Accurate monitoring of wave and sea level constitutes a fundamental element for maritime safety, port management, oceanographic research, and the design of critical infrastructures. However, traditional systems based on capacitive probes or more complex technologies present operational limitations, high costs, maintenance issues in saline environments, and difficulties in obtaining robust time series under dynamic conditions.
In this context, Carbon Wave Gauges is born, a technological initiative developed by the companies VTI and ADECUA, which combines more than two decades of experience in testing system design and wave generators, in the case of VTI, with innovation in instrumentation and electronics tailored by ADECUA, whose founder developed the first carbon level probe for saltwater.
The project proposes the development of a new type of level and wave sensor based on carbon fiber, designed for demanding marine environments, with proprietary electronics and real-time transmission capability. The device, thanks to an innovative measurement technology, will complement the information provided by tide gauges and oceanographic buoys. Additionally, specific software, which will include the implementation of artificial intelligence, will improve, among other functions, the predictive maintenance of structures exposed to waves before the arrival of storms. It is a form of measurement that is agile, precise, economical, and versatile, aimed at improving safety in ports, vessels, and offshore platforms.
At a technical level, the core of the system is a resistive probe formed by parallel carbon fiber strings whose impedance varies depending on the emerged section. This solution offers a linear, precise response with low maintenance even under high salinity conditions.
Carbon Wave Gauges has already been validated in the laboratory and in operational environments through linearity, thermal stability, dynamic behavior, and simultaneous use in wave generation installations with up to 25 synchronized sensors. Comparisons made against traditional capacitive probes show superior fidelity, less drift, and greater robustness under real operating conditions.
In the next phase, pilot tests will be developed in a real operational environment, with the aim of validating the behavior of carbon fiber probes under authentic marine conditions, including wave, currents, salinity, and thermal variations specific to the Strait of Gibraltar, as well as evaluating their integration with existing technological infrastructure. In this regard, ADECUA and VTI are working jointly with the Port Authority of the Bay of Algeciras (APBA) to define testing locations, monitoring protocols, and the temporary deployment plan, which will allow for real data collection and analysis of its utility for advanced port applications such as operational prediction, traffic management, and improving maritime safety.
The project opens the door to multiple applications in the port, oceanographic, and maritime logistics fields: instrumented buoys, research vessels, tide and wave measurement in ports, ballast tank control, wave mapping using drones, or environmental characterization with autonomous IoT systems. Likewise, the future development of advanced capabilities using artificial intelligence for real-time wave prediction and integration into interoperable sensor networks with digital platforms such as iMar is planned.
This project is funded by the public fund Ports 4.0 of State Ports. Among the expected results of the project are the generation of a new generation of more precise sea level and wave sensors adapted to the saline environment than conventional probes; real-time measurements with high linearity and minimal thermal drift; validation of the system in port environments through technical demonstrators; improvement of operational safety in ports, buoys, and vessels; implementation of autonomous IoT systems for marine environment characterization; promotion of oceanographic research through high-resolution data, and the future creation of an interoperable network of carbon sensors connected with national platforms such as iMar.