It's been a while...

It has been quite some time since I updated this blog. A lot has happened, but mostly we were waiting on supplies to be shipped to us and also our container was repaired (just in time for RAIN!).

Tonight I want to share a little bit about the beautiful country we are in. We have had some time to do some sightseeing while the system was shut down. We got to see one of SANAA's water treatment plants (these never get old - hopefully we'll get to see more before we leave!) and got to get outside of Tegucigalpa for a few day trips. Our UPi partners have been kind enough to show us a few of their favorite parts.

SANAA's "Los Laureles" Water Treatment Plant

While our container was being repaired (day 1 of repairs), we took a trip to one of the surface (river) water treatment plants that serves the Tegucigalpa area. I got my notes a little mixed up, but I think the plant supplies 25-30% of the City's drinking water needs. The plant first uses aeration followed by a combination of polymer and flocculant addition with settling tanks to remove turbidity (a measure of bacteria and other undesirable contaminants typical in surface water sources). The next step is a sand filter to further polish the water. Finally, the water is chlorinated prior to being delivered to customers.

We also got to see the water quality laboratory at this facility. This lab performs several analyses, ranging from conductivity (measure of salinity) and pH (measure of acidity), to dissolved constituents like calcium and arsenic, and microbiological contaminants (bacteria, viruses). We hope to be able to have SANAA analyze some of our samples, since shipping is expensive.

Aeration area is seen through the trees. When the reservoir is full, water falls by gravity. When it is lower, they pump to the top of the hill and water falls down.

Clarifying water using settling and filtration (after adding polymer & flocculant)

Dissolved metals analysis using ICP and AA in the SANAA laboratory

San Matías and Las Cascadas de (Rio?) Guaralalao
(We went to the one in Francisco Morazán Department)

(thanks Google for the map)

UPi had a party for its incoming students and we were invited to go. We had a chance to get just outside of Tegucigalpa and get some elevation and even see some waterfalls. The party was pretty neat. We got to eat goat (in taco form, of course!) and there was a lady making delicious pupusas. The incoming students and upperclassmen played a friendly soccer game and there were other fun things to do as well. We got to try our hand at archery (I was so much better at this in elementary and middle school!) and we even had a friendly (mostly) volleyball game.

Prior to the festivities, Ing. Luis Eveline took us to see some lovely waterfalls on the Rio Guaralalao. We had a great time walking around the area and got a few good pictures. The area is very serene and I could imagine escaping to this area regularly if I lived here. We saw a few small farms and evidence of gorgojo (bark beetles) in the forests. It was sad to see so many dead and dying trees, but the views were beautiful otherwise.

The brown areas are dead/dying trees related to Gorgojo

Las Cascadas (one of the views, at least)

Fresh baby corn from Ing. Luis' garden. He also had coffee, bananas, yuca, and a few others that I didn't write down). What a gorgeous location!

La Tigra National Park

(thanks Google for the map)

National Parks are some of my favorite places to visit. I am grateful to have access to beautiful National Parks in the US, so when we were offered a chance to see one of the parks in Honduras, I jumped at the opportunity (plus, we were still waiting on shipments...). We hiked the Bosque Nublado and La Cascada trails to get to the waterfalls, then back on La Cascada and an easier final portion on what I think was the Reales Minas trail. It was about 7 km (4.3 miles), but it had a lot of steep sections. Thankfully, there were plenty of rest stations. It rained on us for the hike back and it was cold, but fun!

My phone (and photography ability) just don't do this place justice. I'm including a group picture and a photo that I thought captured the essence of the cloudy day.

Bosque Nublado (cloud forest)

Group UTEP-UPi pic
(thanks to Clara's phone & a nice woman we met on the trail!)

Valle de Ángeles

(thanks Google for the map)

This is a fun little touristy area close to Tegucigalpa. Several UPi students, one professor (Prof. Sergio Handal), and Rusbel traveled for a short trip, as we were still waiting on deliveries. Clearing customs is always fun with international shipments. Clara and I liked it so much we came back a second time (with more money) since we had to leave early enough for the students to return to classes the first time.

On the first trip, we had pupusas and refrescas naturales (aguas frescas in El Paso/Cd. Juarez). The second time, I had nachos, which were very different from what I'm used to, but they were delicious! Clara had a craving for tacos al pastor. These were also different from what we're used to in the El Paso/Cd. Juarez area, but they looked tasty as well. Between the two trips we have nearly accomplished all of our souvenir shopping for friends and family back home.

The restaurant we went to (second trip) had a place to make your mark. Clara made sure that UPi and UTEP are represented (at least until they paint over it!)

The view from the restaurant. Very pretty here.

Sunday Drive to Comayagua and La Esperanza

(thanks Google for the map)

Chancellor Funes and Ing. Luis Eveline offered to take us to La Esperanza, where a fair had was held (oops, we missed it!) and Comayagua, where the oldest operating clock in Central America is located. Along the way, we saw beautiful vistas and even a few farms. And the food was delicious. We stopped outside of La Esperanza at a restaurant called Finca & Restaurante San Augustin and had fried tilapia and plantains. In Comayagua, we stopped and had these wonderful bean mixtures that are served in clay pots that are heated from below (I haven't learned what these are called yet, but will do so. These need to be in my life.) This was a long day, but was wonderful.

Group pic at lunch (photo credit: Clara Borrego)

Cathedral in main plaza in Comayagua. The clock is the oldest in Central America (and one of the oldest in the Americas, according to some accounts)

Cabbage and other crops being grown outside of La Esperanza

Clara and me in front of the valley outside of La Esperanza

Training Session #2

Time is surely passing by quickly!  Today was a day for training and meeting with contractors. (and a trip to the doctor for me...)

UPi this way!

One of the important goals of our project is to transfer knowledge to people in Honduras. Today we had the pleasure of giving a seminar and tour to local government officials in several agencies. We had representatives from SANAA (Servicio Autónomo Nacional de Acueductos y Alcantarillados), DGE (Dirección General de Energia), and DGA (Dirección General del Ambiente).  This means we had water and wastewater, energy, and environmental representatives - an excellent mixture for our discussions. Ing. Luis Eveline is great at putting together the right groups. 

We started the day at UPi to present on water quality (agriculture and drinking water), desalination as a potential source of water for Honduras farmers, and ended with a summary and discussion of the technology that we have brought to Tegucigalpa, Zero Discharge Desalination (ZDD). After some tasty snacks we hopped in a bus and drove to the pilot site. As expected, Mr. Rusbel knows the best ways to navigate a busy city! Everyone got to see the equipment and ask additional questions. A few of the SANAA folks are going to come back and visit when we are operating. After the pilot site, we drove back to UPi for lunch and presentation of certificates.

I love when people are genuinely excited about certificates. Here's a picture with me, Chancellor (Rectora) Carolina Funes (UPi), and another Victoria!
(Photo credit: Victoria Amador)

Here's our whole group, including Rectora Funes and Ing. Luis Eveline (front, right)
(Photo credit: Victoria Amador)

Visiting the Pilot Site
(Photo credit: Victoria Amador)

Zero Discharge Desalination with Salt Recovery & Enhanced Evaporation. Clara does almost all of the talking, since I am still learning Spanish. Occasionally, I am able to stumble through a few sentences.
(Photo credit: Victoria Amador)

The view from the second floor of UPi near the classroom we were using. It is open air and the colors are lovely at UPi.

WE HAVE WATER!

I have been absent in blogging for a few days because I was a bit tired and I also wanted to have a more complete post. The SANAA (Servicio Autónomo Nacional de Acueductos y Alcantariallados) workers have finished installing the necessary controls to control the brackish well operation and storage tank as well as the transfer pump which brings water to our container just up the street. In short, we have water to our pilot container now - this is great news! 

"Los Almendros" well and the tank/pump used for the pilot.
Everything is located in a little park with a monument to commemorate a resting spot that inspired villagers in the early 1900s (I haven't found a link in English yet, but here's one in Spanish)

So, what have we been doing for the last several days? Quite a bit, actually. While we were waiting for the pipeline to be finished, we started constructing our salt recovery/enhanced evaporation system. This was an interesting endeavor, because we were using a combination of power tools (powered by renewable energy, of course!) and manual tools. For some fun pictures and the prospective of students, I invite you to check out the UPi students' blog. Their maquinas vs machete post is one of my favorites. We forgot a few fittings and needed some longer hoses than what we had brought, so we got to go shopping in the local hardware stores (ferreterías, in Spanish). This was a bit of an adventure, because each ferretería has different supplies available and driving in Tegucigalpa is disorienting and a bit crazy. Thankfully UPi has provided an excellent driver and tour guide. Mr. Rusbel is wonderful.

Solar salt recovery & enhanced evaporation system. (photo credit: Victoria Amador)
(those from the desert southwest might recognize these as evaporative media panels)

Typical intersection in Tegucigalpa (pedestrians, and motor cycles, and vehicles, OH MY!

(Sun) Power Tools

An unexpected project has been fighting leaks in the roof of our container. As mentioned before, our container was damaged during shipment. While we are waiting for quotes to repair the container we need to have some protection from the rain. We had some leftover panchos from the Desal Prize and have put them to use as tarps. These, plus lots of silicone and duct tape mean things are drying out.

Creative leak mitigation (left) and battery hydrogen venting (right)

Yesterday (23 July), we were able to turn on the desalination system and begin the process of checking for leaks. Anytime a system like this is transported, some leaks related to cracked or loose fittings are expected. Amazingly, we have only located one cracked fitting and two loose fittings. All were fixed and we ran the system for about an hour to get a preliminary impression of how the water quality compares to what we had estimated using modeling software. We are making great water from a salinity perspective! Next week we will operate the system to produce data for a report required by USAID and will also have the first of three training sessions with regional farmers. 

Stay tuned...

Flow test of brackish water pump and pipeline. I made a video on 22 July, but I had my phone in the vertical position on accident so I didn't post it. (photo credit: Clara Borrego)