Page 43: of Offshore Engineer Magazine (Jan/Feb 2024)

42 44

was with a company that developed software for naval archi- tecture applications, and I ran with that and earned a Master’s in Ocean Engineering at Oregon State University, which is where I frst started working on Wave Energy. Next I went to the University of Edinburgh to do my PhD in Hydrodynam- ics and Wave Energy. And then the funding opportunity came up and my co-founder Chris Retzler and I started Mocean.

Before we dig into BlueStar and its applica- tion in helping to electrify the sea floor, can you give us the overview of the Mocean wave energy converter technology?

Conceptually, our wave energy devices is very simple me- chanically: we have a big hinge and waves cause a fexing about that hinge that drives a generator. But what we’ve brought to the table is innovations around the shape of the machine. Our prototype has these big scoops on the front and the back that we call wave channels. They do a number of somewhat nuanced and complex hydrodynamic things, but basically they cause the machine to move a lot more in waves. And if you move more in waves, you generate more power. (To develop the machine) we developed a software optimization program that created tens of thousands of dif- ferent shape concepts, we ran them through a simulation and competed them against one another to fnd the best.

What are the biggest maintenance consider- ations of the unit?

Mechanically it’s very simple, it’s a hinge that moves back and forth and drives a generator. I think some of the more challenging aspects of that are converting that low speed, high torque mechanical power into electrical power.

Generators typically want to run fast, whereas what we have is a very slow speed power and we’re using a gearbox

To start us off, can you give us a by the num- to convert that into electricity. So that’s something that bers look at Mocean Energy today?

needs special consideration, but we are generating more

Mocean Energy has been operating since 2016, today we and more data around that.

have 23 people. We have built a 10-kW prototype that’s been tested at sea for more than 14 months. Our frst prod-

Is there a ‘fail safe’ mode for when the waves uct, Blue Star, will be 20 kW of wave energy and fve kW get too big?

of solar and that will be about saving money and CO2 in

We designed the system to be fail safe; it doesn’t need offshore operations. to enter any survival mode. That’s intentional because if something breaks and you can’t enter (or exit) that survival

What attracted you to this business and when mode of operation, you’re in trouble. We’ve seen some big did you know that yours would be a career in storms this past year, we have some great videos on YouTube ocean technology?

from cameras on the machine. The front of the machine has

Like most careers, it’s a bit of a winding journey. I grew up this big slope plate that ensures that the bow always stays in Maryland going out on the water and sailing. My frst job submerged. Waves are over topping (the unit) and that’s a january/february 2024 OFFSHORE ENGINEER 43