Looking to the ocean to produce clean energy

Harnessing the relentless motion of ocean waves to produce clean, sustainable energy has long been a target of scientists.

Dr. Vladimir Shepsis of Applied Ocean Energy Corp. is developing a way to do just that, without having to erect permanent structures in the ocean. It would use wave energy to power an electrolyzer on a barge anchored at sea to separate water into compressed hydrogen and oxygen. It’s the hydrogen that could be valuable as an energy source.

Shepsis provided an update on his renewable ocean wave energy demonstration project, currently in its first phase, which includes the feasibility and engineering and design components, at a recent Port of Grays Harbor commissioners meeting.

Shepsis said there are 10 million metric tons of hydrogen produced in the U.S. annually, with a 6.5% increase in the market every year. There are currently 1,600 miles of hydrogen pipeline in use in the United States.

“Hydrogen is the cleanest source of energy,” said Shepsis. “When hydrogen is burned the only outcome product is water.”

Other energy producing technology can require permanent structures placed in the ocean. This one does not.

“All these processes are offshore and do not connect to the coastline with any cables, nothing,” said Shepsis.

The equipment would be secured to a floating base, which can be a barge “or any other vessel that is certified to work in the open ocean or stay in the open ocean,” said Shepsis. “There’s nothing you need to do for this part,” as common barges can be outfitted with the necessary equipment without modification.

Energy from movement of the waves would be used to power some of the technology used to separate the oxygen and hydrogen. A wave energy converter, currently under development, would be attached to the top of the vessel. A pendulum of sorts, it uses the rolling wave energy to produce electricity.

“Just assume at this time a pendulum on the deck of the barge, and this pendulum takes energy from barge motion and converts it to electricity, which goes to an electric generator, which drives the electrolyzer, which takes the water and desiccates hydrogen and oxygen,” said Shepsis.

The two products are compressed and stored in tanks within the barge. Like the barge itself, the storage containers are actually “conventional standard containers,” 20-40 feet long. The hydrogen would be barged back to port and transferred to trucks for delivery.

The new technology in the project is the wave converter. A small prototype was constructed years ago to prove it could work. That one weighed about 15 or 20 pounds, said Shepsis. For a planned demonstration project, the size would be about 10 tons. If successful, it could be up to 100 tons.

Shepsis’ firm has put together a team of “highly qualified firms” to partner in specialized areas of the project – four naval engineering firms, two mechanical engineering firms, two electrical engineering firms, and Washington State University with its people specializing in hydrogen.

Support from the Port of Grays Harbor and others helped Shepsis secure more than a half million dollars from the Legislature for the first phase of the project, expected to be completed in July. Phase 2, which will include building and testing the prototype, doesn’t have a set in stone start or completion date, but the current project goal has testing happening in the summer and into the early fall of 2022.

Shepsis had a location in mind for the test, about three miles off the coast of Westport. It is a dredging materials dumping site, “and luckily there is a buoy operated by NOAA that reports wave data,” said Shepsis, for a 6-month testing period. This will require permits from multiple agencies, and money, and Shepsis’ group is asking the Port to once again approach the Legislature for potential funding.

Port involvement

The Port of Grays Harbor has a longstanding relationship with Shepsis, working with him as a consultant for issues such as erosion, dredging and navigational structures, said Randy Lewis, Port Director of Environmental and Engineering Services.

“Probably about three or four years ago he approached us and indicated he was beginning to think about stepping away from coastal engineering full time and work with his son and other people to develop a technology they had created a number of years ago to see if they could produce renewable hydrogen in the ocean,” said Lewis.

In the long run, it will have to be determined with the help of data collected during the demonstration project as to the cost-effectiveness of producing hydrogen in this fashion. Lewis said car companies, including Kia and Hyundai, are making hydrogen powered vehicles, and that small hydrogen powered generators are being produced by several manufacturers.

“And some ports, especially overseas, are looking to see what it takes to power a ship in port with a container sized hydrogen cell,” said Lewis.

COURTESY APPLIED OCEAN ENERGY A rendering of a wave energy converter affixed to a standard cargo barge.

COURTESY APPLIED OCEAN ENERGY A rendering of what a wave energy producing barge would look like, with multiple pendulums harnessing wave energy to power an electrolyzer to separate and compress hydrogen and oxygen, stored below.