Ships, like all motor-powered vehicles, burn tons of fuel while maintaining on-board systems when docked at port. This makes them economically high to maintain and environmentally dangerous. The new shore to ship electricity technology is fast emerging as a cleaner and more efficient way of providing electrical power to ships while still at port. Studies show that a cruise ship which stays at port for 10 hours can burn approximately 20 metric tons of fuel and produce 60 tons of carbon dioxide.
But, if the ship is linked to the electricity grid at port it could be the equivalent of taking 2,000-5,000 cars off the road. Raphael Domjan, expedition leader and founder of the Turanor PlanetSolar, a solar-powered boat which is currently attempting to be the first such craft to tour the globe, has visions of a future where boats will not just be recipients of power while at port, but will also be energy providers by releasing excessive electricity back to the grid. The Turanor is meant to demonstrate how viable solar-powered boats can be to the electricity grid.
The technology of connecting boats to the electricity grid is not a new practice. In the United States, these particular docks have been commissioned for the last decade while a newly fitted terminal in New York City will be the first electric ship dock in the East Coast. Direct current in the grid system will always pass from shore to ship while the new power centers on shore at the ports and on board the ships will make it easier for the energy to flow in any direction if the trend of solar boats ever hits the market.
It doesn’t matter if the future of solar boats comes in the shape of a water taxi or a high performance yacht. As technology improves and the need for alternative fuel sources grows, it’s pretty much a certainty that there will be a market for them.
Via: Earthandindustry
