How can we generate electricity from the sea?

Welcome to The Regenerators.

Created in partnership with The European Marine Energy Centre.

Renewable energy is energy generated from natural resources that are not reduced when we use them, for example the Sun, wind and tides.

Unlike, non-renewable resources, such as coal, oil and natural gas, renewable energy does not contribute to global warming because it doesn't produce greenhouse gases.

We can make use of many different types of renewable energy sources to provide electricity to heat our homes and move our transport.

Types of renewable energy

Examples of renewable energy sources are sunlight, the wind and waves.

Sunlight is transformed into electrical energy using solar panels. The energy from wind is transformed into electricity using turbines.

Marine renewable energy is a type of kinetic energy and is generated by the movement of water in the oceans. It is always available, every day of the year.

Tidal streams are created by the gravitational pull of the Moon and Sun on the world’s oceans.

Due to the predictability of the Moon and Sun’s positions, we already know today the exact amount of tidal energy we will have over the next two decades!

Tidal stream devices use the energy from the currents that flow with the tides. In a similar way to the wind turning wind turbines, tidal currents turn tidal energy turbines.

Tidal stream devices

The European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) tests tidal technologies on the Orkney Islands, off the north coast of Scotland.

Watch the video below to see some other design concepts and how they could harness tidal energy at the Fall of Warness test site.

Waves are formed by wind blowing over the surface of the sea. The movement of water carries energy which can be captured by the wave energy technology and turned into electricity.

The electricity travels through underwater cables and is fed into a large network of cables called the national grid. It eventually ends up in our homes where we can use it to cook, keep warm and use electrical devices.

Waves are everywhere around the globe in oceans, seas and lakes. The best waves to create electricity occur in areas where strong winds have travelled over long distances.

Wave energy devices

The test site off the coast of Orkney is a very special place because it has recorded some of the biggest waves in Europe. Energy from the waves can be captured in many ways, which is why the devices are different shapes and sizes.

Watch the video below and see the different wave energy concepts which could be tested at the Billia Croo testing site.

It is estimated that tidal stream and wave energy combined could cover around 20% of the UK’s current electricity needs.

In a time when we need to stop burning fossil fuels to reduce the impacts of climate change, protecting our planet and our lives, renewable energy like marine energy is important and exciting.

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