Proposal of ocean thermal energy conversion (OTEC)
Propuesta de la energía maremotérmica (OTEC)
- Date
- 1881 · confidence high
- Place
- Paris, France
- Credited to
- Jacques-Arsène d'Arsonval
- Field
- Matter & energy
What was discovered
D'Arsonval proposed generating electricity by exploiting the temperature difference between warm surface ocean water and cold deep water, laying the theoretical foundation for ocean thermal energy conversion.
Georges Claude, d'Arsonval's student, built the first working plant in 1930 in Matanzas, Cuba, generating 22 kW.
What it led to
- First operational OTEC plant (Georges Claude, Matanzas, Cuba, 1930)
- Closed-cycle OTEC systems in Japan and Nauru (1980s)
- Renewed interest in ocean energy after the 1970s oil crisis