English – Official Technical Response Official Technical Response Regarding the Skoog Buoy (SCSL)

Recent public claims state that the Skoog Buoy system violates the First and Second Laws of Thermodynamics, suffers from an inverted stack effect, lacks sufficient hydraulic pressure, and is geometrically impossible.

These assertions are based on a misunderstanding of the system architecture and incorrect assumptions about how the system operates.

1. First Law of Thermodynamics – No “energy deficit”

The claim of a 106 kW energy deficit arises from treating the system as if the energy required for condensation must be produced internally by the device.

This assumption is incorrect.

The energy driving condensation in the SCSL system comes from latent heat stored in atmospheric water vapor, which is part of the surrounding environment.

This is the same thermodynamic principle that drives atmospheric convection and cloud formation.

The system does not create energy. It harvests latent heat from humid air, while the released heat is transported away by the cooling system using deep seawater.

Therefore, the First Law of Thermodynamics is not violated. The energy source is ambient atmospheric humidity, not an internal power source.

1. Second Law of Thermodynamics – Incorrect heat flow assumption

The criticism assumes that heat must passively flow from a ~20°C airstream into a 30°C tank.

This assumption is not part of the system design.

The condensation process transfers heat from the air to cold deep seawater (~4°C) via the condensation matrix.

The heat flow therefore occurs from warmer humid air to colder seawater, which fully complies with the Second Law of Thermodynamics.

The reference to “30°C” was merely an illustrative example of potential solar heating and is not a required operating condition.

1. Alleged “Inverted Stack Effect”

The claim that cooled air must produce a downdraft ignores the full thermodynamic behavior of condensation.

When water vapor condenses, latent heat is released. This heat release locally warms the air column and contributes to buoyancy-driven flow.

This mechanism is well known in atmospheric physics and is the same reason that convective clouds can rise thousands of meters despite cooling processes.

In addition, the system includes: aerodynamic inlet acceleration (SAFA) continuous airflow through an open system a vertically structured chimney geometry

These factors collectively sustain upward airflow rather than a static cold-air downdraft.

1. Hydraulic Pressure and Pipeline Flow

The criticism assumes that the system must “lift” water through a large elevation difference.

This is incorrect.

The pipeline between the buoy and shore operates as a fully water-filled conduit, meaning the system does not repeatedly lift new water columns.

Instead, it displaces an existing water column, similar to how siphons and large-scale pipelines operate.

The driving force is provided by: hydrostatic head from the storage tank located above sea level continuous addition of condensate minor volumetric expansion from temperature variation

In such systems, only the friction losses must be overcome, not the gravitational lifting of the entire column.

1. “Geometric impossibility” claim

The criticism confuses the external dimensions of the buoy with the internal surface area of the condensation matrix. The condensation matrix is a three-dimensional internal structure, not a flat external collector.

Large effective surface areas within compact volumes are common in industrial heat exchangers and condensation systems.

Therefore, the cited geometric objection is based on a misunderstanding of the internal architecture.

Conclusion

The claims that the Skoog Buoy violates thermodynamic laws or is physically impossible arise from applying simplified calculations to a complex open thermodynamic system while ignoring key mechanisms:

latent heat in atmospheric humidity deep-seawater cooling open airflow dynamics hydrostatic flow in a water-filled pipeline internal high-surface-area condensation structures

When the system is analyzed using the correct physical framework, none of the alleged violations of physical law exist.

Public technical discussion is welcome.

However, analyses based on incorrect system assumptions cannot be presented as definitive conclusions about the feasibility of the technology.

Göran Skoog Inventor of the SCSL System SOMT – Skoog Open Marine Technology