The (Off-)Road to Better Understanding of Difficult Sites
Using High Resolution Characterization (HRSC) at Remote Access Sites with Vertex’s new High Res UTV
When people hear “off-road,” “remote access,” or “all-terrain vehicle” typically they imagine something with caterpillar tracks, rugged, or large 4×4 capabilities. Basically, something extreme capable of climbing any mountain, navigating dense forested areas and crossing rivers without much effort. In short, they think of something like the Canadian made Roshel Senator APC or the Avtoros Shaman 8×8!
Roshel Senator APC and Avtoros Shaman 8×8
It would be awesome to own and operate these types of off-road vehicles to deploy anything from a simple pup tent to a high-tech piece of environmental surveying equipment. And while Vertex still dreams of operating something like these high-tech off-road monsters some day we have adapted and added to the fleet in more realistic way.
“High Res” in-situ characterization tools have been in Canada with Vertex for nearly 10 years now and we have generally deployed the tooling via truck or van (i.e. a road legal vehicle). This was and is done to remain agile in the field and allow for transportation to and from project sites with relative ease with the ability to “drive onto the site and directly to the locations to be surveyed.” This has worked well and continues to work well today, however, we recognize that there are limitations to this type of deployment so we did something about it!
Vertex would like to introduce our “off-road” High Res deployment option for those sites that require more agility and may have remote access and/or more rugged terrain. A major benefit to these HRSC tools is to remain agile in the field and adapt quickly to the new information being collected in real time. Having a vehicle that can match this agility with expanded access capabilities is an added bonus for some more challenging sites.
Introducing the new Vertex High Res UTV
The Vertex off-road High Res utility terrain vehicle (UTV) is currently being used by our clients for specific sites and can be outfitted with any of our HRSC tools: Laser Induced Fluorescence (LIF), Membrane Interface Probe (MIP), Low Level Membrane Interface Probe (LLMIP) and Hydraulic Profiling Tool (HPT). Combining the MIP/LLMIP and HPT tools for MiHpt/LLMiHpt deployment is easy with the on-board water reservoir. The UTV also has a dedicated rod and generator racking with the ability to be outfitted with either the LIF or MiHpt/LLMiHpt tools. These combination probes allow for significant data acquisition at these remote sites with a single push to characterize not only the subsurface contaminant presence, type and distribution but the permeability as well. Using these data, detailed 2D or 3D visualizations of the site characterization can be generated, like the example below, for more detailed understanding of site conditions.
An Interactive Example of High Res Data Plotted in 3D
Vertex deployed the new off-road High Res UTV at a few sites in 2019 and is looking forward to what comes in 2020! Deployment for the off-road vehicle is quick and easy. The UTV is floated out to the site via flatbed trailer. The sites that have benefited from this new type of deployment have had uneven terrain, lighter weight vehicle requirements or longer mobilization distances. Some of the sites that Vertex has already been able to successfully deploy the UTV include a former industrial site in remote Northern Ontario as well as an active agricultural field after the seasonal harvest.
High Res UTV Operating in Winter Conditions
Sites that may have been previously impractical due to mobilization costs or remote/difficult locations are now accessible for detailed High Resolution Site Characterization. Now there are fewer limitations to understanding your site better – no matter where it is or what the terrain is like!
To learn more about Vertex’s innovative, industry-leading approach to High Resolution Site Characterization, please visit our HRSC services page.