Ocean Cleanup unveiled first prototype

The Ocean Cleanup, the Dutch foundation to rid the oceans of plastic, unveiled its North Sea prototype.

Ocean Cleanup launches first prototype

Boskalis and the Government of the Netherlands main sponsors of €1.5 million test.

The prototype will become the first ocean cleanup system ever tested at sea.

It will be installed in the North Sea, 23 km (12 NM) off the Dutch coast, where it will remain for one year. The objective is to test how The Ocean Cleanup’s floating barrier fares in extreme weather at sea.

The 100 meter-long barrier segment, deployed in the North Sea this week will help validate the survivability of the system. Sensors will track every motion of the prototype and the loads it is subjected to. The data gathered will enable engineers to develop a system fully resistant to severe conditions during the cleanup.

https://vimeo.com/172111744

At the North Sea test site, conditions during a minor storm are more severe than those in exceptionally heavy storms in the Pacific Ocean.

The Ocean Cleanup