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Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC) uses the ocean thermal gradient between cooler deep and warmer shallow or surface seawaters to run a heat engine and produce useful work, usually in the form of electricity. OTEC can operate with a very high capacity factor and so can operate in base load mode.
A power station, also referred to as a power plant and sometimes generating station or generating plant, is an industrial facility for the generation of electric power. Power stations are generally connected to an electrical grid.
Pumped-storage hydroelectricity (PSH), or pumped hydroelectric energy storage (PHES), is a type of hydroelectric energy storage used by electric power systems for load balancing. The method stores energy in the form of gravitational potential energy of water, pumped from a lower elevation reservoir to a higher elevation. Low-cost surplus off-peak electric power is typically used to run the pumps. During periods of high electrical demand, the stored water is released through turbines to produce electric power. Although the losses of the pumping process make the plant a net consumer of energy overall, the system increases revenue by selling more electricity during periods of peak demand, when electricity prices are highest. If the upper lake collects significant rainfall or is fed by a river then the plant may be a net energy producer in the manner of a traditional hydroelectric plant.
Tidal power or tidal energy is harnessed by converting energy from tides into useful forms of power, mainly electricity using various methods.
Wave power is the capture of energy of wind waves to do useful work – for example, electricity generation, water desalination, or pumping water. A machine that exploits wave power is a wave energy converter (WEC).
Hydraulic machines use liquid fluid power to perform work. Heavy construction vehicles are a common example. In this type of machine, hydraulic fluid is pumped to various hydraulic motors and hydraulic cylinders throughout the machine and becomes pressurized according to the resistance present. The fluid is controlled directly or automatically by control valves and distributed through hoses, tubes, or pipes.
Wave Dragon is a floating slack-moored energy converter of the overtopping type, developed by the Danish company Wave Dragon Aps. Wave Dragon is a joint EU research project, including partners from Austria, Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Portugal, Sweden, and the UK. It was the world's first offshore wave energy converter.
Off-the-grid or off-grid is a characteristic of buildings and a lifestyle designed in an independent manner without reliance on one or more public utilities. The term "off-the-grid" traditionally refers to not being connected to the electrical grid, but can also include other utilities like water, gas, and sewer systems, and can scale from residential homes to small communities. Off-the-grid living allows for buildings and people to be self-sufficient, which is advantageous in isolated locations where normal utilities cannot reach and is attractive to those who want to reduce environmental impact and cost of living. Generally, an off-grid building must be able to supply energy and potable water for itself, as well as manage food, waste and wastewater.
The Pelamis Wave Energy Converter was a technology that used the motion of ocean surface waves to create electricity. The machine was made up of connected sections which flex and bend as waves pass; it is this motion which is used to generate electricity.
A wave farm – or wave power farm or wave energy park – is a collection of machines in the same location and used for the generation of wave power electricity. Wave farms can be either offshore or nearshore, with the former the most promising for the production of large quantities of electricity for the grid. The first wave farm was constructed in Portugal, the Aguçadoura Wave Farm, consisting of three Pelamis machines. The world's largest is planned for Scotland.
The Wave Hub is a floating offshore wind and wave power research project. The project is developed approximately 10 miles (16 km) off Hayle, on the north coast of Cornwall, United Kingdom. The hub was installed on the seabed in September 2010, and is a 'socket' sitting on the seabed for wave energy converters to be plugged into. It will have connections to it from arrays of up to four kinds of wave energy converter. A cable from the hub to main land will take electrical power from the devices to the electric grid. The total capacity of the hub will be 20 MWe. The estimated cost of the project is £28 million.
The European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) Ltd is a UKAS accredited test and research centre focusing on wave and tidal power development based in the Orkney Islands, UK. The Centre provides developers with the opportunity to test full-scale grid-connected prototype devices in unrivalled wave and tidal conditions.
Ocean Power Technologies (OPT) is a U.S. publicly owned renewable energy company, providing electric power and communications solutions, services and related for remote offshore applications. The company's PowerBuoy wave energy conversion technology is theoretically scalable to hundreds of megawatts and the generated energy from wave power can be supplied to the grid via submarine cables. Several projects were undertaken around the world, but the economic viability of the theoretical concept has been problematic.
The Oyster is a hydro-electric wave energy device that uses the motion of ocean waves to generate electricity. It is made up of a Power Connector Frame (PCF), which is bolted to the seabed, and a Power Capture Unit (PCU). The PCU is a hinged buoyant flap that moves back and forth with movement of the waves. The movement of the flap drives two hydraulic pistons that feed high-pressured water to an onshore hydro-electric turbine, which drives a generator to make electricity. Oyster is stationed at the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) at its Billia Croo site in Orkney, Scotland.
Marine energy or marine power refers to the energy carried by ocean waves, tides, salinity, and ocean temperature differences. The movement of water in the world's oceans creates a vast store of kinetic energy, or energy in motion. Some of this energy can be harnessed to generate electricity to power homes, transport and industries.
Oscillating water columns (OWCs) are a type of wave energy converter (WEC) that harness energy from the oscillation of the seawater inside a chamber or hollow caused by the action of waves. OWCs have shown promise as a renewable energy source with low environmental impact. Because of this, multiple companies have been working to design increasingly efficient OWC models. OWC are devices with a semi-submerged chamber or hollow open to the sea below, keeping a trapped air pocket above a water column. Waves force the column to act like a piston, moving up and down, forcing the air out of the chamber and back into it. This continuous movement forces a bidirectional stream of high-velocity air, which is channelled through a power take-off (PTO). The PTO system converts the airflow into energy. In models that convert airflow to electricity, the PTO system consists of a bidirectional turbine. This means that the turbine always spins the same direction regardless of the direction of airflow, allowing for energy to be continuously generated. Both the collecting chamber and PTO systems will be explained further under "Basic OWC Components."
Located on the east side of Gibraltar, on a former World War II ammunition jetty, the Gibraltar Wave Farm is the first commercial, grid-connected wave energy power station in all of Europe. The project utilizes the devices of Eco Wave Power Ltd, an Israel-based wave energy company. The wave farm was initially launched with an estimated peak capacity of 100 kW in April 2016 and plans for expansion to 5 MW within the next years. The project is operating through a 25-year PPA between Eco Wave Power, the Government of Gibraltar, and the Gibraltar Electricity Authority. Upon completion, it is expected generate 15% of the total electricity consumption of Gibraltar. The project is funded, in part, by the 2014-2020 European Regional Development Fund, in order to put the country in line with the EU's renewable energy goal: 20% energy generated from renewable power by 2020. The project is also funded by private investment groups. As of February 2018, the Gibraltar Wave Farm accrued 15,000 grid connected hours, a new world record for wave energy plant.
Floating solar or floating photovoltaics (FPV), sometimes called floatovoltaics, is solar panels mounted on a structure that floats on a body of water, typically a reservoir or a lake.
Deborah Mary Greaves is a British engineer, Professor of Ocean Engineering and Head of the School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics at the University of Plymouth. In 2020 she was elected a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering.
Timeline of notable events in the research and development of sustainable energy including renewable energy, solar energy and nuclear fusion energy, particularly for ways that are sustainable within the Earth system.
References
- ↑ "Ocean Grazer project". www.rug.nl. Advanced Production Engineering Research | University of Groningen. Retrieved 2018-03-30.
- 1 2 "Ocean Grazer 3.0 – Offshore renewable energy: Wind, Wave, and Storage". oceangrazer.com. Retrieved 2018-03-30.
- 1 2 3 Vakis, Antonis I.; Anagnostopoulos, John S. (2016-10-01). "Mechanical design and modeling of a single-piston pump for the novel power take-off system of a wave energy converter". Renewable Energy. 96: 531–47. doi: 10.1016/j.renene.2016.04.076 . ISSN 0960-1481.
- 1 2 Wei, Y.; Barradas-Berglind, J.J.; Van Rooij, M.; Prins, W.A.; Jayawardhana, B.; Vakis, A.I. (2017-10-01). "Investigating the adaptability of the multi-pump multi-piston power take-off system for a novel wave energy converter". Renewable Energy. 111: 598–610. doi:10.1016/j.renene.2017.04.042. ISSN 0960-1481.
- ↑ Barradas-Berglind, J.J.; Muñoz-Arias, M.; Wei, Y.; Prins, W.A.; Vakis, A.I.; Jayawardhana, B. (2017-07-01). "Towards Ocean Grazer's Modular Power Take-Off System Modeling: a Port-Hamiltonian Approach" (PDF). IFAC-PapersOnLine. 50 (1): 15663–69. doi: 10.1016/j.ifacol.2017.08.2397 . ISSN 2405-8963.
- 1 2 Soares, C. Guedes (2016). Progress in Renewable Energies Offshore: Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on Renewable Energies Offshore (RENEW2016), Lisbon, Portugal, 24–26 October 2016. CRC Press. ISBN 978-1351858540.
- ↑ Ocean wave energy : current status and future prepectives [i.e. perspectives]. Cruz, João. Berlin: Springer. 2008. ISBN 978-3540748946. OCLC 233973506.CS1 maint: others (link)