Smart Environmental Logistics
Monitoring and detection of impending environmental catastrophes and geological system failures, while at the same time providing eco-protection solutions, are challenging and ever changing endeavors. SMART ENVIRONMENTAL LOGISTICS, is working to innovate ‘smart’ solutions for system monitoring thru state-of-the-art wireless communications technologies, that include both terrestrial and satellite based systems. For eco-protection applications, Tie has created innovative advanced material protective systems that will advance the ability to meet this challenge.
MONITORING, DETECTION AND TRANSMISSION SYSTEMS
The design of a reliable monitoring early-warning system requires a detailed understanding of the principal causes and failure mechanisms associated with environmental catastrophes. Monitoring of man-made geological structures, such as levees and dike, to detect impending failures typically involves the use of distributed and discrete devices installed in the ground and on structures that measure performance parameters such as strain, tilt, deformation, pore pressure, water level, temperature, and flow. Sensors may also include web-cams that provide visual information. There are also associated computer systems to store, process, analyze, evaluate data and deliver warning messages to a central control point. A critical component of any monitoring system is a reliable means to move data from the sensor networks to control point. For the State of Louisiana’s Office of Coastal Protection and Restoration (OCPR), Tie Technologies, working with other members of the iLevee team, will provide a state-of-the-art, robust, wireless communication based, monitoring, warning and response system that can be scaled up for the entire Greater New Orleans Metropolitan Area and neighboring communities.
Traditional terrestrial systems for the most part failed in the case of the Katrina disaster, including terrestrial and wireless grid networks. Both satellite based and Wi-Fi systems did survive and performed well during this disaster and will become part of the Tie Smart Environmental Logistics Solution for the iLevee system.
ENVIRONMENT PROTECTIVE SYSTEMS
The genesis for the creation of an innovative advanced material environmental protective systems, the OilDam™, was the Deepwater Horizon oil spill (also referred to as the BP oil spill), which was the largest accidental marine oil spill in the history of the petroleum industry, the impact of which continues since the well was capped. The three fundamental strategies for addressing spilled oil by BP in this disaster, all of which proved partially successful, were to contain it on the surface, away from the most sensitive areas, to dilute and disperse it in less sensitive areas, and to remove it from the water using a variety of techniques.
The only viable solution, designed to keep oil away from the fragile ecologically sensitive shoreline and while contain it, allowing it to be pump into storage containers for recycling, was the Tie Technologies’ OilDam™. This fixed, ecologically friendly sea-bed to sea-level geo-composite barrier, not only would block oil, but via a geo-composite seafloor mat, allowed seawater to pass back and forth under and through its base, maintaining natural tidal flows.
Disasters of this nature continue to occur, as is evidence by the ruptured pipeline owned and operated by the Canadian oil company Enbridge Inc., which spewed over 1 million gallons of oil into the Kalamazoo River the recent toxic red sludge disaster, a waste product of making aluminum, that burst out of a Hungarian factory's reservoir and reached the Danube river after wreaking havoc on smaller rivers and creeks, and downstream nations. Smart Environmental Logistics is ready to respond to these and many other disasters with the appropriate solutions.
NEW SOLUTIONS UNDER CONSIDERATION
Tie continues to look at new solutions to add to their SMART ENVIRONMENTAL LOGISTIC portfolio that will advance the ability to address environmentally sensitive issues.