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Essay on Hanging 10 for Power Generation

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Hanging 10 for Power Generation

There are many different ways to generate electricity. Wind, rivers, fire, and ocean are just a few technologies that are in current use. In this paper it will narrow the focus to the different types of ocean wave power generation.

Wave generated electricity is a fairly new concept. Heavy research started in the early sixties. People have been trying to build effective wave machines for about two hundred years. Designing wave machines can be difficult do to the nature of the ocean.

One of the primary set backs in designing wave technologies is the inconsistencies of the ocean. The tides, wave height, wave set counts, and consistencies are major hindrances …show more content…

As the water level inside the chamber raises and lowers, the difference air pressure turns a low resistance turbine, generating power. The turbine spins in one direction no matter if the air is pulling or pushing. The collectors have been design in this manner to obtain the maximum output of power out of the machines. Most of these wave collectors, also known as oscillating water columns are still experimental. This device is regarded as the world most advanced wave-to-electricity generators. An oscillating water column in Norway is being tested and can produce 500 kilowatts of electricity.

A “Salter Duck”, is another invention that has been developed to produce power from waves. This machine is basically two large pontoons hinged together at their ends. The bobbing action of the pontoons gives the mechanical advantage to drive the internal generator. This was the first invention to receive wide spread use to make ocean generated power. The United States Coast Guard has been using many of these to power generating tools for their navigation lights and audio transmitters.

Another type of energy the ocean has to offer is her tides. Generators used to harness power from ocean tides are the cheapest to build. This is for the shear fact that most of the tide power stations are connected to land. Due to logistics it is a lot easier to build objects closer to land than in the middle of the ocean. These power stations can

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