RESTORE Funded Projects
As the Texas RESTORE program updates its information, the descriptions provided in the DWH map for RESTORE funded projects may differ slightly. The information included in the RESTORE funded map on this web site is the most current information.
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County: Brazoria
Funding Awarded:
$10,766,000
Project Description:
This is an ecosystem restoration project which will restore the historical flow of the
San Bernard River to the Gulf of Mexico. The proposed project is to open the mouth of the San
Bernard River via dredging the currently silted in channel and river outlet to the Gulf to
reestablish normal river flow. The mouth of the San Bernard is currently silted shut which is
effecting the lower San Bernard River’s ecosystem by impeding normal drainage flow, water
quality, sediment transfer rate, and aquatic ecosystem. The closure is also leading to a
degradation of the fresh and saltwater marsh system in the region to include areas within the
USFWS San Bernard National Wildlife Refuge and the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s
Justin Hurst Wildlife Management Area. Extensive hydrodynamic modeling of the river and the
offshore area in the vicinity of the old river opening have been completed. Preliminary
Engineering of the new channel and a project opinion of cost is also complete. Permitting with
USACE and the Texas General Land Office is also underway and is expected to be complete
within the next 6-9 months. The San Bernard Wildlife Refuge has agreed to take all of the
dredge material generated from this project to be used beneficially for marsh creation, the
restoration of critical piping plover habitat and to counter the effects of regional subsidence.
The opening of the river provides numerous second and third order economic benefits to the
state and the nation. During high water events with the river mouth closed, the river water
backs up the river and into the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (GIWW). This creates a flooding
hazard for the citizens who live along the river and an unnatural current along the GIWW. The
current impedes the ability of barges to safely navigate this portion of the GIWW. This
unnatural current also causes more sediment to move along the GIWW causing increased
siltation in the vicinity of the US Army Corps of Engineers Brazos River Flood Gates Project and
in the deep draft channel at Port Freeport. This increased sediment costs USACE, the federal
government, the port and private industry millions of dollars in unnecessary dredging costs
each year. Restoring the flow to the San Bernard River provides a multitude of benefits for
threatened and endangered species habitat, essential fish habitat, as well as improving the
overall environmental and economic health of the Texas coastal estuary system.
County: Willacy
Funding Awarded:
$7,000,000
Project Description:
The Raymondville Drain Project will provide a permanent solution to regional flooding by providing 100-year storm protection to watersheds of 3 counties in the Gulf Coast Region: Hidalgo County, Cameron County, and Willacy County. As such, this project is critical (1) to provide the community resiliency the region needs, (2) to produce economic growth, and (3) to safeguard the environment.
County: Nueces
Funding Awarded:
$1,085,699
Project Description:
This restoration project will include two components consisting of repairing the north breach site, and installing a beach feeder mound to nourish the south breach. The goal of this restoration project is to help protect Shamrock Island which is located within Corpus Christi Bay, Texas.
County: Galveston
Funding Awarded:
$6,528,960
Project Description:
This project will address the deficiencies listed in 2012 Corps of Engineers inspection report and will include construction activities to protect the businesses and residents of the surrounding area from flooding during extreme weather events while simultaneously protecting acquatic habitat in Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico from potentially hazardous chemicals.
County: Cameron
Funding Awarded:
$4,680,939
Project Description:
Restore over 86-acres of critical aquatic and riparian habitat within the watershed. Improve water quality in the resacas, and as an extension water quality in the Brownsville Ship Channel and Lower Laguna Madre. Improvements in water quality will positively impact both wildlife and the public who enjoy recreational activities along the resacas and in the coastal waterways of the Lower Laguna Madre. Improve community resiliency and economic vitality by increasing the capacity and efficiency of the primary drainage conduit in downtown Brownsville. This project will both increase the capacity of the infrastructure used to drain storm water away from the City and improve the overall efficiency of the existing infrastructure.
County: Aransas
Funding Awarded:
$2,400,000
Project Description:
This project proposes to construct and repair rock revetments and groins along the Aransas Bay shoreline to protect the public roadway while enhancing marine life habitat and public recreational activities.
County: Chambers, Jefferson, Orange
Funding Awarded:
$10,000,000
Project Description:
Complete restoration of a beach and dune ridge along the shorelines of the McFAddin National Wildlife refuge (NWR). The proposed project augments larger efforts
towards a comprehensive plan to protect the largest freshwater marsh in Texas. This
marsh supports an extensive array of fish and wildlife species and resources injured by
the spill and protects economic, and energy, as encouraged by Congress in the RESTORE
Act. A Salt Bayou Watershed Plan was established in 2000 to discuss restoration of the
marsh ecosystem. This project directly targets unprecedented erosion along the
3 of 109
McFaddin NWR shoreline and subsequent conversion of wetland into open water by
utilizing beach quality dredged sand to restore approximately 17 miles of beach and
dune ridge and protect approximately 62,000 acres of marsh land from salt water
intrusion.
Laguna Madre Public Access, Active Education, Conservation, and Tourism Initiative, Project 1 of 3 : Laguna Madre Boat Ramp
County: Cameron
Funding Awarded:
$1,869,290
Project Description:
The Laguna Madre Boat Ramp Project will guarantee public access to the Laguna by acquisition of land and construction of a new public boat ramp with dedicated public parking. The boat ramp will also serve as one of three new kayak launch sites and allow for the creation of the integrated “Discover the Laguna Kayak Trail,” linking the three PACT Initiative sites and further promoting public access to the Laguna Madre. Finally, through the project’s public education components, the project will help reduce boater impacts to sensitive habitats, especially seagrasses, and thereby even help endangered Green Sea Turtles, birds, fish and other species by reducing impacts to ecologically important seagrass habitat upon which they rely.
County: Galveston
Funding Awarded:
$9,030,000
Project Description:
For Galveston, which is considered a “sand limited” system with a minimal supply of new sand, the project is an essential strategy for addressing quickly eroding beaches through the beneficial use of dredge material. This method was identified as a principal strategy in Galveston’s 2013 “50 Year Sand Management Plan” developed in a partnership of the Galveston Park Board, City of Galveston and the Engineering, Research and Design Center of the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE).
Workforce and Economic Development to Enhance Sustainable Offshore Energy Systems in the Gulf of Mexico
County: Coast wide
Funding Awarded:
$7,951,398
Project Description:
Workforce and Economic Development to Enhance Sustainable Offshore Energy Systems in the Gulf of Mexico project will promote the safe and efficient exploitation of offshore resources through increased skill sets across the workforce aligned with the development and deployment of new technologies with focus in workforce and economic development, job creation through the medium of technology development and the establishment of workforce and entrepreneurship training programs that support safety and risk management, and the skill sets for the safe operation of evolving new technologies and their field scale implementation.
County: Galveston
Funding Awarded:
$1,869,290
Project Description:
The East End Lagoon (EEL) Park and Preserve is designed to safeguard and make publicly accessible the most ecologically significant parcel of undeveloped land remaining on Galveston Island.
County: Cameron
Funding Awarded:
$659,000
Project Description:
In 2010, the unforeseen catastrophe may have happened with the Deep Horizon spill. Nesting activity in Mexico and Texas dropped significantly in 2010, 2013, 2014, and 2015. The Kemp's ridley Recovery Team has theories on whether the population will rebound quickly or if conservation groups like Sea Turtle Inc. will have to continue their efforts with a greatly reduced population. The critical components of conservation efforts are: nest protection, responsible fishing practices, and public education to foster support/funding.
Sea Turtle Inc. (STI), a non-profit 501 (c) (3), has been providing critical public education since 1977 and nest conservation since 1999. Today, we provide education to millions through social media and visitors to our South Padre Island rehabilitation center. At STI, we provide important education about sea turtles and the marine environment. Our existing facility is inadequate for the number of tourists we see annually and the number of injured sea turtles we treat. In 2011, we purchased a 5 acre lot to construct a state-of-the-art educational complex. This will enable STI to be the premier sea turtle destination for Texas and create even more public support for Kemp's ridley conservation and other Gulf of Mexico sea turtle species. The Kemp's ridley has been identified as a species affected by the BP oil spill, and Sea Turtle Inc. provides a critical component of conservation in public education to millions of people.
County: Brazoria
Funding Awarded:
$2,237,000
Project Description:
The Quintana Beach Public Fishing Pier was constructed in 1987 and is a Brazoria County public recreation and education facility that is owned, operated, and maintained by the Brazoria County Parks Department.
County: Cameron
Funding Awarded:
$3,350,000
Project Description:
The E.K. Atwood Park Pavilion (EKAPP) is located at Cameron County Beach Access No. 5, about a mile north of the South Padre Island city limits and just south of the intersection of the proposed second bridge connecting South Padre Island to mainland Cameron County.
County: Matagorda
Funding Awarded:
$0
Project Description:
This project consists of construction and four-year operation of an Oyster Resource & Recovery Center in Palacios, Texas, with the following specific goals: 1) to provide larvae and spat for oyster conservationists and farmers for continued reef restoration and aquaculture; 2) to partner with academic and research institutions, fisheries agencies, and the commercial industry to restore and develop new critical oyster reef habitat for promotion of environmental health and sustainability of estuaries; 3) to bolster economic resilience of coastal communities by long-term improvement of oyster stocks; and 4) to ensure responsible stewardship of Gulf Coast resources for future generations via education and outreach.
County: Brazoria
Funding Awarded:
$0
Project Description:
The goals of this project are to implement long term stabilization measures identified through the Surfside Feasibility Study and Groin Alternatives Analysis (CHE 2011, CHE 2014).
County: Coast wide
Funding Awarded:
$5,157,377
Project Description:
As a result of catastrophic events such as the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, Hurricane Ike, Hurricane Harvey, and seasonal variability in rainfall, yields from the Texas oyster fishery have been historically unpredictable. Unlike some species, oysters have little means of avoiding change in their environment.
In 2014, Texas produced approximately one-fourth of the Gulf oyster harvest, approximately 6 million lbs of meat with a value of $19 M and a major economic driver for coastal communities. In 2016, the yield had dropped to 2.9 million lbs (2015 = 1.59 Mlbs, $8.25M), with a value of $15.9 M (NMFS data). Apart from their value as a fishery resource, oysters also provide benefit as the major habitat for sport fish, supporting an industry with $2.1 B in retail sales, creating some 29,000 jobs. Oysters and oyster reefs also perform valuable ecosystem services for coastal Texas, such as removal of nitrogen ($3,500/acre/yr), stabilization of shorelines ($35,000/acre/year), and enhancement of commercial
fishing ($2,400/acre/yr). Due to persistent vulnerability and contribution to our coastal economy, a strong need exists to ensure the continued benefits and services provided by this valuable resource. One means of ensuring availability of oysters from Texas waters is predictable production via managed aquaculture, an activity every coastal state except Texas engages in and which represents a $280 M per year industry to our country. With the passage of new legislation, Texas will be initiating commercial
oyster aquaculture in September 2020. Texas, unlike many other states, has extensive areas within bays, suitable for rapid expansion of the industry. The success of this new industry in Texas will be further insured via development of a trained workforce.
County: Galveston
Funding Awarded:
$0
Project Description:
This project seeks to protect and restore important coastal habitat and develop the Bolivar Peninsula Nature Trail--a tourism route connecting 13 nature and recreation sites on the Bolivar Peninsula in unincorporated Galveston County.
County: Calhoun
Funding Awarded:
$0
Project Description:
BCT, in partnership with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, seeks to build off the momentum these projects have generated toward improving Texas’s tremendously productive marine habitats by expanding these reef construction projects. For both the Port O’Connor and Sabine sites, CCA proposes an additional 50 acres of expansion of each structure for a total 100 acres of new reef habitat.
City of Port Lavaca Shoreline Clean up, Debris and Submerged Structures Removal and Sediment Investigations
County: Calhoun
Funding Awarded:
$0
Project Description:
This project seeks to mitigate the environmental damage and improve the natural environment on the CPL shorelines through bay habitat restoration projects.
County: Orange
Funding Awarded:
$0
Project Description:
The Project Team requests $3.5 million to create a Master Plan for the Beneficial Use of Dredged Material (BU) along the entire Texas Coast (Master Plan).
County: Galveston, Jefferson, Orange
Funding Awarded:
$948,000
Project Description:
The State of Texas Beneficial Use of Dredged Material (BUDM), Project Design Fund Phase I project is located in Orange, Jefferson and Galveston Counties Texas. It will facilitate BUDM through careful site selection, survey data collection, preparation of engineering and design plans, environmental compliance and permitting. The primary goal is to create shovel-ready restoration sites that, when fully implemented, will transform areas that have subsided into open waters back to tidally influenced coastal wetlands.
County: Brazoria, Matagorda
Funding Awarded:
$6,012,000
Project Description:
Matagorda Bay System Priority Landscape Conservation Project aims to conserve strategic lands adjacent to the Matagorda Bay/San Antonio Bay complex to help ensure long-term native diversity, productivity and resiliency of the entire bay estuary complex. In this activity, the State of Texas is expected to acquire approximately 6,500 plus acres of high quality coastal habitats including emergent marshes, tidal flats, lagoons and coastal prairie with several miles of frontage on the Matagorda Bay system.
County: Harris
Funding Awarded:
$7,109,000
Project Description:
The Houston Parks Board, subrecipient for the project, aims to purchase 80 to 100 acres of land in Clear Creek Greenway, and transfer to the City of Houston, as part of the larger Bayou Greenways initiative to acquire and preserve nearly 4,000 acres of riparian buffer corridors along major waterways, (bayous and creeks) running predominately through Harris County and the City of Houston.
County: Cameron
Funding Awarded:
$4,378,500
Project Description:
Three properties totaling approximately 1,998 acres were purchased by The Nature Conservancy (TNC). Two of the properties (1,820 acres) were purchased with RESTORE funds. An additional 178-acre tract was purchased with RESTORE funds as well as private funds from the Knobloch Foundation. The added properties will be a corridor of conservation lands that include the Laguna Atascosa and Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge. These properties are expected to ultimately be held by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and become part of the Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge.
County: Nueces
Funding Awarded:
$641,448
Project Description:
Perform various activities to ensure the broad base compilation of information to assist in prioritizing framework/focus areas, developing large-scale projects consistent with those priorities and creating a 10-year strategy. Collaboration, coordination and active public engagement are all essential elements to a successful process to determine the best utilization of RESTORE Bucket 2 funds. To coordinate and collaborate with Texas coastal experts, including Non-governmental entities (NGOs), elected officials, representatives for NRDA and NFWF, the four Gulf states, federal entities and the public to address the requirements of the RESTORE Act Council-Selected Restoration Component and the commitments of the Comprehensive Plan update in 2016. These coordination and collaboration activities will support the effort to determine the needs of the coastal area; identify project/proposals for the upcoming Funded Priority Lists (FPLs); and using the best available science to set up the foundation for successful long-term restoration projects.
County: Jefferson
Funding Awarded:
$5,400,000
Project Description:
Bank stabilization of the Neches River in Riverfront Park is necessary to repair damages to the park that were destroyed by record-setting flooding during Hurricane Harvey in 2017. A local contractor will be employed to stabilize the Neches Riverfront Park by installing approximately 1,386 linear feet of bulkhead. This activity will benefit the Gulf economy and the natural resources in this project area by helping to eliminate further excess erosion of the soil along the riverbank. This project will also improve tourism by allowing access to the green space, which is currently off limits due to safety hazard of erosion along the riverbank including loss of trees, grasses, and plants. Without access to these natural habitats, birds do not have the same ability to rest in the area. The ecosystem is further endangered within the river as structures, concrete sidewalks and damaged bulkheading from Harvey fall into the water as the bank erodes around and under them. This project is important to the goals and objectives of the Comprehensive Plan because it will restore and revitalize the Gulf economy ensuring safe public access to the park by hiring a local construction firm(s) to complete the installation of the bulkhead and safely promote stewardship of the City’s natural resources.
County: Jefferson
Funding Awarded:
$550,000
Project Description:
Over the years, this infrastructure has experienced deterioration as a result of typical natural conditions in addition to the impacts of several hurricanes, most recently Hurricane Harvey that caused storm surge inundation or river flooding. The intent of the project is to restore the condition of the boat ramps in a manner that provides long-term river access for the public. This facility serves as the only public access to the Neches River, Sabine Lake, and other bodies of water between north Beaumont and Sabine Pass. Throughout the year the boat ramps provide the mechanism to participate in fishing, hunting, birding, other environmental endeavors, and recreational activities. This array of public activities is consistent with the overall goals and objectives of the RESTORE program. In the absence of functioning boat ramps, the public would be denied the opportunity to engage in activities that utilize the State’s natural resources.
County: Nueces
Funding Awarded:
$1,000,000
Project Description:
Hurricane Harvey caused significant damage to the Nature Preserve trail system, destroying two miles of boardwalks and trails, multiple gazebos, and two observation towers. Hurricane Harvey also caused devastating damages and loss of amenities to educational signage, benches, viewing scopes, the parking area at Leonabelle Turnbull Birding Center, the loss of approximately six acres of important habitat at Charlie’s Pasture, and the loss of native plants and trees at all four natural sites. This project is important to the goals and objectives of the Comprehensive Plan because it will increase tourism in the region by restoring and enhancing the Port Aransas Nature Preserve through educational opportunities for visitors and promoting stewardship of important coastal habitats.
County: Refugio
Funding Awarded:
$685,000
Project Description:
In 2017 Hurricane Harvey heavily damaged the Austwell-Hynes Bay Boat Dock and Fishing Pier and both the boat dock and fishing pier will have to be completely rebuilt. The pier provided an economic benefit to the community by allowing Austwell to promote and encourage more tourism to the local area. The rebuilding of the boat dock and fishing pier will promote and encourage more tourism to this local economy and thus aligns with the goals and objectives of nature-based tourism.
County: Calhoun
Funding Awarded:
$300,000
Project Description:
The A.D. Powers Bayfront Park - West End Improvements project aligns with the goals and objectives of the Comprehensive Plan by helping to revive the Gulf economy while promoting natural stewardship of the coast. It is imperative to address the nature-based tourism needs of the park especially in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey impacts which have adversely affected the area. The purpose of improving the West End amenities of the park will help to increase tourism in the area and aid in improving the local economy by enriching the area’s natural-based appeal while providing safe and dependable public access. The proposed development will aid in the restoration and revitalization of this highly frequented park in the City of Seadrift. Making enhancements to the existing boat ramp, repairing the existing finger pier to the boat ramp, repaving the existing parking area, and further renewing the park with low level lighting and additional picnic cabanas, align the project with the goals and objectives of the Nature-Based Tourism program.
County: Harris
Funding Awarded:
$100,000
Project Description:
The purpose of this project is to develop an AUV prototype that will be highly maneuverable in tight spaces, can hold station vertically, can perform docking, and will be capable of autonomous manipulation.
County: Harris
Funding Awarded:
$109,869
Project Description:
The purpose of this project is to develop a proof-of-concept monitoring system for the early detection and assessment of drilling or production problems.
County: Nueces
Funding Awarded:
$474,040
Project Description:
The Environment, Human Health & Safety Program will create an infrastructure to support disaster research response encompassing both environmental, human health and economic assessment capabilities that can be employed rapidly to assess the impact of disasters along the Texas Gulf coast in real-time.
County: Nueces
Funding Awarded:
$139,041
Project Description:
The Strategic Research and Action Plan (SRAP) is a foundational element of establishing Texas OneGulf Center of Excellence as a unifying research entity for Texas and the Gulf of Mexico.
County: Harris
Funding Awarded:
$175,130
Project Description:
This proposal is a collaboration between the SSI, the University Of Houston, and Rice University focusing on real-time health and risk assessment (collectively called monitoring) of annular blowout preventers (BOPs).
County: Harris
Funding Awarded:
$300,000
Project Description:
Develop a combination of two new technologies using batteries and high power supereapacitors. The batteries provide the trickle charge to the high power supercapacitors which provide the necessary power to activate the blind shear ram.
County: Harris
Funding Awarded:
$298,001
Project Description:
The purpose of this project is too utilize the result of the Phase 1 work and further the fiber-optics Distributed Acoustic Sensing (DAS) work within the Hazard Mitigation and Facility Monitoring Program by exploring the use of this fiber-optics system for monitoring fluid flow in pipes and detect seismic waves from active and passive marine sources.
County: Harris
Funding Awarded:
$300,000
Project Description:
The purpose of this project is to develop a novel stress waved based communication method for subsea applications.
County: Harris
Funding Awarded:
$823,000
Project Description:
The purpose of this project is to increase the ability of robotic assets to manage the physical operations and necessary tasks on oil production platforms. The specific technical objective is to advance the autonomous skills of NASAs dexterous robots with capabilities to perform identified remote tasks.
County: Nueces
Funding Awarded:
$94,759
Project Description:
The purpose of this project is to develop a communication and engagement plan to help Texas OneGulf interact effectively with Gulf of Mexico policy- and decision-makers, as well as other stakeholder groups.
County: Harris
Funding Awarded:
$39,997
Project Description:
The purpose of this project is to design and fabricate polymer-based flexible and safe lithium ion batteries able to operate under subsea conditions.
County: Nueces
Funding Awarded:
$217,501
Project Description:
This project is for a harmful algal bloom (HAB) monitoring and assessment plan for Texas estuaries.
County: Nueces
Funding Awarded:
$470,265
Project Description:
The purpose of this project is to develop both an understanding of how environmental, human an public health, economic assessment interrelate in a disaster context, and how TONE can be better leveraged to activate a Research Response Plan in the future, to collect and provide critical information to decision-makers.
County: Harris
Funding Awarded:
$40,000
Project Description:
Autonomous Subsea Robotics for Underwater Pipeline Inspection project. This project will develop transformative robotic and SmartTouch sensing technology, that will lead to a time efficient and cost-effective system for underwater pipeline inspection.
County: Harris
Funding Awarded:
$107,650
Project Description:
Focus on quasi-solid composites which constitute a new class of electrolytes and are formed by the combination of ceramic nanomaterials and high-boiling point organic solvents and room temperature ionic liquids (RTILs). Such an electrolyte system allows us to utilize high energy density metallic lithium as the anode without compromising on safety. This proposal will unveil the compatibility of quasi-solid-state electrolytes with high-capacity cathode materials such as LiNixCoyAlzO2 or LiNixCoyMnzO2 (with x + y + z = 1). Surface modification of these cathode particles and the interface stabilization for a wide range of temperatures will be the highest priority.
Sensors Based on Organic Electrochemical Transistors (OECTs) for Deep Sea Leakage and Chemical Detection
County: Harris
Funding Awarded:
$127,191
Project Description:
Design, fabricate, and model compact and autonomous chemical sensors for early detection of leakages and spills in subsea conditions. The sensors will be based on organic thin film transistors (TFTs) and organic electrochemical transistors (OECTs) interfaced with a molecularly imprinted polymer layer (MIP), and will be designed to enable real-time detection of specific chemicals in the environment that indicate a leak or spill.
County: Nueces
Funding Awarded:
$432,574
Project Description:
Assess key “direct impacts” on assets such as critical facilities, commercial and industrial property, economic development sites, and natural assets by spatially distinct threats such as stormwater flooding, riverine flooding, sea level rise, and storm surge for Nueces, Kleberg and Kenedy Counties. Build a tailored viewer website to host these data as GIS layers through an open-access web-based planning tool that incorporates assessments into desktop projects and provides a basis for a common operating picture for the three communities, with potential for additional communities and enhanced functionality. Data should be housed in the Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative Information and Data Cooperative (GRIIDC) for long-term accessibility.
County: Nueces
Funding Awarded:
$427,585
Project Description:
Setup up operational and administrative section of the OneGulf Center of Excellence. Continue to develop a fully functioning Center of Excellence that builds on existing strengths, reduces duplication of effort, and promotes collaborative, interdisciplinary research, synthesis and problem-solving action focused on the Gulf of Mexico. A key component of this objective will be to manage the Texas OneGulf Network of Experts (TONE), which continues to develop its capabilities as a trusted source of scientific information about the Gulf of Mexico. The TONE currently numbers 153 experts from across the nine Texas OneGulf member institutions. The TONE is organized by member expertise as it relates to the disciplines outlined in section 1605 of the RESTORE Act. Executive Management will also manage advisory groups for Texas OneGulf, including the Texas OneGulf Consortium Leadership (TOCL) and Texas OneGulf Agency Council (TOAC).
County: Harris
Funding Awarded:
$139,500
Project Description:
This project will conduct the feasibility study of percussion approach to subsea connection inspection. Since the Grayloc clamp connectors with the advantages of compact design are commonly used in process, in this research, both flange type and Grayloc connections under the submerged condition will be experimentally studied for the feasibility study.
County: Harris
Funding Awarded:
$128,264
Project Description:
RESTORE Grant 650120 Subsea Systems Institute Center of Excellence Developing Bio-Inspired Buoyancy Control for Subsea Service AUVs project will explore how catalytic conversion based around fuel cells and water electrolyzers could be used for liquid-gas transformation. Fuel cells and water electrolyzers are envisioned to be reversible volume-mass plants housed inside UAVs. Controlling the reaction direction of electrolysis in fuel cells and water electrolyzers would lead to a liquid-gas transformation, which would eventually enable distributed control of mass-volume of the AUV leading to a new paradigm of buoyancy control. The project will determine if the combination of the traditional thruster/ballast mechanism for gross buoyancy and motion, and the proposed soft robotics mechanism (fuel cells/water electrolyzers) for distributed buoyancy provides AUV's with additional capabilities.
County: Harris
Funding Awarded:
$139,500
Project Description:
RESTORE Grant 650120 Subsea Institute Center of Excellence High Accuracy Localization and Underwater Communication project will focus on magnetic induction for high-accuracy, short range, non-optical localization for remotely operated underwater vehicles (ROV), and in conjunction with acoustic modems to optimize communications between a maneuvering AUV and a sensor buoy.
Multi-Port Energy Router Using Intelligent Transformers (MERIT) to Interconnect Renewable Resources and Subsea Oil & Gas Factories via HVDC Link
County: Harris
Funding Awarded:
$139,500
Project Description:
The overarching aim of the proposed project is to explore and develop a system of Multiport Energy Routers using Intelligent Transformers (MERIT) to interface renewable resources and subsea oil and gas (O&G) factories with the High Voltage DC, ‘HVDC’ (or Medium Voltage DC, ‘MVDC’) Grid. This research intends to advance the state-of-the-art power converter hardware and control technologies to enable seamless energy transfer between offshore renewable energy sources, subsea loads (such as in O&G factories) and the DC grid to improve the system efficiency, reliability and availability. The project will also evaluate the integration of fault current limiters
including the possibility of adding resistive superconducting fault current limiter (R-SFCL) in series with hybrid DC circuit breakers (HCBs) to lower the high fault current to such a level where circuit breakers can operate safely.
County: Aransas, Brazoria, Calhoun, Cameron, Chambers, Galveston, Harris, Jackson, Jefferson, Kenedy, Kleberg, Matagorda, Nueces, Orange, Refugio, San Patricio, Willacy, Victoria, Coast wide, Gulf wide
Funding Awarded:
$490,022
Project Description:
RESTORE Act Funding for SSI Operational and Administrative Section: Set up operational and administrative section including a high quality and lean operation of the SSI Center of Excellence, a volunteer Technical Advisory Committee of experts from industry employed to ensure quality assurance of the process, deadlines established within the plan of work to allow time to review both the methods under which the center is operated and the findings before final reports are due and computers used for handling the center operations and preparing reports are backed-up nightly and protected by Tivoli Service Manager.