Thermal Recharging Battery for Underwater Instrumentations

Yi Chao
Seatrec, Inc.
2824 E. Foothill Blvd., Pasadena, California, USA
Ocean Thermal Energy: A Green and Unlimited Energy Solution for Key Technology: Thermal Recharging Battery through Phase
Underwater Instrumentations Change Materials (PCMs)

Long endurance, high speed, and high payload power all require increased energy capacity on We have identified a commercially available Phase Change Material (PCM) wax with a
the unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs). Energy considerations ultimate will impact vehicle selected phase change temperature (e.g., To), which can be melted at sea level, and frozen
design, size, and type. Furthermore, there are disadvantages to using the conventional battery at deeper ocean depths. The primary novelties of our approach are to use advanced
technologies for UUVs. The primary batteries have to be discarded after use, and the cost materials and heat transfer designs to generate a high pressure fluid that drives a hydraulic
penalty for batteries can be high for large UUVs. Sometimes the cost of a primary battery can motor/generator to charge the batteries. This power cycle requires only a small temperature
exceed the cost of the UUV itself. High energy density batteries (e.g., lithium batteries) introduce difference above and below a selected phase change temperature, which can be adjusted
safety and environmental concerns. Rechargeable batteries are less costly over time. However, with different mix of PCMs.
replenishment or recharge of batteries (especially at-sea) is a major issue for UUV operations
that require rapid reconfigurability and may not be practical in many Naval applications. Warm
Harvesting ocean thermal energy therefore provides a green and unlimited energy solution for
Surface Cold Warm
underwater instrumentations.
water To-5oC To+5oC
How to convert small (~10oC)
Sounding Oceanographic temperature difference into electricity?
Lagrangrian Observer (SOLO) Cold
Thermal RECharging (TREC) Deep
Float Development and Test
water Phase Change Material (PCM)
We have designed a modified SOLO float so
that the recharging batteries, and thus the
HYD TURBINE
buoyancy control and all electrical operations, LOW SOLO-TREC
HIGH
are powered solely by drawing the thermal PRESSURE
energy from the temperature differences
PRESSURE
BLADDER Prototype
BLADDER
between the warm upper ocean and the colder
depths. The developed SOLO-TREC was X
OIL
deployed on Nov. 30, 2009, about 161
kilometers (100 miles) southwest of Honolulu.
Since its deployment, SOLO-TREC has been VALVE
making 3 dives per day between the surface
and 500 meters depth. PCMs on-board the PCM
SOLO-TREC expand about 13% when heated
above 10oC and then correspondingly contract
GENERATOR
when cooled below 10oC. This expansion/
contraction produces a high pressure oil that
can be collected and periodically released to SOLO-TREC
drive a hydraulic motor for electricity generation CALTECH
and battery recharging of about 1.6 Watt-hours PATENT Deployment
(or over 7000 Joules) each dive. By June 2011, GRANTED
SOLO-TREC has made more than1000 dives
between surface and 500 meters and generated
over 1,360 Watt-hours of power. The unique
feature of the SOLO-TREC concept is in that its
stored energy gets renewed naturally as the
platform traverses ocean thermal gradients.
Engineering and Science Results http://west.rssoffice.com/SOLO-TREC

Summary
Power Pressure Temperature Salinity
A self-powered profiling float (i.e., SOLO-TREC) has been successfully developed, deployed and
recovered. During the 1.5 year deployment, SOLO-TREC has collected more than 1000 vertical
profiles of temperature and salinity every eight hours, and thus capturing high frequency fluctuations
that cannot be detected by the 10-day profiling Argo floats.

Thermal Recharging Thermal Recharging

Float Mooring
Surface
Future Directions Top View
Submerged
Thermal Recharging Float. With T0+5oC Buoy
unlimited ocean thermal energy
from the vertical temperature
Thermal Engine

differentials, the thermal recharging

Existing Float

battery can significantly extend the Phase change Thermal

lifetime of the traditional primary Engine
temperature
battery-powered floats, and has the
potential to have a permanent T0
presence underwater.

Thermal Recharging Mooring.

The thermal recharging battery can Recharging
also be used on a mooring
T0-5oC Batteries &
configuration. The total power that Side View Storage
Thermal Recharging Battery

can be generated is scalable to the

size of the recharging battery.

The next generation Seatrec float

will have a horizontal movement
capability underwater, so as to
enable a station keeping if needed.
Seafloor
Contact Information
For more information or interested
in collaboration/partnership, please
contact Dr. Yi Chao at
yi@seatrec.com or 626-602-6186. To power sensors for long endurance and frequent sampling
8-hour sampling Time (days) 10-day sampling