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The tilapias swim in the aquarium part of an aquaponics system from Todd Guerdat's lab at the University of New Hampshire. Researchers at the University of New Hampshire are studying the flow of water in aquariums to improve aquaponics systems. Credit: Todd Guerdat
An aquaponic system is an example of an integrated farming method in which the waste by-product of a production process, such as fish or seafood farming, serves as a nutrient for another part of the system, like growing plants, for example.
Hydroponic crops in a recirculating aquaponic system use nutrients from fish waste as fertilizer, while fish take advantage of plant uptake by plants to improve water quality. The treated water is recirculated in the culture beds and fish ponds via a piping system.
"The aquarium and the pump have the most significant impact on the upfront and operational costs of these systems," said Ivaylo Nedyalkov, a researcher at the University of New Hampshire, whose workloads include: team is studying ways to improve water flow for more efficient aquaponic systems.
Nedyalkov will present his team's research at the 71st annual meeting of the American Physical Society's Division of Fluid Dynamics, to be held November 18-20 at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta, Georgia. The team also includes Todd Guerdat, assistant professor in agricultural engineering who leads the biological aspect of research, and researchers Hannah Thomas and Danielle Coombs.
Nedyalkov will focus on a study in which he studied the flow of water in a fish aquarium of 2 meters by 2 square meters (6.5 square feet) with rounded angles and two different intake configurations . The first configuration included entrances to the four corners of the tank. The second only included two-angle entrances.
SolidWorks models of the aquarium and measurement system. Researchers at the University of New Hampshire are studying the flow of water in aquariums to improve aquaponics systems. Credit: Hannah Thomas and Danielle Coombs
A Vectrino acoustic Doppler velocimeter was used to map the flow at three different depths. A detailed analysis of the repeatability and uncertainty was performed to ensure the validity of the data.
"Initial results suggest that configuration with fewer inputs and lower throughput resulted in similar speed profiles to those obtained with the configuration with more inputs and higher throughput," said Nedyalkov. . "Our research suggests that aquaponic systems can offer the same benefits by using lower energy consumption and thus lowering the operational cost of these systems."
"Aquaponic production is an ideal integrated farming model that produces fish and plants for food, both locally and sustainably, through the integration of aquaculture systems into recirculation and hydroponic production, "said Guerdat. "Our research aims to provide a model for integrating terrestrial aquaculture systems with hydroponic plant production systems that can be used locally and regionally to increase sustainable food production."
Explore further:
A former student finds solutions to food insecurity through aquaponics
More information:
Presentation Q06.3, "Experimental Study of Aquarium Flow" by Ivaylo Nedyalkov, Todd Guerdat, Hannah Thomas and Danielle Coombs, will take place on Tuesday, November 20th at 1:16 pm. in room B208 of the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta. Summary: meetings.aps.org/Meeting/DFD18/Session/Q06.3
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