In the vast, challenging world beneath the waves, powering underwater equipment has always been a sticky wicket. Batteries run out, and wired charging is a nightmare due to corrosion and safety hazards. But what if we could just zap power wirelessly, like we do with our phones? That’s the promise of wireless power transfer (WPT), and a team led by Saisai Hu from Shanghai Maritime University has just taken a big step forward in making it a reality for seawater environments.
Hu and her team, from the Key Laboratory of Transport Industry of Marine Technology and Control Engineering, have been tinkering with a system that uses magnetically coupled resonant wireless power transfer (MCR-WPT). This fancy term basically means using magnetic fields to transfer power without wires. Their system uses a clever circuit design called SEPIC (Single-Ended Primary Inductance Converter) to keep the power steady, even when the distance or angle between the sender and receiver changes. As Hu puts it, “The scheme can effectively adapt to the complex transmission conditions of a WPT system in a seawater environment.”
So, what does this mean for the maritime world? Well, imagine underwater robots, sensors, and other gadgets that can stay powered up for longer, without needing frequent battery changes or risky wired charging. This could revolutionize everything from deep-sea exploration to offshore wind farm maintenance. Plus, it could make underwater operations safer and more efficient, as Hu notes, “The system has good applicability and application prospects in seawater environments.”
The team put their system to the test in an underwater experimental platform, tweaking the distance, angle, and offset between the sender and receiver. They found that their system could handle these changes like a champ, with only minor fluctuations in power. Even when they threw in dynamic changes, the system stayed stable, with a maximum current fluctuation of just 0.15 A. That’s a big deal, as it shows the system can handle the real-world challenges of underwater environments.
But there’s still work to be done. The team found that the system’s rectifier diode area gets hot, which could be a problem in the long run. They suggest using power devices with low conduction loss and high-temperature resistance to fix this. Plus, they’re looking into ways to boost the transmission distance and efficiency, and even explore multi-device wireless charging for underwater robot swarms.
This research, published in the World Electric Vehicle Journal, is a big step forward in making wireless charging a reality for the maritime sector. It’s not just about convenience; it’s about enabling safer, more efficient, and more ambitious underwater operations. So, keep an eye on this space – the future of underwater power is looking wireless.