Green Technology Produces Electricity by Converting Wave Energy to Hydraulic Energy

A technology which was initially developed to protect the coastal areas is now a prospective method for generating green renewable energy. An Israeli company, SDE Energy, has a unique method for generating green energy from ocean waves from the shore itself.

The waves that come and crash to the coast or breakwater have a large amount of energy. SDE technology uses this wave power to generate electricity. There are very few technologies in the world that use wave power to produce electricity (not to be confused with the tidal energy which is energy from the deep sea water, whereas wave power is the energy on the surface of the ocean) and the SDE technology is one of those unique ones. SDE technology generated electrical energy by using wave energy and converting it into hydraulic energy.

This environmentally friendly system uses a buoy attached to the breakwater to generate energy. The technology has not only been tested but has been successfully used for a year in Israel. Moreover, the company is in the process of setting up their next power plant in countries such as Sri Lanka and China.

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The system consists of a buoy which is attached to the breakwater. The part of the system attached to the breakwater accommodates a series of cylinders with hydraulic oil and pistons inside them. One side of the cylinder is attached to a buoyant metal plate (buoy) using an attachment (an arrangement similar to a shock absorber) and other end is attached to the breakwater.

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The system works on the principle of converting wave energy to hydraulic energy, which in turn is converted into electrical power. The buoy comprises ten percent of the whole system in contact with the water whereas the rest of system is on the land. The buoys are of the folding type, thus when not in use, can be laid down flat on the shore.

The buoys move according to the speed and height of the waves. As the waves flow beneath the buoys, they push the plate up, moving the pistons in the upward direction. The piston pressurizes the hydraulic oil kept in a cylindrical chamber. The pressurized oil is then directed to an electrical generator which produces energy.

The automatic hydraulic mechanism can adjust according to tides as high as five meters. The system can withstand extremely high pressures and in case of storms can automatically be placed on the shore. Moreover, a full scale model is capable of generating approximately forty electrical kilowatts of energy. The company also claims that using this system a unit of energy can be generated just for two cents. SDE technology offers affordable and environmental friendly energy without using any complex machinery.

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