I was 14-years-old when the idea of “The Aqua-Tech Wall” came to me, or put simply “The Water Wall“. With so many reports of Coastal Erosion and hundreds of homes being swallowed into the sea every year, my greatest sadness of it all was that nobody had devised or thought of an idea that would combat or eradicate this effect.
My Step-Father, James Hood, was (then) a Plumbing & Heating Engineer by trade, which helped me to a certain degree in answering questions of both water pressures and energy harnessing. And it was this that had me come up with the solution (or idea at least) that to stop any form of ‘Erosion’ then it would need ‘Barriers’ to stand between both the inward sea motion ‘Waves’ and the object of the target of that motion – The Coastline.
Two Simple Lines
Having acquired a ream of data paper that stretched 100 feet in length (when spread out), I began to draw the two main lines that would start a spark of imagination and construction which would develop into one of the biggest Concept Designs of my life. Those two-lines, though discreet, were the life-lines of a strengthened wall, a wall that would – if built – carry over several million vehicles in any selected year of construction. Below this wall would be strategically placed ‘Vents‘, as above them, spaced out along a point-to-point position, fixed verted curve insets. By the time these lines were meeting shorelines on either end, I had already begun the design on ‘Dynamo Capture’, one technique that would repeat a continuous creation of ‘Electricity’ both clean to the environment and inexhaustible: As long as the ‘Dynamo Capture Devices’ continued to function, then so would the harnessing of electricity. But, as I was asked: Where would this electricity be stored? And, if it could be stored, how would it be transferred to be stored?
The Aim
The Aqua-Tech Wall took me several days to draw, including detailing all of the small functions and needed parts that would assist in bringing together the ‘Making‘, ‘Collecting‘, ‘Transporting‘ and finally, ‘Storing‘ of the clean energy that would come from the sea, one of mankind’s most precious wonders and natural resources. When asked to explain the whole concept to my Step-Father, which made me nervous to the fact that he knew many things that I didn’t – and remembering that I was just 14 years of age – I was scared that the idea would be laughed at! Nevertheless, I picked up that extremely long ream of data paper and after a moment, I started to Pitch the idea and concept of it – one day – providing ‘Protection‘, ‘Power‘ and ‘Travel‘ for millions, and not just here in the UK, but all over the world.
Not Just A Wall
The Aqua-Tech Wall would be anything from 1 to 12 miles in length. The structure (main) would be made from concrete, while the under-structure made of steel. Set upon thousands of tons of steel ‘Diamond Formation’ supports holding up the concrete, it would be within these ‘Steel Supports’ that thousands of ‘Dynamo Capture Fans‘ would be set into ‘Fixed Placement’. From these fans, the current from the inward motion of the tides would create the necessary friction to create ‘Power’ to produce a simultaneous production to run along the underbelly into ‘Power Houses’ situated on either end of the structure.
While the combining force of both ‘Inward’ and ‘Outward’ tides harness this power that is transported to the ‘Storage Generators’, above and across the concrete structure, the fixed ‘Inverts’ which I called “Wave Breaker’s” would then stop any unrelenting force, by nature or otherwise, from making damaging or destructive contact with the Coastline. The ‘Vents’ themselves would, again, add to the production of ‘Energy’, by both ‘Water’ and ‘Wind’ combined entering them and making contact with the hundreds of ‘Dynamo Fans’ positioned at various angles to catch both elements and again, create natural electricity power.
The Road Above
Aloft, along the top of this structure, would be the ‘Bridge’, a 1 to 12 mile road that reaches ‘Point to Point’ or ‘Coast to Coast’. With this ‘Road Bridge’ in place, not only would the prospects of shorter traveling time be initiated, but also an opportunity to introduce a low cost ‘Toll Bridge Crossing’ that would be beneficial to the local communities and Emergency Services.
By the end of the Pitch to my Step-Father, I saw nothing but a sense of pride on his face, but, it was his one last question that had my whole idea fade to a concept which could be lost! That question was: How could I get my idea made into a reality where it would be built and used?
Nothing Science Fiction About It
All the same, my Step-Father was impressed that I – especially a 14-year-old teenager – could come up with something like “The Aqua-Tech Wall”, not to mention the mechanics of the whole structure. And, as there was no such structure, design or concept around at the time, the whole idea seemed like “Science Fiction”, even though I suggested to my Step-Father, that if it was anything like science fiction that I was trying to design, I would have added Solar Panels to the structure too.
Potentially A Nobel Peace Prize Winner
Now, at the age of 53 years old, if anyone was to ask me what I had created from an idea all those years ago today, I would tell them that it was a model for saving lives. A sure entrant runner for “The Nobel Peace Prize” for the fact that “The Aqua-Tech Wall” isn’t (wasn’t) designed just for the protection of “Coastal Erosion” or the use of capturing ‘Aqua-Energy’ from the Oceans, but from Rivers and Canals, too. By miniaturizing the scale and length, the “Aqua-Tech Wall” could benefit deprived countries, such as Africa, Mexico, Saudi Arabia and other impoverished nations that have a steady water supply, but are miles from towns and cities with an open ‘Power Supply’.
Investment In The Future
Over the past few years, even though the idea was submitted to ITE (the Information Technology Exchange) of yesteryear, my endeavor to look into the cost of such an operation today, brought me to discover it would cost around £50 to £100 million per “Aqua-Tech Wall”. Still, today, there is no such structure – except for Dams – in existence that works along the same lines or principle as my concept. So, I would put it to anyone today, if you could save a Coastline, save a House (the tenants inside that house) or be a part of something that could provide safe, continuous and clean power to millions (billions worldwide), would you back my design?
If your answer is “Yes” then I would invite you to click on the link ahead and introduce yourself and we could sit down and talk over the details. If your answer is “No”, however, then I have this feeling that such a large scale operation would be too big a Project. The strange thing is, it is no larger than a Project for making extra expanse on a Corporate Business, or putting shares in a risky Shareholder Company that may or may not bring you dividends back. If you would like to make a difference in this world, then please, get in touch.
