5. Conclusion

The Earth's extensive ocean coverage is a real asset for wave energy resources. Technically exploitable potential accounts for 30% of global energy consumption (based on 2008 global energy consumption of 100,000 TWh/year). Numerous coastal and offshore areas concentrate this energy, which can be extracted using several types of technology. Three families covering the majority of wave energy recovery principles are listed: oscillating water columns, breaking systems and wave-driven floats.

New disruptive technological trends have recently emerged. Are we going to succeed in the challenge of optimal energy recovery with new materials such as electro-active polymers? Can we increase yields with more degrees of freedom? Developers and research centers are heavily involved in this upstream search for solutions that could break with the conventional technologies described...