Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Lucas ONeil
Elec 395
May 30, 2006
Introduction
Alternative Energy Sources/Renewable Energy
Overview of Tidal Generation
-Tides
-Basic methods of generating electricity from tides
-Geography
-Pros/Cons
-Environmental concerns
Different types of tidal generators
-Tidal fence
-Tidal lagoons
-Tidal turbines
Conclusions
References
Alternative Energy Sources
Use of any given energy source in human society encounters
limits to expansion. At the beginning of the 21st century some
issues have achieved global dimension. Principal fossil energy
sources, such as oil and natural gas are approaching
exhaustion that may occur within the span of a generation
Closely linked to energy development are concerns about the
environmental effects of fossil fuel energy use, such as global
warming, and health issues due to air pollution. Energy
development issues are part of the much debated sustainable
development problem.
Canada and the United States have incredibly high energy
consumption per capita
Need to move away from fossil fuels
And....
Tidal Power
Tidal power generators derive their energy from
movement of the tides.
Obviously requires large bodies of water nearby. Not
viable on the prairies for example.
Has potential for generation of very large amounts of
electricity, or can be used in smaller scale.
Tidal power is not a new concept and has been used
since at least the 11th Century in Britain and France for
the milling of grains.
There are a number of places around the world that
have adopted pilot projects for different types of tidal
generators
Tidal power utilizes the twice-daily variation
Tides in sea level caused primarily by the
gravitational effect of the Moon and, to a
lesser extent the Sun on the world's
oceans. The Earth's rotation is also a factor
in the production of tides.
The interaction of the Moon and the Earth
results in the oceans bulging out towards
the Moon (Lunar Tide). The suns
gravitational field pulls as well (Solar Tide)
As the Sun and Moon are not in fixed
positions in the celestial sphere, but
change position with respect to each other,
their influence on the tidal range (difference
between low and high tide) is also effected.
If the Moon and the Sun are in the same
plane as the Earth, the tidal range is the
superposition of the range due to the lunar
and solar tides. This results in the
maximum tidal range (spring tides). If they
are at right angles to each other, lower tidal
differences are experienced resulting in
neap tides.
How do tides changing = Electricity?
How do tides changing = Electricity?
As usual, the electricity is provided by spinning turbines.
Ecological Changes
Potentially the largest disadvantage of tidal power is the effect a
tidal station has on the plants and animals which live within the
estuary. As very few tidal barrages have been built, very little is
understood about the full impact of tidal power systems on the local
environment. What has been concluded is that the effect due to a
tidal barrage is highly dependent upon the local geography and
marine ecosystem.
Wales have been caught in tidal generators.
Fish may move through sluices safely, but when these are closed,
fish will seek out turbines and attempt to swim through them. Also,
some fish will be unable to escape the water speed near a turbine
and will be sucked through.
Different Generator Types
Tidal Fences
Tidal Lagoons
Tidal Turbines
Tidal Fences
Tidal fences are composed of
individual, vertical axis turbines
which are mounted within the fence
structure, known as a caisson.
http://www.ifremer.fr/dtmsi/colloques/seatech04/mp/proceedings_pdf/pres
entations/4.%20courants_marins/MCT.pdf
http://web.uvic.ca/~loneil/elec395/elec395.htm
QUESTIONS?