Ocean

Ocean Power
Power Tidal and Wave
energy

Boyd Evans
Tabitha Darko
Diana Crow
 Many Ways to Harness
Ocean Power
There are several ways to harness
the power of the ocean. The main
Goal Remains the Same for each
technique, to harness the immense
wave power in the worlds oceans.
The technology we develop to do
this may someday be used to solve
the worlds energy crisis, and make
human life more sustainable.
 Wave Energy: Duck
Buoys
Rising and falling
of buoys on the
ocean generates
mechanical energy
Mechanical energy
converted into
electric energy
Sends electricity to
shore through
underwater power http://www.oceanpowertechnologies.co

cable m/tech.htm#
 Pros and Con of Wave
Pros
Buoys
Con
Simple installation
Wave buoys
No emissions or
are very
wastewater
easily
A 10-megawatt station
damaged in
would only take up 30
acres of ocean storms
1000x Higher Energy
density than wind
Not disruptive
Can help wildlife by
acting as artificial reef
 Wave Energy
Ocean waves are caused by the wind
as it blows across the open expanse
of water, the gravitational pull from
the sun and moon, and changes in
atmospheric pressure, earthquakes
and other things.
Waves created by the wind are the
most common waves and the waves
relevant for most wave energy
technology.
Wave Power (Continued)
Wave energy conversion takes
advantage of the ocean waves
caused primarily by the
interaction of winds with the
ocean surface.
They are a powerful source of
energy, but are difficult to
harness and convert into
electricity in large quantities.
 Tech Obstacles
The energy needs to be converted to a
60 Hertz frequency before it can be
added to the electric utility grid.
The majority of designs to capture
wave power call for many small units,
each having their own turbine. This
results in a high voltage, but
frequency substantially lower than 60
Hertz. However, it can be converted
via several adaptors in the plant
 Wave Hub: Large Wave
Farm in planning stages
Could create 1,800
jobs and over 500
million pounds
Enough electricity for
7,500 homes
Save 300,000 tons of
carbon dioxide
15% of energy for
Southwest England
http://www.wavehub.co.uk/

From just ONE wave

farm
Just a 4x2 km area
 So far most of the
Oceans energy has
gone untapped despite
the fact that it has
No emissions
Minimal environmental
disruption
Huge amount of energy
 Unlike wind and solar
power, the tides are
always in motion.
F.Y.I.
The moons gravity
acting on the oceans
water and the Earths
centrifugal force
cause the tides to go
in and out every day.
In essence, this
makes tidal power
kinda like lunar
http://www.unm.edu/~abqtom/images/Moon/Moon11-19-02b.jpg
power, as opposed to
solar power
 Ocean Current
Turbine acts as an
underwater
windmill to ocean
currents

www.wikipedia.org/tidalpower open source

 Pros /Cons for Ocean
Current
Pros Cons

Very high energy Needs currents with

speed of 4.5 to 5
yield per turbine
knots or higher
Needs depth of 20-
30m
Not every coast
meets those
requirements
Some models can
be noisy
 Tidal Power
This technique takes advantage
of the rise and fall of the tides to
produce electric power in a
design similar to that of a dam
that you would find in an artificial
lake
There Are several techniques for
achieving this subcategory as
well.
 Channelization
Channeliz
ation Narrow
Turbine

Channel

Backto theOcean
Tidal Dams
 Political / Economic
obstacles of Ocean Power
costly to develop and put together
could interfere with mooring and anchorage
lines with commercial and sport-fishing
Long term problem is making the technology
work at a cost of power which a consumer is
willing to pay
Some Slight Negative Environmental Impacts
can disturb or disrupt marine life
may degrade scenic ocean front views from
wave energy devices located near or on the
shore
 Make a Difference
The energy from waves alone could
supply the world's electricity needs.
The total power of waves breaking on the
world's coastlines is estimated at 2 to
3 million megawatts.
Does not create pollution by releasing
carbon dioxide.
Wave energy is free after cost to build
plants
Maintenance / operation costs are very
low
 Bibliography
http://www.southwestrda.org.uk/news/release.asp?
releaseid=2136
http://www.marineturbines.com/background.htm
http://home.hiwaay.net/~krcool/Astro/moon/moontid
es/
http://www.oceanpowertechnologies.com/tech.html
http://www.wavesenergy.com
http://www.jamstec.go.jp/jamstec/MTD/Whale/

Snedden, Robert. Energy Alternatives

Chicago, Illinois. Reed
Educational and Professional Publishing. 2002. p. 28