It’s easy to debate why it takes horrific events like the explosion of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico to get us off our national oil addiction. It appears that placing the 450 ton 48 ft. massive dome on top of the gushing well 5000 feet beneath the ocean’s surface has failed. The next plan is an attempt to clog up the well with massive amounts of trash under intense pressure. Meanwhile over 200,000 gallons a day of this subterranean oil continue pouring into the Gulf. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar has suspended new oil permits. There are 819 fully active oil rigs in the Gulf.
Updates from the Gulf of Mexico Here
The 5000 ft. undersea oil gusher in the Gulf of Mexico
Given that Congress is in the midst of reviewing new energy policies. Does it make sense to really consider more aggressive alternative renewable energy sources? After all the oil coming from American offshore development represents just 2% of global production. There’s some irony in recognizing just how quickly the force of the ocean has been in spreading the effects of the gushing oil; maybe it’s time to get serious about tidal and wave energy as an additional source of clean renewable energy. Pelamis a U.K. wave energy company started in 1998, along with some other companies are working on ten sites on the seabed off the north coast of Scotland. The Scottish government has leased out these locations to selected power companies in an effort to generate wave and tidal energy.
Another company Australia based Oceanlinx just last month launched its 3rd Generation Wave Energy Converter, the Mk3PC. This latest design and pre-commercial platform, is one of the most efficient and cost-effective wave energy technologies in the global scene today. The unit is the only wave energy device in Australia of this size to be connected to the electrical grid and producing energy. It’s one of very few wave energy developers around the world that have grid connected wave energy devices.
There are others in the wave and tidal energy business…maybe it’s time for Congress and American entrepreneurs to catch the wave.
Designs for underwater wave energy converters
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Did you know that Romania has a technical solution with the highest efficiency to capture wave power?. Patent 108893 entitled Dynamic Engine for Sea Wave Energy Catching. A pioneering invention. It is estimated that “dynamic engine” has the ability to catching wave energy at a rate of over 80% while the other technical solutions known worldwide, are not able to capture wave energy with a higher percentage of about 10-15%. Cosma Vasile. Romania. E-mail cosma.vasile@yahoo.com
Some information for patent “Dynamic Engine” can be found on:
Ocean energy: Wave energy | Climate TechWiki
Summary and drawing is on page 28. [PDF] BOPI no. 9/1994 – OSIM