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January 1, 2019
Ocean Cleanup's System 001 Needs Fine Tuning After Initial Test
System 001 is a polyethlene pipe or "boom" that is curved in a U shape to help collect plastic with its polyethylene skirt below
The 2,000 ft long polyethylene pipe dubbed "system 001" is still being tested and fine tuned as it attempts to clean up plastic from the ocean. The world's first large scale ocean cleanup system has been doing well with its two week testing period. It has remained in its U shape in most cases and has held up well against the sea. It also successfully reoriented itself with wind and current patterns. However, it is losing some of its captured plastic due to wind and other issues concerning the ends of the system. It is also having troubles moving at the same speed as ocean currents. Ocean Cleanup plans to adjust the system and open the U to span a wider distance in order to combat these issues. They are hopeful this will help the newly found issues and lead to a large scale launch of multiple systems.
In a previous article, Ocean Cleanup provided details on their fusion joining construction. "Maskell Pipe and Supply provided us with the contractors and welding equipment needed to conduct the welding". They used a McElroy butt fusion machine to conduct the butt fusion HDPE pipe welding to construct their pipeline structure from sections of pipe. Other descriptions of their process are very familiar to fusion joining professionals. "Unlike steel welding, HDPE does not require extra materials for fusion. For the welding process of our system, we began by taking two of the 12-meter pipe sections and placing them in the welding machine, where we would then heat the pipes to a high temperature. This heating process takes about half an hour to complete. Once the correct temperature is reached, the heating element is removed and the two pipes are pressed together with a slow pressure increase – allowing for precise vertical alignment and firm fusion of the two pipe segments. The newly-connected pipe section will cool and cure for several hours to ensure a high-quality weld. Weather permitting, we have conducted two pipe welds a day and 2-3 bollard welds in one day".
You can read additional details here about Ocean Cleanup's efforts and their 2,000 ft long polyethylene pipe system.
In a previous article, Ocean Cleanup provided details on their fusion joining construction. "Maskell Pipe and Supply provided us with the contractors and welding equipment needed to conduct the welding". They used a McElroy butt fusion machine to conduct the butt fusion HDPE pipe welding to construct their pipeline structure from sections of pipe. Other descriptions of their process are very familiar to fusion joining professionals. "Unlike steel welding, HDPE does not require extra materials for fusion. For the welding process of our system, we began by taking two of the 12-meter pipe sections and placing them in the welding machine, where we would then heat the pipes to a high temperature. This heating process takes about half an hour to complete. Once the correct temperature is reached, the heating element is removed and the two pipes are pressed together with a slow pressure increase – allowing for precise vertical alignment and firm fusion of the two pipe segments. The newly-connected pipe section will cool and cure for several hours to ensure a high-quality weld. Weather permitting, we have conducted two pipe welds a day and 2-3 bollard welds in one day".
You can read additional details here about Ocean Cleanup's efforts and their 2,000 ft long polyethylene pipe system.
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