Non-powered Seawater Pumping System for Intrusion Reduction
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional methods for preventing seawater intrusion, such as pumping seawater or injecting fresh water, require a power source and incur high installation and maintenance costs, and are inefficient in reducing seawater intrusion in coastal areas.
Innovation Solution
A non-powered seawater pumping system utilizing the siphon principle, with a simple well structure and a hydraulic model device that simulates ebb tide and high tide, to pump seawater without a separate pump or power device, optimizing the design of the seawater pumping apparatus for efficient operation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional methods (pumping seawater or injecting fresh water) are used to prevent seawater intrusion, then seawater intrusion can be reduced, but installation and maintenance costs increase due to requiring power sources and pumps
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and removes the power source and pump components from the seawater intrusion prevention system. By using a passive well structure that relies on natural hydraulic gradients and density differences between seawater and fresh water, the system eliminates the need for external power sources and mechanical pumping devices, thereby reducing installation and maintenance costs while maintaining effectiveness in preventing seawater intrusion
Solution Approach 2:
The system enables self-service operation by utilizing natural environmental forces (hydraulic gradients and density differences) to drive the seawater discharge process. The well structure automatically discharges seawater without requiring external control or power input, making the system self-sufficient and eliminating the need for complex power supply and pump maintenance infrastructure
2Productivity
If pumps and power sources are installed for seawater pumping, then pumping efficiency can be controlled, but the system requires complex infrastructure and higher operational costs
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes pumps and power sources from the system, replacing mechanical pumping with a passive well structure that achieves seawater discharge through natural hydraulic gradients and density-driven flow, thereby eliminating complex infrastructure while maintaining pumping functionality
Solution Approach 2:
The system employs hydraulic principles by utilizing the natural hydraulic gradient between the seawater table and land surface, along with density differences between seawater and fresh water, to drive seawater discharge through the well structure without mechanical intervention
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The system reduces installation and maintenance costs while effectively pumping seawater based on the difference between seawater and underground water levels, accurately measuring pumped water, and optimizing the design for maximum efficiency in reducing seawater intrusion.
Implementation Method 1
a pumping pipe (31) having opposite open end portions, a first end portion of the opposite open end portions being positioned below a sea level and a second end portion being positioned below a seawater-fresh water boundary surface in the land
Data Source
AI summary
A method of designing an optimized seawater pumping apparatus, using a computer in a system in which a seawater pumping apparatus including a pumping pipe and a well disposed to surround a lateral surface of a land-buried portion of the pumping pipe is installed to reduce seawater intrusion in a land in which an aquifer with a seawater-fresh water boundary surface is formed, includes applying an optimization algorithm to initial condition data of the aquifer to generate n decision variable sets of the seawater pumping apparatus, applying an underground water flow model to each of the n decision variable sets to generate n prediction results of change in the seawater-fresh water boundary surface, calculating a performance evaluation value of each of the n prediction results, and selecting a decision variable set having a maximum performance evaluation value, where n is an integer and equal to or greater than 2.