Can we harness the waves to create enough power in the world?

Question

the tides go in and out all the time ,I was thinking it`s done with wind why not water!

Answer 1

Wave and tidal turbines are two different things. both are in use, but not extensively.

Both are relatively low power and intermittant.

Answer 2

Plenty of tidal projects already being tried out but you'll never be able to generate and transport the amount of power required to replace the power stations currently in use.

Answer 3

There are a lot of different means for generating power from the ocean.  Check out Gorlov's turbines which are small scale turbines perfect for tidal streams or even rivers.  Salter's Duck design utilizes the energy in waves to generate electricity.  In the Philippines they already utilize water turbines that span between islands to generate electricity from the tides.  Wikipedia has a lot of information about the various ways to generate electricity from waves. See : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wave_power

On top of this we could also utilize offshore wind turbines to either generate electricity directly or use them to electrolyze the water splitting it into Hydrogen and Oxygen.  The hydrogen could then be shipped to shore and used for fuel cells or also for hydrogen power plants.

There is also capability to utilize the difference in temperature over depth in the ocean to generate electricity. See : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ocean_therm...

In my opinion there is the potential to utilize the oceans to generate sufficient amounts of power, however, what is standing in the way of this is politics and infrastructure.

Answer 4

No, we can't even drill offshore in many areas and you think we could blanket the shorelines with expensive and unreliable tide powered turbines? Not feasible...

Answer 5

Sounds a reasonable idea until you realise that many seas (eg. Mediterranean, Black, Caspian etc.) are none tidal.

Answer 6

Never heard of a water turbine have you?