Aim & Scopes
Aims and Scope
Academic focus and interdisciplinary research areas of WEST – Journal of Wave Energy Systems and Technology
WEST – Journal of Wave Energy Systems and Technology is an international peer-reviewed scholarly journal dedicated to advancing fundamental and applied research in ocean wave energy, wave energy converters, marine renewable energy systems, hydrodynamics, power take-off technologies, control systems, offshore integration, and wave-to-wire energy conversion.
The journal provides an interdisciplinary platform for ocean engineers, naval architects, renewable-energy researchers, hydrodynamicists, mechanical engineers, electrical engineers, control specialists, offshore engineers, materials researchers, data scientists, and industry professionals to communicate scientific and technological developments supporting efficient, reliable, survivable, scalable, and economically viable wave-energy systems.
WEST particularly encourages research that moves beyond isolated device concepts and investigates the interaction among wave resources, hydrodynamic energy capture, device geometry, power take-off systems, control strategies, structural response, mooring systems, electrical conversion, grid integration, reliability, maintenance, and offshore deployment.
The journal seeks to connect fundamental ocean-energy science with practical engineering development from concept design and numerical modelling to physical testing, prototype demonstration, offshore operation, and commercial-scale deployment. Manuscripts should demonstrate clear scientific, technological, or engineering significance and contribute meaningfully to the advancement of wave-energy systems and related marine renewable technologies.
Scope of the Journal
WEST welcomes theoretical, analytical, experimental, numerical, computational, field-based, review, methodological, and interdisciplinary studies in areas including, but not limited to:
Resource → Capture → Convert → Control → Deliver
WEST encourages research that considers wave energy as an integrated engineering system rather than an isolated energy-conversion device.
Understand wave climate, sea states, extreme conditions, and available ocean-energy resources.
Optimize WEC geometry, hydrodynamic response, and wave-energy absorption.
Transform device motion into usable energy through effective PTO technologies.
Improve energy capture, loads, survivability, and operation through control.
Integrate electrical conversion, storage, grid connection, reliability, and deployment.
From a Single WEC to Commercial Wave-Energy Systems
WEST encourages studies across multiple levels of wave-energy technology development, including components, individual devices, coupled subsystems, arrays, hybrid offshore platforms, wave farms, and complete wave-to-wire systems.
Particular interest is given to research that demonstrates interaction between subsystems and quantifies how improvements in one component influence overall energy production, reliability, structural loading, survivability, or life-cycle performance.
Connecting Ocean Engineering, Energy and Intelligent Systems
WEST encourages interdisciplinary research connecting ocean engineering, naval architecture, fluid mechanics, hydrodynamics, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, control engineering, offshore engineering, materials science, artificial intelligence, environmental science, and energy economics.
Contributions should demonstrate a clear relationship to wave-energy conversion, wave-energy technology, marine renewable-energy systems, or the engineering systems required for their practical implementation.
What WEST Seeks
Manuscripts submitted to WEST should demonstrate a clear and substantive relationship to wave-energy resources, wave energy converters, energy-capture hydrodynamics, PTO systems, wave-energy control, offshore integration, wave-to-wire conversion, reliability, or deployment of wave-energy technologies.
Studies dealing with generic renewable energy, general oceanography, conventional offshore structures, coastal engineering, or electrical power systems without a meaningful connection to wave-energy systems or technology may be considered outside the journal's primary scope.
Routine simulations, basic device comparisons, or conceptual WEC designs without sufficient scientific novelty, verification, validation, physical interpretation, system-level insight, or engineering contribution may not meet the journal's publication priorities.
