Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
u
A Wave “Farm”
Stand on the beach near Aguçadoura, Portugal, and look out at
the ocean. You can barely see a red line on the surface about
3 miles (4.8 kilometers) away. That line is actually part of
the world's fi rst wave “farm.” Three large, long devices called
converters
are anchored to the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean.
They capture the energy in the moving waves and turn it into
electricity. A cable under the water carries the electricity to
shore. The wave farm fi rst produced electricity in 2008. Portugal
hopes to increase the size of
the farm by adding more of
the long, red converters. The
farm could one day produce
21 megawatts of electricity.
That is enough to power
almost 15,000 homes.
The wave-energy converters off the coast
of Portugal.
into special systems that keep buildings cool. One type of this
air conditioning has already been used in Hawaii. In addition,
the energy generated by OTEC can help provide drinkable
water for parts of the world that need drinking water. A process
called desalination can take salt out of ocean water, to make
it drinkable. Desalination requires a great deal of energy. An
OTEC system or other source of water power could provide
