222 



in waves and currents, for example, the impact of wave machines 

 deployed in stopping erosion of beaches, the concerns about inter- 

 fering with shipping, the effects of cabling, how are the surfers 

 going to react to it. 



It is really going to be a large environmental question. The first 

 thing we had to do before we started pursuing that 



Mr. Studds. Did you say how the surfers are going to react to it? 



Mr. Richards. You start deploying long lines of wave machines 

 up and down California, you are going to get an awful lot of people 

 angry, sir. 



Mr. Studds. I don't wish to speculate on California politics. I am 

 awfully glad you are thinking about the surfers. What else? 



Mr. Richards. I believe Dr. Katz showed a slide. 



Mr. Studds. Right. 



Mr. Richards. We have started a program looking at the biota 

 and the influence on the biota from the materials that come off the 

 wave machines and the cabling. 



The principal problem right now is to try to get a device in a 

 wave machine that is projected to be life cycle cost effective for 

 delivering power. 



We will do the environmental work after we complete our stud- 

 ies in fiscal year 1981. 



Mr. Studds. There clearly are questions raised. One's initial 

 reaction to these proposals is just unbounded enthusiasm until you 

 come back to Earth and look at some of the potentially competi- 

 tive, I would think, uses in the coastal zone and immediate offshore 

 waters and I hope you are beginning to look at that. 



I am a little disturbed about your fairly short shrift given to 

 salinity gradients, not that I could possibly discuss with you the 

 chemistry involved, but you indicated system studies for the solar 

 pond salinity gradient concept have found the cost to be excessive 

 and therefore you have discontinued or will discontinue your tech- 

 nology development. 



Is it not the case that Israel concluded late last year that solar 

 salt ponds were feasible and that they are developing a 25- 

 megawatt power station to be operational by the end of next year? 



Dr. Katz. Yes, sir, your comments are correct, and the problem 

 perhaps is with the technical community that likes to call two 

 different things by the same name. 



Solar pond developing in Israel is based on thermal gradients. 

 The salinity gradients I am referring to is a somewhat different 

 physical process. Let me try very shortly to give you the difference. 



They are talking about absorbing rays from the Sun in a pond 

 and using the heat collected to subsequently produce electricity. 

 We are talking about using the different concentrations of salt 

 through a process called reverse osmosis, and another process 

 based on dialj^ic batteries to produce electricity. 



The latter two I mentioned, the ones we are looking at, do not 

 appear to be economically feasible. The solar pond thermal gradi- 

 ent process being reviewed by the Israelis does appear to be eco- 

 nomically feasible and in fact the Department of Energy has been 

 looking at the possibility of a cooperative program with the Israelis 

 on this subject. 



