This project conceives, designs and partly realizes a new prototype platform constituted by zero emission swarm of surface and deep water autonomous marine vehicles for an integrated real time environmental monitoring of the sea, using novel sensors and bio-sensors. An innovative technique for underwater data transmission, between a seafloor station and the sea surface is outlined.
The capability of monitoring sea water and the air- sea water interface conditions in a systematic way, providing synchronous real time dataset regarding physical, chemical, and bio-chemical characteristics, represents a key challenge towards the achievement of the Good Environmental Status of our seas and oceans.
This project is thus aimed at realizing an enhanced monitoring tool able to provide early warnings about possible sources of pollution, to identify water health harming factors and threats for the marine biodiversity and for tracking and correlating the different quantities that act as drivers of the eco-system. This information can be used by researchers and competent authorities, integrating other data provided by fixed observation systems.
The architecture of the new monitoring system is based on an open and modular platform device, i.e. the monitoring vehicles, ZEPPELIN and DEVILS designed to host an integrated system of sensors named SENSEA capable of large, synchronous and partly real-time analysis of physical, chemical and bio-chemical quantities both over the sea surface and along the sea depth. The system is conceived as a swarm of autonomous vehicles (different drones of ZEPPELIN-type), that have their own energy storage. The swarm is supported by an internal energy production platform that serves as an energy supply headquarter; this production and storage takes the supplied energy directly from the available marine energy resources.
Ocean waves convey an energy flow that can be extracted in many ways. The use of the wind energy, associated to the presence of wave energy, is also an opportunity to be taken to extract energy. An integrated form of energy extraction can be studied as part of a novel energy extraction optimization process. An important question is therefore if there exists a control algorithm that maximizes the combined total energy production. The prototype system to be investigated to approach such an optimization problem is represented in the figure below, and considers a wind energy, characterized by the inflow air speed V(t), and by a wave motion z(t). A set of buoyant bodies subjected to the wave forces is considered, interacting with an airfoil undergoing the wind forces. The system assembly is completed through the presence of some controllable motors/generators that operate the desired electrical energy conversion and the control of the angle of attack of the airfoil. The following Pontriagyn optimal control problem can be formulated: determine the maximum energy that can be extracted from the combined sources (waves and wind), selecting in the best way the control algorithm of the motors/generators. The study of the properties of such a problem is one of the leading tasks of the project to drive new conceptual results and applicable to the design of the architecture of the power platform.
The idea of a system composed by multiple-functional structural elements is bio-inspired, mimicking the configuration of living tissues, composed by multiple strata, some with a fibre structure with distinct structural functions. The main issue is to design an envelope with high specific strength and small weight. Metamaterials based on network and pantographic structure can be conveniently used. Their peculiarity consists in their capacity to undergo a global large elastic deformation when subjected to a concentrated load. Pantographic metamaterials supply a non-local response to externally applied loads, by redistributing the induced deformation energy almost uniformly in their volume. Therefore, an innovative design based on shape adaptation or morphing, and using active or semi-active actuators, is proposed. Active control of structures has a long tradition in the design of deployable structures, commonly used in satellites, aircraft components, large retractile roofs, building facades, etc.
This project will develop nanotechnology-based biosensing devices using electrochemical, optical, and piezoelectric transducers for application as early warning systems evaluating real-time key chemical and biological markers that give information on the overall water quality state. Differently, remote sensing tools make it possible to provide real-time spatial and temporal analyses for evaluating water quality. This approach is handy for water monitoring for different purposes and focuses more in-depth investigations with the conventional methods if the water quality state is not good. Biosensors will be designed and implemented. The biosensors will be mainly based on biomarkers for environmental pollution and toxicity. The first step will be selecting biomarkers to be used as early warning system general toxicity test and to detect organic pollutants and metals. In the second step, the selected biomarkers will be used to realize a technological platform based on nanotechnologies, biotechnologies, material sciences, and supramolecular chemistry to develop high-performed biosensors. The developed biosensors will be employed either for early warning detection in place of existing bioassays based on living organisms and for the selective detection of relevant contaminants in marine water samples. The most performing biosensors will be optimized in their performance, converting them into robust, reliable, validated instruments suitable for use for in-situ monitoring in the marine environment. In this context, protocols for monitoring, sampling, pre-treatment, and measurements will be developed, improved, and standardized. The developed sensors' effectiveness will be tested with analytical evaluations to define the limit of detection (LOD), the limit of quantification (LOQ), sensitivity, selectivity, and reproducibility. Subsequently (third step), the Zepellin/Devil technological vehicle will host integrated sampling/preconcentration modules and a set of replaceable biosensors into a new tailored flow-cell with the capability to operate in situ calibrations and tested in a specific sampling area, considering polluted/unpolluted points and different depths. Based on real-time monitoring data (i.e. when the biosensor suggests toxicity of seawater samples), further seawater will be sampled, and specific chemical and biological determinations will be performed in the laboratory. The comparison of data obtained from the biosensors and laboratory analyses will make it possible to validate the marine vehicle.