TECHNOLOGIES FOR HARNESSING WAVE ENERGY:

The wave energy devices being developed and tested today are highly diverse, and a variety of technologies have been proposed to capture the energy from waves. Some of the more promising designs are undergoing demonstration testing at commercial scales.

Wave technologies have been designed to be installed in the nearshore, offshore, and far offshore locations. While wave energy technologies are intended to be installed at or near the water's surface, there can be major differences in their technical concept and design. For example, they may differ in their orientation to the waves or in the manner in which they convert energy from the waves.

Although wave power technologies are continuing to develop, there are four basic applications that may be suitable for deployment on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS): point absorbers, attenuators, overtopping devices, and terminators.

·  Terminator devices extend perpendicular to the direction of the wave and capture or reflect the power of the wave. These devices are typically onshore or nearshore; however, floating versions have been designed for offshore applications. The oscillating water column is a form of terminator in which water enters through a subsurface opening into a chamber, trapping air above. The wave action causes the captured water column to move up and down like a piston, forcing the air though an opening connected to a turbine to generate power. These devices generally have power ratings of 500kW to 2 MW, depending on the wave climate and the device dimensions.
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Oceanlinx Moored Oscillating Water Column Terminator off the Coast of Australia / Shore-Based Terminator in Islay,
Scotland.
·  Attenuators are long multisegment floating structures oriented parallel to the direction of the waves. They ride the waves like a ship, extracting energy by using restraints at the bow of the device and along its length. The differing heights of waves along the length of the device causes flexing where the segments connect. The segments are connected to hydraulic pumps or other converters to generate power as the waves move across. A transformer in the nose of the unit steps up the power-to-line voltage for transmission to shore. Power is fed down an umbilical cable to a junction box in the seabed, connecting it and other machines via a common subsea cable to shore.
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The Agucadoura Wave Farm offshore Portugal was the world's first. It was tested and operated in 2008. 3 miles offshore, using the Pelamus Wave Energy Conversion Device. / Artist's conception of an array of attenuator wave energy devices.
·  A point absorber is a floating structure with components that move relative to each other due to wave action (e.g., a floating buoy inside a fixed cylinder). Point absorbers often look like floating oceanographic buoys. They utilize the rise and fall of the wave height at a single point for energy conversion. The relative up and down bobbing motion caused by passing waves is used to drive electromechanical or hydraulic energy converters to generate power.

Ocean Power Technology's (OPT) Powerbuoy wave generation system
·  Overtopping devices have reservoirs that are filled by incoming waves, causing a slight buildup of water pressure like a dam. The water is then released, and gravity causes it to flow back into the ocean. The energy of the falling water is used to turn hydro turbines to generate power. Specially built floating platforms can also create electricity by funneling waves through internal turbines and then back into the sea.

Wave Dragon Overtopping Device.

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ANOXIC & ANEROBIC

Anoxic is a description of the environment - without oxygen. Mostly microbes live here, and oxygen is actually toxic to most of them (such as hydrothermal vents). Anaerobic describes a condition of cellular respiration that is undergone in the absence of oxygen. Organisms in anoxic environments generally do not undergo this type of respiration, since they have evolved completely different methods for such. Some organisms are obligate anaerobes, meaning they cannot use oxygen. Some are obligate aerobes, meaning they must have oxygen to survive. There are also facultative aerobes that use oxygen when it is available. Humans undergo anaerobic metabolism when we have exhausted our immediate oxygen supply, such as during levels of high intensity exercise.

CLELIA

Owned and operated by Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution, Clelia is a PC 1204 submersible built by Perry Oceanographics in 1976 and refitted in 1992 by Harbor Branch to address the needs of the shallow water scientific community. At 23 ft long, 8 ft 3 in wide and 9 ft 7 in high, the Clelia travels at a maximum speed of 3 knots and is classed and certified to a maximum operating depth of 1,000 feet by the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS). http://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/technology/subs/clelia/clelia.html

PHOTOSYNTHETIC QUOTIENT
In photosynthesis, the moles of oxygen produced, divided by the moles of carbon dioxide assimilated. In other words, it’s the ratio of the right side of the equation to the left side of the equation. Basically, amount of what’s produced (oxygen) divided by what was needed (carbon dioxide).

OXIDATION vs. REDUCTION
Oxidation is the gain of oxygen and loss of electrons (making the substance more positive), while reduction is the loss of oxygen and gain of electrons (making the substance more negative).

PHARYNGEAL SLITS
Pharyngeal slits (derived from pharynx) are a chordate feature; these are openings between the pharynx, or throat, and the outside. They have been modified extensively in the course of evolution. In primitive chordates, these slits are used to filter food particles from the water. In fishes and some amphibians, the slits bear gills and are used for gas exchange. In most land- living chordates, the "gill slits" are present only in embryonic stages; you had pharyngeal slits at one time. The slits are supported by gill arches, which have also been highly modified in various groups of vertebrates.

CONVERGENT EVOLUTION
Convergent evolution describes the independent evolution of similar features in species of different lineages. Convergent evolution creates analogous structures that have similar form or function, but were not present in the last common ancestor of those groups. The wing is a classic example of convergent evolution in action. Flying insects, birds, and bats have all evolved the capacity of flight independently. They have "converged" on this useful trait. Convergent evolution is similar to, but distinguishable from, the phenomena of parallel evolution. Parallel evolution occurs when two independent but similar species evolve in the same direction and thus independently acquire similar characteristics—for instance gliding frogs have evolved in parallel from multiple types of tree frog.

ADULT ASCIDIANS
Ascidians (class under the subphylum Tunicata) - one of the major groups of the phylum Chordata, which includes the vertebrates (fishes, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals). Sea Squirts are a common ascidian. Although you don't look much like a sea squirt now, during development before you were born, you had the same characteristics present in all chordates at some stage of their life. Most ascidians are hermaphrodites (produce both eggs and sperm) and reproduce by external fertilization (releasing eggs and sperm into the water). The free-swimming larva they produce are known as ascidian tadpoles. After a few hours, the 'tadpoles' secrete slime, and attach themselves to a rock surface head-first, and then absorb their tail. Adult ascidians are 'sessile' (unable to move around) and filter food particles from the water by pumping water in one siphon and out the other.

BROWN ALGAE
Phaeophyta, brown algae, are most abundant in temperate watersand are mainly represented by the kelp’s which are the largest and most conspicuous of all marine plants. Out of all known species, 99% are marine with the remaining 1% being found in freshwater ecosystems. They are the largest and most structurally complex of all algae and are found in temperate (cool) waters mainly and areas with high nutrients.

SPONGE REEFS
Sponge reefs serve an important ecological function as habitat, breeding and nursery areas for fish and invertebrates. The reefs are currently threatened by the fishery, offshore oil and gas industries. Attempts are being made to protect these unique ecosystems through fishery closures and potentially the establishment of Marine Protected Areas (MAPs) around the sponge reefs. Sponge reefs require unique conditions, which may explain their global rarity. They are found only in glacier-scoured troughs of low-angle continental shelf. The seafloor is stable and consists of rock, coarse gravel, and large boulders. Sponge reefs provide structure on the otherwise relatively featureless continental shelf. They provide habitat for fish and invertebrates, and may serve as an important nursery area for these animals. More research is required to determine the full ecological importance of these reefs. Location of Sponge Reefs (primarily along coast of Canada):