Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion

ABSTRACT
With the increase in population and technology, the need for energy is also increasing
tremendously. Till today the energy resources we are using are mainly fossil fuels which are
not eco-friendly and are going to exhaust with in few decades. So it is the time to think
over the non conventional energy sources which are renewable and pollution free and they
have to meet the needed demand.

The main non conventional energy source is solar energy, which is enormous. Oceans, as
they cover ¾th of the earth surface are major sinks for this. The process of converting this
ther-mal energy stored in oceans into electricity is called OCEAN THERMAL ENERGY
CON-VERSION. Solar energy stored in the warm tropical ocean is converted to electrical
energy using a modified refrigeration technology and cold, deep ocean water. This
emerging technology is well suited to a country like India which has a vast coastline
surrounded by sea from three sides.

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INTRODUCTION

Oceans which occupy large areas of earth surface are origin of variety of energy
sources such as ocean currents, waves, tides, hydrates, and temperature and salinity
gradients at varying depth. OTEC is based on tapping energy potential created by temperature
difference between sun-warmed surface water and deep polar fed bottom currents to generate
electricity. Assuming that about 1.5 percent of the total incident solar energy could be
converted into electricity by using OTEC plants, the power output would be 500 million
megawatts. This is equal to 6000 million barrels of oil per day in terms of energy equivalent.
According to MNES estimates, India has a potential of exploiting 80,000 MW of OTEC based
power.

Plant Location

Commercial ocean thermal energy conversion (OTEC) plants must be located in an

environment that is stable enough for efficient system operation. The temperature of the warm
surface seawater must differ about 20°C (36°F) from that of the cold deep water that is no
more than about 1000 meters (3280 feet) below the surface. The natural ocean thermal
gradient necessary for OTEC operation is generally found between latitudes 20 deg N and 20
deg S. Of these possible sites, tropical islands with growing power requirements and
a dependence on expensive imported oil are the most likely areas for OTEC development. The
following map shows the regions, which are having different temperature differences between
surface and depth of 1000m.

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HISTORY

In 1881, Jacques Arsene d'Arsonval, a French physicist, proposed tapping the thermal energy
of the ocean. D'Arsonval's student, Georges Claude, built the first OTEC plant, in Cuba in
1930.[4] The system generated 22 kW of electricity with a low-pressure turbine.

In 1931, Nikola Tesla released "Our Future Motive Power", which described such a system.
Tesla ultimately concluded that the scale of engineering required made it impractical for large
scale development.

In 1935, Claude constructed a plant aboard a 10,000-ton cargo vessel moored off the coast of
Brazil. Weather and waves destroyed it before it could generate net power. (Net power is the
amount of power generated after subtracting power needed to run the system.)

In 1956, French scientists designed a 3 MW plant for Abidjan, Ivory Coast. The plant was
never completed, because new finds of large amounts of cheap oil made it uneconomical.

In 1962, J. Hilbert Anderson and James H. Anderson, Jr. focused on increasing component
efficiency. They patented their new "closed cycle" design in 1967.

Although Japan has no potential sites, it is a major contributor to the development of the
technology, primarily for export. Beginning in 1970 the Tokyo Electric Power Company
successfully built and deployed a 100 kW closed-cycle OTEC plant on the island of Nauru.
The plant became operational 1981-10-14, producing about 120 kW of electricity; 90 kW was
used to power the plant and the remaining electricity was used to power a school and other
places. This set a world record for power output from an OTEC system where the power was
sent to a real power grid.

The United States became involved in 1974, establishing the Natural Energy Laboratory of

Hawaii Authority at Keahole Point on the Kona coast of Hawaiʻi. Hawaii is the best U.S.
OTEC location, due to its warm surface water, access to very deep and very cold wate.

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Electricity Production

WORKING PRINCIPLE

This plant works on the principle of a closed Rankine cycle. The operating cycle is
essentially the same as the one used in Steam Power Plants fired by coal, oil or uranium. But
the working fluid used here is either warm sea water or Ammonia or preferably a halocarbon
refrigerant.The OTEC plant utilizes the temperature difference between the solar warmed
ocean surface waters and the cold deep waters to produce electricity. Warm seawater is used in
evaporators to evaporate the working fluid.This evaporated fluid expands in a low pressure
turbine, which is coupled with a turbo alternator to produce electricity. Then the vapour from
the turbine is condensed by the cold seawater taken from the deep sea.

Types of OTEC plants:

1. Closed cycle OTEC plant.

2. Open cycle OTEC plant.

3. Hybrid cycle OTEC plant.

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Closed-Cycle OTEC System

In the closed-cycle OTEC system, warm seawater vaporizes a working fluid, such as
ammonia, flowing through a heat exchanger (evaporator). The vapor expands at moderate
pressures and turns a turbine coupled to a generator that produces electricity. The vapor is then
condensed in another heat exchanger (condenser) using cold seawater pumped from the
ocean's depths through a cold-water pipe. The condensed working fluid is pumped back to the
evaporator to repeat the cycle. The working fluid remains in a closed system and circulates
continuously.

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Open-Cycle OTEC System

In an open-cycle OTEC system, warm seawater is the working fluid. The warm seawater is
"flash"-evaporated in a vacuum chamber to produce steam at an absolute pressure of about 2.4
kilopascals (kPa). The steam expands through a low-pressure turbine that is coupled to a
generator to produce electricity. The steam exiting the turbine is condensed by cold seawater
pumped from the ocean's depths through a cold-water pipe. If a surface condenser is used in
the system, the condensed steam remains separated from the cold seawater and provides a
supply of desalinated water.

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Hybrid OTEC System

A hybrid cycle combines the features of both the closed-cycle and open-cycle systems. In a
hybrid OTEC system, warm seawater enters a vacuum chamber where it is flash-evaporated
into steam, which is similar to the open-cycle evaporation process. The steam vaporizes the
working fluid of a closed-cycle loop on the other side of an ammonia vaporizer. The vaporized
fluid then drives a turbine that produces electricity. The steam condenses within the heat
exchanger and provides desalinated water.

The electricity produced by the system can be delivered to a utility grid or used to
manufacture methanol, hydrogen, refined metals, ammonia, and similar products. Now let's
take a closer look at some of the main components of an OTEC system—specifically, the heat
exchangers, evaporators, turbines, and condensers.

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VARIOUS PARTS

TURBINES:

Steam flows through large, low-pressure turbines, entering at a pressure of about 2.4 kPa.
These turbines must be able to handle the large steam flows necessary to produce a significant
amount of electric power. The most reliable and cost-effective turbine for a 100-megawatt
(electric) (MW) (net) plant would be a low-speed (200 rpm) unit measuring 43.6 meters in
diameter, which requires more development. Multistage turbines used in nuclear or coal-fired
power plants are already available. The low-pressure stages of these turbines typically operate
at conditions close to those needed in an open-cycle OTEC plant. The rotor that makes up the
last stage (which is typically about 5 meters in diameter) together with a modified stator can
produce about 2.5 MW of electricity (gross). Larger plants will require either several turbines
operating in parallel or major advances in turbine technology that will lead to larger rotors.

HEAT EXCHANGERS

Heat exchangers are a big part of the major performance and cost issues relating to
closed-cycle systems. Open-cycle flash-evaporators include those with open-channel flow,
falling films, and falling jets. These conventional evaporators typically perform to within 70%
to 80% of the maximum thermodynamic performance at acceptable hydraulic losses. Research
at the Solar Energy Research Institute (SERI), now the National Renewable Energy
Laboratory (NREL), led to the development of a vertical-spout evaporator that can perform to
within 90% of the thermodynamic limit. In this evaporator, water is drawn upward through a
vertical pipe (a spout) and violently sprayed outward by escaping steam. To enhance
performance, the spray may fall on screens that further break up the droplets and increase the
evaporation rate.

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Titanium was the original material chosen for closed-cycle heat exchangers because it resists
corrosion. However, it is an expensive option for plants that use large heat exchangers.
Corrosion-resistant copper-nickel alloys, which can be used to protect platforms and cold-
water pipes, are not compatible with ammonia, the most common working fluid. A suitable
alternative to these materials may be aluminum.

Layers of slime and marine organisms can grow quickly on surfaces exposed to warm
seawater. In heat exchangers, this buildup—known as biofouling—reduces the heat-transfer
efficiency. The biofouling can be prevented by mixing chlorine in the pipes intermittently, for
a total of about 1 hour a day, at a concentration of 70 ppb.

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CONDENSERS

After steam passes through the turbines, it can be condensed in direct-contact condensers or
surface condensers. The surface condensers considered for use in OTEC systems are similar to
those used in conventional power plants; however, these surface condensers must operate
under lower pressures and with higher amounts of noncondensable gases in the steam. Surface
con-densers keep the cooling seawater separate from the spent steam during condensation. By
using indirect contact, the condensers produce desalinated water that is relatively free of
seawater impurities. Steam in the open-cycle system contains non condensable gases that can
interfere with power production. These gases oxygen, nitrogen, and carbon dioxide are
released from the seawater when it is exposed to low pressures under vacuum. Air also enters
the open-cycle vacuum vessel through leaks, although good construction techniques can
reduce the rate of air leakage to very low levels. Unless these gases are removed from the
vacuum chamber, they can interfere with condensation, particularly with surface condensers,
by blanketing the condensing surfaces; they can even build up enough pressure to stop
evaporation. An exhaust compressor can remove these non condensable gases.

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APPLICATIONS

Ocean thermal energy conversion (OTEC) systems have many applications or uses.
OTEC can be used to generate electricity, desalinate water, support deep-water Mari culture,
and provide refrigeration and air-conditioning as well as aid in crop growth and mineral
extraction. These complementary products make OTEC systems attractive to industry and
island communities even if the price of oil remains low.

The electricity produced by the system can be delivered to a utility grid or used to
manufacture methanol, hydrogen, refined metals, ammonia, and similar products. The cold
[5°C (41ºF)] seawater made available by an OTEC system creates an opportunity to provide
large amounts of cooling to operations that are related to or close to the plant. Likewise, the
low-cost refrigeration provided by the cold seawater can be used to upgrade or maintain the
quality of indigenous fish, which tend to deteriorate quickly in warm tropical regions. The
developments in other technologies (especially materials sciences) were improving the
viability of mineral extraction processes that employ ocean energy.

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Benefits of OTEC

We can measure the value of an ocean thermal energy conversion (OTEC) plant and continued
OTEC development by both its economic and noneconomic benefits. OTEC's economic
benefits include these:

 Helps produce fuels such as hydrogen, ammonia, and methanol

 Produces baseload electrical energy

 Produces desalinated water for industrial, agricultural, and residential uses

 Is a resource for on-shore and near-shore mariculture operations

 Provides air-conditioning for buildings

 Provides moderate temperature refrigeration.

 Has significant potential to provide clean, cost-effective electricity for the future.

OTEC's noneconomic benefits, which help us achieve global environmental goals, include
these:

 Promotes competitiveness and international trade

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  Enhances energy independence and energy security

 Promotes international sociopolitical stability

 Has potential to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions resulting from burning fossil fuels.

In small island nations, the benefits of OTEC include self-sufficiency, minimal environmental
impacts, and improved sanitation and nutrition, which result from the greater availability of
desalinated water and mariculture products.

Disadvantages

 With a 22deg k temperature difference between surface and depths, the Carnot
efficiency is around 7% only. Assuming the temperature drop in the turbine being
10deg k the maximum thermal efficiency is around 3.4%.
 And the allowance for the energy required to pump cold water from great depths
would reduce the net efficiency for electrical power generation to 2 – 2.5%.
 The electric power that can be generated depends, in the first place, on the rate of heat
transfer from the warm ocean water to the working fluid in the evaporator. These
requirements can be met only if there is effective heat transfer in the heat exchangers.
Special efforts are required to improve the engineering design of heat exchangers
suitable for OTEC use.
 Bio-fouling means deposition and growth of microorganism on the cooling water side
of the heat exchanger. It reduces the heat transfer efficiency. It is dealt with by
chemical (chlorination) or mechanical (brushes or rubber balls) means.
 Another major problem associated with OTEC systems is that of power transmission
to the shore. Submarine cables are needed for this. These cables have to be strong
enough to withstand the rough marine environment.
 Generating 10 million MW OTEC power for the world as a whole might lead to
cooling of the ocean surface by about 1deg C. It may affect the aquatic life and also
may lead to advancement of arctic glacier.

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CASE STUDY: (INDIA)

Conceptual studies on OTEC plants for Kavaratti (Lakshadweep islands), in the

Andaman-Nicobar Islands and off the Tamil Nadu coast at Kulasekharapatnam were
initiated in 1980. In 1984 a preliminary design for a 1 MW (gross) closed Rankine Cycle
floating plant was prepared by the Indian Institute of Technology in Madras at the request
of the Ministry of Non-Conventional Energy Resources. The National Institute of Ocean
Technology (NIOT) was formed by the governmental Department of Ocean Development
in 1993 and in 1997 the Government proposed the establishment of the 1 MW plant of
earlier studies. NIOT signed a memorandum of understanding with Saga University in
Japan for the joint development of the plant near the port of Tuticorin (Tamil Nadu).

It has been reported that following detailed specifications, global tenders were
placed at end-1998 for the design, manufacture, supply and commissioning of various sub-
systems. The objective is to demonstrate the OTEC plant for one year, after which it could
be moved to the Andaman & Nicobar Islands for power generation. NIOT’s plan is to build
10-25 MW shore-mounted power plants in due course by scaling-up the 1 MW test plant,
and possibly a 100 MW range of commercial plants thereafter.

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Conclusion:
Thus from the above discussion we can say that OTEC is a reliable source of energy for
the future which is no more effected to seasonal changes. To make it more economical, further
research is needed. Technical aspects like design of more efficient heat exchanger will
increase the thermal efficiency of the system. For this we have to concentrate on the metals
used for heat exchangers. A great research has to be done in reducing the cost of separation of
minerals from cold seawater, which results into many advantages like extraction of hydrogen
fuel from seawater.

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