The oceans are the earth's largest continuously operating solar energy collector. The energy collected is in the form of heat stored in the upper ocean layers. In tropical and subtropical waters, the temperature difference between the warmed surface layer and the deep cold water is great enough to operate a heat engine. Such an Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC) plant could provide a continuous supply of electricity from an inexhaustible constantly renewed source of energy. In appropriate locations, the plants could feed base load power to land based grids. Otherwise, the solar generated electricity could be used where generated in processes requiring large amounts of power for production of transportable products that can be used as such; e.g., aluminum, or for economical regeneration of power on. shore; e.g., hydrogen.

Subject
Biofouling, Marine environments, Water, Materials, Piping, Tubes, Ammonia, Seawater, Heat exchangers, Heat, Equipment, Corrosion resistance, Cleaning
© 1979 Association for Materials Protection and Performance (AMPP). All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of AMPP. Positions and opinions advanced in this work are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of AMPP. Responsibility for the content of the work lies solely with the author(s).
1979
Association for Materials Protection and Performance (AMPP)
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