Wave Power Technology Concept ‘Anaconda’ Unveiled

A new concept in how to harness wave power which could be the basis for a new generation of coastal power generating technology has been unveiled by its designers. 

Known as the ‘Anaconda’, the product is simple in design – its essentially a rubber tube containing water – but, in the minds of a number of scientists, it could pave the way for future low-cost renewable energy technology.

The Anaconda works by riding the waves.  As it does so, these waves cause a pressure build-up along it which carries energy to the back.   Here, this energy collects to power a turbine and this process results in electricity production.

The Anaconda is a product of UK-based firm Checkmate Sea Energy, which has been carrying out trials of the technology using an initial, nine metre-long model.   These tests have been taking place in a dedicated wave tank facility on premises belonging to UK defence and research firm QinetiQ.

According to Checkmate, much larger Anacondas – more than 20 times the size of the prototype - could be developed, with the capacity to each provide power to 1,000 houses. 

Tidal and Wave Power

The UK is currently working towards a 2020 target of having 15 per cent of its energy derived from renewable energy sources.  According to the Carbon Trust, technologies that draw on tidal and wave power could go a long way towards achieving this goal.

“It's a completely new kind of wave power machine” Anaconda inventor Rod Rainey explained.

“The beauty of wave energy is its consistency.  However, the problem holding back wave energy machines is they tend to deteriorate over time in the harsh marine environment. 

“Anaconda is non-mechanical: it is mainly rubber, a natural material with a natural resilience and so it has very few moving parts to maintain.”

One further benefit of Anaconda is its ability to survive, Mr Rainey added, stating: “If the worst comes to the worst it'll only be washed up on the beach, and you can patch it up and put it back out there.”

For the future, Checkmate envisages hundreds of Anacondas sited in areas with considerable wave strength, like the coast of Scotland.  On the bigger scale, the technology could also be installed along Western Seaboards – the Irish, Japanese and/or US coasts, for example.

Anaconda Image copyright of Nigel Webb and provided by Checkmate Sea Energy