Executive Director
Hmrc
University College Cork
Cork
Ireland

T: +353-21-490-3000
E: R.Alcorn@ucc.ie

Research Interests

Wave tidal and offshore wind energy.
Electrical Engineering.
Grid integration of renewables.
Power quality.
Renewable generation.
Air turbines (wells, impulse, Denniss-Auld)
Turbomachinery.
Control systems
Techno-financial analysis.

Research Grants

 ProjectFunding
Body
Start DateEnd DateAward
[EU QLKI-CT99-51197]{Guilbault,Prof} NMiscellaneous01-JAN-9030-SEP-09€173,826.00
Further 1/50 scale testing and 1/15 scale design and testing of a novel wave energy device - The "Orla" wave pump.Industry01-OCT-1105-DEC-12€33,000.00
Proposal Preparation SupportEnterprise Irl22-MAR-1213-NOV-12€15,925.00
Point Absorber WEC Enhancement (PAWECE)Industry04-JUL-0701-MAR-08€85,475.00
Irish Industry Review for Fleming IndustryIndustry01-MAR-0730-JUN-07€10,000.00
Investigate the applicability of new materials and reverse osmosis systems to it's existing wave energy system in terms of pumping pressures, flow rates, maintainence, control and lifetime.Enterprise Irl01-APR-1231-OCT-12€6,500.00
Oceanlinx - Mentoring of OLX Engineer in development of Simulink ModelForeign Industry27-APR-0931-DEC-09€7,649.00
Proposal preparation.Enterprise Irl01-OCT-1124-JUL-12€12,500.00
AWS Control System Development of ArchimedesForeign Industry07-APR-0831-AUG-08€14,222.00
Technical Review Panel for Proposals under the Ocean Energy Development Unit.Sustainable Energy Ireland (SEI)01-APR-1028-FEB-14€92,706.00
OWC Impulse Turbine for ESBIIndustry14-DEC-0730-SEP-11€120,000.00
Malachy Walsh & Partners Contact Tank CFD StudyIndustry14-NOV-0713-FEB-09€17,993.00
Feasibility Study ib JES Wave Energy Con...Industry01-NOV-0930-JUN-12€11,390.00
Evaluation of ' Wave Network' wave energy coverter with Helical Cone Compressors.Foreign Industry26-OCT-1131-MAY-12€58,946.00
Fusion Project Pure Marine GenMiscellaneous01-OCT-0809-AUG-10€37,864.00
HMRC Miscellanous AccountMiscellaneous31-AUG-0830-MAY-13€491,549.00
Off-shore Renewablfe Energy Conversion platforms - Coordination ActionEuropean Union01-MAR-1031-AUG-11€84,396.00
Houston Precision Engineering - Undertake concept development work for new type ocean energy device.Industry01-DEC-0928-MAR-10€6,900.00
EI"CS-2014-1048" Proposal PreparationEnterprise Irl18-AUG-1417-MAY-15€9,500.00
Electa WaterEnterprise Irl28-APR-1428-APR-15€6,500.00
SEI Renewable Energy Research, Development and Demonstration Programme 2012 and Annex IV.Sustainable Energy Ireland (SEI)27-JUL-1215-NOV-12€387.00
Ocean Energy - Test Site Galway Bay.Sustainable Energy Ireland (SEI)01-JUL-1431-DEC-16€225,982.00
MPT phase 1 & 2 test and development.Foreign Industry06-JUL-1231-MAR-13€97,062.00
Components for Ocean renewable Energy Syetems - Sea Testing and validation components and systems.Enterprise Irl29-JAN-1428-OCT-14€12,500.00
National Ocean Energy Test Facility Enhancement.Science Foundation of Ireland01-JAN-1331-DEC-15€1,225,888.00
Tidal Demonstration for Energy Scheme.European Union15-APR-1314-APR-18€103,200.00
SFI Ocean Energy Test Bed (with MI & DCU DEAI)Science Foundation of Ireland01-JAN-1330-JUN-15€464,834.00
Testing a scaled model of the Ocean Renewables novel Power Take Off system.Enterprise Irl18-MAY-1217-MAY-13€16,500.00
To provide design advice and help on maximising output and minisising the production cost of the Easy Wind vertical axis turbine.Enterprise Irl29-NOV-1229-MAY-14€6,500.00
Travel Support.Enterprise Irl01-APR-1230-APR-12€2,250.00
The provision of Research Services in connection with the Petroleum Infrastructure Programme Group 4.Industry01-SEP-1331-DEC-15€123,154.00
Proposal Preparation Support.Enterprise Irl27-JUN-1427-MAR-15€12,500.00
Patent Review, Analytical model and plan concept development.Enterprise Irl15-NOV-1314-NOV-14€6,500.00
The Pacific Marine Energy Centre South Energy Test SiteForeign Research Institute01-MAR-1428-FEB-15€57,620.00

Book Chapters

YearPublication
(2008)'Chapter 8 - Wave Energy'
R Alcorn T Lewis (2008) 'Chapter 8 - Wave Energy' In: Trevor M Letcher (eds). Future Energy. UK: Elsevier. [Details]
(2014)'Derisking Ocean Energy'
R Alcorn, G Dalton, M Healy, Michael O'Connor (2014) 'Derisking Ocean Energy' In: Adam Jolly (eds). Clean Tech Clean Profits - 2nd edition. UK, USA, India: Kogan Page. [Details]
(2013)'Chapter 17 - Wave Energy'
R Alcorn (2013) 'Chapter 17 - Wave Energy' In: Future Energy - 2nd Edition. USA: Elsevier. Globe icon [Details]
(2010)'2.3 Oceans of Potential'
R Alcorn T Lewis M Healy (2010) '2.3 Oceans of Potential' In: Adam Jolly (eds). Clean Tech Clean Profits. UK: IOD TSB. [Details]

Peer Reviewed Journals

YearPublication
(2012)'A 10 year installation program for wave energy in Ireland: A case study sensitivity analysis on financial returns'
Dalton, GJ,Alcorn, R,Lewis, T (2012) 'A 10 year installation program for wave energy in Ireland: A case study sensitivity analysis on financial returns'. Renewable Energy, 40 :80-89 [DOI] [Details]
(2010)'Case study feasibility analysis of the Pelamis wave energy convertor in Ireland, Portugal and North America'
Dalton, GJ,Alcorn, R,Lewis, T; (2010) 'Case study feasibility analysis of the Pelamis wave energy convertor in Ireland, Portugal and North America'. Renewable Energy, 35 :443-455 [DOI] [Details]
(2014)'FP7 EU funded CORES wave energy project: a coordinators' perspective on the Galway Bay sea trials'
Alcorn, Raymond and Blavette, Anne and Healy, Mark and Lewis, Anthony (2014) 'FP7 EU funded CORES wave energy project: a coordinators' perspective on the Galway Bay sea trials'. Underwater Technology, 32 (1) [Details]
(2014)'Challenges and lessons learned in the deployment of an offshore oscillating water column'
Kelly, J,O'Sullivan, D,Wright, WMD,Alcorn, R,Lewis, AW (2014) 'Challenges and lessons learned in the deployment of an offshore oscillating water column'. Compel-The International Journal For Computation And Mathematics In Electrical And Electronic Engineering, 33 :1678-1704 [DOI] [Details]
(2013)'On thermodynamics in the primary power conversion of oscillating water column wave energy converters'
Sheng, WA,Alcorn, R,Lewis, A (2013) 'On thermodynamics in the primary power conversion of oscillating water column wave energy converters'. Journal Of Renewable And Sustainable Energy, 5 [DOI] [Details]
(2014)'Physical modelling of wave energy converters'
Sheng, WN,Alcorn, R,Lewis, T (2014) 'Physical modelling of wave energy converters'. Ocean Engineering, 84 :29-36 [DOI] [Details]
(2014)'Impact of a Medium-Size Wave Farm on Grids of Different Strength Levels'
Blavette, A,O'Sullivan, DL,Alcorn, R,Lewis, TW,Egan, MG (2014) 'Impact of a Medium-Size Wave Farm on Grids of Different Strength Levels'. IEEE Transactions On Power Systems, 29 :917-923 [DOI] [Details]
(2014)'Challenges and Lessons Learned in the Deployment of an Offshore Oscillating Water Column'
Kelly, J; O'Sullivan, D; Wright, WMD; Alcorn, R; Lewis, AW; (2014) 'Challenges and Lessons Learned in the Deployment of an Offshore Oscillating Water Column'. The International Journal for Computation and Mathematics in Electrical and Electronic Engineering, 33 (5):1678-1704 [DOI] [Details]

Books

YearPublication
(2013)Electrical Design for Ocean Wave and Tidal Energy Systems.
R Alcorn, D O'Sullivan (2013) Electrical Design for Ocean Wave and Tidal Energy Systems. UK: IET. Globe icon [Details]
(2000)Wave Station Modelling Based on the Islay Prototype Plant.
Alcorn, R.G. (2000) Wave Station Modelling Based on the Islay Prototype Plant. : Queen's University of Belfast. [Details]

Other Journals

YearPublication
(2010)'Case study feasibility analysis of the Pelamis wave energy convertor in Ireland, Portugal and North America'
Dalton, Gordon J and Alcorn, Raymond and Lewis, T (2010) 'Case study feasibility analysis of the Pelamis wave energy convertor in Ireland, Portugal and North America' Renewable Energy, 35 (2) :443-455. [Details]
(2014)'On improving wave energy conversion, part II: Development of latching control technologies'
Wanan Sheng, Raymond Alcorn, Anthony Lewis (2014) 'On improving wave energy conversion, part II: Development of latching control technologies' Renewable Energy, :1-10. [Details]
(2011)'Testing of a floating OWC device with movable guide vane impulse turbine power take-off'
Thiebaut, F and DO‘Sullivan, P and Ceballos, S and L\'opez, J and Boake, C and Bard, J and Brinquete, N and Varandas, J and Gato, LMC and Alcorn, R and others (2011) 'Testing of a floating OWC device with movable guide vane impulse turbine power take-off' Proceedings of the 9th European Wave and Tidal Energy Conference, Southampton, UK, . [Details]
(2010)'Dynamic characteristics of wave and tidal energy converters \& a recommended structure for development of a generic model for grid connection, a report prepared by HMRC-UCC for the OES-IA Annex III'
O’Sullivan, Dara and Mollaghan, Darren and Blavette, Anne and Alcorn, Raymond (2010) 'Dynamic characteristics of wave and tidal energy converters \& a recommended structure for development of a generic model for grid connection, a report prepared by HMRC-UCC for the OES-IA Annex III' Available: www. iea-oceans. org, . [Details]
(2001)'Power quality assessment from the LIMPET wave-power station'
Alcorn, RG and Beattie, WC and others (2001) 'Power quality assessment from the LIMPET wave-power station' Proceedings of the 11th international offshore and polar engineering conference, 1 :17-22. [Details]
(2009)'Design and construction of an experimental wave energy device emulator test rig'
Duquette, J and O’Sullivan, D and Ceballos, S and Alcorn, R (2009) 'Design and construction of an experimental wave energy device emulator test rig' Proceedings of European Wave and Tidal Energy Conference, . [Details]
(1999)'Turbine modelling and analysis using data obtained from the islay wave-power plant'
Alcorn, RG and Beattie, WC and Douglas, R (1999) 'Turbine modelling and analysis using data obtained from the islay wave-power plant' The Proceedings of the... International Offshore and Polar Engineering Conference, . [Details]
(2004)'Control Strategy Development for an Inverter Controlled Wave Energy Plant'
Alcorn, RG and Finnigan, TD (2004) 'Control Strategy Development for an Inverter Controlled Wave Energy Plant' International Conference on Renewable Energies and Power Quality, . [Details]
(2001)'Wave-power in Island Communities'
Beattie, WC and Alcorn, RG (2001) 'Wave-power in Island Communities' INTERNATIONAL SOLAR ENERGY SOCIETY UK SECTION-CONFERENCE-C, :180-189. [Details]
(2013)'On thermodynamics in the primary power conversion of oscillating water column wave energy converters'
Sheng, Wanan and Alcorn, Raymond and Lewis, Anthony (2013) 'On thermodynamics in the primary power conversion of oscillating water column wave energy converters' Journal of Renewable and Sustainable Energy, 5 (2) . [Details]
(2005)'Results of the testing of the Energetech wave energy plant at Port Kembla'
Alcorn, R and Hunter, S and Signorelli, C and Obeyesekera, R and Finnigan, T and Denniss, T (2005) 'Results of the testing of the Energetech wave energy plant at Port Kembla' Energeth Report, . [Details]
(2011)'Development and operation of a power take off rig for ocean energy research and testing'
Rea, J and Kelly, J and Alcorn, R and O’Sullivan, D (2011) 'Development and operation of a power take off rig for ocean energy research and testing' Eur. Wave Tidal Energy Conf., Southampton, UK, . [Details]
(2002)'LIMPET WAVE-POWER STATION: POWER QUALITY ASSESSMENT-Dr. RG Alcorn and Dr. WC Beattie (The Queen's University of Belfast) explain how software compliant with IEC standards was developed to'
Alcorn, RG and Beattie, WC (2002) 'LIMPET WAVE-POWER STATION: POWER QUALITY ASSESSMENT-Dr. RG Alcorn and Dr. WC Beattie (The Queen's University of Belfast) explain how software compliant with IEC standards was developed to' Sea Technology, 43 (9) :57-64. [Details]
(2001)'TECHNICAL THEME 4-DISPERSED GENERATION-MANAGEMENT \& UTILISATION OF ELECTRICITY-DISPERSED GENERATION-4.2 Power quality assessment from a wave-power station'
Alcorn, RG and Beattie, WC (2001) 'TECHNICAL THEME 4-DISPERSED GENERATION-MANAGEMENT \& UTILISATION OF ELECTRICITY-DISPERSED GENERATION-4.2 Power quality assessment from a wave-power station' IEE Conference Publications, 482 (4) . [Details]
(2014)'Physical modelling of wave energy converters'
Sheng, Wanan and Alcorn, Raymond and Lewis, Tony (2014) 'Physical modelling of wave energy converters' Ocean Engineering, 84 :29-36. [Details]
(2014)'On improving wave energy conversion, part I: Optimal and control technologies'
Wanan Sheng, Raymond Alcorn, Anthony Lewis (2014) 'On improving wave energy conversion, part I: Optimal and control technologies' Renewable Energy, :1-13. [Details]
(2012)'A 10 year installation program for wave energy in Ireland: A case study sensitivity analysis on financial returns'
Dalton, GJ and Alcorn, R and Lewis, T (2012) 'A 10 year installation program for wave energy in Ireland: A case study sensitivity analysis on financial returns' Renewable energy, 40 (1) :80-89. [Details]

Conference Publications

YearPublication
(1998)Observations of time domain data on the wells turbine in the Islay wave-power plant
Alcorn, RG and Beattie, WC and others (1998) Observations of time domain data on the wells turbine in the Islay wave-power plant [Details]
(2011)ASME 2011 30th International Conference on Ocean, Offshore and Arctic Engineering
Sheng, Wanan and Lewis, Anthony and Alcorn, Raymond (2011) Numerical studies on hydrodynamics of a floating oscillating water column ASME 2011 30th International Conference on Ocean, Offshore and Arctic Engineering , pp.275-282 [Details]
(2012)ASME 2012 31st International Conference on Ocean, Offshore and Arctic Engineering
Sheng, Wanan and Lewis, Anthony and Alcorn, Raymond (2012) Numerical Studies of a Floating Cylindrical OWC WEC ASME 2012 31st International Conference on Ocean, Offshore and Arctic Engineering , pp.179-187 [Details]
(2012)ASME 2012 31st International Conference on Ocean, Offshore and Arctic Engineering
Sheng, Wanan and Flannery, Brian and Lewis, Anthony and Alcorn, Raymond (2012) Experimental studies of a floating cylindrical OWC WEC ASME 2012 31st International Conference on Ocean, Offshore and Arctic Engineering , pp.169-178 [Details]
(2012)4th International Conference on Ocean Energy
Mollaghan, D and Armstrong, S and O’Sullivan, D and Blavette, A and Alcorn, R (2012) SEAGRID: A New Dynamic Modelling Tool for Power System Analysis of Ocean Energy Devices 4th International Conference on Ocean Energy [Details]
(2010)ICOE 2010
F. Thiebaut, R. Alcorn (2010) Servomotor controlled piston rig for the simulation of an Oscillating Water Column air chamber ICOE 2010 [Details]
(2011)European Wave and Tidal Energy Conference
Sheng, W and Lewis, AW and Alcorn, R (2011) Numerical Investigation into Hydrodynamics of Moored Floating Wave Energy Converters European Wave and Tidal Energy Conference [Details]
(2014)Power Electronics for Distributed Generation Systems (PEDG), 2014 IEEE 5th International Symposium on
Armstrong, S. and Mollaghan, D. and Alcorn, R. (2014) Effect of wave farm aggregation on power system stability Power Electronics for Distributed Generation Systems (PEDG), 2014 IEEE 5th International Symposium on , pp.1-6 [Details]
(2012)International Conference on Ocean Energy
Sheng, W and Lewis, T and Alcorn, R (2012) On wave energy extraction of oscillating water column device International Conference on Ocean Energy [Details]
(2014)RENEW 2014
Wanan Sheng, Ray Alcorn, Tony Lewis (2014) Hydrodynamics of oscillating water column wave energy converters RENEW 2014 [Details]
(2013)SHF, Ocean Energy EMR 2013
F. Thiebaut, M. Healy, T. Lewis and R. Alcorn, MARINET (2013) Streamlined, free-of-charge access to test facilities: How world-class research centres are joining forces to accelerate the development of marine renewable energy SHF, Ocean Energy EMR 2013 [Details]
(2012)31st International Conference on Ocean, Offshore and Arctic Engineering
Sheng, W., Flannery, B., Lewis, T., Alcorn, R. (2012) Experimental Studies of a Cylindrical OWC WEC 31st International Conference on Ocean, Offshore and Arctic Engineering [Details]

Published Reports

YearPublication
(2011)Integrating Wave and Tidal Current Power: Case Studies through Modelling and Simulation, A report prepared jointly by Tecnalia (Spain), Powertech Labs (Canada) and HMRC (Ireland) for the OES-IA.
M. S. Múgica, F. S. Fernandez , J. L. Mendia , J. Khan, D. Leon, S. Arabi, A. Moshref, G. Bhuyan, A. Blavette, D. O’Sullivan, R. Alcorn (2011) Integrating Wave and Tidal Current Power: Case Studies through Modelling and Simulation, A report prepared jointly by Tecnalia (Spain), Powertech Labs (Canada) and HMRC (Ireland) for the OES-IA. International Energy Agency, USA. [Details]
(2010)Dynamic characteristics of wave and tidal energy converters & a recommended structure for development of a generic model for grid connection.
D. O’ Sullivan, D. Mollaghan, A.Blavette and R.Alcorn (2010) Dynamic characteristics of wave and tidal energy converters & a recommended structure for development of a generic model for grid connection. International Energy Agency, USA. [Details]

Honours and Awards

 YearTitleAwarding Body
2011Marine Renewable Energy - Regulation, Financing & R&D Boston College

Professional Associations

 AssociationFunctionFrom / To
Engineering Council UK Charetered Engineer25-NOV-09 /
IET Chartered Engineer16-OCT-91 /

Patents

 Patent NumberTitleInventorGranted
WO2007009163Joint patent for turbine pitch control mechanism T Denniss R Alcorn T Finnigan R Obeysekera25-JAN-07

Committees

 CommitteeFunctionFrom / To
International Electrotechnical Commitee IEC TC114 Technical Committee member2011 / 2014

Education

 YearInstitutionQualificationSubject
2000Queens Univerity Belfast PHDEelctrical Modelling of the Isaly Wave Power Plant
1996Queens University Belfast MENG - DISTINCTION - QUEENS UNIVERSITY BELFASTElectrical and Electronic Engineering

Outreach Activities

 Description

SEAI Energy Show 2009

Journal Activities

 JournalRoleTo / From
Iet Renewable Power Generation Referee-

Other Activities

 Description

Honourable Secretary and co-founder Marine Renewables Industry Association

Recent Postgraduates

 Graduation YearStudent NameInstitutionDegree TypeThesis Title
2014Settimo DiCario Universita' CattolicaMSc3D Experimental investigation on mooring loads and displacements of a buoy under long-crested waves
2011Andrei Gareev University of AuklandPHDAnalysis of Variable Pitch Air Turbines for Oscillating Water Column Wave Energy Converters
2014Bret Bosma
2014Rob Cavagnaro PHD
2012Ari Posner
2010Marcas Breatnach University of FribourgMScWave Energy in Ireland:

Current Postgraduate Students

 StudentDegree Type
Evans Ian Masters Degree by Research