Local company Pure Marine, based at Catalyst Inc, has proven it is among the best in the world when it comes to wave energy. Their DUO technology has been selected as one of only nine finalists for the US Department of Energy’s (DoE) Wave Energy Prize competition.
The global competition is seeking to identify the emerging technology best placed to create a step change in the cost of energy generated from waves. After an initial assessment of 94 proposals, followed by the detailed assessment of 20 technologies, the DoE has selected the 9 that they believe have the most potential to cut the cost of generating electricity from wave power by half. The DoE contributed $125k to each of the 9 finalists for the construction and testing of a larger scale device at the US Navy’s MASK test facility in Carderock, Maryland. Pure Marine are currently in the States for the finals.
The selection process involved assessment of numerical modeling data followed by tank testing of 1/50th-scale models of the 20 devices taken through the initial assessment. The 1/50th-scale DUO device, designed and built at Catalyst Inc in Belfast, was tested across the full-range of sea-states at the University of Iowa’s recently installed state-of-the-art test facility. Results were then assessed by an independent technical team commissioned by the US DoE, which has resulted in Pure Marine’s DUO being selected for the final stage in the process.
The Pure Marine team, based at Catalyst Inc in the heart of an area synonymous with Belfast’s maritime past, are now into the final testing of a larger 1/20th-scale device with the aim of capturing the $1.5m prize available for the winning technology.
“It is really encouraging that following a rigorous, independent technical assessment the DUO technology has been demonstrated to perform so well and has been selected for the final of the competition”, said Paul Brewster, Chief Technology Officer at Pure Marine, “This is exactly the type of thorough, independent analysis that investors have been seeking to give them the confidence to invest in the DUO technology.”
Norman Apsley CEO of the Science Park added, “It is wonderful to see a technology developed in Belfast, and the determination, skill and ingenuity of Pure Marine’s team, be rewarded in this way. Such competitions in the US are a big deal, a precursor to significant interest and a commensurate investment. Paul has been based at Catalyst Inc since its formation working on various marine energy projects and was noticed by our patron HRH Duke of York, KG, who introduced him to some of the biggest players in global energy through the Pitch@Palace initiative to support Entrepreneurs. So I wish Paul all the luck in the world as he goes through the final testing. If anyone deserves success, he does!”
