Design, Development and Test of Ocean Energy Harvesting Systems

This proposed effort seeks to design, develop and test an affordable, scalable ocean thermal energy harvesting system that uses high performance phase change materials to convert ocean thermal energy, a reliable and renewable power source, to electricity. Specifically, a 0.25W energy harvesting system will be designed, developed and tested in the laboratory environment. When attached to a recharging battery, this 0.25W energy harvesting system will be able to power smaller sized unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs) such as underwater floats and gliders. The developed 0.25W prototype will have an immediate impact on the international Argo float market. With the thermal recharging battery, the fast sampling float can now collect data more frequently than 10 days while still maintaining a multi-year mission life. The Bio-Argo float can measure nitrate, oxygen and pH in the ocean. Results from the 0.25W energy harvesting system will be used to scale up and design a 2kW power station that can be used to power larger sized UUVs through a docking device. The developed ocean energy harvesting system will not only increase the endurance for UUVs, but also eliminate the need for ships and sailors in order to recover and recharge UUV batteries.