Marine energy

Marine energy or ocean energy 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. This energy can be harnessed to generate electricity to power homes, transport and industries.

Types of Marine Energy

There are several types of marine energy, including:

• Tidal energy: This is a form of hydropower that converts the energy obtained from tides into electricity or other useful forms of power. The greater the tidal movement, the more potential energy is available for conversion to electricity.

• Wave energy: Wave energy is produced when electricity generators are placed on the surface of the ocean. The energy provided is most often used in desalination plants, power plants and water pumps. Energy output is determined by wave height, wave speed, wavelength, and water density.

• Ocean thermal energy conversion (OTEC): OTEC is a process that can produce electricity by using the temperature difference between deep cold ocean water and warm tropical surface waters. OTEC plants pump large quantities of deep cold seawater and surface seawater to run a power cycle and produce electricity.

• Salinity gradient energy: Also known as blue energy, this is a type of marine energy derived from the difference in the salt concentration between seawater and river water. Two practical methods for this are reverse electrodialysis (RED) and pressure retarded osmosis (PRO).

Environmental Impact

While marine energy has the potential to provide a substantial amount of new renewable energy around the world, its implementation is not without environmental considerations. These include the potential for negative impacts on marine and coastal ecosystems and life forms, as well as on human uses of marine and coastal space.

Future of Marine Energy

The future of marine energy is promising. With the world's oceans covering over 70% of the earth's surface, the potential for energy generation is enormous. However, the sector is still in its early stages and further research and development is required to make marine energy a significant contributor to the global energy mix.

See Also

• Renewable energy
• Hydropower
• Wind power
• Solar power