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Ocean waves to be our new energy source
With the dwindling reserves of natural resources and fossil fuels the need for alternative energy has increased. There has never been a higher demand of energy than what is required today. Survival of the future generations to come is based on our ability to sustainably use the natural resources.
Scientists all over the world are involved in solving the upcoming energy crisis. They are now focused to the cause of the survival of the future generations. There have been many breakthroughs in the past towards finding an alternative source of energy. The increased use of solar power and wind power has brought down the exhaustion of natural resources but this is not enough.
A team of IIT Madras and National Institute of Ocean Technology (NOIT) has been looking into this problem. And recently they have come up with a way to convert the energy of the ocean waves into electrical power. Their study was recently published in The International Journal on Energy Resource. This Journal is a peer reviewed journal for the cause of energy resources only.
The study is based on Turbine Chamber Coupling. There are two major elements in the study one is the water column and the other is the air turbine. The process uses a model wherein when the water level changes due to the waves it creates an air pressure in the column which is diverted to the turbine which causes it to rotate and hence creates a mechanical energy. This mechanical energy can then be converted into electrical energy.
The team of IIT Madras and NOIT is headed by Dr. Abdus Samad who is an Assistant Professor of the Department of Ocean Energy of IIT Madras. He has been focused towards extracting energy from the waves naturally occurring in the ocean. The project is being funded by Ministry of Earth Sciences, Government of India.
His interest towards the ocean wave energy is due to the fact that even though we have the solar and wind power but they cannot be regarded as unlimited sources of energy. India is a country having a lost coast line and with the help of these we can extract more energy than ever. The idea to develop energy from ocean waves is not new. Endless efforts are being taken by the Department of Ocean Energy under the guidance of the Government of India to covert this though into a reality.
The research team is now oriented towards developing the machines and devices used for harvesting the wave energy. This research is very useful in determining the actual capacity of the project, the turbine efficiency, the power output and other such data which will become a basis of the future plans of such plants.
The study also pointed out that the nature of the ocean is beyond control and is completely unpredictable. Hence, the entire success of this plan depends upon the ability of these machines to convert the unsteady wave movements into such consumable energy. The NOIT has been given the task to develop the turbines of the project. They are developing turbines for both fixed and floating wave devices.
