Research

OIL DETECTION AND THICKNESS ESTIMATION UNDER/IN ICE BASED ON ELECTRICAL CAPACITANCE TOMOGRAPHY (ECT)

Project Number
1121
Program
OSRR
Progress Date
12/18/2022
Category
Arctic
Decision Making Support Tools
Ohmsett
Oil Spill Response
Remote Sensing
Performing Activity
American University of Beirut
Principal Investigator
Dr. Imad H. Elhajj
Contracting Agency
Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement
Contract Award Value
$392,685.00
Estimated Completion Date
03/22/2022
Description

This project will study and test the Electrical Capacitance Tomography (ECT) sensor to detect oil in/under ice. For oil detection and thickness estimation under/in ice, where the access to the imaged region is limited to above its surface, AUB proposes a planar sensor design where the electrodes are mounted on a single plane and placed at a relatively close distance above the ice surface. 
The project deliverables include: prototype remote sensor/algorithms; bi-monthly Progress Reports; final report; and conference and refereed journal articles. The prototype remote sensor/algorithms will be delivered at the end of the project. 
Latest progress update

Sensor design optimization has been conducted. It was concluded that adding guards could lower the measured capacitance, which increases sensitivity and can be helpful to get measurements that are in accordance with the limitations of the acquisition device. Machine-learning was also tested for oil detection and estimation with over 94% detection accuracy. Two lab tests were conducted to determine possible sources of noise in the measurement.
Status
In Progress
Peer Review Status
N/A