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| Titel |
PRIAMO project: a feasibility study on Sicilian sites for sea power plants in coastal waters |
| VerfasserIn |
A. Ribotti, M. Borghini, A. Cucco, E. De Domenico, V. Dibenedetto, L. Fazioli, L. Genovese, G. Iaria, A. Olita, F. Raffa, K. Schroeder, R. Sorgente, N. Spanò |
| Konferenz |
EGU General Assembly 2012
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| Medientyp |
Artikel
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| Sprache |
Englisch
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| Digitales Dokument |
PDF |
| Erschienen |
In: GRA - Volume 14 (2012) |
| Datensatznummer |
250059228
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| Zusammenfassung |
| The increasing demand for renewable energy sources has recently favoured the
exploitation of wind energy and photovoltaic, with strong repercussions on the
landscape due to the visual impact of wind turbines and of the photovoltaic panels.
A policy protecting the landscape suggests to focus on innovative solutions that
enable the use of renewable energy and a low visual impact. This can be done with
extensive offshore diving equipment installed in the sea, formed by turbines that use
ocean currents to produce electric energy. The accommodation at sea, as well as
offering greater availability of sites, has the advantage of giving a better and relatively
constant resource with maximum efficiency and productivity. The international
scenario suggests the need to identify sites potentially suitable and safe for energy
use, placed at a distance from the coast at depths with bathymetric characteristics
that make the power plant installation safe and technologically and economically
feasible.
In this context, the project PRIAMO (Planning, Research and Innovation in a Oriented
Marine Environment), funded by the European Commission through the Sicilian Regional
Operational Programme (POR), aims to verify the potential suitability of two Sicilian coastal
sites, i.e. the Strait of Messina and a stretch of coast near Capo Granitola (Strait of
Sicily).
The work is realised with a view to the exploitation of marine currents that will be studied
through the use of existing or new numerical models from the open sea to the coastal scale,
then evaluating its cost-effectiveness in collaboration with Atlantis Resources Corp. Pte. Ltd
(UK), European manufacturer of underwater turbines. An environmental study is done
through monitoring and remediation techniques to assess the potential size of the foundation
structure: sedimentological and morpho-bathymetric characteristics of the bottom, depth,
steepness of the seabed, benthic biocoenoses, and load-bearing capacity of the area
affected by the foundation at depths of 30-50 meters. The risk of vessels in transit,
tides and the main currents through a fixed mooring and ship acquisitions will be
analyzed starting with the first survey scheduled in January 2012. These data will
be also used to validate the numerical systems. Furthermore, an analysis of the
effects of the removal of soil or accumulated material from the areas of contact
with the foundation (scouring) will be conducted and any recovery technique of
portions of the seabed and organisms (i.e. replanting of Posidonia oceanica) will be
analyzed.
Then the project PRIAMO aims at developing the concept of a sustainable use of the marine
environment, both with high environmental value or marginal and degraded, through the
development of innovative methodologies for the proper characterization of the sites
to be used for the installation of underwater turbines. This is aimed to meet the
reduction of CO2 emissions required by the Kyoto Protocol and in the framework of
European strategies for a competitive, sustainable, safe energy production (EU
Communication on Energy Strategy 2020 and EU Council Conclusions of February 2011). |
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