At IrGTU they are developing an autonomous bottom station and an underwater robot to study gas hydrates in Baikal and other marine areas. The device will be able to automatically measure pressure, temperature, oxygen and methane levels for a long time and transmit data via an acoustic channel. The article explains how this technology will help in exploration and monitoring underwater gas flares.

The project has been carried out in the Research Laboratory (RIL) of Radio Physics at IrSTU since 2011 using funds from the Federal Target Program “Research and Development in Priority Areas of Development of the Scientific and Technological Complex of the Russian Federation for 2007-2013.” The amount of funding is 60 million rubles. It is planned that the funds and the method developed by IrSTU scientists will be used in prospecting and exploration work and in the study of gas hydrate deposits in the Arctic, the Sea of Okhotsk, and the Black Sea.
“Modern calculations of energy resources make it possible to conclude that the world’s oil reserves will last for 40 years, and natural gas for no more than 100 years,” says Dmitry Chensky, a postgraduate student at IrSTU. “Gas hydrates can serve as an alternative energy source. Lake Baikal has significant potential for gas hydrate deposits, which require new methods of observation and research for detailed study. The test site was chosen for a reason - even a hundred years ago, local residents of Posolsky Sor Bay noticed accumulations of combustible gas under the Baikal ice, which they sometimes ignited, forming gas flares. One of the methods for measuring the hydrophysical and hydrochemical parameters of the aquatic environment is obtaining data using an autonomous bottom station, which we are working to create.”
The autonomous bottom station (ABS) will make it possible to carry out long-term monitoring at a strictly fixed location. It has high mobility and low cost. Deploying and retrieving the bottom station from a research vessel takes no more than five hours. The station performs all operations automatically and does not require service personnel. Data will be read out via an acoustic communication channel. To read the data, the research vessel must approach the station with high precision and remain above it for several hours.
The researchers said that the station consists of a sensor system, an information collection and processing module, a power module, an acoustic release, an acoustic communication system, and a search and detection module. The sensor system is supplied by Franatech. The ABS module makes it possible to measure pressure, conductivity, temperature, oxygen content, and methane content. The instrument is powered autonomously by internal batteries. The data are stored in flash memory, allowing nearly 380,000 measurements to be taken. The ABS housing will be made of titanium and other non-corroding materials.
The module carries out long-term monitoring of the physical and chemical parameters of the environment every five minutes. The ABS is installed for six months near a gas hydrate seep. The sensor data can be used to determine the structure and composition of the water. Thanks to the fact that it performs long-term measurements, it is possible to observe seasonal and climatic changes in the water depending on the time of year and other natural phenomena, such as earthquakes.
“We buy the sensors ready-made, and we assemble the information-measurement system and the electronics for the instruments ourselves,” D. Chensky explained. “The system will perform primary data processing and filter out unnecessary information.”
Alexander Kazantsev, who is writing his candidate dissertation, “Equipment and Methods of Video Surveillance for Supporting Underwater Operations,” explains: “The advantage of using the module is that it makes it possible to conduct fundamental research in relatively calm Baikal conditions. It is convenient to install and retrieve the equipment when the lake is frozen over for several months of the year and there are no storms in summer. Within the framework of the grant, we plan to implement a technical device that could obtain visual information underwater and monitor gas flares. Using the device, it will be possible to observe how the equipment is installed and whether it has been damaged.”
A. Kazantsev explained that his work consists of designing an underwater robot. The device will move through space using propellers and will make it possible to obtain visual and telemetry information about gas hydrate seeps and equipment. The robot’s movement can be controlled from the vessel, or the area can be explored in autonomous mode.
To date, a mock-up of the installation has been completed. It shows a video camera, a control system, and two modems for organizing a high-speed communication line at great depth. The cost of the installation is about 400,000 rubles. The designers used a digital system - a universal solution supplied by a partner company. According to the radio engineers’ calculations, a prototype costing about 600,000 rubles will be ready by summer 2013.
Based on materials from the IrSTU press service