Power absorption and dynamic response analysis of a hybrid system with a semi-submersible wind turbine and a Salter's duck wave energy converter array

A multi-energy system that integrates a floating offshore wind turbine (FOWT) with wave energy converters (WEC) is an effective way to commercialize new offshore energy and the levelized cost of energy in the future. This paper proposes a FOWT-WEC hybrid system concept consisting of a semi-submersible FOWT with a Salter's duck (SD) WEC array. A coupling framework is established based on OpenFAST and ANSYS-AQWA. A preliminary feasibility study is conducted on the power absorption and motion response of the hybrid system to evaluate the interaction between the SD WEC array and the FOWT. Systematic studies demonstrate that the SD WEC array significantly reduces the motion response of the hybrid system in terms of pitch and heave. An increase in the equilibrium position of the platform in the surge direction does not have a large effect on the stability of the system. The WEC array improves the stability of wind power output and can be used as an effective supplement to power generation. The effect of wave direction shows that the SD WEC has a high sensitivity to the angle of incident waves, and the diffraction and radiation from the platform have a large impact on the power absorption of the SD WEC array.