MADIS: Microbial Automatic Drip Irrigation System

Inspiration

We learned from our AP environmental class that conventional Irrigation systems is inefficient and wasteful, as flood irrigation loses 50% of water applied and greatly contributes to water shortage, leading to poor waste management and sanitation.

We learned about microbial fuel cells and wondered if we can apply this technology to optimize the current drip irrigation systems.

What it does

It automatically controls the irrigation system via MFC that is moisture sensitive. It also provides electricity when excess power is generated

Minimizes water waste significantly! Moisture sensing is more accurate as the data is collected over a large piece of land rather than a point Automated controls reduce time and labor
Easily applied to gardens or large agricultural fields. No effect on plant food products Customizable to different moisture levels, compatible with many crops

How we built it

We heard a little bit about redox reactions and their application in generating electricity. We used that, in combination with knowledge about solenoids in our AP Physics to develop a smart irrigation level that automatically opens and closes based off of moisture levels detected by microbial fuel cells.

Challenges we ran into

Our major problem was the time constraint, which significantly limited our ability to develop in depth models and ideas. Additionally, since we were unable to make a real product most of our ideas had to be fully creative.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We are able to combine biology, with microbial fuel cells, chemistry, through redox reactions of microbial fuel cells, and physics, application of solenoids to open and close the irrigation valve, to make a working model that provides smart irrigation based off of moisture levels.

What we learned

We learned how to effectively communicate to solve complex problems, crucial to the time-limited competition. Additionally, we learned to research into multiple facets to build our product succesfully

What's next for MADIS: Microbial Automatic Drip Irrigation System

We will try to implement this in even more places, not just farmland. For example, aquatic farms and the ocean are promising new places where we can explore the effect of microbial fuel cells

Built With

• onshape