Instituto de Investigación Loyola Energía, Tecnología y Sostenibilidad

Port Waste Cleaning System Using a Fleet of Autonomous Surface Vehicles

Water is an essential resource for life and for maintaining the balance of the planet’s ecosystems. However, it is increasingly threatened by pollution resulting from human activity. A clear example can be found in ports, where loading and unloading operations involving hydrocarbons and other hazardous materials can cause accidental spills that pollute the sea and nearby beaches.

The ECOPORT project seeks to address this issue through the development of a fleet of Autonomous Surface Vehicles (ASVs) capable of detecting and cleaning floating waste in port waters in real time. These vehicles will act quickly and in coordination, preventing contaminants from dispersing and reaching the open sea.

Among the project’s main innovations are:

Early detection and real-time alerts: The ASVs will be equipped with advanced sensors (to measure parameters such as pH, conductivity, or nitrates) and cameras capable of identifying hydrocarbon spills and plastics on the water surface.

Robustness and safety: Thanks to intelligent control and navigation systems, the fleet will be able to operate safely in complex environments such as ports, even in the presence of wind, waves, or maritime traffic.

Reactivity and monitoring: The system will integrate machine learning models to map pollution, identify the most affected areas, and plan cleaning tasks efficiently.

Collaborative cleaning: The fleet, composed of two or three autonomous vehicles, will work in coordination to remove plastics, microplastics, and hydrocarbon residues. The vehicles will be able to connect physically through shared cleaning tools, operating safely and synchronously.

The system will combine two operating modes:

Detection mode: The vehicles will patrol the port, collecting data on water quality and the presence of waste.

Cleaning mode: Once the most polluted areas have been identified, the ASVs will deploy their cleaning equipment and act jointly to remove contaminants.

With this technology, ECOPORT aims to make ports more sustainable and resilient, enhancing environmental monitoring and contributing to the protection of the marine environment.