SMART WATER NETWORK MONITORING: A CASE STUDY AT UNIVERSITI TEKNOLOGI MALAYSIA

Water uses need to be measured, which is critical for evaluating water stress. The Industry 4.0 via the Internet of Things (IoT) and usage of water measurement sensor can provide real-time information on the water flow rate and water pressure, that is crucial for water monitoring and analysis. There is a need for online smart water monitoring that gives out more efficient and sustainable water uses at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) campus. A prototype of an online smart water monitoring for UTM, which was developed based on the integration of IoT and Geographical Information System (GIS), consist of four layers; (1) physical layer; (2) network layer; (3) processing layer and, (4) application layer. The findings show that when the water flow increases, the water pressure decreases. When there is no water flow, the lowest value is 52.214 Psi, and the highest value is 60.916 Psi. The latest technology integrating the IoT-GIS for smart water monitoring has shown a very efficient way of providing real-time water parameters information, cost and time effective, and allowing for continuous water consumption analysis via the cloud computing service.

Comparison of Low-Cost Methods for Soil Water Holding Capacity

Purpose: The use of cost-effective methods for measurement of WHC is common in underdeveloped and developing countries, but the accuracy of these cost-effective methods compared to the sophisticated and more expensive alternatives is unclear. Methods: To compare different WHC measurement methods, 30 random samples of clay loam and sandy clay loam soils of Jhansi, India were used. The methods compared here were: FAO in-situ method (FAO), Keen Raczkowski box method (KM), funnel method (FM), column method (CM) and pressure plate method (PPA). Results: For WHC measurements the PPA results were comparable to KM and FM methods for sandy clay loam, and KM and FAO methods for clay loam. Conclusion: Therefore, until a reliable method that matches the results of sophisticated analytical methods of soil water measurement is available, different inexpensive analytical methods can be used, but they must be chosen with caution. The findings from this study will facilitate appropriate selection of a suitable method.

Research on the Conversion Coefficient for Measuring Radon Concentration in Water Based on Bubbling Method

Radon is soluble in water, and the radon in drinking water is one of the sources of indoor radon. The China national standard for drinking water (GB5749-2006) indicates that the radon concentration in drinking water cannot be higher than 300pCi/L. The widely used method for measuring radon concentration in water is to use the RAD7 and the H2O accessory which provided by the Durridge Company for bubbling measurement. There are two kind sample bottles: 40ml and 250ml; the measurement steps: bubbling for 5 minutes, and measuring for 20 minutes. For the 40ml sample volume the conversion coefficient is around 25. For the 250ml sample volume the conversion coefficient is around 4. Since the price of the accessory is more than one thousand dollars, and the drying tube of the accessory is small, it needs to be replaced after each measurement which makes the operation is troublesome. We used a big drying tube to perform the radon concentration in water measurement. A new model for description the radon concentration in the gas circuit is proposed, and the conversion coefficient in any measurement condition is obtained. Any volume of sample bottle and drying tube can be used, selecting the suitable bubbling time and measuring time, the radon concentration in water can be obtained.

Comparison of two water measurement systems for feedlot beef cattle

The objective of this study was to compare cattle drinking water consumption collected electronically with that of direct human observation using water metres and to analyse whether an automated system compensates due to its greater precision. The study was conducted in the feedlot of Embrapa Pecuaria Sudeste. The reference unit had four pens: two with electronic drinkers and two with water metres. Experiment 1 utilised 52 Nelore steers and Experiment 2 utilised 44 Canchim steers. Nelore fed a conventional diet, the automated system median daily water intake (DWI) was higher than for animals drinking from the water metre, 17.9 L day-1 and 15.6 L day-1. The reverse was observed for animals fed the co-product diet, the automated system median DWI was 18.9 L day-1 and in the water metre pen was 23.0 L day-1. When the Canchim drank from water metres, the median DWI was lower than with the automated system group, 25.9 L day-1 and 27.8 L day-1, respectively. In Experiment 1, there was a statistical difference between the two sets of equipment for both diets. In Experiment 2, the animals were the same breed, had similar weights and were fed the same diet. There was no statistical difference between the equipment in these conditions. The results indicate that the water meter can have the same performance as high technology at a much lower cost. If a more simplified system for measuring water consumption has the same performance as an automated system, this will justify its use with environmental and economic advantages.

Recoverable Autonomous Sonde for subglacial lakes exploration: heating control system design

Drilling and sampling are the most direct and effective methods available to study Antarctic subglacial lakes. Based on the Philberth probe, a Recoverable Autonomous Sonde (RECAS) allows for in situ lake water measurement and sampling, through the addition of an upper thermal tip and a cable recoiling mechanism. RECAS-200, a prototype of RECAS, has a drilling depth of 200 m, a surface supply voltage of 800 VAC and a downhole power of ~9.6 kW during drilling. In this study, a heating control system for RECAS-200 was designed. The system avoids the need for high-power step-down converters, by separating heating power from control power, thereby reducing the overall weight of the probe and avoiding the need to increase cable diameter. We also introduce a self-developed, small, solid-state, 800 VAC power regulator and a fuzzy PID temperature control algorithm. Their purpose was to manage the power adjustment of each heating element and to provide closed-loop temperature control of certain heating elements which can easily burn out due to overheating. Test results indicated that the proposed RECAS-200 heating control system met all our design specifications and could be easily assembled into the RECAS-200 probe.