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Evaluation of 1/100th Scale Mooring Systems for Wave Energy Converters

Published by National Laboratory of the Rockies | Department of Energy | Metadata Last Checked: January 27, 2026 | Last Modified: 2025-12-11T21:36:49Z
This study evaluates the feasibility, accuracy, and limitations of using 1/100th scale physical mooring systems to represent full-scale mooring behavior for wave energy converters (WECs) during small-scale tank testing. The work focuses on an RM3-style point absorber deployed in conditions representative of the PacWave South test site and examines whether small-scale physical testing can reliably inform numerical modeling, design decisions, and future prototype development. Testing occurred in the National Lab of the Rockies' 13,000 gal wave tank. The data channels captured were: Wave height, mooring line tension, 6DOF orientation and position of two WEC bodies. The tests conducted were: three wave cases, free decay, forced displacement, tank characterization, and mooring line spring constant characterization For more information on the project and the dataset please see the "Dataset Description" resource below.

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