Deep-sea buoys are widely used in marine environmental monitoring, weather forecasting, and marine resource exploration, primarily collecting data on waves, temperature, salinity, and air pressure. However, due to the unique geographical and climatic conditions of deep-sea regions, traditional buoy power supply systems cannot meet the requirements for long-term stable operation. Solar energy is limited by lighting conditions, while wind and tidal energy have low energy conversion efficiency in certain regions. Additionally, battery endurance often fails to support long-term observations. For a long time, the energy issue of deep-sea buoys has been a bottleneck constraining their performance. In this context, how to provide deep-sea buoys with a continuous and stable power supply has become a technical challenge that marine researchers have struggled to solve.
To address this challenge, the R&D team innovatively designed and implemented a composite energy system that integrates three natural energy sources-solar, tidal, and wind-and is equipped with high-efficiency battery storage devices. Through the synergistic operation of these multiple energy sources, the composite energy system effectively overcomes the limitations of single energy sources, ensuring that deep-sea buoys can operate continuously in deep-sea environments.
1. Solar Energy
On deep-sea buoys, solar panels are used to capture sunlight and convert it into electrical energy. Although sunlight is relatively weak in deep-sea regions, solar panels can still provide a stable power source for buoys under suitable seasonal and geographical conditions. The team optimized the material and design of the solar panels to enhance their efficiency under low-light conditions, ensuring that the buoys can effectively utilize solar energy.
2. Tidal Energy
Tidal energy is a reliable energy source, particularly suited to the needs of deep-sea buoys. Deep-sea buoys can convert the tidal movement of seawater into electrical energy using specialized tidal power generation equipment. This technology leverages the regularity and predictability of tides to provide a stable power supply, compensating for the instability of solar energy and the intermittent nature of wind energy.
3. Wind Energy
In deep-sea regions, wind energy is more efficiently harnessed than traditional energy sources. Deep-sea buoys are equipped with small wind turbines that quickly activate when sea surface wind speeds are high, providing additional power support for the buoys. The utilization of wind energy complements solar and tidal energy, collectively enhancing the buoy's energy supply capacity.
4. Battery Energy Storage
To ensure continuous energy supply, the deep-sea buoy's power system is equipped with high-efficiency battery energy storage devices. These batteries can store excess electricity during periods of surplus energy and provide additional power support during energy shortages, ensuring the buoy operates stably even under extreme weather conditions or when there is no wind or tide.
Currently, the power supply system of this deep-sea buoy has passed deep-sea equipment certification, and its core energy management algorithm has been granted three invention patents. It has been deployed and applied in six deep-sea observation stations in the South China Sea, the Pacific Ocean, and other regions. As the technology continues to improve and optimize, this system is expected to be widely applied in global deep-sea monitoring projects in the future, providing more reliable data support for marine resource development, environmental protection, and disaster warning, and driving the development of global marine science and technology.
