| NSF Org: |
OCE Division Of Ocean Sciences |
| Recipient: |
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| Initial Amendment Date: | January 19, 2018 |
| Latest Amendment Date: | January 19, 2018 |
| Award Number: | 1820547 |
| Award Instrument: | Standard Grant |
| Program Manager: |
Kandace Binkley
kbinkley@nsf.gov (703)292-7577 OCE Division Of Ocean Sciences GEO Directorate for Geosciences |
| Start Date: | February 1, 2018 |
| End Date: | January 31, 2020 (Estimated) |
| Total Intended Award Amount: | $149,611.00 |
| Total Awarded Amount to Date: | $149,611.00 |
| Funds Obligated to Date: |
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| History of Investigator: |
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| Recipient Sponsored Research Office: |
615 W 131ST ST NEW YORK NY US 10027-7922 (212)854-6851 |
| Sponsor Congressional District: |
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| Primary Place of Performance: |
61 Route 9W Palisades NY US 10964-8000 |
| Primary Place of
Performance Congressional District: |
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| Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): |
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| Parent UEI: |
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| NSF Program(s): | OCEAN TECH & INTERDISC COORDIN |
| Primary Program Source: |
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| Program Reference Code(s): |
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| Program Element Code(s): |
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| Award Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Fund Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Assistance Listing Number(s): | 47.050 |
ABSTRACT
The development of new oceanographic sensor platforms such as seafloor cabled observatories and autonomous vehicle networks, and with the miniaturization of oceanographic sensors ranging from mass spectrometers to 4K video systems, the prospects for doing science in the deep ocean have never been brighter. The difficulty of powering systems in the ocean for long time periods or with high power requirements has limited the ability of deep-ocean scientists to capitalize on recent sensor and sensor system advances. To resolve this problem the PI proses to design, build, and test a small thermoelectric power device that will use geothermal heat from hydrothermal vents to generate electricity, charge batteries, and power small seafloor instruments indefinitely. The availability of such a system could enable the development of seafloor ?power stations? where autonomous vehicles charge their batteries.
The development of a hydrothermal thermoelectric power module could enable the development of an entirely new kind of seafloor observing network that could revolutionize the ocean sciences by providing a "platform of presence" anywhere in the deep ocean where strong thermal gradients can be found or created.
PROJECT OUTCOMES REPORT
Disclaimer
This Project Outcomes Report for the General Public is displayed verbatim as submitted by the Principal Investigator (PI) for this award. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this Report are those of the PI and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation; NSF has not approved or endorsed its content.
A primary goal of this project was to design, build, and test in the laboratory, systems based on thermoelectric components that are capable of harvesting energy from seafloor hydrothermal vent systems using thermoelectric principles. We sought to:
1) Test commercially-available thermoelectric components at high temperatures and pressures to determine their suitability for use in the deep ocean.
2) Design and simulate a series of Hydrothermal Thermoelectric Generator (HTG) systems that could be deployed in an active seafloor hydrothermal vent.
3) Begin the process of designing a replacement ROV drilling system that can be used to install these devices in a hydrothermal vent chimney.
To accomplish these goals, we:
1) Acquired a set of commercially available thermoelectric modules that were to be tested under laboratory conditions and examined them internally using destructive techniques to determine the likelihood that these devices could withstand the pressures of the deep ocean, and develop potential mitigation techniques as needed.
2) Built a laboratory apparatus to test the thermoelectric modules under high temperatures, high thermal gradients, and high pressures. This system included direct heating with nichrome wire, high-strength mechanical ceramic materials, copper blocks embedded with high-temperature temperature probes, and a heat exchanger.
3) Used this apparatus to test the thermoelectric modules and other system elements at high temperatures on the bench-top, and at high pressures and temperatures inside our high-pressure test facility.
4) Designed and simulated, using finite element analysis, a set of seafloor-deployable hydrothermal vent Hydrothermal Thermoelectric Generator (HTG) systems.
5) Established a plan to replace the Woods Hole ROV MISO drill that would be required to deploy and install a Hydrothermal Thermoelectric Generator (HTG) system in an active hydrothermal vent chimney on the seafloor at a mid-ocean ridge.
During this project we learned that the thermoelectric modules under test were viable potential components for use in a future seafloor-deployed Hydrothermal Thermoelectric Generator (HTG) system, and that the set of designs developed and simulated could provide significant quantities of energy to supply seafloor instrumentation as a potential way to extend oceanographic observing systems, and power instruments in the deep ocean where no observatory infrastructure exists.
Last Modified: 07/14/2020
Modified by: Timothy J Crone
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