OTEC
OTEC stands for Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion. It is a way to make electricity by using the temperature of the ocean.
You know how when you’re in a swimming pool, the water near the top is warmer than the water near the bottom? The same thing happens in the ocean. The top layer of the ocean is warmer than the bottom layer.
OTEC uses this temperature difference to make electricity.
A special device called a heat exchanger is put in the ocean. It has pipes filled with water running through it. The warm water from the top of the ocean goes through the pipes and heats up a fluid, like ammonia. When the ammonia gets hot, it turns into a gas.
The gas then goes into a turbine (which is like a windmill). As the gas moves through the turbine, it spins it around. The spinning turbine makes a generator turn, and this creates electricity.
But what about the cold water from the bottom of the ocean? Well, it also goes through a pipe and cools down the gas, which turns it back into a liquid. The liquid ammonia can then go back to the beginning of the process and be heated up by the warm ocean water again.
OTEC is a very cool way to make electricity because it uses the natural temperature difference in the ocean. And the ocean is huge, so we won’t run out of it like we would with other fuels.
You know how when you’re in a swimming pool, the water near the top is warmer than the water near the bottom? The same thing happens in the ocean. The top layer of the ocean is warmer than the bottom layer.
OTEC uses this temperature difference to make electricity.
A special device called a heat exchanger is put in the ocean. It has pipes filled with water running through it. The warm water from the top of the ocean goes through the pipes and heats up a fluid, like ammonia. When the ammonia gets hot, it turns into a gas.
The gas then goes into a turbine (which is like a windmill). As the gas moves through the turbine, it spins it around. The spinning turbine makes a generator turn, and this creates electricity.
But what about the cold water from the bottom of the ocean? Well, it also goes through a pipe and cools down the gas, which turns it back into a liquid. The liquid ammonia can then go back to the beginning of the process and be heated up by the warm ocean water again.
OTEC is a very cool way to make electricity because it uses the natural temperature difference in the ocean. And the ocean is huge, so we won’t run out of it like we would with other fuels.