Global Pioneer: Continuous Deep Water Operations

NELH’s staff grew to nine, and it emerged as the world’s only facility continuously supplying cold, deep seawater. By June, operations included warm and cold water systems, chemistry labs, vehicles, a VHF network, and environmental monitoring. Abalone, trout, nori, lobsters, and other aquaculture projects expanded, while OTEC-related biofouling and corrosion studies deepened. A DOE project began monitoring candidate materials for undersea power transmission cables, while the Alcoa Corrosion Project tested proprietary alloys. NELH also advanced renewable energy with the design of a solar salt pond system.

Highlights:

• Core staff grows to nine
• NELH the only facility in the world supplying a continuous flow of cold, deep seawater, and through 6,000 feet of pipe. Cold water experiments have run for 337 days
• Warm water intake pipe begins providing cleaner water, which helps delay biofouling
• NELH installs a protective system for the onshore pipes: half-round corrugated metal pipe mounted on a concrete base protects and covers 400 ft. of pipe from the lighthouse to the sea cliff. Extensions planned down to the seafloor in FY84
• Proprietary abalone culture experiments expand with a 50,000-gallon tank containing kelp, and growout tanks are added
• By June of 1983, NELH operations include: Warm seawater supply, Cold seawater supply, Water chemistry laboratory, Tech support, a growing list of facilities, a computer for online heat transfer data processing, six various vehicles, a private VHF system, and environmental monitoring
• OTEC biofouling and corrosion research expands and is supplemented by research into open-cycle processes
• Discharged coldwater continues to support aquaculture research, including salmon and rainbow trout aquaculture, nori (macroalgae) farming, Maine lobster aquaculture, and abalone culture
• Fiscal Year 1983 sees the initiation of regular weekly water sampling and analysis for both incoming warm and cold water and the effluent discharge
• A new project sponsored by DOE monitors the corrosion of candidate materials proposed for jacketing interisland deep sea power transmission cables
• Solar insolation measurements continue and NELH remains an official National Weather Service observation station
• The Alcoa Corrosion Project begins, measuring corrosion of proprietary alloys
• Design of a one-acre salt-solar pond 30KW power generating system for NELH is completed
• Opihi/Hawaiian limpet culture experiments begin