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944 L. Liberti et al. / Renewable Energy 50 (2013) 938e949
Fig. 9. Distribution of average wave power flux per unit crest on western Sardinia
coastline. Values are calculated on a line located 12 km off the coast. Dashed grid lines
are 50 km apart. Wave energy distribution among sea states at marked locations is
described in Fig. 11.
above 12 kW/m, is located in the western Mediterranean between
the Balearic Islands and the western coast of Sardinia. Wave power
in this area is most easily accessible from the coasts of Sardinia,
Fig. 10. Same as 9 but on western north-western and southern Sicily coastline. Wave energy distribution among sea states at marked locations is described in Fig. 12.
Balearic Islands and north Africa. The neighboring region located
in the Sicily channel, off the north-western and southern Sicilian
coasts, is also very productive with an average wave energy flux
per unit crest that reaches 9 kW/m. Slightly lower wave power
appears to be available in central Mediterranean and southern
Ionian Sea with average values not exceeding 8 kW/m near the
coast in the eastern section. The western part of the Levantine
basin exhibits similar values reaching almost 8 kW/m. The Adriatic
Sea, where average wave power does not exceed 3 kW/m, is one of
the least productive regions. Similar values are observed in the
most sheltered parts of the Ionian and Tyrrhenian between the
mainland and Corsica and near the Messina Strait. The Aegean Sea,
despite its semi-enclosed configuration, appears to be more
productive than the Adriatic Sea at least off the continental coast.
The wave power actually available at locations near the coast
follows the same spatial pattern but, as expected, amounts to
lower values compared to the open sea. Wave energy availability
near the coast for selected sites in the Mediterranean shown in
Fig. 8 is summarized in Table 8.
3.2. Wave power distribution along the Italian coast
A more detailed overview of the wave power distribution at
locations sufficiently near the most productive areas of the Italian
coast, western Sardinia, western and southern Sicily is presented in
Figs. 9 and 10 where the average wave power per unit crest for the
entire simulated period is calculated along a line placed approxi-
mately 12 km offshore. The 12 km distance from the coastline was
selected because it corresponds to positions sufficiently near the
coast to represent the wave climate right before the bottom
topography starts to affect the wave field. The line lies, on average,
on the second model cell from the land at depths always above
50 m. Wave energy in shallower areas, closer to the coast, tends to
be affected by the influence of the bathymetry on wave propaga-
tion, which is not adequately taken into account at the spatial
resolution of our model.
Along western Sardinia the average power ranges from 7.5 to
almost 12 kW/m. The highest values are observed on the northern
and southern sections of the coast, between Alghero and Asinara