Remote Operated Vehicle (ROV) refers to robot submarine tethered on a ship by dissimilar cables, which carry electrical signals back and forth amongst the operator and the vehicle. The ROVs are extremely maneuverable and unoccupied mostly equipped with a video camera together with lights. However, it is essential to add extra equipment in order to expand the capabilities of the vehicle. These equipments may entail a still camera, manipulator, water sampler, cutting arm as well as the instruments used in measuring water clarity, temperature, light and penetration. Initially, the developments of ROVs were for industrial purposes including the internal and external inspection of pipelines. It also aimed the structural testing of offshore platforms. Currently, ROVs performs dissimilar functions most of them being scientific. This has made them to be significant in oceanic exploration as well as educational purposes. Finally, it enables the linkage of scientific expedition’s live using internet (Eric & Heniy 84).
ROVs occur in dissimilar sizes ranging from those of broad box to those with small truck. The deployment and recovery functions conducted by ROVs vary from simply dropping the ROV on the small boat to complex deck operation that requires large winches. However, some ROVs have garages lowered to the bottom, where they leave them to explore and they return after the accomplishment of the mission (Eric & Heniy 84). Conducted research by a team of submarine workers indicated that ROVs are safer to conduct compared to other types of diving operations. Notably, ROVs also have some disadvantages whereby they lose human presence thus making the visual surveys and evaluation more difficult. The vehicles also lack freedom from the surface because of their cable connections to the ship. The ROV operator directs the vehicle from a system found on board of the ship. The operator uses a joystick, camera control as well as video monitor. Therefore, he or she moves the vehicle and the camera to the required position and records the vehicle depth, heading together with geographic location (Eric & Heniy 86).
Interestingly, ROVs are abroad of the vessels that mount submersible operations for dissimilar reasons. Initially, they are for safety purposes. This is so because during times when submersibles entangle or incapacitate, ROV is essential in investigating the scene in order to encourage the operator make wise decisions on how to respond. These includes whether the operator can attach appropriate cutter blades to the manipulator arm and use them to free the sub. Moreover, if the sub loses the power to surface, the RON’s manipulator can enhance to the sub (Kliewer 24). This can be useful because it can enable the deck crew to deliver the sub on the surface. Additionally, ROVs are beneficial because they encourage exploration and science objectives. In cases where submersibles cannot be applicable because of unfavorable weather or some maintenance complications, ROVs always take their places. Remarkably, ROVs are imperative in finding out the questionable dice sites before the deployment of a sub thus lowering the level of risk surrounding the expensive sub together with the pilot (Leffler, Richard & Gordon 13).
The paper will draw attention on the use of ROVs in nuclear decommissioning. Initially, the development of ROVs aimed at investigating torpedo tubes found on the nuclear submarines. However, after sometimes, their uses changed whereby they were applicable within offshore and gas industries so that they can enhance the exploration in deeper places that divers cannot reach safely. The first ROVs mainly acted as observation vehicles, but with time, some advancement encouraged them to perform multitude of underwater tasks (Kliewer 25). These advancements included sophisticated manipulators, tooling packages and survey equipments. For more than 25 years, Resource Star Limited has been applying ROVs in dissimilar nuclear decommissioning projects. Significant changes existed in the usage of the vehicle, whereby ROV acted as an eyeball. It performed visual survey of varying redundant and irradiated ponds together with buildings found in the establishments built. Due to introduced site regulations and improved safety within industries indicates that both the in-air and underwater ROVs have a lot of work to cover under the nuclear industry. These include performing visual and radiometric inspection survey, take varying samples and reduce the sizes of contaminated structures, furthermore, the remove equipment remotely hence taking them to an area where it can work on and store safely Kliewer 25).
Early ROVs encountered dissimilar problems during decommissioning because the level of radioactivity that were in buildings and ponds interfered with the on board electronics, which made the vehicles to be unreliable. In rectifying this, it was imperative to minimize the amount of electronics components put on board of the vehicle. This enabled most of the ROVs to be under the control of composite umbilical. However, the most useful component of ROV in decommissioning is the pilot. That is why it requires hundreds of hours of flying experience. This enhances spatial awareness that is significant in flying ROV in confined areas. The pilot also applies sonar system to avoid navigating in bad visibility together with helping it avoid obstacles. Finally, the pilot uses the actual camera and the tools in monitoring all works within the ROV. The equipments available as tooling packages include high specification color, cameras, obstacles avoidance scanner, cutters, shears, hydraulic power packs and silt sampler among others (Christ 13).
In November 2011, the Avista Corporation contracted ROV services in order to scrutinize splitter wall and investigate for the debris within the fore bay. This was essential because the corporation was in need of periodic inspection of the splitter wall within the thrust pool of the dam because of the witnessed high flood rates of turbine (Leffler, Richard & Gordon 13). Additionally, it was appropriate because the spill gates within the dam cut under the splitter wall. Therefore, ROV ensures that it conducts inspection whilst the turbines are out of line or only when a few of them are in use. This is beneficial because it offers suitable conditions that encourage ROV to work. During the contract, ROV applied the incorrect turbine only, thus allowing more than 6000cfs of the total flow into the areas surrounding the thrust puddle, which caused the eddies and harmful conditions to both man and machine. The corporation was in need of the inspection because a small floatplane landed abruptly in the lake. As a result, it was attached to the dam after floating down because of lack of power. Accidentally, one of the plane’s pontoons filled with water, which made it to toss and be submerged (Leffler, Richard & Gordon 14). However, the plane was pulled through the gate and even though, they recovered some parts, others disappeared completely. However, the corporation has interest in finding their engine, thus leading to the conduction of that inspection (Leffler, Richard & Gordon 15).
Furthermore, during October 2011, the Puget Sound Energy contracted ROV’s services as part of the multi phase project in order to image and survey dissimilar parts of the Lower Baker Dam. It also conducted Hydrophone testing, Bathymetric survey, ADCP survey, 2D multibeam Sonar Imaging as well as the apron inspection of the dam. ROV applies dissimilar equipments in order to encourage the best ever coverage and imaging. These included the application of Coda Octopus Echoscope 3D Imaging Sonar, Total station, GPS and the POS system (Hanson 90). However, the inspection area was tight because it lacked road access, which forced all the applicable equipment and personnel to be flown by helicopter. This was challenging because the helicopter was small due to site accessibility hence forcing it to take more than four trips to load and offload. This was a tight job as the inspection team found their way on the second day. Pole mounting and collecting data was a difficult task because nothing was dropped on the plunge pool floor because it was under the cover of boulders with less direct line of the imaged apron. The inspection team surveyed the whole plunge pool so that they can enable the engineering to have a complete picture of the required area. Additionally, the echoscope generated three dimensional point clouds in order to enhance view manipulation and measuring the interest areas. Interestingly, this was the first application of echoscope in this type of survey hence proving to reliable, fast and extremely accurate. This is so because it facilitated complete coverage while it generated the underwater survey video. The weather favored the inspection hence enabling its completion within two days (Christ 19).
Finally, the Mexican Commercial Diving Company contracted ROV. It wanted it to undertake an inspection on the salt water-cooling inlet pipe used for natural gas power generation facility found at Rosarito Beach in Northern Baja California. The pipe was 9 feet in diameter and 2,000 feet long possessing dissimilar vertical shafts. The inspection aimed at seeking for anomalies, imperfections within constructions and recording the level of marine growth in the pipe (Christ 17). During the inspection, it was essential to monitor time. This is because the opportunity window started from midnight until 8 am the next morning so that the inspection can come to completion before returning the cooling pumps on power plant. The inspection used different equipments such as a SeaBotix 300-6 LBV ROV, 750-meter dual fiber tether, video cameras and the HD video cameras. Furthermore, it used Tritech Sonar in capturing and measuring sensor in order to collect data and measure the pipe’s inside for each pipe seam. Additionally, they also inspected the trash racks and screens in front of each pump in order to perform sonar scans and determine the marine growth. Remarkably, the plan came to end on time and on budget (Hanson 92).
Works Cited
Christ, Robert D. The Rov Manual: A User Guide to Observation-Class Remotely Operated Vehicles. Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann, 2007. Print.
Eric, A. Senior, and Heniy. S. Svein. "Cost-Effective Removal of Subsea Exploration Wellheads." Offshore 2008: 84,84,86. ABI/INFORM Complete. Web. 22 Nov. 2012 .
Hanson, Lynne C. The Marine Research Community and Low-Cost Rovs and Submersibles : Needs and Prospects. Kingston, R.I: University of Rhode Island, 1986. Print.
Kliewer, Gene. "ROV Activity." Offshore 2007: 24-. ABI/INFORM Complete. Web. 22 Nov. 2012 . Retrieved from: http://search.proquest.com/business/docview/459423817/13A8F6F73D729F8EB2E/16?accountid=45049
Leffler, William L, Richard Pattarozzi, and Gordon Sterling. Deepwater Petroleum Exploration & Production: A Nontechnical Guide. Tulsa, Okla: PennWell, 2003. Internet resource.
