Today was a very action packed day. We first went to NELHA, which is an organization that specializes in OTEC and other technologies. Then we went to a local school based around marine life. The school is very unique because the students learn by creating projects. The projects include efficient energy proposals, which are so close to a real life proposals that they have to get permits and funding for the project. The school also has marine life tanks, where students care for species like the black tip reef shark and others. Finally we went on a valley hike down near the ocean. This was my favorite experience during the day because we got to explore the foreign nature that we can’t see in Texas. The OTEC works by pumping warm ocean water at the surface into an evaporator with a fluid (usually ammonium) which boils at room temperature. This pressure flows through a turbine moving it then eventually creating energy. The water vapor then moves into a tube where cold ocean water from deep is sucked up leading to the cooling of the water vapor turning it back into water. The big island is a knew island in relation to the other islands and because of that doesn’t have a continental barrier. The other islands eroded creating something similar to the barrier but the big island hasn’t eroded yet. This means only 3 miles out from the island the water is extremely deep therefore very cold. This is how it is easy in Hawaii to access cold water. Then the water is put into the porous lava rock which acts as a natural filter to the water where it will eventually be let back out into the ocean. I’m looking forward most to our first dive tomorrow.
https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/index.php?page=hydropower_ocean_thermal_energy_conversion
