Aerosol Can Voiding Device

Despite years of R&D, most methods of ocean wave energyconversion (OWEC) are still indirect, bulky, expensive, andmechanically-inefficient. This is not due to bad engineering.The problem is mechanical impedance matching; ocean waves offerup their power as very strong forces (10's of tons) acting atvery low velocities (< 1 m/s). To couple this power toconventional high-speed rotary electric generators, inefficientmechanisms such as spin-up gearboxes or airpressurization/turbine systems are needed. In contrast, SARA'sapproach replaces those elements with a direct-conversionmagnetohydrodynamic (MHD) generator. The impedance-matchingburden is shifted from the mechanical to the electrical domain,where the high currents and low voltages generated via MHD mustbe converted to practical levels. Fortunately, this can be donewith modern electronic switches and transformers. The result isefficient, compact, economical, and deployable. During Phase I,we designed, built, and tested a small-scale liquid-metal MHDgenerator and solid-state power converter, generating 100's ofwatts at 115V AC and solidly validating the principles ofoperation. For Phase II, we propose to design, build, and testan even more efficient MHD device capable of generating up to 100kW, paving the way to transition this technology to real-worldOWEC applications.