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GAO-21-533SP 1 (2021-06-09)

handle is hein.gao/gaolug0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Science, Technology Assessment, and Analytics SCIENCE & TECH SPOTLIGHT: RENEWABLE OCEAN ENERGY What is it? Renewable ocean energy (or, simply, ocean energy), is energy derived from the ocean's movement, or from its physical and chemical state. In the United States, ocean energy can be generated from waves, tides, and currents, as well as ocean temperature differences. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory estimates that if fully utilized, ocean energy resources in the U.S. could provide the equivalent of over half of the electricity that the country generated in 2019. U.S. government and industry stakeholders predict that ocean energy will likely be first used to provide power for energy and water needs of island and coastal communities and offshore activities. According to these stakeholders, using ocean energy for these activities and communities will help advance the technologies and contribute toward making ocean energy cost-competitive in some additional markets. movement of tidal currents to generate power, typically through submerged turbines whose propellers are spun by the current, analogous to wind turbines. Devices that capture energy from non-tidal ocean currents, such as the Gulf Stream, also use currents to spin a turbine and generate energy. Some technologies, such as tidal kites, can harness both higher velocity tidal currents and lower velocity offshore currents through a special kite tethered underwater. The kite uses control flaps to move in a fixed pattern across the current, increasing the speed of water flow across the turbine blades in the kite, thereby extracting more energy. Ocean thermal energy converter (OTEC) power plants convert the thermal differences between warm surface seawater and cold deep seawater into power and are intended to be deployed as large-scale power plants. OTEC plants use this temperature difference to produce electricity. Specifically, warm surface water is pumped through an evaporator which evaporates a working fluid (which can be the surface water itself). The resulting vapor expands and drives a turbine generator, producing electricity. The vapor is then condensed back into a fluid using cold water pumped from deep in the ocean. Generator - Air in Turbine Wave Tidal Ocean Current 9 Ocean Thermal Estimated regional ocean energy resource potential, expressed as a percentage of the total amount of electricity generated in each region in 2019. Source: GAO (analysis); National Renewable Energy Laboratory (image). NOTE: Image adapted from Levi Kilcher, Michelle Fogarty, and Michael Lawson. 2021. Marine Energy in the United States: An Overview of Opportunities. Golden, CO: NREL. NREL/TP-5700-78773. https://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy21osti/78773.pdf I GAO-21-533SP S1. The extent to which ocean energy could potentially supplement the existing electricity supply varies across different regions. How does it work? Ocean energy resources can be harnessed using a variety of devices, depending on the type of energy they harness, the amount of power they need to supply, and other factors. Devices that capture the energy of moving water vary in design and scale, depending on whether they are made to harness waves, tides, or ocean currents. Wave energy converters use surface waves to generate power. For example, one type of wave energy converter generates power by using wave motion as a piston to drive air in and out of a chamber, with the moving air driving a turbine. Tidal energy converters use the horizontal Sources (left to right): GAO adaptation of NREL and DOE documentation. I GAO-21-533SP Example of an oscillating water column, which is a type of wave energy converter, and an OTEC power plant. How mature is it? Wave and tidal energy converters are in the early stages of commercialization. While tidal energy converters have begun to converge toward a single design, wave energy converters have not. This is in part because wave energy converter developers have started to focus on smaller, purpose-designed devices for niche energy markets. GAO-21-533SP Ocean Energy

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