Underwater ice observation system

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

Water Intakes are very vulnerable to partial or full blockages by ice in the winter time. In moderate cases, this translates into economic losses due to a plant shutdown but in more severe cases, it could mean the loss of drinking water or fire-fighting water for whole municipalities. In severe cases ice blockage has even caused serious threats to the cooling of a nuclear power plant. The purpose of this grant request is to purchase three instruments that can provide data in order for engineers to understand how ice builds up on the intakes and in what environmental conditions (i.e., water currents and suspended frazil ice) it is susceptible to. The 3 instruments requested are: (1) a submersible robot equipped with a camera (ROV) that will be used to inspect the ice build up on a local municipal intake and will also be used to examine the type of ice present in the water column and at the surface, (2) a sonar system that can stand alone or but is intended to be attached to the ROV to aid in its navigation and to obtain supporting bathymetric and ice depth measurements and (3) an Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler that will be used to monitor currents, surface ice floes and suspended frazil. The study has the full collaboration of the Québec's intake's operators and engineers who will provide some field and logical support as well as complementary data. Québec City is building a new intake in 2008 and the instruments will provide a means of comparing build up on each of them. This equipment will complement other equipment already available and that will also be deployed as part of the same mission. This grant will provide a unique opportunity to train highly qualified personal and provide research into the number one question asked of river ice engineers: How to design an intake that wont get blocked by ice in winter.