Solar powered intelligent composting machine for Agricultural waste.

 Summary Organic waste and especially agriculture waste is a worldwide problem, it cost to be disposed and nothing is gained from it, on the contrary, it causes the emission of harmful gases. Pakistan generates about 20 million tons of solid waste a year, which has been

Project Title

Solar powered intelligent composting machine for Agricultural waste.

Project Area of Specialization

Mechatronics Engineering

Project Summary

 Summary

Organic waste and especially agriculture waste is a worldwide problem, it cost to be disposed and nothing is gained from it, on the contrary, it causes the emission of harmful gases. Pakistan generates about 20 million tons of solid waste a year, which has been increasing more than 2 percent annually. 15 percent of total solid waste is agriculture waste which one of the major problems that faces Paksitan nowadays that there are no serious moves towards solving the agricultural waste issue.
The composting process has received much attention in recent years because of pollution concerns due to increase in volume of waste. Composting has proven to be a valid solution to this problem but not entirely explored. The objectives of this project are to design an intelligent composting machine with certain parameters for the design, Process time, Easy to use, odorless and power saving. In nutshell solar powered composting system is designed for rapid composting performance.
Controlling system is designed with help of Ardino UNO, geared motor, speed controlling circuit motor, a resistance temperature detector (RTD) sensor and WiFi module for wireless transmitting compost temperature to a remote monitoring station. 
Compost reactor consists of a drum that is insulated to prevent heat loss during the composting process. In the center of the inner drum, a RTD installed, which senses the temperature of the compost. When RTD sensor read 55 degree C the microcontroller send command to geared motor switched on to rotate the drum in order to allow an influx of oxygen required for the composting process for 120 seconds interval.
The solar energy can be used to run the machine, a Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT) charge controller used to charge the batteries and then battery bank may be utilized to operate the machine in the absence of sun.
Composting provides environmentally and economically sustainable solution for promoting organic farming. Our work is a small step in developing a low cost and efficient composting machine for a compost manufacturing process which can be applied by farmers to produce nutrient rich , high quality organic fertilizer.

Project Objectives

The project objectives are:
Study the different factors within the composting process 
Learn how to make the machine as energy efficient as possible.
Increase public awareness on food waste and how to handle it.
Learn about sensors and control system.
Study the effects of bacteria on the composting process.

Project Implementation Method

Implementation Method

To review exiting composting machines and discuss various composting processes and the interview will be conducted with the farmers to understand the major problems in agriculture waste and drawbacks of the existing system. Based on the Data collected in literature survey the product design specification is may be designed.

Benefits of the Project

Benefits

1.  The power required to run the machine is very less when compared to Conventional machine has it as very less moving parts
2. The machine can easily powered by solar energy
3.  The machine can be multi powered since it uses a gear motor.
4.  Easy to operate.
5. Enriches soil, helping retain moisture and suppress plant diseases and pests.
6. Reduces the need for chemical fertilizers.
7. Encourages the production of beneficial
8. Bacteria and fungi that break down organic matter to create humus, a rich nutrient-filled material.

Technical Details of Final Deliverable

Installed capacity of drum upto 100Kg solid waste, controlling machenism carried out with the help of Arduio UNO and for remote communication ESP8266 Wifi module is used which is a complete WiFi network where it can be  easily connect as a serving Wi-Fi adapter, wireless internet access. RTD Pt100 used as temperature sensing element. 
Geared Motor used having metallic Gears, Minimum Torque:3 Kg-cm at 12V, RPM : , 100 RPM at 12V and max Load Current:~330mA at 12V.
To energize the machine 2x150Watts poly crystalline solar panels installed along with 30A Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT) charge controller to store the energy for cloudy days battery bank installed with sealed lead acid batteries having charging capacity of 2x25AH.

Final Deliverable of the Project

HW/SW integrated system

Core Industry

Agriculture

Other Industries

Energy

Core Technology

Clean Tech

Other Technologies

Sustainable Development Goals

Good Health and Well-Being for People, Affordable and Clean Energy

Required Resources

If you need this project, please contact me on contact@adikhanofficial.com