Development of a Lake Diagnostic Station for Hydro-Meteorological Data Measurement in Large Water Reservoirs

摘要

This work deals with the development of a station for measuring hydro-meteorological parameters from large water reservoirs. It allows data to be collected, stored and automatically transmitted to a web server. These data is needed to calibrate numerical models that help in the characterization of the different lakes of the Province of Córdoba, Argentina; today under increasing eutrophication risk. The station measures meteorological parameters on the lake's surface using sensors for wind speed and direction, temperature, humidity, atmospheric pressure and solar radiation. Under water, in the first prototype, it is possible to measure temperature at different depths using a chain of thermal sensors, with the goal of determining the presence of vertical gradients of temperature, thermal stratification, thermocline depth, upwelling, vertical mixing, etc. It is foreseen for the evolution of the system to include dissolved oxygen, pH, conductivity, ORP, and total dissolved solids sensors. The telemetry system is a GSM/GPRS device that uses the local cellular network. In addition, there is an alternative wireless device for backup in case of failure of the primary telemetry system or unavailability of the cellular network. The station is self-powered by a photovoltaic and battery system. This work presents preliminary results obtained in laboratory tests, prior to the installation of the prototype.