Tag Archives: energy

Working on the energy systems

Posted on by

Weather

  • Visibility: 15 miles
  • Wind: 25-35 knts W
  • Sky: Partly Cloudy
  • Water: 1-2 meter waves with white caps

Boats/Visitors/Sightings

  • Kyle brought in a team of PTTP technicians to the island to help finish our new energy system wiring and to optimize our solar array for the greatest efficiency. Additionally, we also carried some of the older lead-acid batteries from the battery room to the tank room, from where they will be loaded on to a boat for the main island.
  • Kyle was also able to repair the Boston Whaler onsite – looks like the issue was corrosion on the contacts to the battery and the switch. He was able to sand the corrosion away and the electronics jumped to life!

Marine Mammals

  • The sea lions have completely disappeared over the last 2-3 days. Can’t see a single one around now
  • Elephant seal counts are at 2 females and 4 males – 3 of the males seemed to be all huddled up next to the student house, possibly to escape the wind.

Cold, Sea Lion Brands and Beautiful Sunset

Posted on by

The wind blew from the northeast, between 15 and 25 knots.  The barometer rose in the morning from 1024 hPa and then dropped to 1020 hPa.  The visibility was unlimited, with great views of Mt. Baker and many other wonders of the Salish Sea.  The temperature reached a high of 2oC as I am writing this at 21:00.

The dive boat from Ogden Point visited at 11:00.  The group was diving around Middle Rock.

I was going to leave on the Race Rocks boat this morning for a short trip into Pedder Bay to drop off garbage and pick up gas.  A lot of garbage is being swept onto the shores of the ecological reserve.  I thought I had a good window to get away from the jetty. Although, the northeasterly swell started to pick up just as I was putting the boat in the water.  The waves were too high as they rolled into the jetty, so I changed my plans and raised the boat back into the boat house.

Two branded sea lions were spotted today.  See the photos and captions below for 359Y and 975Y.  In November there were 20 different brands spotted around Race Rocks. Many of those california and steller sea lions had never been spotted before at Race Rocks.

I collected depth soundings from all the tanks around campus for the month end report. 475L of diesel was used over the past month to power the generator and heat the houses. Last year in November, 737L of diesel was used.  The reduction of diesel use by a third  this year has come from increased power output from the solar array as well as the wood stove, which was installed last winter in the Ecoguardian’s House.  There are lots more changes being made to transition to more sustainable power sources.  Stay tuned to this blog to read about them as they are introduced.

Solar Energy at Race Rocks

Posted on by
cormwingm correlate  solar
Link to the Effects of Solar energy on organisms at Race Rocks: Correlations File: Data has been selected to show seasonal patterns and to allow some study of the relationships between solar radiation, uv  and temperature Second exercise on Solar and UV. This one also links through to the raw data references for the factors.
solar day solar week solar month
Graph of today’s Solar Insolation:
The intensity of the incoming radiation is measured in Watts per square metre (Wm-2)
 Cick on the above graphs for a larger version of the past week’s solar level at Race Rocks.  The “three graphs above represent historical records of Solar insolation at different time scales These graphical interpretations are made possible by the website victoriaweather.ca
Solar Radiation Levels SOLAR ENERGY Hi Solar
Solar Radiation levels for the past week.. This is the peak solar raddiation measured during the archive interval..(30 min) Solar Energy history for the past week: The amount of accumulated solar radiation energy over a period of time measured in Langleys; 1 Langley= 11.622 Watt-hours per square meter =41.84  kilojoules per sqare metre=3.687   BTUs per square foot Highest levels of Solar Radiation for the past week as recorded on the davis Weather Instrument.
solar energy
The SOLAR ENERGY part of the
Integrated Energy Project at Race Rocks		 Alternate Energy: Solar,
A curriculum resource
AN EXPLANATION OF WHAT THE SOLAR MEASUREMENT REPRESENTS
As the Earth orbits the Sun, it receives approximately 1,400 W / m? of energy, as measured upon a surface kept normal (at a right angle) to the Sun (this number is referred to as the solar constant). Of the energy received, roughly 19% is absorbed by the atmosphere, while clouds on average reflect a further 35% of the total energy. The generally accepted standard is 1020 watts per square meter at sea level.
website on the Basics of Solar Energyhttp://zebu.uoregon.edu/disted/ph162/l4.html
Incident Solar Energy on the ground:• Average over the entire earth = 164 Watts per square meter over a 24 hour day So the entire planet receives 84 Terrawatts of Power our current worldwide consumption is about 12 Terrawatts so is this a solution?
Broadband Solar Irradiance – theoretically the solar radiation arriving at the earth from all frequencies or wavelengths, in practice limited to the spectral range of radiometers, typically from 300 nm to 3000 nm wavelength. Meteorologists refer to this band as short-wave radiation.
Electromagnetic Radiation – the energy produced by an oscillating electrical (and magnetic) field, transmitted by photons. See Electromagnetic Spectrum – the entire energy range of electromagnetic radiation specified by frequency, wavelength, or photon energy. The low end of the spectrum is infrared radiation (heat), and passes through the colors of visual light from red through violet, through ultraviolet radiation, x-rays, and gamma rays. Radio and television are transmitted on specific electromagnetic frequencies.
Shortwave Radiation – the principal portion of the solar spectrum that spans from approximately 300 nanometers (nm) to 4000 nm in the electromagnetic spectrum. Longwave radiation is infrared radiation (>4000 nm).
Watt – a unit of power defined as a Joule per second.. A Joule is – a metric energy unit (Newton-meter) equal to approximately 0.2389 calories.
Btu – British Thermal Unit, the amount of energy required to raise one pound of water one degree Farenheit at 60°F, equivalent to 1055 joules or 252.1 calories.
LuxThe lux (symbolized lx) is the unit of illuminance in the International System of Units (SI). It is defined in terms of lumens per meter squared (lm/m2). Reduced to SI base units, one lux is equal to 0.00146 kilogram per second cubed (1.46 x 10-3 kg / s3).
One lux is the equivalent of 1.46 milliwatt (1.46 x 10-3 W) of radiant electromagnetic (EM) power at a frequency of 540 terahertz (540 THz or 5.40 x 1014 Hz), impinging at a right angle on a surface whose area is one square meter. A frequency of 540 THz corresponds to a wavelength of about 555 nanometers (nm), which is in the middle of the visible-light spectrum.
The lux is a small unit. An alternative unit is the watt per meter squared (W / m2). To obtain lux when the illuminance in watts per meter squared is known, multiply by 683. To obtain watts per meter squared when the illuminance in lux is known, divide by 683 or multiply by 0.00146.
Illuminance varies inversely with the square of the distance from the source on a free-space line of sight. If the distance is doubled, the illuminance is cut to 1/4; if the distance increases by a factor of 10, the illuminance becomes 1/100 (0.01 times) as great.
lumenThe lumen (symbolized lm) is the International Unit of luminous flux. It is defined in terms of candela steradians (cd multiplied by sr). One lumen is the amount of light emitted in a solid angle of 1 sr, from a source that radiates to an equal extent in all directions, and whose intensity is 1 cd.
One lumen is the equivalent of 1.46 milliwatt (1.46 x 10-3 W) of radiant electromagnetic (EM) power at a frequency of 540 terahertz (540 THz or 5.40 x 1014 Hz). Reduced to SI base units, one lumen is equal to 0.00146 kilogram meter squared per second cubed (1.46 x 10-3 kg multiplied by m2 / s3).
The lumen is a small unit. An electromagnetic field power level of 1.46 milliwatt is small; the radio-frequency (RF) output of a children’s toy two-way radio is several times that much. A frequency of 540 THz corresponds to a wavelength of about 556 nanometers (nm), which is in the middle of the visible-light spectrum. A steradian is the standard unit solid angle in three dimensions; a sphere encloses 4 pi (approximately 12.57) steradians.The Davis Weather Instrument provides a measure of solar radiation in Langleys: This is Solar Radiation Integrated over time. One Langley equals 11.622 Watt hours per square meter= 697.32 Watt minutes per square meter.This file is  a link on Solar Cycle Progression from NOAA. It includes data on sunspot activity.Return to the Physical/Abiotic factors Files:

Integrated Energy Project Update-Record of Events

Posted on by

With the Pearson College – EnCana – Clean Current Tidal Power Demonstration Project at Race Rocks now fully underway, we are seeing a variety of activities in the preparation for the tidal generator and other components of the Integrated Energy System at Race Rocks. Look for the most recent updates at the top of this page.
END of Tidal Energy project and removal of Turbine

 

 

 

 

 

In the late summer of 2009, Pearson College installed six new 165 watt solar panels to add to the existing bank of 38 panels on the energy centre.

 

 

 

Redeployment of the Tidal Energy Turbine  October 2008

 

 

April, 2007.The tidal energy turbine is raised to change the bearings which had been deteriorating faster than expected.

 

 

Cementing anchor bolts to the roof January 17, 2007

Installaton of solar panels January 25,2007

 

 

PM Stephen Harper visits Race Rocks for an “ecoenergy announcement” Jan 19, 2007

 

 

 

Installation of the turbine Sept. 27, 2006

 

 

 

Testing of the Turbine in Pedder Bay

 

 

 

 

Installation of the turbine control unit

 

 

 

 

Laying of the cable to shore Aug.20-22, 2006

 

 

 

Installation of upper part of the piling

 

 

 

Installation of bottom part of the piling

 

 

 

 

Drilling Problems encountered in installation of the tidal current energy Piling

 

 

Installation of the Anchors for Drilling for the Tidal Current Energy Project

 

 

Dredging the overburden for the tidal energy installation.

 

 

The following on this page still need more work reconnecting links
​
The Race Rocks Weather
Instrument is installed at Race Rocks, Oct.26, 2005

 
dredgebucket detachment drilling
Dredging the overburden Deployment of Anchors for the
Piling July 16, 2006		 Drilling
solar energy
sonde sensors
Underwater Sensors at RR
hybridunit2s.jpg
projweeks.jpg
mar23placebattery.jpg
Equipment install
Students of Pearson College help with transferring 96 storage batteries March 10-12, 2006
 Battery Installation,
March 2006 		Electronic equipment arrives March, 2006
Cable across Island
barge.jpg
SIMS towed video chart
install fouling plates
January 2006: preliminary work on piling installation Preliminary work for Cable laying and Pile Drilling..Nov 2005 Succession Studies on Different Substrates, summer, 2005
weather
The Race Rocks Weather
Instrument is installed at Race Rocks, Oct.26, 2005
ADCP recover
location
adcp
Deployment and Retrieval of the ADCP from the Bottom of the Channel Dock modifications for a concrete channel to carry the underwater cable: June 2005 Divers Examine two Prospective Locations for the Turbine Installation March 30, 2005 Triton and ASL Environmental Services do surface ADCP.
Extension of Generator Building to accommodate storage batteries

 

Link to the Tidal Energy part of the Integrated Energy Project Index

The Traditional Power Generation System at Race Rocks

Posted on by
Being an isolated Light Station, Race Rocks relied fully on power generated on site up to October of 2006. Electricity was supplied after the start of the light tower in 1860 by a series of diesel run electrical generators.So far we have no information on the kind of generators used in these early years. This page provides a profile of the diesel electrical generating system which now forms part of a back-up for our integrated energy system.
The Engine Room and Oil storage Tanks(2002)
The delivery of a new generator, November, 2000.This generator had a lower output rating, but would be less expensive to run since there were no longer two families living on the island since automation.

 

The original engine room (ca 1860) concrete pad with the newer Solar panel, batteries and the foghorn which the Coastguard had installed to allow automation to take place.

 

 

This file describes the site remediation and restoration project for the old diesel oil tank farm which was removed in 2000

 

 

Environmental Impact of the existing Diesel Oil Energy System.

 

 

The hoses for transporting diesel oil to the island are wound on a central drum on the island. These reach from the dock where fuel is brought by boat, over to the oil storage tanks at the engine room.

Alex Chan beside the diesel fuel storage tank. 2005 Link to the CARBON CYCLE 

Environmental Impact of the Diesel Energy System at Race Rocks-2001

Posted on by

Some preliminary comments contributed by:

Norm Healy , Environmental Officer, Lightstation Rejuvenation Project
DFO – Canada Coast Guard, Victoria, B.C. 250-480-2723– 2001

The primary reason for investing in alternate, or renewable, energy systems is to reduce environmental impacts.

The negative impacts of existing systems could be summarized as follows:

1) On-site diesel storage represents a significant risk.

Historically, these type of storage systems in harsh marine environments have been subject to frequent failure resulting in releases to the environment. The smaller domestic tanks have been as much of a problem as the larger bulk storage for generator engines. The capacity to respond to releases is limited because of the remote location of the lightstation.

2) CO2 emissions:

  • Assuming 50,000L/year marine grade diesel combustion (rough average requirement for CCG lightstations) the diesel system contributes about 133,500 kg/year CO2 emissions (Carbon coefficient for distillate fuel (fuel oil): 161.44 pounds of CO2 per million BTU, or 22.29 pounds per gallon, or 2.67 kg/L. (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 1999. U.S. Inventory of Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks: 1990-1997.))
  • This, of course does not include the emissions associated with, extraction, refinement, and transportation of diesel to the point of consumption. The average US household CO2 emissions for oil heat and electrical is approximately 15,000 kg/year.

3) Diesel exhaust typically includes nitrogen oxides (NOx), volatile organic compounds (VOCs). (NOx and VOCs are ground level ozone pre-cursors, ground level ozone is phytotoxic), sulphur oxides (SOx), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), particulate matter (including pm 2.5), and dioxins and furans. The local effects of these emissions are unknown.

Impacts of proposed systems:
A more thorough evaluation is required here. For instance it may be concluded that a tidal energy system would likely have the least environmental impact due to smaller systems required. However caution is advised here. Just because the tidal system requires less physical space, does not mean that it will have the least impact. Potential impacts are determined by both the characteristics of the stressor (including size, but also magnitude, frequency, duration, timing, etc.) and the characteristics of the receiving environment (i.e. sensitivity of species present, habitat quality, etc.).

Generator replacement by helicopter

Posted on by

For maintenance purposes, the Canadian Coast Guard is replacing one of the generators necessary to power Race Rocks. This piece of equipment is a 25kW Diesel generator located in the engine room situated in the southern part of the island. Hopefully, in the next decade, we will be able to switch to renewable energy to move a step further toward our goal of sustainability for the islands and protection of the environment.

This video was made by Ryan Murphy and Paulina Ponce de Leon in October of 2000.