Feasibility of underwater sensor networks for lifetime assessment of offshore civil structures

Recently, large-scale underwater ad-hoc networks and underwater sensor networks have drawn significant attention to explore vast possibilities in oceans. Many potential applications are possible using underwater sensor networks including biological habitat monitoring, energy harvesting and environmental monitoring. However, research on underwater structural monitoring has been limited. The focus of this paper is to investigate the feasibility of underwater sensor networks for offshore and deep-sea structural monitoring. In this paper, the network communication topology and in-network processing algorithm for two offshore wind farms, the Middelgrunden and Horn Revs offshore wind farms in Denmark, are considered based on numerical simulation using Aqua-Sim (an underwater simulation tool) for developing underwater sensor networks. An evaluation of a laboratory-scale water basin network experiments that make use of Aqua-Lab at University of Connecticut will be provided with possible future development for underwater civil infrastructure monitoring.