Jan 28

Not to be confused with the Gulf Stream, the Florida Current is a thermal ocean current that flows generally from the Gulf of Mexico to the Atlantic Ocean.

Underwater Turbines

Underwater Turbines

Suppose, in order to harness its power, XYZ Technology™ installs 100 (one hundred) 300 kw (kilowatt) turbines on the ocean floor ten miles off the Florida coast. In doing so, the aforementioned utility is able to satisfy the total electric requirement of, say, 500,000 homes.

My question for you is this: Does the placement of those 100 turbines affect, to any significant degree, the “flow” of the Florida Current? Do the turbines, for example, stop the flow? Don’t be silly. Of course not. Will 100 turbines in any way diminish the flow? No. The Florida Current, unabated, a thousand times mightier than the Mississippi, will just keep right on “flowing” along! Continue reading »

written by Frank Trujillo

Jan 27

Amid claims that it is the largest ocean turbine installation to date, U.K.-based Marine Current Turbines (MCT) has placed a 300-kilowatt (kW) turbine three kilometers off of the English coast.

Vertical Axis Turbine

Vertical Axis Turbine

With backing from stakeholders that include the U.K. and German governments, the European Commission’s Joule Program and a consortium of U.K. and German industrial companies, the so-called Seaflow project cost approximately U.S. $3.5 million. The project aims to test and perfect the turbine during the next three years, according to a June 30 article at SolarAccess.com. Continue reading »

written by Frank Trujillo

Jan 24

There’s a 2400kw wind farm in the distance.

Do you see the turbines?  Do you see them?

frank_pacific

Exactly…

written by OceanNRG

Jan 24

* o·cean en·er·gy

(ō-shen en-er-ji) n., pl. –gies.

1. energy derived in any manner from the vast body of salt water covering approximately 73 percent of the earth’s surface.  2. any persistently renewable source of energy or power (electrical, etc.) derived from the sea, including power from the harnessing of ocean currents, Biomass energy, ocean solar power, wave power, off-shore wind power, ocean geothermal, etc.  3. a science and a technology in process of development; includes a full range of ocean-based renewable energy alternatives, many of which remain to be conceived and explored.

written by OceanNRG

Jan 20
President Obama

President Obama

Today, Inauguration Day, January 20, 2009, as millions of Americans and others throughout the world celebrate the inauguration of our Nation’s first African American president, I come away with a renewed sense of optimism, and hope.

There is a renewed excitement today on a great variety of fronts, not the least of which relates to energy and the environment. Ocean-based energy has a better chance than ever to ignite and inspire the collective imagination of our people. The 110th Congress may well have failed to take action, but the 111th just might! Our country’s 43rd President may have done nothing, but this new 44th President of the United States—this upstart “Yes We Can!” President, President Barack Obama—might just take a swing at it. He might just knock it right out of the ballpark! Continue reading »

written by Frank Trujillo

Jan 15
Underwater Turbines

Underwater Turbines

It’s easy to track the tidal movements of the ocean by looking at waves, but all of that energy is moved around under the surface of the water as well. Florida Atlantic University’s Center of Excellence in Ocean Energy Technology hopes to harness these underwater currents by placing 100-foot-in-diameter 20 kilowatt turbines that are anchored to the ocean floor along the Gulf Stream of the Atlantic. The system would be hooked up to floating generators and monitored by solar powered control buoys and small naval vessels. Continue reading »

written by OceanNRG

Jan 15
Ocean Turbines

Ocean Turbines

One the world’s greatest untapped energy resources is the motion of the ocean. Of course, while floating wind turbines and wave-powered generators are being explored and researched, underwater ocean currents remains an area that is largely untapped.

Now researchers at the Center of Excellence in Ocean Energy Technology have developed a technology that would allow them to tap the Gulf Stream currents. This they believe would be able to cover all of Florida’s energy needs. These scientists are truly working hard to transform the vision from science fiction to reality. Continue reading »

written by OceanNRG

Jan 15
Wave Energy Prototype

Wave Energy Prototype

In 2007/2008, OSU, in collaboration with Columbia Power Technologies (CPT) and the U.S. Navy, evaluated 18 different direct-drive technologies, and down-selected to five promising designs. OSU and CPT built each of those prototypes at the 200W peak level and tested them on OSU’s new wave energy linear test bed. OSU and CPT also comprehensively simulated each of the designs, and scaled the simulations up to 100kW, including full 100kW designs with costs, maintenance, operations etc., to give estimates for total costs of energy for each. Continue reading »

written by OceanNRG

Jan 15

Global Ocean Wind Energy Potential Wind energy has the potential to provide 10 to 15 percent of the world’s future energy, according to Paul Dimotakis, chief technologist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Once windmills are installed, wind can be converted to electricity inexpensively. But not everyone likes wind farms. The giant collection of whirling blades mars scenic views and can kill birds and bats, particularly if located in a high-traffic flyway. To minimize these risks, one solution may be to place wind farms in the ocean. Wind tends to blow stronger over the ocean than over land. The ocean presents a smooth surface over which wind can glide without interruption, while hills, mountains, and forests tend to slow or channel wind over land.

Read the entire article from the National Space Agancy of Ukraine

written by OceanNRG

Jan 15
Wave Energy Prototype: 'Pelamis'

Wave Energy Prototype: 'Pelamis'

There are multiple ways to tap the energy of the ocean, including its tides, thermal features, and salinity. But wave energy appears to be the most promising and closest to commercial production.

A new report from the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) suggests that generation of electricity from wave energy may be economically feasible in the near future. The study was carried out by EPRI in collaboration with the DOE’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and energy agencies and utilities from six states. Continue reading »

written by OceanNRG