seagrass buoy data (Aydoğan, Ayat
and Yüksel 2013).
The comparison of average as well as maximum values between this site that is SIMAR-44points
with the nearby villain sisargas buoy, require the bearing the two fact in mind. One is the
existence of the relevant blank periods within the records of buoy, especially in the winter period
as per the above mentioned. Second one the varying duration of the data which correspond.
Therefore, may be only reasonable that the significant wave height value (or for the matter, the
wave power values) within site seven must be well above the villain sisargas record (Foret
2016).

When regarding other sites of study of the Death Coast, site six is somehow near to the shoreline
with 100m of the water. When considering the mean as well as maximum wave power values,
which are lower those of the seventh site, are considered to be still significant. While the fifth
and eighth site are nearer to the south western as well as north eastern Death coast limits, within
the water intermediate length between sites six and seven. This always presents the average
intermediate values as well as maximum power of the wave (Zuo and Tang 2013).
The Cape Finisterre that starts from the Latin finis tarrae that is the land end is making the end
of the Death Coast to the southern part. In the further towards the south of the coastline
configuration gives shelter forming the northerly as well as north easterly swells, having the
result of both first and fourth sites with a considerably less power of the wave. the other side of
the Death Coast, especially towards the east of Sisargas, shows a decrease in the power of the
wave because of the configuration of the coastline, which act as a shelter of the nearshore in this
case starting from Artabrian Gulf, which is made from the two coastline junction having east
west as well as north –south orientations thus explaining its low mean value and even the
maximum wave power (Wang 2017). With consideration of the Artabrian Gulf towards the north
wave power increase again, that form a peak in the twelfth sight, North West of the Cape Estaca
de Bares (the northern inmost Iberian Peninsula point).
The thirteenth and fourteenth sites respectively north as well as north east of Cape Estaca de
Bares, also give a presentation of the high values of the wave power. Far towards the east that is
fifteenth as well as sixteenth wave power plunges because of the shelter from the westerly wave
given by the mass of the land culminating in the cape (Zhou et al.2013).

Coming back to the Death Coast, it is also very significant wave energy resource gives a clear
relation to its location within the north-western Iberian Peninsula corner as well as the
orientation of the coastline. That is roughly south west towards north east, therefore resulting to
in an exposure to a broad range of direction of the wave, as per the illustration in the figure
above, the wave roses of the SIMAR- 44 sites within, as well as to those that are in the adjacent
to, the area of the Death Coast (according to the both tenth and third site).