College students develop solar-powered aerator
DAGUPAN CITY – A group of graduating students from University of Luzon developed a prototype of a solarpowered fishpond aerator, that can be controlled easily via text message.
Computer engineering student Norman Fernandez said during a demonstration at BFAR- National Integrated Fisheries Technology and Development Center that his group’s equipment would be a big help to fishpond operators regarding the monitoring of dissolved oxygen in the water.
The device is one component of their college thesis.
“The unit is equipped with sensors that can be manually set to check dissolved oxygen, then this will automatically send a text message to notify the owner or caretaker and all is powered by a single solar panel,” he said.
“If the sensors detected a low level of dissolved oxygen, it will automatically turn on the aerators until dissolved oxygen returns to normal level,” he added.
“All of these features can be monitored and controlled through text messages only via a GSM module attached to the unit which makes it user-friendly.”
Dr. Westly Rosario, BFAR - National Integrated Fisheries Technology and Development Center (BFAR-NIFTDC) said “this will be a big advantage especially to the mechanization project of the Department of Agriculture.”
“We want a small area to intensify production. By mechanization, we wouldn’t need a bigger area before we can increase production,” Rosario added.
“This will be also a big help as we experience climate change, where we encounter many problems on fish kills. It gives instant update on oxygen levels, which is always the culprit on most fish kills.”
Rosario hopes stakeholders would appreciate and patronize projects such as this, which would bolster the development of the aquaculture industry.