ENGINEERING DESIGN

TECHNICAL MEMO
Modular Aeroponic Residential System

Instructors Ryan Clemmer, Ph.D., P.Eng.

Manick Annamalai, Ph.D., P.Eng.
Mostafa Elsharqawy, Ph.D., P.Eng
Ping Wu, Ph.D., P.Eng
Laboratory Section 0104, Friday 8:30 10:20 am
University of Guelph, Department of Engineering
Group 13
Harrison Korhonen (055295)
Andi Kokojka (055293)
Neil Randall (055308)
Amanda Siwik (055007)
Seena Ghassemi (055284)
Table of Contents

Table of Contents 1

Introduction 2

Problem Statement for Calculations 2

Background Information Gathered 2

Assumptions and Material Parameters 3

Engineering Principles Governing Safety and Design Functionality 4

Engineering Calculations
7

Appendices 9
Appendix A - Calculations 9
Nozzle 9
Pump 9
Appendix B - Supplementary Figures 10
Nutrient Solution Analysis 11
Appendix C - Excel Calculations 14

References 15

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Introduction
The technical memo for the Modular Aeroponics Residential System (M.A.R.S) unit aims to provide an
metric overview of the capabilities of the systems design. The purpose of this memo is to provide an
in-depth analysis of the technical aspects that the system is reliant on for day to day operation. Electrical
consumption, structural concerns, thermal creation and exhaustion, water and solution movement as well
as botanical analyses will all be outlined within this report. Calculations governing the implementation
and operation of the system as well as the codes, regulations and standards that the system adheres to are
provided. The information presented is designed to provide the user with the ability to maximize
productivity of their system without damaging the components.

Problem Statement for Calculations

The design of the M.A.R.S. encompasses components that must be analyzed in terms of feasibility and
optimization. The structure itself must be able to withstand the load of the plants while maintaining its
form. This requires finite element analysis to be completed on the M.A.R.S. to determine which sections
are under the most stress as well as the effect this stress has on the system in terms of deformation. In
order to produce enough pressure to create nutrient mist for the plant roots, an analysis of the fluid
dynamics within the water pumping system must be completed. The heat produced by the water
compressor, lighting, electronic components and the plants themselves would become trapped within the
M.A.R.S. container. Analyzing the total heat flow throughout the system would assist in developing
proper ventilation and temperature sensors, allowing the optimal plant growing temperature to be
maintained. Finally, the electronic components require a source of power to operate. Determining the total
amount of energy needed to run a M.A.R.S. unit is essential in analyzing the feasibility of the system and
reducing the operating costs.

Background Information Gathered

The module will be built from shortleaf pine and glass. Although shortleaf pine is considered a softwood,
it is typically less expensive than hardwoods, it is sturdier than most hardwoods, making it a good choice
for constructing the frame of the M.A.R.S. [1]. Wood tends to deform under moist conditions when left
untreated. By priming the medium, impregnating it with oil and adding a sealant, the wood can be
protected from rotting and deformation [2]. Glass allows short, infrared waves from the sun to pass
through the medium, while blocking the longer wavelengths produced as heat from the infra-red waves
[3]. Plants absorb the short wavelengths and require temperatures achieved by the heat produced from the
long wavelengths becoming trapped within the glass unit [4].

There are two main types of aeroponic systems: high pressure aeroponics (HPA) and low pressure
aeroponics (LPA). The HPA system was developed by NASA to produce higher crop yields with less

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water and nutrient input [5]. Compared to LPA systems, HPA mist the plants roots at high pressures of
around 80-120 psi, creating smaller water droplets between 30-80 microns in diameter, found to be more
efficiently processed by the plants [6]. Consequently, HPA systems use up to 60% less nutrients and 98%
less water than LPA [7]. A series 6800 pump from Aquatec Water Systems Inc. [8] with a discharge
pressure of 80 psi is compatible with the HPA specifications and was used for the calculations in this
report. Combining a pump operating at 80 psi with a jet nozzle that has a 0.025 inch orifice produces
appropriately sized droplets [9].

A variety of fruits, vegetables, herbs and flowers can be grown aeroponically, with one of the heavier
produce being tomato plants [10]. A small tomato on average weighs approximately 0.1134 kg [11].

To ensure the plants are receiving enough light, the module would be equipped with a lighting system as
well as photo sensors to monitor the conditions inside the unit. Plants require between 8 to 10 hours of
direct sunlight each day, of about 35000 to 40000 lux for flowering and 15000-20000 lux for vegetable
growth [12]. Fluorescent, incandescent and LED lights are all viable options for indoor plant growing.
LEDs are the most efficient in terms of both energy-consumption and minimal heat-generation as well as
providing the maximal balance of red and blue light -- essential for plant growth [12]. The optimal range
of wattage produced by LED lighting for plant growth is between 50 W to 80 W per square foot [13].

The plants themselves require regular misting intervals consisting of 3 to 5 seconds every 5 minutes [14].
The goal is to maintain 100% humidity on the roots without any excess nutrient solution dripping off
them, maximizing the nutrient absorption. In addition to humidity, the air temperature during the day
should ideally be between 5.5-8 C higher than the temperature at night [15].

Assumptions and Material Parameters

Several assumptions were made when executing the calculations in this report in order to simplify the
calculation process and enable results to be attained. The assumptions are as follows:

Stationary glass panel present on front of module instead of moveable glass door.
Maximum conditions in terms of possible load, operating time, etc.
Shelf has 48 growing cups, each filled with a tomato plant with 2 tomatoes.
An infinite water supply.
Water and nutrient solution has the same properties as pure water.
Tomatoes are not thermogenic plants, therefore they produce negligible heat [16].
Steady state heat transfer and water flow.
Constant thermal properties, homogeneous and isotropic materials.

The material parameters used in the assumptions and calculations are displayed in Table 1.

Table 1 - Material parameters used in calculations.

3
 Material Parameter Value Units

Average small tomato mass 0.1134 kg

Air at room temperature [17] 21 C

Water density at room temperature [17] 0.9982 g/cm^3

Growing unit temperature [18] 23 C

Thermal conductivity of glass [19] 1.05 W/m*K

Thermal conductivity of pine [19] 0.12 W/m*K

Heat transfer coefficient of air at room temperature [20] 25 W/m^2*K

Engineering Principles Governing Safety and Design

Functionality
The law of conservation of energy is necessary in order to calculate the heat loss of an object to the
outside surroundings. The heat lost to the surroundings needs to be generated by some other source in the
growing unit. In order to calculate this the equations for thermal resistance and heat flow through a
resistance are also needed.
t
Rglass =AK
1
Rconv = hA
T T
Q = 1R 2
In accordance with Part IV, section 5 of the Nutrient Management Act 2002, the nutrient solution storage
tank must not exceed 100 m^3, be leakproof and be emptied every 14 days.

Engineering Calculations

Fluid Dynamics Analysis

The rated discharge of each 0.025 nozzle is 0.04 fluid ounces per second (1.1829x10-6 m3/s),
which gives an outlet mist velocity of 3.85 m/s. The chosen diameter of pipe was 1cm. The
Aquatec 68X0 80 PSI pump can pump fluid at 0.38 LPM (6.3x10-6 m3/s) [8]. This is a 24VAC

4
pump which is rated at 0.62 Amps; the pump consumes 14.88 Watts. The velocity of water
through the pipe is 0.0803m/s and the Reynolds number is 799.8, meaning the velocity profile
of the water through the pipes is laminar. The combined losses of the entire fluid system is
0.0124 meters.

2
Friction Losses = hf = f DL V2g
Where f is the friction coefficient, L is the length of pipe, V is the velocity of the fluid in the
pipe, D is the diameter of the pipe, and g is the gravitational constant.

Reynolds Number = Re = VvD

Where v is the kinematic viscosity of the fluid.
64
f= Re

Structural Analysis
The assumed load is the load of two, 0.1134 kilogram tomatoes in each of the 48 growing cups.
This force was applied to the face of the shelf. The fixed geometry was the bottom face of the
shelving unit, where the MARS is assumed to contact the ground. Under the assumed applied
load of 108 Newtons on the shelf, the maximum stress occurs at the roller track of the shelving
unit, which is 9.377x105 Pascals (Appendix B - Figure 1). The maximum deformation under this
load occurs at the horizontal middle of the shelving unit, closest to the front of the unit, which is
2.947 x 10-2 millimeters (Appendix B - Figure 2). The material of the shelf and the frame of the
MARS is Shortleaf Pine. The material chosen for the rollers, the roller tracks, and the roller track
support pins were AISI 4130 Steel, normalized at 870C.

Heat Transfer Analysis

In order to provide optimal growing conditions for the plants, the interior of the growing unit
should be kept at a temperature of 23C. The average household is kept at an indoor temperature
of 21C. The thermal resistance of the air and walls of the growing unit can be found with the
physical dimensions of the unit and the thermal properties of the mediums.
t
Rglass = A glass
glassK glass
t
Rpine = A pine
pineK pine

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The glass and pine sections are in parallel with each other as they cover a section of the surface
area. Adding the two thermal resistances together in parallel results in the overall conductive
resistance.
1 1 1
Rcond = Rglass + Rpine
1
Rconv,1 = hAinterior
Rconv,2 = hA 1
exterior
Using the thermal properties of air at room temperature as well as the surface area of the growing
unit, the total thermal resistance can be found by adding the resistances in series.
Rtotal = Rcond + Rconv,1 + Rconv,2
The resulting heat loss can be derived from the temperature difference between the air
temperature inside and outside of the growing unit as well as the total resistance.
T T
Q = 1R 2 = 51.95W
total

Electrical Analysis

Light and Heat Analysis

The system is designed to provide light, heat or both to the M.A.R.S unit depending on the biological
requirements of the system. The light and heat systems can both be adjusted individually to provide a
novel growing experience that it adjustable for any produce compatible for the system.

The maximum amount of light the system would require would in lieu daylight year round. Pictured in
FIGURE (5) is the daylight provided annually.

The total amount of daylight provided annually is approximately 4380 hours out a total of 8760 hours
which means that there is approximately 4380 hours of night. This means that maximally the systems
lighting must be able to provide 4380 hours of lighting to the system.

The system is going to be utilizing two double ended reflecting grow lights. These grow lights are rated
for North American household circuits. The lights have a PLT rating of 30 and the system is spatially 3.78
square feet. The recommended wattage for grow lights is 32 Watts per square foot and therefore at least
120.96 Watts must be supplied to the system by the lights at a distance maximally of 3 feet.

6
The 120.96 Watts can be provided approximately by two 60 Watt bulbs. A Watt is one Joule per second
and therefore the annual energy requirement necessary to power the lighting system at maximum capacity
is 189210000 Joules per lamp.

Certain modules of the system require heating provided through heat lamps to sustain the produce
occupying the system. Operated maximally these lamps would be run year throughout the day. This
allows for a total of 8760 hours total of the heating system being used.

The system utilizes two heating lamps at a distance maximally of three feet. These heat lamps are rated at
200W for North American household circuits. This means that each lamp would require 6307200000
Joules annually.
This means that annually operated maximally the electrical heating and lighting systems would require
12992820000 Joules of energy annually.

Control System Analysis

The system requires a Arduino Uno MCU Board ATmega328-based microcontroller board with 6 inputs
to automate light, heat, heat sensors, photo sensors and Pump Control systems. The controller requires an
additional 3.3v to operate and 0.0005 Amps. This means that the power drawn from the controller is
0.00165 Watts. The Controller is to be operated yearly throughout the day and therefore requires 52034.4
Joules of energy throughout the course of the year.

Power Supply

Source Annual Energy Requirement

Light and Heat 12,992,820,000 Joules

Arduino Controller 52,034 Joules

Total Energy 12,992,872,034 Joules

The system uses a type B plug which has a grounding probe to avoid equipment damage through short
circuiting. The circuit that canadian households operate on is 120V and 60Hz AC power. Assuming the

7
power supply circuit is independent the average tolerance of household circuit breakers is 20 Amps at any
one time. The M.A.R.S unit only requires (0.0005 A (Arduino)+ 3A (2 Lights) + 4A (2 Heat lamps))
7.0005 A which is safely under the breaker threshold

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Appendices

Appendix A - Calculations

Nozzle
Rated flow rate of nozzle = 0.04 fluid oz / s = 1.1829*10-6 m3/s
Total flow rate through nozzles = 48 * 1.1829*10-6 m2/s = 5.677*10-5 m3/s
Cross sectional area of nozzle = 4 (0.000625)2 = 3.067497m2
Velocity of water through nozzle = Rated flow rate / Cross sectional area = 3.85 m/s

Pump
2 5
Cross sectional area of pipe = 4 (0.01) = 7.8539 m2
Rated flow rate = 0.38 LPM = 6.3x10-6 m3/s
2 2 5
Cross sectional area of pipe = 4 dpipe = 4 (0.01) = 7.8539 x 10 m2
3
Rated Discharge 6.3x106 ms m
Velocity of water through pipe = Cross sectional area of pipe = 7.8539 x 105m2
= 0.0803 s
V water through pipe dpipe (0.0803 ms )*(0.01m)
Reynolds Number = vwater = 2
1.004x106 ms
= 799.8 (laminar flow)
Friction Coefficient for Circular Pipe = 64
Re = 64
799.8 = 0.08

Friction loss in shelf pipe

2
L
hf = f*( D ) *( V2g )
0.08032
= (0.08)( 4.4386m
0.01m ) * ( 2(9.81) )
= 0.0117m
Minor loss in pipe (180 degree flagent return bends)
V2
hm = K m * 2g
2
= (0.2)*( 0.0803
2 9.81 )
*
= 6.5729x105m x (4 pipe bends)
= 2.629x104m
Friction loss in vertical pipe from pump
2
L
hf = f*( D ) *( V2g )
0.08032
= (0.08)*( 0.155m
0.01m ) *( 2(9.81) )
= 4.075x104m
Major loss in fully gate valve fully open

9
 V2
hm = K m * 2g
2
= (0.15)*( 0.0803
2 9.81 )
*
= 4.929x105m
Total losses = 0.0124m

Appendix B - Supplementary Figures

Figure 1 - Von Mises Stress simulation in Solidworks

Figure 2 - Deformation Simulation with Solidworks

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Nutrient Solution Analysis
Aeroponic nutrients can be a complex issue if a reputable standard is not followed. Nutrients are
one of the basics of any aeroponic system. The fertilizer spray that is incorporated into the
aeroponic system will be spraying the roots nutrients it needs to survive. The nutrients must be
soluble in water for the vegetation to receive the nutrients required, if not, the plant will not be
able to access the nutrients. With M.A.R.S the consumer will have complete control over the
implementation of the fertilizer under an automated service. The composition of the nutrients is
important and there are over twenty elements that are needed for the vegetation to grow. Carbon,
hydrogen, and oxygen are absorbed from the air and water. The rest of the mineral nutrients, are
dissolved in the nutrient solution, and need to be in the correct ratios. The solution contains;
Nitrogen (N), Potassium (K), Phosphorus (P), Calcium (Ca), Magnesium (Mg), Sulphur (S), Iron
(Fe), Manganese (Mn), Copper (Cu), Zinc (Zn), Molybdenum (Mo), Boron (B), Chlorine (Cl).
The consumer will be provided a pre-formulated commercial aeroponic nutrient package that
will already contain the proper ratios of the minerals, so all the user would have to do would
pour the nutrients in the water.
The mineral ratios for each nutrient package are listed in Table 1 in Appendix B.

Table 1: Nutrient Mineral Ratios for each Package

Fertilizer salt Grams of fertilizer needed per 1000L of water to
provide 1 ppm of the nutrient supplied

Boric acid 5.64g

Calcium nitrate N:6.45g Ca:4.70g

Cupric chloride 2.68g

Copper sulfate 3.91g

Chelated iron (9%) 11.10g

Ferrous sulfate 5.54g

Magnesium sulfate 10.75g

Manganese chloride 3.60g

Manganese sulfate 4.05g

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 Molybdenum trioxide 1.50g

Monopotassium phosphate K:3.53g P:4.45g

Potassium chloride 2.05g

Potassium nitrate N:7.30g K:2.70g

Potassium sulfate 2.50g

Zinc sulfate 4.42g

Nutrient solutions need to be adjusted during the growing cycle of the crop and are different for
each crop grown. Leaf crops generally need higher nitrogen, root crops need higher potassium,
and fruit crops such as tomatoes or cucumbers should maintain relatively low nitrogen levels.
Three different packages with different nitrogen and potassium levels will be provided in order
to maintain the proper nutrient ratio for the type of vegetation the user wants to yield.
The pH of the nutrient solution is also essential to the plants health because it will affect how
well each fertilizing salt can pass through the root cell wall and nourish the plant. When the pH
of the nutrient solution is out of balance, the plants are unable to uptake the nutrients in the
water, which will basically starve them, even if there is plenty of nutrients in the solution. When
the pH is not at the proper level the plant will lose its ability to absorb some of the essential
elements required for healthy growth. For all plants, there is a pH level that will produce
optimum results. This pH level will vary from plant to plant, but in general most plants prefer a
slightly acidic growing environment with a pH between 5.5 6.0. The pH of the nutrient
solution will be measured using a digital pH meter that is provided in the M.A.R.S unit.
Phosphoric acid is used to lower pH and potassium hydroxide is used to raise pH, and both
chemicals will also be provided for the user to adjust the pH in their nutrient solution.

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 Figure 3 - Shelf with Piping attached underneath

Figure 4 - Front view of MARS with top and front covers removed

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Appendix C - Excel Calculations

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