In the last few years we have seen an increasing interest in solar, wind, and geothermal energy. If Maine Maritime Academy in Castine, ME is successful in their latest initiative, we may soon be adding tidal energy to the growing list of viable alternative energy sources.
Located on a peninsula in Penobscot Bay, the Maine Maritime Academy Campus is ideally situated near the entrance to the Bagaduce River which has been identified by the Electrical Power Resource Institute as a viable location for the generation of tidal energy.
Much like a wind turbine, a “tidal turbine” will be installed in an area of increased tidal flow on the sea floor in order to capture the maximum amount of tidal energy during the rise and fall of the tide. The Academy has obtained a permit to install a turbine device sometime in the next three years from the United States Federal Energy Regulation Commission (FERC), with an option to renew the permit once the tidal energy turbines are online.
The highly regarded engineering college, along with three private corporations (Cianbro Corp., Marinus Power, and Ocean Works International) is still in the planning stages of their tidal energy project. The academy is examining what environmental impact an underwater tidal turbine would cause, as well as addressing local citizen’s questions and concerns on the proposal.
Eventually, the academy hopes to test several such tidal energy devices to evaluate their cost effectiveness and energy efficiency. The academy also hopes to utilize some of the power generated by the project to meet the energy needs of its campus.
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{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
Lets hope that they can design the propellers on wind mills and ocean turbines with wild life in mind. I hope they use some sort of sonar technology to keep fish, birds and bats from getting to close and killing themselves.
There are other turbine designs with fish and seabird protective screens. Open thin blades, (Windmill type) have serious problems to operate in a fluid that is 830% denser than air and so far almost all of the units installed in the world have broken. If you install a ten meter diameter turbine, the blade tips will slice through the water at a linear speed of (10 x 3.1426 x 40 RPM / 60 sec = 21 m/sec or ~ 63ft/s, (tubine revolving @~40 RPM) this speed is not easily overcome by large fish, sea turtles and sea birds!
Hopefully, during the environmental evaluation period (and subsequent engineering phase) they will be able to address these concerns with a reliable “fish friendly” turbine system.