Background
As stated in the Seabin
Project website (n.d.), the main purpose of the V5 Seabin is to accomplish the
goal of the Seabin team, which is to live in a world where water pollution is
non-existent. The primary function of the V5 Seabin is to remove waste from
calm water bodies. By teaming up with various ports such as Poralu Marine and
Safe Harbour Marina, the Seabin team was able to rapidly distribute its product
to all corners of the earth (Seabin
Project, n.d.).
The Seabin is a
microplastic-filtering device that is deployed mainly in marinas and ports to
remove waste from the water body. It is a device “considerably smaller than the
average municipal garbage bin” and can hold a maximum of 20 kg of waste (Hicks,
2018). A submersible water pump that is attached to the Seabin sucks water in
from the surface and as water passes through, any waste larger than 2mm is left
behind in the device’s catch bag. Additionally, the Seabin requires little
attention to maintain it as the catch bag only needs to be emptied as needed.
According to the Seabin Project under its Frequently Asked Questions, the
coating of the device also uses a “non
toxic and highly durable anti-fouling system” reducing its cleaning
interval to a period of six to eight weeks.
However,
when it comes to the problem of marine and micro plastics pollution in water
bodies, the main complication that directly affects the ecosystem develops when
the wildlife in the waters ingest micro plastics, one of the three main
categories of plastic pollutants. These micropollutants can rapidly climb up
the food chain and be eaten by humans as well. As the Seabin is currently situated
where wildlife is minimal (Seabin Project, n.d.), its effectiveness in tackling
the main problem of micro plastics is vastly limited.
Seabins are currently
limited to marinas and ports because of its power source. According to the
Seabin’s website (n.d.), the Seabin has to be plugged into a constant power
supply of 110/220V and that the “Maximum
distance to an electric energy supply point is 6 meters”. The current Seabin is
limited to areas where a wired power source is located within the product’s
vicinity like marinas and ports. With that said, by implementing modifications
to the power supply of the Seabin, the Seabin Project can bring its product
offshore to rivers or seas where it can have the highest impact on reducing
pollutants on the earth's waters.
An ideal
microplastic-filtering device is equipped with an underwater turbine to make
use of the tidal motion to power the suction mechanism and pull
micro-pollutants into an in-built filter, preventing the pollutants from
spilling back out into the waterbody.
Problem statement
However, one of the most
viable products currently in the market, the Seabin, still needs to be
permanently plugged into a 110/220V power outlet to power its suction mechanism
(Seabin Project, n.d.) and is thus confined to places where electricity is
readily available such as marinas and ports. With the implementation of an
underwater turbine, the suction mechanism in the filtering device can be
sustained as long as there is a constant current flow in the water body, allowing
devices such as the Seabin to be brought offshore to remote water bodies in the
world.
Purpose statement
The purpose of this report is to advise the Seabin Project team to
integrate the recommended modifications to their products as it will play a crucial
part in strengthening the adaptability of the Seabin.
Current and Proposed Solution
Current
The existing Seabin has to
be connected to an electric energy supply point of 110/220V, 500W to operate
(Seabin Project, n.d.). The default Seabin comes with a 6m long electrical
cable and any extension needs to be modified by the user manually. This limits
the Seabin to ports and marinas and vastly reduces its effectiveness. There
have also been trials on adapting Solar panels onto the Seabin to allow the
product to be implemented offshore as seen in Image 1 (Calleja, 2019).
However, factors like shading, instability, battery infrastructure (Ahmad,
2016) and occupancy space make this solution cumbersome and suboptimal in the
long run.
Image 1: Seabin with Solar
panel adaptation.
Proposed
A hydro turbine produces electricity with the help of the natural
tide of the water (Donev, J. et al, 2018). As the Seabin is deployed in the
water, changing the source of power to a hydro turbine instead of a power
socket would be the ideal solution. Hydro turbines come in a myriad of sizes
and variations, which makes finding a compatible hydro turbine challenging. The
best plan for the Seabin team would be to design a small prototype, test it and
develop it. The final design would be able to produce 110/220V, anchor the
Seabin and run effortlessly without any major issues. One product that the
Seabin team can take reference from while building their hydro turbine is the
SeaUrchin Tidal Turbine, shown in image 2.
Image 2:
SeaUrchin Tidal Turbine
Benefits
The
incorporation of an underwater turbine as a power source replacement will
significantly increase the Seabin’s adaptability as it will allow the device to
be brought out of marinas and ports and into seas and other water bodies.
For
starters, having an underwater turbine means that the device will not have to
rely on a power socket to power its suction mechanism. Rather, it will take
advantage of its environment and use the water body’s tide to generate its own
self-sustaining energy. Drawing energy from the water is also more dependable
compared to other natural sources of energy like solar energy, which is
affected by the sun’s positions, and wind energy, which is unpredictable
especially if the device is deployed in places with no open space. Water is
also denser than air, allowing the underwater turbine to generate the same
amount of energy as a windmill “but at slower speeds and over less area”
(Clark, n.d.).
Secondly,
the underwater turbine powering the Seabin is of a small scale and does not require
as much space as a solar panel or windmill as the suction mechanism only
requires “2.5amps @ 500 watts” (Seabin Project, n.d.), making its deployment in
remote locations more convenient. In addition, the small space taken up by the
underwater turbine could allow for multiple devices to be installed in the same
location, increasing the filtration’s area of the effect greatly.
Limitations
The main challenges of
adapting a hydro turbine onto the Seabin are the increase in weight, cost and
the corrosive seawater environment (Ahmad. 2016). The addition of a hydro
turbine with the required power rating would add approximately 57kg (Kojima, 2014) onto the
product and as the Seabin operates at the surface of the water, the increase in
weight would require the Seabin to increase its buoyancy devices in order to
remain at the surface of the water.
One of the main challenges
faced by all hydro energy power sources is the harsh sea condition and
environment. Seawater, which is very corrosive, is constantly exerted onto the
moving parts of the hydro-generator like the turbine blades causing the
components to corrode and rust rapidly (Ahmad, 2016). Particles like sand
carried in the water also quickly erode the components in the hydro turbines.
The adaptation of hydro turbines onto the Seabin will definitely increase the
cost of the product. This is because hydro turbine components are relatively
expensive as they have to be durable enough to withstand the harsh sea
conditions.
Research Methods
Methodology
The team decided to use secondary research to source information
that is crucial and relevant for the report.
Secondary Research
To begin with, the team decided to use the information found in
the Seabin project website as a reference for elaborating on the benefits and
functionality of the Seabin. Following that, the team used the google search
engine to find sources regarding any modification made onto the Seabin. This
would help to show the efforts made by the Seabin team to improve the current
model. Lastly, along with google search engine, ScienceDirect was also used to
find online technical reports and articles regarding hydro turbines and its
benefits.
Conclusion
As the dangers of micro plastics continue to grow and with micro
pollutants finding more ways to enter our water bodies, the micro plastic
filtering products on the market have to be just as adaptive as well. Even
though the Seabin does not have an area of effect as large, or the adaptive
ability as complex as other micro plastic filtering products, it is still one
of the most cost effective devices on the market. With the Seabin’s endless
modification possibilities, it’s potential to grow is also immense.
Improvements in engineering composite materials like carbon fiber will
help tackle the challenge of the corrosive seawater conditions and allow
underwater turbines to operate even in low tidal currents, increasing the
Seabin’s operational ability once the turbine has been incorporated into the
Seabin’s design. Although this modification would result in a price increase
for the Seabin (estimated 1.5 - 2 times of its current cost), the operational
cost of the device as a whole, which currently runs at 3USD per day (Seabin
Project, n.d.), would be significantly reduced. Additionally, the Seabin would
still remain as one of the most affordable marine cleaning devices available on
the market.
The team believes that with the incorporation of the underwater turbine,
the Seabin will not only be a groundbreaking micro plastic filtering device but
a key solution to the world’s water pollution problem.
References
Clark, J (n.d.). How can the moon generate electricity?
Retrieved from https://science.howstuffworks.com/moon-generate-electricity1.htm
Calleja, C. (2019, August 9). Europe's
first solar-powered seabin is cleaning up Spinola Bay. Retrieved from https://timesofmalta.com/articles/view/europes-first-solar-powered-seabin-is-cleaning-up-spinola-bay.727784
Hanania, J., Le, C., Reed, R.
W., Stenhouse, K., Donev, J. (2018). Hydro Turbine Retrieved from https://energyeducation.ca/encyclopedia/Hydro_turbine
Kojima, K. (2014, March 9). Award-winning
Portable, High-Efficiency Hydroelectric Generator Now on the Market. Retrieved
from https://www.japanfs.org/en/news/archives/news_id034740.html
Seabin Project. (n.d.). Frequently asked questions. Retrieved from
https://seabinproject.com/the-seabin-v5/faqs/
Sleiti, A. K. (2016, November 21). Tidal
power technology review with potential applications in Gulf Stream.
Retrieved from https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1364032116308991
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