# DESIGN OF AN IOT-BASED SMALL SCALE INDOOR HYDROPONICS WITH GEO-SOLAR SYSTEM

Jamali A Nagamora, John Mark A Carpio, Abdul Halil S Abdullah, Reuel C Pallugna, Jeffrey Ken B Balangao, Charlemagne P Recente

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## ► To cite this version:

Jamali A Nagamora, John Mark A Carpio, Abdul Halil S Abdullah, Reuel C Pallugna, Jeffrey Ken B Balangao, et al.. DESIGN OF AN IOT-BASED SMALL SCALE INDOOR HYDROPONICS WITH GEO-SOLAR SYSTEM. International Journal of Electrical Engineering and Technology, 2022, 13 (5), pp.51-60. 10.17605/OSF.IO/MDC67. hal-03939805

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Submitted on 24 Feb 2023

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# DESIGN OF AN IOT-BASED SMALL SCALE INDOOR HYDROPONICS WITH GEO-SOLAR SYSTEM

Jamali A. Nagamora<fnref n="1" />, John Mark A. Carpio<fnref n="1" />, Abdul Halil S. Abdullah II<fnref n="1" />, Reuel C. Pallugna<fnref n="1" />, Jeffrey Ken B. Balangao<fnref n="1" />*, Charlemagne P. Recente<fnref n="2" />

**\*Corresponding Author**

## ABSTRACT

Urban farming is considered trending. Hydroponics, in particular, offers opportunities to grow and produce healthy plants with lesser energy requirements. In this work, the necessary requirements for plant growth and development such as temperature, humidity, pH, nutrient level and water temperature were being studied as bases for making the controlling and monitoring system. The outcome of this work indicates the selection of sensors through compare and contrast functions as set in the program. Data gathered were processed and programmed using microcontrollers and open-source software (Arduino and Blynk). Specifically, the solar photovoltaic (PV) and geothermal systems were utilized to provide power and maintain the temperature of the whole system. Based on the results, the design and selection of appropriate sensors and devices were able to monitor and control the required nutrients and environment of a plant. The integration also of solar PV was able to power up the whole system sustaining the operations of the devices. The integration also of the ground heat exchanger system helped in reducing the temperature to an average of 5°C. Moreover, the system was able to display the plant's parameters and prompt the owner of any irregularities in the system. It can be recommended to improve further the structural design and assembly of the system.

**Keywords:** Hydroponics, Automation System, Monitoring System, Alert System, Blynk, Microcontroller, Sensors, Internet of Things (I.O.T), Geo-Solar, Solar Photovoltaic (PV).

<footnote n="1">¹College of Engineering and Architecture, University of Science and Technology of Southern Philippines, Cagayan de Oro City, Philippines</footnote>

<footnote n="2">²Department of Marine Biology, University of Science and Technology of Southern Philippines, Panaon, Philippines</footnote>
**Cite this Article:** Jamali A. Nagamora, John Mark A. Carpio, Abdul Halil S. Abdullah II, Reuel C. Pallugna, Jeffrey Ken B. Balangao and Charlemagne P. Recente, Design of an IoT-based Small Scale Indoor Hydroponics with Geo-Solar System, *International Journal of Electrical Engineering and Technology (IJEET)*, 13(5), 2022, pp. 51-60.

https://iaeme.com/Home/issue/IJEET?Volume=13&Issue=5

# 1. INTRODUCTION

Soil-based agriculture has various challenges to face (Yuvaraj and Subramanian, 2020). The rising population, climate change, land use competition for food, feed, fuel and fiber production as well as the increasing demand for valuable natural compounds all reinforce the need for artificial growing systems such as greenhouses, soil-less systems and vertical gardening (Maharana and Koul, 2011).

Soil-less culture is a method of growing agricultural crops without the use of soil. Instead of soil, various inert growing media, also called substrates, are used. These media would provide plant support and moisture retention. Irrigation systems are integrated within these media, thereby introducing a nutrient solution to the plants' root zones. This solution provides all of the necessary nutrients for plant growth (Cranch, 2017).

Hydroponics is the most common method of soil-less culture which includes growing plants either on a substrate or in an aqueous medium with bare roots (Cranch, 2017). Hydroponics refers to growing plants in nutrient solutions which are water-containing fertilizers (Bulgari et al., 2017; Keerthana et al., 2018; Mehra et al., 2018; Kularbphettong et al., 2019; Lakshmanan et al., 2020). It may need with or without the use of an artificial medium such as sand, gravel, vermiculture, rokwool, perlite, peat moss, coir or sawdust to provide mechanical support (Bulgari et al., 2017). Being a soil-less technology, it can be solution as regards the substantial environmental impact on natural resources, the conversion of natural land to agriculture, nutrient leaching and the use of chemicals which are all serious issues (Despommier, 2015). And there are many designs of hydroponic systems, each serving a different purpose, but all systems share basic characteristics (Cranch, 2017).

Internet-of-Things (IoT) is a popular technology that can be used in variety of sectors. When things are linked to the internet and to one another, a complete system becomes smart (Ratnaparkhi et al., 2020). In smart agriculture, for example, IoT can help track, monitor, automate and analyze operations (Mehra et al., 2018; Kularbphettong et al., 2019; Lakshmanan et al., 2020; Abbassi and Benlahmer, 2021), thereby offering the possibility of labor-free farming (Ratnaparkhi et al., 2020).

In this work, an IoT-based small scale indoor hydroponics was developed with its automation and manipulation system integrated with it. Specifically, the necessary requirements for plant growth and development such as temperature, humidity, pH, nutrient level and water temperature were being studied as bases for making such controlling and monitoring system.

# 2. METHODOLOGY

## 2.1 Design Flow

A set step-by-step approach to solve the problem is shown Figure 1. This includes data gathering, programming for monitoring and automation and evaluation of the system. Several studies about hydroponics systems and sensors applications related to controlling temperature, humidity, lighting, and water level have contributed to providing necessary theories and concepts in constructing the core idea of this study. This study needs to gather the data through the collection of the component in research which has scientific methods necessary for
obtaining information from certain experimentation. In the analysis of data, logic, science, and engineering will be observed. This process will provide interpretation and analysis of the data obtained. Through this process, necessary adjustments can be identified to provide necessary requirements of plants.

<figure><img src="image_4.png" /><figcaption>**Figure 1** General Flow Chart of the System</figcaption></figure>

## 2.2 Control and Monitoring System Design

The system design/development includes determining what sensors is to be used together with its corresponding circuitry. Figure 2 shows the general system design for control and monitoring design. This part of the overall system design is intended to lessen the human effort in maintaining the desired parameters of the system. The automation is consisting of a microcontroller with internet Shield, actuators, and relay modules. The automation solemnly depends on the input data. The required input data are the duration of artificial lights, required humidity and temperature of the plants, water level of the small reservoir, water circulation, water pH level required and nutrient level required. This input data are process in the microcontroller and be the basis for the automation. The microcontroller then controls the actuators through the relay module. All the operation of each actuators will be based on all the data being inputted.
<figure><img src="image_5.png" /><figcaption>**Figure 2** Control and Monitoring System Design</figcaption></figure>

## 2.3 Structural Design

In designing the system design, the structure is the most important. The structure relies on the gathered data and is used for the further development of existing designs. There are existing designs and techniques used in a hydroponic system. There are two ways of creating a system design, these are horizontal or vertical. The vertical placement of pipe can save more space by occupying vertical space which is not usually used indoors. Table 1 shows the summary of the structures of the hydroponics system.

<table><caption>**Table 1** Vertical vs. Horizontal vs. Stacking</caption><thead><tr><td>Position</td><td>Advantages</td><td>Disadvantages</td></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>Vertical</td><td><ul><li>Lesser space requirement</li><li>Complete draining</li></ul></td><td><ul><li>Higher power head</li><li>Cannot retain water</li></ul></td></tr><tr><td>Horizontal</td><td><ul><li>Less power head</li><li>May be customized to retain water</li></ul></td><td><ul><li>More space required</li></ul></td></tr><tr><td>Stacking</td><td><ul><li>Lesser space requirement</li><li>Complete draining</li><li>2x yield</li></ul></td><td><ul><li>Higher power head</li></ul></td></tr></tbody></table>

## 2.4 Power System Design

The power system design can only be possible when the total load of the system will be determined. Power system topology is shown in figure 3 consisting of PV panels, charge controller, battery and electrical loads. The design calculations will be based on the power requirement of the system and in accordance with Philippine Electrical Code.
<figure><img src="image_6.png" /><figcaption>**Figure 3** Power System Components</figcaption></figure>

**2.5 Ground Air Heat transfer (GAHT) system Design**

The system design shown in figure 4 consists of pipes that will be buried in the ground. The key concept in this method is to perform heat transfer from the ground to the plant's enclosure. Fans will be inserted inside the pipes to allow air to flow into the system. This setup helps the system from temperature and humidity variations.

<figure><img src="image_7.png" /><figcaption>**Figure 4** Assembled pipes with 12' x 4"Ø</figcaption></figure>

# 3. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

**3.1 Real-Time Sensors Data from Hydroponics System through Internet**

The system has Ethernet shield to connect the system to the internet. The *Blynk Server* application software was used to monitor data in mobile phone or computer. As shown in figure 5, the app displayed the real-time values of sensors inside the hydroponics system such as room temperature, humidity, nutrient, pH, voltage, current, and etc.
<figure><img src="image_8.png" /><figcaption>**Figure 5** Blynk Server app displayed in mobile phone</figcaption></figure>

## 3.2 Automation System

### 3.2.1 Temperature & Humidity

The study aims to control the temperature between 19.11°C to 26.67°C to obtain a higher growth rate for the plants. Figure 6 shows the actual reading of sensor inside the hydroponic system using GAHT system. The maximum recorded temperature from system was 25.9 °C.

<figure><img src="image_9.png" /><figcaption>**Figure 6** Actual temperature inside the plants</figcaption></figure>

### 3.2.2 Water level

The design for the water level automation has been achieved as shown in Table 2. The design was to pump water if the water level is below 5cm and stop if the water level is full.

During the experiment, the pump turned “On” at 4cm of water level in the water reservoir.
<table><caption>**Table 2** Simulation of water level control</caption><thead><tr><td>TRIAL NO.</td><td>WATER LEVEL IN THE SMALL WATER RESERVOIR (cm)</td><td>WATER PUMP STATUS</td></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>1</td><td>23</td><td>OFF</td></tr><tr><td>2</td><td>21</td><td>OFF</td></tr><tr><td>3</td><td>18</td><td>OFF</td></tr><tr><td>4</td><td>13</td><td>OFF</td></tr><tr><td>5</td><td>4</td><td>ON</td></tr><tr><td>6</td><td>40</td><td>OFF</td></tr><tr><td>7</td><td>35</td><td>OFF</td></tr></tbody></table>

### 3.2.3 Water pH Dosser

The pH dosser is designed to pump a pH up solution until the pH level achieves the required pH level. Figure 7 shows the actual operation of pH Dosser for the entire day. The pH dosser status is 1 (on status) for the pH level from 5.5-5.9 pH (normal tap water) to the required pH level of the plant. It took around 7-30 minutes intervals to stabilize the pH and reach the required pH level for the water.

#### Test Result of the Automation of pH Dosser

<figure><img src="image_10.png" /><figcaption>**Figure 7** Operation of pH dosser in water tank</figcaption></figure>

### 3.2.4 Plant Nutrient Dosser

The nutrient dosser is designed to pump a nutrient solution until the nutrient level achieves the required level. Figure 8 shows the actual operation of dosser from zero nutrient to the desired level of nutrient of plants. It took 2 – 30 minutes interval to stabilize for the right amount of nutrient solution.
Test result of the automation of nutrient dosser

<figure><img src="image_11.png" /><figcaption>**Figure 8** Actual Operation of Nutrient dosser in the water tank</figcaption></figure>

**3.3 Actual Set-up**

**3.3.1 Implementation of the Geothermal Cooling/Heating System**

The PVC pipe was used in the project since it is the only available pipe in the local market. As shown in Figure 9, the assembled pipes were laid approximately 2 meters below the surface ground.

<figure><img src="image_12.png" /><figcaption>**Figure 9** Actual installation of assembled pipes as heat exchanger</figcaption></figure>

**3.3.2 Enclosure Design**

The enclosure of the system shown in figure 10 is made of wood. Wood is a good insulator of outside heat. However, the enclosure was covered with foam insulation to maintain the temperature inside the system.
<figure><img src="image_13.png" /><figcaption>**Figure 10** The actual enclosure of the system</figcaption></figure>

#### 3.3.2.1 Platform of plants

The design is made up of a vertical 2 layer of the growing area which can accommodate 129 plants. Figure 11 shows the actual design of the platform. It was designed to hold the weight of the cups, medium, and plants. It is coated with waterproof paint to protect the wood from crumbling.

<figure><img src="image_14.png" /><figcaption>**Figure 11** Actual picture of platform</figcaption></figure>

# 4. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

## 4.1 Conclusion

The results manifested successful implementation of monitoring and controlling device using the Internet-of-Things system. The design of the system further improved the quality of growing plants with less energy requirement. Thus, providing an efficient and sustainable production of high-value crops. With this technology, plants could be able to grow faster than traditional farming, with less human intervention and away from a harmful environment.

## 4.2 Recommendations

The pipes used for the heat exchanger shall be replaced with a much thinner surface to improve the absorption of heat from the ground. The structural design of a system can be improved
further to have a better environment and more slots for the plants. In addition, the automation
system can also be enhanced by the machine learning method wherein the system can
automatically adjust its parameters according to the specific choice of plant.

**5. ACKNOWLEDGMENT**

The researchers would like to express their gratitude to the University of Science and Technology of Southern Philippines in Cagayan de Oro City, Philippines.

**REFERENCES**

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[2] Maharana, L., & Koul, D. N. (2011). The emergence of Hydroponics. *Yojana (June)*, 55, 39-40.

[3] Cranch, P. (2017). Challenges for Indoor/Vertical Farming. [online] LinkedIn. Available at: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/challenges-indoorvertical-farming-paul-cranch [Accessed 16 May 2022].

[4] Bulgari, R., Baldi, A., Ferrante, A., & Lenzi, A. (2017). Yield and quality of basil, Swiss chard, and rocket microgreens grown in a hydroponic system. *New Zealand Journal of Crop and Horticultural Science, 45*(2), 119-129.

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[7] Kularbphettong, K., Ampant, U., & Kongrodj, N. (2019). An automated hydroponics system based on mobile application. *International Journal of Information and Education Technology, 9*(8), 548-552.

[8] Lakshmanan, R., Djama, M., Selvaperumal, S. K., & Abdulla, R. (2020). Automated smart hydroponics system using internet of things. *International Journal of Electrical and Computer Engineering (IJECE), 10*(6), 6389-6398.

[9] Despommier, D. (2015). The Problem. [online] Verticalfarm.com. Available at: http://www Package Name / [Accessed 16 May 2022].

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[11] Abbassi, Y., & Benlahmer, H. (2021). The Internet of Things at the service of tomorrow's agriculture. *Procedia Computer Science, 191*, 475-480