Esubalew Feleke

Week One

IoT based smart water quality measurement

Pollution of water is one of the main threats in recent times as drinking water is getting contaminated and polluted. The polluted water can cause various diseases to humans and animals, which in turn affects the life cycle of the ecosystem. If water pollution is detected in an early stage, suitable measures can be taken and critical situations can be avoided. To make certain the supply of pure water, the quality of the water should be examined in real-time. Smart solutions for monitoring of water pollution are getting more and more significant these days with innovation in sensors, communication, and Internet of Things (IoT) technology. 

In general water quality monitoring system consists of various sensors such a pH sensor, turbidity sensors, temperature sensors, conductivity sensors, humidity sensors and many other sensors.  

Week Two

In this week we selected  idea that we can work it for our project. And the selected idea is Automated irrigation(smart irrigation system ) this idea was selected by our team over smart lock idea and micro turbine idea because it can encompass all departments in our team,it's easy and can achieve one  of goals of SGD that zero hunger . my idea was smart water treatment monitoring system idea and it was failed because it can't encompass all fields and financially it's coasty to do the monitoring system of water quality parameters.

Week Three

This week we make task allocation for the selected project idea and i try to figure out how the idea works also i read different sources that explain about smart irrigation system in my over view our project idea is works by Arduino system.  Arduino UNO is the brain of this whole project. It controls the motor pump according to the moisture in the soil which is given by the moisture sensor.so our project idea needs the following apparatus  

so we use software programming knowledge to inter connect these things and to make them work . 

Code

int soilMoistureValue = 0;

int percentage=0;

void setup() {

  pinMode(3,OUTPUT);

  Serial.begin(9600);

}

void loop() {

soilMoistureValue = analogRead(A0);

Serial.println(percentage);

percentage = map(soilMoistureValue, 490, 1023, 100, 0);

if(percentage < 10)  

{

  Serial.println(" pump on");

  digitalWrite(3,LOW);

}

if(percentage >80)

{

  Serial.println("pump off");

  digitalWrite(3,HIGH);

}

}

this is the code fore smallest smart irrigation system which i found on the web site https://circuitdigest.com 

so i think my task on this project can be defining the soil type thgat helps us to identify cropes that can be planted on that soil type and we can identify the water holding capacity of the soil and this leads us to decide how much water amount do we need to plant the crop. also this project is use for bring environmental stablity and to reduce amount of water that wasted with out purpose.


Week Four

This week we had meeting as a group and with our advisor and we updated our task in the project and after week 3 task allocation i tried to gather information about the role of my department in automated irrigation project and I will explain it as the following.

as an environmental engineer my task in this project is to study the type of soil that is suitable for our project idea and also what type of irrigation can feet our project idea. there are many types of irrigations like canal irrigation, drip irrigation, sprinkler irrigation and soon. since our automated irrigation system uses pump sprinkler drip irrigation types are more suitable for our idea. let's explain this type of irrigation, 

 Drip irrigation system is a  a type of micro-irrigation system that has the potential to save water and nutrients by allowing water to drip slowly to the roots of plants, either from above the soil surface or buried below the surface. 

And this type of irrigation is suitable for a loamy soil type farmlands and an area that has steeper slope, undulating and of poor quality, where water or labor are expensive, or where high value crops require frequent water applications.




                                                              week five

 This week our major task as a group was preparing a project proposal and we submitted our project proposal in our meeting with our advisor and we highlight the idea and receive some corrections before we have meeting with our advisor we had meeting as a group and we decided the type of irrigation will be drip irrigation and we try to list out bill of materials that are important for the project and also individually I try  to find out why drip irrigation is better and I described the idea to my team to make our decision on the irrigation type. also, after our meeting with our advisor we make some correction on the proposal, and we try to discuss on our prototype that what shape and size would be appropriate to describe our idea. 

week six

This week as usual we have meeting in group and in my portfolio i try to write environmental impacts and how to control these impacts and make our smart irrigation suitable for our environment.

what are environmental impacts of smart irrigation

Smart irrigation systems can help reduce the environmental impact of agriculture by conserving water and reducing the use of fertilizers and pesticides. However, the implementation of smart irrigation systems can also have some negative environmental impacts.

 For example, the use of sensors and other electronic components in smart irrigation systems can lead to electronic waste, which can be harmful to the environment if not disposed of properly. In addition, the energy required to power smart irrigation systems can contribute to greenhouse gas emissions .

To reduce the environmental impact of smart irrigation systems, we can take the following steps:

By following these steps, we can reduce the environmental impact of smart irrigation systems and help ensure that they are sustainable and effective for years to come.

How can we make smart irrigation suitable for the environment?

Smart irrigation is an efficient way to manage water resources and improve crop yields while minimizing environmental impact. Smart irrigation can help conserve water, enhance water use efficiency, and guarantee food security in drylands. The authors suggest that traditional irrigation scheduling methods based on weather, plant, and soil moisture conditions usually lack important information needed for precise irrigation, which leads to over- or under-irrigation of fields. On the other hand, smart irrigation can drive better irrigation decisions that can help save water and increase yields by using several factors, including soil and climate variation, soil properties, plant responses to water deficits, and changes in weather factors. Various smart irrigation approaches, such as artificial intelligence and deep learning, model predictive irrigation systems, variable rate irrigation technology, and unmanned aerial vehicles, could ensure high water use efficiency in water-scarce regions.

In addition, smart irrigation systems powered by renewable energy sources (RES) have been proven to substantially improve crop yield and the profitability of agriculture. The use of sensors in the hydraulic network hierarchy affords greater control overflow and pressure metrics, thus cutting losses in the system and, therefore, decreasing the volume of unregistered water. This means a reduction in water resource consumption in river basins and improves environmental sustainability. Therefore, to make smart irrigation suitable for the environment, we can use smart irrigation technologies that are designed to conserve water, enhance water use efficiency, and reduce environmental impact. These technologies can help farmers save precious resources without exposing plants to moisture deficiencies, manage soil variability, and gain economic benefits by fulfilling the specific irrigation demands of individual crops. 

what are environmental impacts of smart irrigation?

Smart irrigation systems can help reduce the environmental impact of agriculture by conserving water and reducing the use of fertilizers and pesticides. However, the implementation of smart irrigation systems can also have some negative environmental impacts.

 For example, the use of sensors and other electronic components in smart irrigation systems can lead to electronic waste, which can be harmful to the environment if not disposed of properly. In addition, the energy required to power smart irrigation systems can contribute to greenhouse gas emissions.

To reduce the environmental impact of smart irrigation systems, we can take the following steps:

By following these steps, we can reduce the environmental impact of smart irrigation systems and help ensure that they are sustainable and effective for years to come.








Week seven

This week as usually we had a group meeting and meeting with our advisor and as a team this week work was deciding the prototype what can it be look like, as individual I reflect some ideas on these meetings about things that are related with my department and my weekly progress as individual was to decide what type of crop can be planted in our farmland. The type of irrigation that we selected for our farmland is suitable for crops like vegetable, and fruits so in our group meeting i reflect my idea for my team members and also the other thing i looked in this week is when and how can we use fertilizer for our farmland in previous meeting we have an idea to give the fertilizer with water with in some interval but i try to read about when vegetables need fertilizer and i find out vegetables need fertilizer usually on their growing time or at the time were they planted so using pipe is not such important to give fertilizer instead of that we can give it manually so as a group we discussed on this idea and decide to use it manually. another in this week i try to gather BoM info with our teammates.

Week Eight

This week as usually we had 2 team meeting with group and with advisor and this week's my mainly task was collect BoM information and prepare BoM table for our project and i try to reflect ideas on the type of vegitation that we can plant on our farm and I try to express what i read about potato planting with drip irrigation as the following

The potato is an undemanding tuber, but when it comes to water, it suffers from water stress and requires precision irrigation, especially during critical growth periods, which has a positive impact on the plant’s yield and quality. Let’s find out together why we should choose localised irrigation on potatoes.

Potato: drip irrigation

The potato is a solanaceous tuber that grows in the Peruvian Andes. Worldwide, this tuber occupies about 20 million hectares and China is the main producer, followed by India and Russia. In Europe, the largest producer is Poland, followed by France and the Netherlands; Italy produces only 3% of European production, 45% of which comes from Campania, Emilia-Romagna and Abruzzo.

The plant needs a mild climate for proper development.

Potato requirements: the soil

Potatoes need good soil fertilisation and it is recommended to use manure rather than fertilisers. Tillage must be deep to provide loose and draining soil, as potatoes fear stagnation which would lead to root.

Potato requirements: planting density and ridging

Potatoes are planted in spring where there are average temperatures; where the winter is mild they can also be planted in autumn. Plants should be sown in rows at a distance of approximately 70cm from each other. Potatoes should be planted every 25-30 cm, at a depth of about 10 cm.

Sowing can be done either with the whole tuber or with pieces of it, in order to obtain more seeds: it is important that each piece has at least two ‘eyes’. In order to obtain more buds (eyes), it is required to moisten the buds every other day for about a week so that the buds can grow.

The potato plant requires little attention, but it is important to nurture it. The first ridging in takes place 15-20 days after sowing; when the first leaves sprout, it is recommended to hide them with a light ridging.

The second ridging is recommended after about a month, following preventive fertilisation. In this way the tubers are protected from the sun, which produces solanine, a poisonous substance that makes our tubers inedible.

Drip irrigation: our best investment

A good drip irrigation system, even if it requires a higher installation cost, guarantees us a higher yield of about 10% with reference to the potato crop (same irrigation volume in comparison with sprinkler/surface irrigation).

And also i watched youtub video about drip irrigation for potatoes

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKNGDe9AI0s



Week Nine

this week as usually we had meetings and we discussed ideas about the prototype, and we do many things in this week personally I receive a task for get permission for working space in workshop with my teammate Kalid and as a team we are in progress to finish the simulation and interphase of prototype 

week Ten

this week my task was buying material with my teammate Dagmawi and we go to shop and buy the desired materials as a team our progress being developed into finishing the simulation and interphase parts ,so only final prototype works are left.