by George Leard

Created on: January 22, 2010   Last Updated: January 25, 2010

The advantages of Tidal Stream Turbine

 Tidal Stream Turbine is the water version, of the wind power operation that produces electricity for residential and commercial use. In this process, the steam turbines are placed under water to capture the ebb and flow of the waves. These waves are predictable, very powerful and once captured by the turbines, will generate movement, which is then transferred to a generator, to produce electricity.

The Technology to properly protect the turbines, and the work stations are now available, in the forms of marine epoxy paints, to cover the construction steel exposed to the constant barrage of the sea water, and the use of cathodic and anodic points to reduce the threat of corrosion during operation.

The successful extraction of electricity from marines sources are in the formative stage, but once the teething pains are removed, the future of the industry will be an excellent one. The is due to the sea water being a dependable, and renewable resource, and the fact that it makes up 70% of the earth surface, and has a very high specific heat capacity.

The ability to hold heat longer than the wind, and a number of other materials, uniquely gives the sea water a source of constant motion, when combined with the earth movements, as well as the constantly changing temperature, and pressure.  It is this constant motion that is exploited to generate electricity, using Tidal StreamTurbines.

On a daily basis, the sea water has a surface area of approximately 23millions square miles  available to absorb solar energy, and if Tidal Stream Turbines could be used in a maximized capacity, in all countries of the world that are not landlocked, then there would be no need to extract energy from fossil fuels.

The power requirements for the United States of America, for example, can be supplied 20 fold, if 0.01 % of this daily resource, which is equivalent to 250 billion barrels of oil, is utilized. Marine Currents Turbine, a company in the United Kingdom, has shown that with some creativity, innovation, and determination, tidal steam turbines can be successful. It was able to generate 50MWh of electricity from the ocean, during 6.25 hours of operation.

This form of alternate energy extraction from a marine environment, is ideally placed to exceed, the even the electricity production achievable from wind power, because the water has a density of 850 times that of air, and the quantity of energy generated from turbines

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