4.5.1 Requirements
At the heart of The Ocean Cleanup is a desire to improve
the environment, so sustainable electricity generation is
preferred in order to minimize the carbon footprint of the
operation. The levels of energy required must be understood
in order to find possible solutions for power generation.
Estimated electrical consumption on the platform
is listed above in Table 4.18.
As can be seen from Table 4.18, the two most energy intensive
processes are shredding and transshipment, with
each consuming 90 kW. Additionally, the fact that each
process occurs for a relatively short time period - operating
only for a few hours per day or per month - presents a
problem. Sustainable energy sources, such as wind or solar
power, would deliver too much energy when the equipment
is turned off and probably too little when it is on.
The use of a battery could solve this problem; however,
the technical aspects involved in integrating a complex
battery pack would not only make the system more expensive,
but would also reduce The Array’s flexibility by
restricting it to a timetable.