National Laboratory of the Rockies Advances Wave Energy Modeling for Enhanced Device Performance
Researchers at the National Laboratory of the Rockies (NLR) are making significant advancements in wave energy modeling to support the development and deployment of wave energy technologies. These technologies are crucial for providing reliable, local power to autonomous underwater vehicles and at-sea applications, particularly in U.S. coastal regions where traditional energy sources are limited or costly. The NLR's efforts focus on integrating simulation tools like WEC-Sim and Capytaine, which model the dynamic behavior of wave energy converters and calculate hydrodynamic forces on floating structures, respectively. Recent updates to these tools have improved their speed, accuracy, and flexibility, allowing developers to reduce risk, optimize designs, and accelerate the deployment of wave energy devices. These advancements are expected to enhance the performance prediction and reliability assessment of marine energy systems. 
