In the Phase I portion of the project, three submersible fish cage designs were investigated. With the use of hydrodynamic and structural computer models and the testing of a 1/10th scale model, the design characteristics started to focus on a particular configuration. The cage design consists of straight lengths of HDPE pipe (35-40 cm diameter) connected with steel fittings. Some of the pipe will be designated as fixed buoyancy and other variable buoyancy to enable it to be submerged. The focus of the Phase II work is to refine the engineering techniques to estimate offshore survivability and fully test the fish cage concept. In the first year, a ¼ - ½ size submersible cage will be constructed and deployed during the winter at the University of New Hampshires offshore site and fitted with load cells. In the spring, a full evaluation will be completed. Design changes will be make and a 5000 m3 system built and deployed during the winter of the second year of the project. This cage will also be fitted with load cells and a uniquely designed feed hose buoy. IF tests are successful, stocking of fish will be considered for the spring of second year.
Potential Commercial Applications: The commercial applications for the cage design being pursued as part of this research are focused on two different aquaculture businesses. The first business area consists of the emerging Open-Ocean Aquaculture industry, which is presently in its infancy. A need exists to develop a relatively inexpensive, but robust and adaptable cage system for harsh open ocean environments and different types of species. The other commercial application is the existing near shore salmon industry of Downeast Maine and the Canadian Maritime Provinces. Many in this business are considering moving operations into more exposed locations to relieve "stress" associated with the multi-use and environmental issues typical of coastal regions. If the cage concept can penetrate into these regions, potential exists for selling cages on the west coast of North America and in Chile