Establishing and improving control stratregies that sustain plant health in a botanical biofilter

摘要

This research is a study of the effectiveness of the mechanical, hydroponic and software components of a biowall that improves indoor air quality through plant assisted phytoremediation. The research investigates the ability of the device to sustain plant health in a controlled environment over an extended period. This is because, the biowall has intermittent airflow through it. This airflow, has a detrimental effect on the health of the plants in the biowall. After studying the horticultural and mechanical aspects needed to operate a biowall, appropriate control algorithms were developed. These algorithms controlled the biowall's lights, irrigation, and fan.;An experiment evaluating the effectiveness of the control algorithms in sustaining biowall plant health then began. A temperature controlled chamber served as the location for this experiment. In this experiment, the health of the experiment group, that is, the biowall's plants, was compared with a control group of similar plants. This control group, also placed in the chamber, grew in conditions comparable to the experimental group. The control group however, did not have any air flowing through its substrate.;The conducted experiment sought to gauge the effectiveness of the control algorithms in maintaining biowall plant health. This was done by comparing experimental and control group health on a weekly basis. The subsequent analyses helped determine the impact of airflow as well the effectiveness of the control algorithms on plant health. This analysis served as the basis for recommendations that would improve future iterations of the biowall.