Physical Oceanography

Class Presentation
An Introduction to

Ocean Renewable
Energies
Presented by

S. Aboozar Tabatabai
Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, Institute of Marine and Coastal Sciences
November 2010

Introduction
Energy
Present and Future

Federal Agency for Science and Innovation, 2008, Moscow, Russia

U.S. Energy Information Administration , International Energy Outlook 2010

Oil Price: light,

sweet crude 2008
($/barrel)

U.S. Energy Information Administration , International Energy Outlook 2010

World primary
energy
consumption
(quadrillion Btu)

Are we behind?!

2009 Annual Report, Ocean Energy Systems Implementing Agreement (OES-IA)

Member countries in Ocean

Energy Systems Implementing
Agreement

Internationally, the number of

developed ocean energy
technologies more than doubled
from 2003 (35) to 2006 (81).
However, the federal government
only acknowledged ocean
renewables in the Energy Policy

International Energy Agency, Policy Report, 2006

Silver Medal?... Is that the best we

got?!

Good News !
Ocean renewable energies have begun to
capture
the attention of US lawmakers
More investments
Some more courses and programs in
universities
tax credits
. . . Way to go!
7

Why Ocean?
The ocean is the world's largest solar collector
and can provide huge amount of energy (kinetic
and thermal) which is absolutely clean (zero CO 2
emission),
sustainable,
strategic,
and
predictable.
Changes in salinity, thermal gradients, tidal sea
level change and currents, or ocean waves can
be used to generate electricity.
The number of ocean energy technology
concepts has increased to +100 known devices.
Available global Ocean Energy resource is in the
same order of magnitude of the present
electricity production worldwide (even more!).
8

Table compiled from International Energy Agency, Policy Report, 2006

Global Marine Renewable

Energy Resources

<IEA-OES
2008>

(Jun Zhang, 2012)

Report,

Wave Energy vs Tidal

Energy
Waves are produced by winds blowing
across the surface of the ocean.
However, because waves travel across
the ocean, their arrival time at the wave
power facility may be more predictable
than wind.
In contrast, tidal energy, which is driven
by the gravitational pull of the moon
and sun, is predictable centuries in
advance.
11

(Conventional) Tidal Energy

Technologies for harnessing energy from tides by building barrage

across estuary are well developed, but this type of conversion
process could have significant impact on local ecosystem.
12

Worlds largest tidal

power plant in the
Rance estuary near St
Malo, France

Peak rating of 240

Megawatts,
generated by 24
turbines
13

Sihwa will be the worlds largest tidal power plant.

Sihwa, South Korea

Under Construction

It will be the worlds largest tidal power plant with a

total power of 260 MW and an annual power
generation of 543 GWh.

14

Tidal Current Energy

Significant number of technologies for harnessing energy from tidal current

are being developed worldwide. Some of them are at or near full-scale
development and undergoing sea trials.

SeaGen
15

16

Rotech Tidal Turbine (RTT)

17

18

Wave Energy

OWC

19

Other wave Devices

20

21

CETO

22

Salinity Gradient Energy

Two approaches:
1.Pressure Retarded Osmosis (PRO):
relies on water molecules moving through a membrane, which is
semi-permeable. When salt water is contained on one side of the
membrane & fresh water is on its other side, fresh water is
osmotically drawn into the salty side. This drives up the pressure
in the "salty chamber,
& the sea water can then
be sent through a turbine
that generates power.

(Dr Rolf JarleAaberg

Statkraft EnergiAS, Norway
2004)

(Jun Zhang, 2012)

Salinity Gradient Energy

The world's first osmotic plant

with capacity of 4 kW was opened
by Statkraft on 24 November
2009 in Tofte, Norway
24

Salinity Gradient Energy

2.

Reverse ElectroDialysis (RED):

In RED, a concentrated salt solution & a fresh water are brought into
contact through an alternating series of anion exchange membranes
(AEM) and cation exchange membranes (CEM)
The difference in chemical potential between both solutions is the driving
force for this process. The chemical potential difference generates a
voltage over each membrane and the overall potential of the system is
the sum of the potential differences over the sum of membranes.
Reference http://mtg.tnw.utwente.nl/teaching/assign/blue/

(Jun Zhang, 2012)

Ocean Thermal Energy

Conversion (OTEC)

26

Open-cycle OTEC

27

28

29

Thank you for your

attention.

30