A long time ago, nature set its oceans and the living things in them. There were plants residing on the bottom of the ocean, plants who sway back and forth, as the water moves around them.
So, BioPower Systems from Australia thought that making an under-ocean energy collecting system whose movement resembles with the one plants have, would be much more efficient and non-disturbing to the environment.
This designing technique is called “Biomimicry“, and BioPower’s invention was recently featured in the News on the National Geographic web site. Two full-scale prototypes are scheduled to be installed in Tasmania in 2009. For now, studies are made to enhance these systems’ energy producing capabilities. They will be linked with the main grid and produce about 0.5 MegaWatts of electricity. Their height will reach 65 feet under the ocean. When there are ocean storms, the “bioWaves” lie themselves flat on the ground until the severe conditions pass, so they can avoid being torn apart.
The low environmental impact of these energy harvesters make them serious candidates to regular classic coal powered power plants.
