Our Earth is full of precious minerals and metals; they are, however, diminishing in quantity. So is the amount of freshwater.
This is what made Mark Sullivan invent the Sullivan Generator, the need for freshwater with the perks of byproducts like gold and manganese. So, what exactly is the Sullivan Generator? Continue reading to find out.
What is the Sullivan Generator?
Mark Sullivan is an inventor and visionary who came up with a prototype for a generator that would produce energy by harnessing the Earth’s rotation.
Moreover, it would produce three very important byproducts as well; it would turn salty water into fresh water suitable for drinking while also producing two very valuable minerals, manganese, and gold. The generator’s rotating motion is caused by the Coriolis effect.
Mark Sullivan’s concept is evolutionary for the entire world, and if successful, it would solve a lot of energy problems as well as make up for the shortage of drinking water. The Sullivan Generator would also save the planet by reducing carbon emissions caused by other energy-producing processes.
However, in order to produce something of this scale, Sullivan needs a huge investment, which is why he appeared on Shark Tank. Let’s see how that turned out.
The Sullivan Generator on Shark Tank
Mark Sullivan enters Shark Tank seeking a million-dollar investment in return for a 10% ownership in the business. He starts his pitch by telling the sharks he has approximately 1000 inventions under his belt. He then immediately moves on to explain to the sharks about the Sullivan Generator.
He elaborates on his revolutionary energy-producing generator that only uses the Earth’s rotation to produce power. Sullivan explains that it works by absorbing seawater from the ocean and filtering it to remove all the minerals before discarding the remaining water.
After that, water vapor is created, and it moves up the generator before being trapped within a vortex chamber. The Coriolis Effect is what follows. It produces a cyclone within the vortex chamber by quickly whirling the water around. This generates a force that drives the turbines, which is how power is generated.
However, the sharks don’t seem very interested in his revolutionary generator until he mentions the byproducts being gold. And what could excite the sharks more than gold? Sullivan pleases the sharks further by telling them that the generator could collect over $97 billion worth of gold.
Mark Sullivan tells the sharks he plans on producing 200 of these generators, which can all be operated remotely via the internet, and the only thing he now needs is an investment. Kevin O’Leary, who doesn’t seem very impressed, mocks Mark by asking him how long he has been visiting Earth?
To which all the sharks giggle in response; however, Cuban moves on to the more serious questions and asks Sullivan about his background.
Sullivan has a degree in both physics and biochemistry and has been working on the Sullivan Generator for several years now, which proves he has only brought the final prototype to show to the sharks.
Sullivan proceeds by showing the sharks a model of what the generator would look like, but because of all the technical vocabulary he uses, Daymond John refuses to invest as he can’t comprehend any of the technical terms.
Robert Herjavec then questions his theory by suggesting that the concept is applied to the manganese and gold produced as a result of natural hurricanes. Sullivan confirms this and tells him that 1,500 tons of gold may be extracted from every single square mile of salt water.
Robert tells him that this would necessitate a huge amount of water, to which Sullivan tells him that his generator will be 100 feet tall and will easily handle the 1500 tons of water.
The sharks inquire how much time it will take for Sullivan to build his generator, and he replies that the generators will be ready within nine months. Mark Cuban thinks that it is not at all practical and involves very high risk and refuses an investment.
The rest of the sharks follow suit after a few more inquisitions, but none of them invest, considering the idea very unbelievable.
Mark Sullivan walks out of the tank without an investment.
Our Review of the Sullivan Generator
We believe that Mark Sullivan was a visionary and a passionate human being trying to produce something that would benefit the world for many years to come. However, since nobody else seems to have reassured the concept or invested in the Sullivan Generator, it seems there might have been a few technicalities in the product after all.
Pros of the Sullivan Generator
If the Sullivan Generator had been successfully produced, it would certainly have changed the world. The way in which energy is produced would have been much more environmentally friendly and would be accessible to several populations around the world.
Cons of the Sullivan Generator
Since nothing became of the Sullivan Generator, it is natural to assume that the power it would produce was much lesser than required to operate it.
Who is the Sullivan Generator for?
The Sullivan Generator was intended for the entire world. Had it become a reality, the world would have been a lot different from what we see now.
Are There Any Alternatives?
As of now, there are no concepts similar to the Sullivan Generator.
Our Final Thoughts
Mark’s generator design seems to have been rejected as impractical, and he hasn’t been able to find any significant funding to help with further development. However, he is still looking for investors who can fund his concept. Maybe it isn’t so absurd to aspire to go with a technology that could significantly help the entire world.
Even though the Sullivan Generator may not have been successful, Mark Sullivan is an intelligent man with several inventions under his belt, and he has a website to showcase them all.
