The University of Newcastle’s Master of Disaster Resilience and Sustainable Development is designed for people from a range of careers to understand resilience and sustainable development principles, and systematically apply them to avoid disasters, operate through extreme events and emerge better placed to face the future.

This program is jointly developed by the United Nations and CIFAL Newcastle, a United Nations training centre with a focus on disaster resilience and sustainable development. Students will be co-certified by UNITAR and UNDRR and be prepared to implement the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction.

Built with flexibility in mind, this program is available 100% online with multiple courses also offered face-to-face, and students can choose to study full-time or part-time so they can fit study in around their lifestyle.

The program is available for people from a range of backgrounds and experience. There are study pathways from 80 units to 160 units depending on relevant professional experience and qualifications. Students can also elect to study at a time that suits them, with multiple intakes per year.

Visit newcastle.edu.au/disaster-resilience for more information and to apply.

source http://sustainabilitymatters.net.au/content/sustainability/hot-product/university-of-newcastle-s-master-of-disaster-resilience-and-sustainable-development-1514709107

• The equipment upgrade has enabled a 5.1 tonne reduction in annual CO₂ emissions.
• For the supply air fan application energy consumption was reduced by a staggering approximation of 40%.
• For the chilled water pump application, energy consumption was similarly reduced by around 35%.
• The building property managers have experienced significantly lower operational costs and energy bills.
   

The Sypkes Group’s property at 85 Macquarie Street is a multi-tenancy commercial building that features corporate office spaces including those occupied by government and parliamentary officials. It is situated in the heart of Hobart’s Central Business District (CBD), in Tasmania. The ten floors are occupied by approximately 250 workers on any given workday.

Stuart Davey Sypkes, Director of Property of the building recognised issues with aging equipment used to manage the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) operations, and consulted Enginuity Power Solutions, who collectively engaged ABB Authorized Value Provider A1 Electric Motors, to conduct an in-depth analysis of the existing system’s process performance.

The HVAC application that underwent the analysis incorporated motors and drives responsible for powering and managing the chilled water for 85 Macquarie Street, and others that were depended upon for powering the supply air fan for the entire building.

Solutions identified

Tom Green, Managing Director at Enginuity Power Solutions, together with Chris Cheong, Director at A1 Electric Motors, conducted an analysis which recognised that 85 Macquarie Street was eligible to bring their existent motor selection down a size. The supply air fan was originally powered by a 15kW motor but it was determined that the necessary motor that would be adequate to drive the load was instead an 11kW motor. In turn this would enhance their system, reduce operating costs and increase energy efficiency.

ABB synchronous reluctance motors (SynRM) and ACH580 variable speed drives (VSD) were ultimately selected for this project.

The difference made when upgrading to a high-efficiency IE5 SynRM motor

HVAC systems worldwide rely on millions of low-voltage (LV) electric motors to run pumps, fans and compressors. However, these motors consume on average about 50% of the energy used in buildings. Most of the motors in our buildings today are only efficiency class IE1 or IE2.

Rory Paltridge, Division Manager for Motors at ABB Australia says, “Climate change and environmental responsibility are propelling changes across all industries. These SynRM motors offer industrial users a great opportunity to reduce their electricity usage and CO₂ emissions while also benefiting from increased productivity and lower life cycle costs.”

Energy efficiency, cost effectiveness, and reliability without compromising on comfort

The ACH580 is a drive that stands out for its ability to guarantee air quality in the most energy efficient and cost-effective way in both normal and critical situations.

Because HVAC systems run at partial loads close to 99% of the time, VSDs can save energy by an average of 20 to 60% compared to traditional damper or valve control methods. It’s possible because drives can adjust the motor speed of equipment directly to meet the current building needs.

When asked about the asset replacement at 85 Macquarie Street, Stuart Davey-Sypkes, Director at SFO Property said, “It just made sense every way I looked at it. Reducing energy consumption in the building by upgrading the foundation that underpinned the plant and where equipment played a pivotal role, was the logical first step in a broader strategy to reduce the running costs of our building. The ROI calculations looked compelling and it was backed with sound logic, which resulted in an easy ‘yes’ to undertake these upgrades.”

12 months strong and data that radiates positive results

It’s been found that the equipment upgrade has enabled a 5.1 tonne reduction in annual CO₂ emissions. To offset this much carbon you would have to plant approximately 2.5 hectares of trees every year for the life of the asset. That’s equivalent to an area the size of 1.5 Melbourne Cricket Grounds (MCG), or five return trips between Paris and New York by plane.

A look at the supply air fan application shows energy consumption was reduced by around 40%. Thanks to the implementation of the ABB ACH580 VSD inrush currents have been reduced by over 140A per phase and kVA demand has been reduced by over 100kVA. This has the potential to further reduce the energy costs at 85 Macquarie Street by over $12,000 AUD annually.

With the chilled water pump application, energy consumption was reduced by around 35% with a reduction in line current of approximately 43%. Owing to the new VSD inrush currents have been reduced by over 92A per phase and kVA demand has been reduced by over 65kVA. This has the potential to further reduce the energy costs by over $8,400 AUD annually giving the project’s capital investment an ROI of approximately 18 months.

By the numbers — a comparison of then and now

A demonstrates the significant reduction in inrush current on start-up (the old system showed around 155 Amps per phase, versus the new system of around 14 Amps per phase). The old system required 109 kVA to start the motor and following the implementation of the ABB SynRM motor and drive package, this was reduced to just 9.74 kVA. This is substantial as most commercial customers in Australia are charged for peak kVA demand. A reduction in kVA demand, therefore, equates to significant operational cost savings.

Figure A: Example inrush current data capture/system start profile of the old motor using Direct On Line motor starting (DOL) at 85 Macquarie Street for the supply air fan application.

Figure B is again a revealing comparison of the benefits of the new supply air fan system and highlights the current draw/inrush current during system start. It demonstrates the load profile of the current draw of the system when the motor starts. Notice the massive peak in current draw in the top graph when the old system was using Direct On Line motor starting (DOL).

In comparison, Figure C which profiles the performance of ABB’s SynRM motor and ACH580 drive package shows the load ramp rate increase gradually signifying more managed control of speed and power. This results in reduced mechanical stress on the system and equipment as a whole which extends equipment lifetime, reduces the need for service downtime, and emphasises the reduced energy consumption in the application and associated costs.

Figure B: Comparative data of the old system versus the new system at 85 Macquarie Street when analysing current draw/inrush current during the start up of the supply air fan application.

Figure C: Analysis of the inrush current/system start profile of the supply air fan application at 85 Macquarie Street when using ABB’s SynRM motor and drive package.

Tom Green says, “We focus on supporting industry and bridging the gap between intangible ideas and delivering evidence-backed innovative, future-proof solutions.

Our partnership with Chris and his team at A1 Electric Motors and our collaborative approach cements our ability to consult, design and deliver on projects such as these.”

Chris Cheong says, “We’re always thrilled when we’re able to see potential energy savings from equipment upgrades with the use of the ABB EnergySave calculator coupled with ROI data such as that provided by Enginuity Power Solutions.”

(L-R): Stuart Davey Sypkes, Tom Green, and Chris Cheong in the lobby of the 85 Macquarie Street building.

(L-R): Chris Cheong and Tom Green standing beside the chilled water pump and the newly installed ABB synchronous reluctance motor on the plant deck of the building.

Learn more about ABB’s SynRM motors

Learn more about ABB’s ACH580 drives for HVAC applications

source http://sustainabilitymatters.net.au/content/sustainability/sponsored/abb-synchronous-reluctance-motors-and-drives-enable-reduced-carbon-emissions-in-an-energy-efficiency-upgrade-for-hobart-cbd-building-22438746

Craig Mostyn Group is one of Australia’s leading diversified food and agribusiness companies. Their protein rendering unit Talloman, a core division of the Craig Mostyn Group, started having issues with a treatment pond, so Plant Manager, Mr Carlos Mendes, looked for a solution. He wanted a reduction in BOD, COD, NH₃, and blue/green algae.

He called Hydro Innovations, who recommended a Gorman-Rupp 100mm EchoStorm system. It comprised a Gorman-Rupp U4A60S-B self-priming pump, “powering” a Gorman-Rupp EchoStorm VA4 venturi aerator.

The pump draws water from the lagoon, pumps it through the EchoStorm unit, drawing in air, mixes it with the water and delivers it back to the lagoon. The unit “saturates” the water with dissolved oxygen, “conditions” it, and breaks down organic matter. This ruptures vacuoles within the blue/green algae, sinking it, depriving it of the sunlight required for growth.

As the technology was new to Talloman, Hydro Innovations were confident enough to offer a money back guarantee on the promised results. Carlos was happy with this and proceeded to purchase.

The results

Mr Mendes tracked the progress of the EchoStorm by measuring the total taxa. When the unit was installed in March, total taxa measured 217,000. Carlos stopped measuring when the last reading in May, measured 6,630, a reduction of 97%. Mr Mendes and the Talloman team are happy with the results.

EchoStorm aerators are available in sizes from 2 through to 6″. More information is available from Hydro Innovations at info@hydroinnovations.com.au.

source http://sustainabilitymatters.net.au/content/water/sponsored/the-echostorm-venturi-aerator-solves-algae-issue-for-craig-mostyn-group-1365245878

South East Queensland water management company Urban Utilities has announced that it will invest over $65 million in a project to reduce the impacts of extreme weather on the wastewater network in the Northgate and Banyo areas.

The project will begin construction in July. As part of the Cannery Creek Upgrade, a new wetland will be created that filters and controls wet weather flows from the wastewater network, which can be affected by the rainy weather in the area, thus protecting nearby properties and introducing liveability and environmental benefits.

The project was shaped through collaboration between local residents, with a group of 23 local parties in a Community Planning Team (CPT) helping to develop community, environmental and operational outcomes.

Urban Utilities Executive Leader Integrated Solutions Chris Bulloch said that the upgrade’s use of green engineering was useful to manage the sub-tropical region’s intense rain.

“Northgate and Banyo are low-lying areas of Brisbane, which means the local wastewater network can become inundated with stormwater during extreme weather, causing wet weather overflows which can sometimes impact private properties,” Bulloch said.

“While this part of our network has capacity to cater for growth, the impact of climate change means we’re likely to experience more frequent and intense rainfall, so we need to think innovatively about how we deal with water management.

“Urban Utilities is committed to working with our customers and communities to help create solutions that not only manage water sustainably, but add value to our city and its communities. By working with the local residents, we’ve come up with an approach that is better for the community and environment, and is more cost-effective than traditional engineering solutions.”

The project will use a mix of green and traditional infrastructure including a wet weather pump station, and a 2 km pipeline that will divert flows to the new wetland and away from private properties.

“During wet weather, the diluted wastewater will be screened and then diverted along the underground pipeline to a new wetland and bioretention basins, which will act like nature’s filter, trapping sediment and absorbing nutrients,” Bulloch said.

“Nearby, Cannery Creek is fed by stormwater and we’ll rehabilitate it by creating a series of sediment basins to manage and filter flows, to protect downstream waterways and Moreton Bay from the impacts of soil and sediment.

“The design integrates a number of community aspirations including beautifying the creek banks and surrounding area and providing shared paths and seating, to help transform Cannery Creek and provide an area for the community to enjoy.”

Image caption: the upgrade’s projected plan.

Bulloch expressed appreciation for the community involvement in the project, with the CPT having shaped the project’s plan.

“We formed a Community Planning Team in 2019 which saw residents collaborate with planners and engineers and they considered a number of options over many workshops and site visits. The community-led design process played a key role in the final concept for the project and we’ll continue to keep the CPT updated as the project progresses.

“We’d also like to thank Brisbane City Council, the Queensland Government and the many other agencies and organisations which have been engaged and contributed to this project so far.”

The project is being delivered with Urban Utilities’ partner Fulton Hogan, and construction is expected to be completed in 2024.

More information about the project is available online: urbanutilities.com.au/cannerycreek.

source http://sustainabilitymatters.net.au/content/wastewater/case-study/using-green-infrastructure-to-fight-extreme-weather-761161908

Scientists have figured out a way to produce quantum dots using the spent grain from breweries. Researchers from the Institut national de la recherche scientifique (INRS) in Quebec, working in collaboration with a researcher from the École de technologie supérieure (ÉTS), produced a proof-of-concept model that used microbrewery waste as a source of carbon.

Quantum dots, also called artificial atoms, are nanoscopic particles that can be used for their light transmission properties in cutting-edge technologies including sensors in biomedicine, in inks and for LEDs in displays and screens. Producing them is an intensive process and typically relies on toxic and heavy metals like cadmium. Scientists have been looking to make the quantum dots using carbon sourced from renewable or sustainable sources to counteract the toxic methods used otherwise.

Brewery waste was chosen because it has a high amount of carbon, is readily accessible — so accessible that the researchers worked with a local microbrewery, Brasseurs de Montréal — and is naturally enriched with nitrogen and phosphorous, which means additional pure chemicals are not needed in the production process.

“The use of spent grain highlights both an eco-responsible approach to waste management and an alternative raw material for the synthesis of carbon quantum dots, from a circular economy perspective,” said Professor Federico Rosei, from the INRS.

“This research was a lot of fun, lighting up what we can do with the beer by-products,” said Claudiane Ouellet-Plamondon, Canada Research Chair in Sustainable Multifunctional Construction Materials at ÉTS. “Moreover, ÉTS is located on the site of the former Dow brewery, one of the main breweries in Quebec until the 1960s. So there is a historical and heritage link to this work.”

The researchers wanted to demonstrate that quantum dots could be produced with relatively easily accessible tools, in addition to being made with brewery waste. They used a domestic microwave oven to carbonise spent grain. The resulting black powder was then mixed with distilled water and microwaved again. A passage in the centrifuge and advanced filtration were used to obtain the quantum dots that had been produced through this process.

With some testing, it was found that the dots were of a high enough quality to detect heavy metals and environmental contaminants and they demonstrated their quintessential fluorescence. The scientists have said that they will next want to move beyond this proof-of-concept model to fully utilise the microbrewery waste for making quantum dots that are easy to produce and useful in applications such as sensor technologies.

The full paper describing this process was published in the journal RSC Advances.

Image credit: ©stock.adobe.com/au/Leo

source http://sustainabilitymatters.net.au/content/waste/article/scientists-use-brewery-waste-to-make-artificial-atoms–1230070288

Walker Corporation’s 4 Parramatta Square in Sydney’s west has been given a 6 star NABERS rating for energy — the highest number of stars that can be awarded. The rating means it has one of the highest NABERS ratings in Australia for energy.

NABERS, which is short for the National Australian Built Environment Rating System, is a government initiative used to describe the sustainability of different classes of buildings. Buildings need to renew their ratings each year and those that commit to annual ratings often see their energy use and carbon emissions reduce.

“The $3.2 billion development at Parramatta Square has sustainability at its core and we pride ourselves on saving energy and being water wise on every floor,” said Lang Walker AO, Executive Chairman of Walker Corporation, which developed the building.

“4 Parramatta Square’s state-of-the-art environmental features were carefully designed and delivered to make a big impact on reducing carbon emissions and we are proud to receive this incredible accolade on behalf of our tenants.”

The building’s 95 kW solar energy system, LED lighting and sensor activated zoning, electric car charging stations, high-performance glazing, energy performance metering and high-efficiency chillers were the reasons behind its rating.

In addition to its energy rating, 4 Parramatta Square also received a 5.5 star NABERS water rating. It also achieved a 92% recycling rate, with all the construction and demolition waste taken to a materials recovery facility to reduce the carbon and landfill contribution.

Deputy Secretary, Property & Development NSW Leon Walker said 4 Parramatta Square balanced comfort and sustainability for the NSW Government workers in the tower.

“Parramatta Square has delivered another six star performance,” Walker said. “The NSW Government specifically sought modern, sustainable, A-grade office space in Parramatta with market-leading sustainability design and we are proud our workspace sets the best example for efficient buildings across the state.”

The location was previously awarded both a 6 Star Green Star – Interiors rating and a 6 Star Green Star – As Built rating from the Green Building Council. It is transit-oriented development and encourages the use of low-emissions travel.

source http://sustainabilitymatters.net.au/content/sustainability/case-study/parramatta-building-awarded-6-star-energy-rating-497949126

Australia has launched the Plastics Innovation Hub Vietnam (or, the Hub Vietnam), an initiative to tackle plastic waste in the Indo-Pacific through the development of real-world solutions to the problem.

It is being developed by Aus4Innovation, a development assistance program sponsored by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and managed and co-funded by CSIRO. It will be run out of the Australian Embassy in Hanoi and delivered in partnership with Vietnam’s Ministry of Science and Technology.

“CSIRO is excited to collaborate through the Plastics Innovation Hub Vietnam and use our globally renowned science and expertise to work on addressing this problem internationally,” said CSIRO Southeast Asia Counsellor Amelia Fyfield.

“The Plastics Innovation Hub Vietnam differentiates itself by focusing on early-stage initiatives, setting foundations and aiming to connect participants with key networks.”

The Hub Vietnam will bring together local communities and governments, researchers, business and investors to work on the reduction of the impacts of plastic waste. The initiative adds to the network of innovation hubs in the region, following from March’s launch of a Plastic Innovation Hub in Indonesia. These hubs are part of CSIRO’s Ending Plastic Waste Mission which aims to change how plastic is made, used, recycled and disposed of.

Research into plastic in the country has been undertaken as part of CSIRO’s global plastic pollution survey; the goal of this is to identify how much and what sorts of rubbish end up in the environment. More work between Australia and Vietnam is planned in the future, as the latter country hopes to develop a national data repository and expand its own surveys.

Aus4Innovation Program Director Kim Wimbush said solutions based on science, technology and innovation would support the Vietnamese government’s goals to tackle plastic waste and build a circular economy.

“Reducing plastic waste brings economic and environmental advantages,” Wimbush said. “Expanding our collaborations across the region will identify new approaches in reducing plastic waste and support Vietnam’s pledge to reduce the flow of plastics into the ocean by 75% by 2030.”

Read more about the Plastic Innovation Hub Vietnam on its website: ippin.org/vietnam/.

Image credit: ©stock.adobe.com/au/vchalup

source http://sustainabilitymatters.net.au/content/waste/news/australia-launches-plastics-innovation-hub-in-vietnam-26085262

A cost-benefit study by University of New South Wales (UNSW) researchers has found that swapping to ‘cool roofs’ could help lower indoor temperatures, reduce energy bills, decrease urban heating and boost the health of vulnerable people.

A cool roof is one that has been designed to reflect the sun’s light and temperature. Cool roofing can be achieved in a number of ways and ranges from simply repainting a roof with lighter colours up to installing a new roof with cool materials such as metals or woods. The UNSW analysis into these technologies was released a month after the NSW Planning Minister nixed a previous policy commitment to phase out dark roofs, which would have reduced urban heating and energy costs for new homes had it been adopted.

The UNSW cost-benefit analysis was part of a federally funded project to understand the applicability of using cool roof technology along with any barriers to its adoption.

“The study investigated the climatic, social, economic and environmental impacts of implementing cool roofs around Australia,” said Scientia Professor Mattheos Santamouris, Anita Lawrence Chair in High Performance Architecture at UNSW School of Built Environment.

“We used simulated climatic modelling to understand conditions with and without cool roofs. The results showed urban areas, including Western Sydney, Perth, Melbourne, Adelaide, Darwin and Brisbane, had the most to gain from cool roofs. The need for cool roofs and other heat mitigation technologies should really be a priority. If not, the cost of climatic change in the next 10 to 15 years will be tremendous.”

The study looked at 17 types of buildings of various use-types and heights, finding that energy consumption will decrease with cool roofing. The researchers also noted that indoor temperatures can increase in residential houses by up to 4°C if using cool roofs. Impressively, if Sydney replaced all its roofing with cool technology then energy consumption for cooling residential and commercial buildings would decrease by up to 40% in total. The buildings most likely to benefit from cool roofs are those with low insulation levels.

“During summer, a building in Western Sydney will require double the energy to cool down compared to the same building in eastern Sydney,” Santamouris said. “Western Sydney is especially at risk of urban overheating, meaning the low-income households are more likely to either spend more on cooling or are forced to endure heat-related stress indoors. It’s a very serious problem.”

Outdoor temperatures would benefit too, with possible reductions of 1.5°C to 2°C, which has the knock-on effect of making air conditioning more efficient.

“Another benefit to lower outdoor temperatures is that people will experience less thermal stress, meaning decreased mortalities and increased indoor safety and comfort during heatwaves. Cool roofs can reduce heat-related mortality by up to 25–30%. They will also help address energy poverty — an issue severely impacting the quality of life of low-income households.”

Despite the benefits of cool roofing, the study specified some barriers standing in the way of its widespread adoption. These include lack of legislation, policy support, accreditation standards and awareness. If these barriers are overcome, up to 150,000 jobs stand to be created through creation and installation of new roofs.

“The infrastructure is already here. Australia has 10 different companies producing cool materials and exporting them all over the world.

“There is vast data and evidence that cool roof technology works and it has been used extensively in the last 15–20 years overseas.

“More than 250 cool roof technology projects around the world have succeeded in decreasing city average air temperatures by 2.5°C to 4°C. And there are new technologies in development that will be able to decrease by 5°C.”

The analysis on the use of cool roof technologies is available from the UNSW website.

Image credit: ©stock.adobe.com/au/bildlove

source http://sustainabilitymatters.net.au/content/sustainability/article/cool-roofing-the-key-to-a-cool-future-research-says-977745485

Researchers have suggested that adopting a ‘locavore’ diet — that is, eating only food produced within a 100 miles, or 161 kilometres, radius — could substantially reduce carbon emissions from food production.

University of Sydney scientists looked at the amount of carbon emissions that were produced by the transport of food, finding that almost a fifth of emissions from the global food system come from transport alone.

“Our study estimates global food systems, due to transport, production and land use change, contribute about 30% of total human-produced greenhouse gas emissions. So, food transport — at around 6% — is a sizeable proportion of overall emissions,” said Dr Mengyu Li, who is the lead author of the study. “Food transport emissions add up to nearly half of direct emissions from road vehicles.”

Nutritional ecologist and co-author Professor David Raubenheimer said: “Prior to our study, most of the attention in sustainable food research has been on the high emissions associated with animal-derived foods, compared with plants.

“Our study shows that in addition to shifting towards a plant-based diet, eating locally is ideal, especially in affluent countries.”

The researchers used a framework called FoodLab to calculate emissions from food transport. It turns out that roughly three gigatonnes of emissions is produced by the transport of food, which means it accounts for 19% of food-related emissions. This value is also somewhere between 3.5 and 7.5 times higher than had previously been estimated.

China, the United States, India and Russia produce the most emissions from transporting food and high-income countries in general produce a disproportionate amount of these kinds of emissions. In fact, countries such as the United States, Germany, France and Japan constitute 12.5% of the world’s population but generate 46% of food transport emissions, and Australia is the second-largest exporter of food transport emissions, due to the breadth of volume of its food production.

The kind of food being transported defines its levels of emissions. The transport of fruit and vegetables generates almost double the amount of emissions of their production and accounts for over a third of food transport emissions.

“Since vegetables and fruit require temperature-controlled transportation, their food miles emissions are higher,” Li said.

The researchers think that eating locally may be the solution to this problem. They calculated that if everybody only ate locally grown food, emissions would reduce by 90%, down to 0.38 gigatonnes. However, this isn’t a realistic proposition globally, since many regions are unable to be entirely self-sufficient in food supply. It could be implemented selectively though.

“For example, there is considerable potential for peri-urban agriculture to nourish urban residents,” co-author Professor Manfred Lenzen said. Importantly, richer countries can reduce their food transmissions through investing in cleaner energy for vehicles and incentivising food businesses to use production and distribution methods that emit less.

“Both investors and governments can help by creating environments that foster sustainable food supply,” Lenzen said.

“Changing consumers’ attitudes and behaviour towards sustainable diets can reap environmental benefits on the grandest scale,” said nutritional ecologist and co-author Professor David Raubenheimer. “One example is the habit of consumers in affluent countries demanding unseasonal foods year-round, which need to be transported from elsewhere.

“Eating local seasonal alternatives, as we have throughout most of the history of our species, will help provide a healthy planet for future generations.”

The research was published in Nature Food.

Image credit: ©stock.adobe.com/au/sergojpg

source http://sustainabilitymatters.net.au/content/sustainability/article/eat-local-food-to-fight-climate-change-142356594

The Great Barrier Reef is a spectacular ecological landscape, and home to thousands of unique marine species, from deep water corals to whales, sharks and sea turtles. The roughly 344,400 square kilometre tropical ecosystem is the largest living structure on the planet, and consists of 3,000 individual reefs, each with their own complex bio-diversity.

The Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS) works alongside the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority to closely study the reef, offering insight on preservation and caretaking of the environment and its inhabitants. With the help of Siemens technology, the National Sea Simulator (SeaSim) allows scientist to carry out short- and long-term experiments, with fine control over key environmental variables such as light, temperature, acidity, salinity, sedimentation and contaminants.

To celebrate 150 years transforming the everyday in Australian industries, Siemens has announced a series of monthly travel and technology prizes. This month’s instalment of the Beyond 150 Competition will take winners to tropical North Queensland, to enjoy an idyllic stay on Magnetic Island and get up close with Siemens’ work at the SeaSim facility.

“We have a variety of infrastructure at The Australian Institute of Marine Science, and SeaSim is possibly the most spectacular of those developments,” says Dr David Souter, Research Manager at AIMS. “Siemens technology underpins all of the monitoring systems within SeaSim, allowing us to look at multiple environmental parameters that affect marine organisms.”

A key aspect of the research undergone at SeaSim involves identifying how to protect the reef against the impacts of climate change. By having intricate control over ambient temperatures in simulated reef environments, the scientists at AIMS are able to identify factors such as the natural resilience against bleaching in certain coral species. The equipment at SeaSim is instrumental in generating replicable data on coral biology, and using it to inform reef management programmes across Australia.

Due to the intricacy of the SeaSim plant, the infrastructure requires automated processes to ensure reliable and high-quality research capabilities. Developed in collaboration with solutions partner SAGE, the advanced control framework is based on the Siemens Simatic PCS 7 package. This offers AIMS a scalable solution, capable of measuring precise factors and creating a data feedback loop to track experiments and compare results.

The Siemens PCS 7 portfolio incorporates multiple units for individual experiments, employing automation from Simatic S7-1200/1500 controllers. Not only does this allow researchers to maintain set conditions for two to three months, it can also closely replicate environmental fluctuations (such as seasons), mimicking reef’s true terrain.

Winners of this month’s Beyond 150 prize will be taken on an all-inclusive trip to the iconic Great Barrier Reef in North Queensland. The package will feature a visit to the SeaSim facility and accommodation on Magnetic Island, complete with a scenic flight over the reef and a lunchtime sail tour. To enter, visit the registration page before 30th June 2022.

source http://sustainabilitymatters.net.au/content/sustainability/sponsored/siemens-technology-underpins-critical-research-on-australia-s-reef-systems-950893729