We've all heard of wind power and solar power and some may be familiar with hydro power in the form of a water wheel or ocean currents. One way of harnessing hydro power is to collect energy from waves. There are several different inventions that are being proposed to harness the kinetic energy of a wave to provide for electrical needs. The specific article discusses an inventor in Maine. Although there is little funding for wave power than other more popular sources, there are numerous completely different designs which is quite different in comparison to other renewable sources. The multitude of possibilities expresses the potential of wave energy to be a formidable source of energy collection. The inventor discussed, Rohrer, explains that the device that he has been working on for approximately four years would work best if used in conjunction with offshore wind farms. This would enable a greater energy collection as well as a sharing of cables. This would also decrease the area of such collection devices. He also makes a point to explain that his device, and most others, are not detrimental to marine life.
This may be becoming my favorite form of renewable energy. The worldwide effect would include coastlines all over the globe. I do have some questions about this process. How difficult would it be to do maintenance on existing wave energy collectors once they are in place? If it is a sustainable energy source but not efficient in maintenance, then it might need to go back to the lab for more research. Also, what would the cost of such devices be? Would they be expected to be on the cheaper end of renewable energy prices? If they were relatively cheap in comparison, then these could be a very valuable energy source for developing countries that have coastlines. I would also question how durable these devices are and how susceptible to violent storms they are. These inventions are still in the developing stages and I would assume that they have already considered these questions and more. Hopefully, the end result is a viable one that will have many benefits.
http://www.seacoastonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20120328/NEWS/203280360/-1/NEWSMAP
1 comment:
You bring up important questions! The search for renewable energy has just begun and I think that solar, wind, and hydro power are the most common and talked about. Of course, the durability of such new technologies is very important. I read somewhere last year that there were "floating solar panels" being tested over water....kinda a solar-hydro combonation!
Post a Comment