7 Field Equipment

Generally all of the necessary field equipment was at Scott Base and in good working condition. All equipment was thoroughly checked before the event left for the field. Two of the primus stoves, which were issued, were found to be faulty. Of note is that one of them was brand new and had a faulty thread (manufacturing fault) where the burner screws into the fuel tank. This fault was not obvious and only showed up when the stove was hot which caused the thread to loosen and bleed off gas pressure.

Due to the nature of our field event which involved constant use of drilling gear, we requested extra spill kits and a tarpaulin to minimise environmental damage which could result from leaking oil or gas. However, we were only able to get one very old canvas tarpaulin and one extra spill kit (small size) before deployment. We finally acquired the large size, spill kit refills three days before returning to Scott Base.

To minimise the risk of environmental damage from this type of project, any machinery which is likely to have oil or fuel leaks should if possible have a drip tray. Further protection could then be given by the use of a tarpaulin.

One of the 20 litre containers of kerosene was contaminated with mineral turpentine which appeared to cause incomplete combustion in the primus stoves. All fuel containers 10 litres or larger should be able to either be fitted with a spout or a tap. All human waste needs to be triple bagged to be safe for handling and transportation.