Principle of Operation and Developer

The OTEC (Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion) technology produces

electricity with the temperature difference between warm and cold
seawater. Cold water is drawn with a large diameter pipe from depths
of a 1,000 meters or more in the ocean. Meanwhile, warm sea water is
drawn from near the surface of the ocean.

Following the Rankine thermodynamic closed cycle, the warm sea

water is passed through an evaporator (heat exchanger) with a
chemical that has a low boiling point, like ammonia, which creates
chemical steam that operates an electric turbine. The ammonia is then
condensed back to liquid form with the cold sea water.

Scientists and Engineers have entertained the idea of OTEC since the
19th century and the American company, Lockheed Martin created a
working model during the 1970s energy crisis.
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Best Locations for OTEC Technology

The multiproduct and multifunctional OTEC technology is best

suited for equatorial waters in countries like Nigeria where the
average surface temperature of the Atlantic ocean is in excess
of 25oC throughout the year.

Nigeria satisfies all the four requirements for favorable sites

for OTEC System. These are:
High thermal differences between the warm surface and the
cold deep water
Low velocity water currents
Low frequency and severity of storms, hurricanes and
typhoons.
Proximity to the market for OTEC products.
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BENEFITS (Contd.)

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BENEFITS (Contd.)

The slightly warmer deep seawater that is brought to the surface is nutrient
rich and can be used for various aquaculture applications (including production
of algae-based biofuels) or for cold water agriculture. This currently is
happening at NELHA at Keahole Point on Oahu and there are a number of other
areas (including Nigeria) where this could be employed.

The large volume of sea water can be used to produce fresh, potable water.
About 2 million liters of fresh water per day is produced for each megawatt of
electricity generated.

The OTEC power plant can also be used to manufacture on Board energy
intensive products such as aluminum, magnesium, nickel, various alloys ,
semiconductors etc., for deep sea bed mining of such minerals as manganese,
cobalt, and nickel, or for producing energy carriers/fuels such as hydrogen and
ammonia.

Since OTEC plant will not utilize fossil fuel, the produced electricity has a fixed
cost, thus it is not susceptible to the volatility of costs that affect other energy
sources such as petroleum products, coal and natural gas.

Moreover, the environmental impact is less than other sources of energy since
no products of combustion are generated during the power production
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process.

Thank You
for Your
Attention
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