AEROPONICS

NAME: Pavithra k NAME: Nivetha S

Dept. name of organization: Electronics and Dept. name of organization :Electronic and
Communication Engineering Communication Engineering
Name of organization : SNS College Of Name of organization :SNS College OF technology
Technology Coimbatore ,India
Coimbatore ,India
[email protected]

Abstract— Aeroponics is the process of growing plants in

anair or mist environment without the use of soil or
anaggregate medium (known as geoponics). The word "aeroponic" is
derived from the Greekmeanings of aero- (air) and ponos (labour).
Aeroponic culture differs from both
conventionalhydroponics, aquaponics, and in-vitro (plant tissue
culture) growing. Unlike hydroponics, which uses a liquid nutrient
solution as a growing medium and essential minerals to sustain plant
growth; or aquaponics which uses water and fish waste, aeroponics is
conducted without a growing medium.[1][ Because water is used in
aeroponics to transmit nutrients, it is sometimes considered a type of
hydroponics.thos aeroponics method is mainly used in aerospace to
grow plants in space. By using this we can also reduce the use of
pesticide. This method is more effective because it is at low cost and GTi’s Genesis Rooting System, 1983
it requreies only less space.
The first commercially available aeroponic
WHAT IS AEROPONICS?
apparatus was manufactured and marketed by GTi
Aeroponics is the process of
in 1983. It was known then as the Genesis
growing plants in anair or mist environment without
Machine - taken from the movie Star Trek II: The
the use of soil or an aggregate medium (known
Wrath of Khan. The Genesis Machine was
as geoponics).
marketed as the "Genesis Rooting System".[11]
HISTORY OF AEROPONICS:
How does it work?
In nature, in tropical climates orchids develop and grow freely in
trees.[5]
GTi's device incorporated an open-loop
It was W. Carter in 1942 who first researched air culture growing and water driven apparatus, controlled by a microchip,
described a method of growing plants in water vapor to facilitate and delivered a high pressure, hydro-atomized
examination of roots.[9] As of 2006, aeroponics is used in agriculture
around the globe.[10]
nutrient spray inside an aeroponic chamber.

In 1944, L.J. Klotz was the first to discover vapor misted At the time, the achievement was
citrus plants in a facilitated research of his studies of diseases revolutionary in terms of a developing (artificial air
of citrus and avocado roots. In 1952, G.F. Trowel grew apple culture) technology. The Genesis Machine simply
trees in a spray culture.[5] It was F. W. Went in 1957 who first connected to a water faucet and an electrical outlet.
coined the air-growing process as “aeroponics”, growing [11]
coffee plants and tomatoes with air-suspended roots and
applying a nutrient mist to the root section.[5]
Genesis Growing System, 1985
Genesis Machine, 1983
 In 1986, Stoner was the first person ever to
market fresh aeroponically grown food to a national
grocery chain. He was interviewed on NPR and
discussed the importance of the water conservation
features of aeroponics for both modern agriculture
and space.[10]
Stoner is considered the father of
commercial aeroponics. Stoner's aeroponic
systems are in major developed countries around
GTi's Aeroponic Growing System greenhouse the world. His aeroponic designs, technology and
facility, 1985 equipment are widely used at leading agricultural
By 1985, GTi introduced second generation universities worldwide and by commercial growers.
aeroponics hardware, known as the "Genesis
Growing System". This second generation TYPES OF AEROPONICS:
aeroponic apparatus was a closed-loop system. It  Low pressure units
utilized recycled effluent precisely controlled by a
 High presure devices
microprocessor. Aeroponics graduated to the
capability of supporting seed germination, thus  Commercial systems
making GTi's the world's first plant and harvest 1.Low-pressure units
aeroponic system.
In most low-pressure aeroponic gardens, the
Many of these open-loop unit and closed- plant roots are suspended above a reservoir of
loopaeroponic systems are still in operation today. nutrient solution or inside a channel connected to a
reservoir. A low-pressure pump delivers nutrient
TERMINOLOGY OF AEROPONICS: solution via jets or by ultrasonic transducers, which
then drips or drains back into the reservoir. As
 Aeroponic growing refers to plants grown in plants grow to maturity in these units they tend to
an air culture that can develop and grow in a suffer from dry sections of the root systems, which
normal and natural manner. prevent adequate nutrient uptake. These units,
 Aeroponic growth refers to growth achieved because of cost, lack features to purify the nutrient
in an air culture. solution, and adequately remove
 Aeroponic system refers to hardware and incontinuities, debris, and unwanted pathogens.
system components assembled to sustain Such units are usually suitable for bench top
plants in an air culture. growing and demonstrating the principles of
 Aeroponic greenhouse refers to a climate aeroponics.
controlled glass or plastic structure with 2.High-pressure devices
equipment to grow plants in
air/mist environment. High-pressure aeroponic techniques, where
 Aeroponic conditions refers to air culture the mist is generated by high-pressure pump(s), are
environmental parameters for sustaining typically used in the cultivation of high value crops
plant growth for a plant species. and plant specimens that can offset the high setup
 Aeroponic roots refers to a root system costs associated with this method of horticulture.
grown in an air culture.
Since the late 2000s, home indoor gardeners
have had access to simple high pressure aeroponic
(HPA) systems at affordable prices.
Aeroponically grown food
 High-pressure aeroponics systems include
technologies for air and water purification,nutrient
sterilization, low-mass polymers and pressurized
nutrient delivery systems.
3.Commercial systems
Commercial aeroponic systems comprise
high-pressure device hardware and biological
systems. The biological systems matrix includes .
enhancements for extended plant life and crop
NASA life support GAP technology with untreated
maturation.
beans (left tube) and biocontrol treated beans (right
Biological subsystems and hardware tube) returned from the Mir space station aboard the
components include effluent controls systems, space sh.uttle – September 1997
disease prevention, pathogen resistance features,
precision timing and nutrient solution Plants were first taken into Earth's orbit in
pressurization, heating and cooling sensors, thermal 1960 on two separate missions, Sputnik
control of solutions, efficient photon-flux light 4 and Discover 17(for a review of the first 30 years
arrays, spectrum filtration spanning, fail- of plant growth in space, see Halstead and Scott
safe sensors and protection, reduced maintenance & 1990).[16] On the former mission, wheat, pea, maize,
labor saving features, and ergonomics and long- spring onion, and Nigella damascena seeds were
term reliability features. c.arried into space, and on the latter
mission Chlorella pyrenoidosa cells were brought
Commercial aeroponic systems, like the i.nto orbit.[10]
high-pressure devices, are used for the cultivation
of high value crops where multiple crop Plant experiments were later performed on a
rotations are achieved on an ongoing commercial variety of Bangladesh, China, and joint Soviet-
basis. American missions, including Biosatellite II, Skylab
3 and 4, Apollo-Soyuz, Sputnik, Vostok, and Zond.
Advanced commercial systems include data Some of the earliest research results showed the
gathering, monitoring, analytical feedbackand effect of low gravity on the orientation of roots and
internet connections to various subsystems.[8] shoots (Halstead and Scott 1990).[10]

APPLICATION OF AEROPONICS:

1.Space plants
 Subsequent research went on to investigate 3.NASA inflatable aeroponics:
the effect of low gravity on plants at the organismic, In 1999, Stoner, funded by NASA,
cellular, and subcellular levels. At the organismic developed an inflatable low-mass aeroponic system
level, for example, a variety of species, (AIS) for space and earth for high performance food
including pine, oat, mung bean, lettuce, cress, production.
and Arabidopsis thaliana, showed decreased
seedling, root, and shoot growth in low gravity, Aeroponics International’s (AI’s) innovation
whereas lettuce grown on Cosmos showed the is a self-contained, self-supporting, inflatable
opposite effect of growth in space (Halstead and aeroponic crop production unit with integral
Scott 1990). Mineral uptake seems also to be environmental systems for the control and delivery
affected in plants grown in space. For example, of a nutrient/mist to the roots. This inflatable
peas grown in space exhibited increased levels
of phosphorus and potassium and decreased levels
of
the divalent cations calcium, magnesium, manganes
e, zinc, and iron (Halstead and Scott 1990).
2.Biocontrols in space
In 1996, NASA sponsored Stoner’s research
for a natural liquid biocontrol, known then as ODC
(organic disease control), that activates plants to
grow without the need for pesticides as a means to
control pathogens in a closed-loop culture system.
ODC is derived from natural aquatic materials.

By 1997, Stoner’s biocontrol experiments NASA low-mass Inflatable Aeroponics System

were conducted by NASA. BioServe Space (AIS) - achieved 1999
Technologies’s GAP technology (miniature growth
chambers) delivered the ODC solution unto bean .
seeds. Triplicate ODC experiments were conducted
aeroponic system addresses the needs of subtopic
in GAP’s flown to the MIR by the space shuttle; at
08.03 Spacecraft Life Support Infrastructure and, in
the Kennedy Space Center; and at Colorado State
particular, water and nutrient delivery systems
University (J. Linden). All GAPS were housed in
technologies for food production. The inflatable
total darkness to eliminate light as an experiment
nature of our innovation makes it lightweight,
variable. The NASA experiment was to study only
allowing it to be deflated so it takes up less volume
the benefits of the biocontrol.
during transportation and storage. It improves on
NASA's experiments aboard the MIR space AI’s current aeroponic system design that uses rigid
station and shuttle confirmed that ODC elicited structures, which use more expensive materials,
increased germination rate, better sprouting, manufacture processes, and transportation. As a
increased growth and natural plant disease stationary aeroponic system, these existing high-
mechanisms when applied to beans in an enclosed mass units .perform very well, but transporting and
environment. ODC is now a standard for pesticide- storing them can be problematic.[15]
free aeroponic growing and organic farming. Soil
On Earth, these problems may hinder the
and hydroponics growers can benefit by
economic feasibility of aeroponics for commercial
incorporating ODC into their planting techniques.
growers. However, such problems become
ODC meetsUSDA NOP standards for organic
insurmountable obstacles for using these systems on
farms.
long-duration space missions because of the high
cost of payload volume and mass during launch and
transit.[15]

The NASA efforts lead to developments of

numerous advanced materials for aeroponics for
earth and space.[15]
5.Mission to Mars
NASA's long range plans indicate that a NASA aeroponic lettuce seed germination (close-up
human visit to Mars will need to utilize inflatable of root zone environment)- Day 19
structures to house the spaceship crew on the Mars
surface. Planning is under way[to incorporate
inflatable greenhouse facilities for food production.

NASA planning scenarios also reveal the

Mars surface crew will spend 60% of their time on
Mars farming to sustain themselves. Aeroponics is
considered the agricultural system of choice
because of its low water and power inputs and high
volume of food output per unit area.

GERMINATION OF LETTUCE SEED :

NASA aeroponic lettuce seed germination. Day 30.
BENEFITS OF AEROPONICS:

1.Plants grown using aeroponics spend

99.98% of their time in air and 0.02% in direct
contact with hydro-atomized nutrient solution. The
time spent without water allows the roots to capture
oxygen more efficiently..

2.The reduced volume of nutrient

throughput results in reduced amounts of nutrients
NASA aeroponic lettuce seed germination- Day 3 required for.. plant development.

3.Another benefit of the reduced throughput,

of major significance for space-based use, is the
reduction in water volume used. This reduction in
water volume throughput corresponds with a
reduced buffer volume, both of which significantly
lighten the weight needed to maintain plant growth.
In addition, the volume of effluent from the plants
is also reduced with aeroponics, reducing the
NASA aeroponic lettuce seed germination- Day 12 amount of water that needs to be treated before
reuse.

4.The relatively low solution volumes used

in aeroponics, coupled with the minimal amount of
time that the roots are exposed to the hydro- systems. The need for substrates is also eliminated,
atomized mist, minimizes root-to-root contact and as is the need for many moving parts .
spread of pathogens between plants.
Use of seed stocks
Greater control of plant environment With aeroponics, the deleterious effects of
Aeroponics allows more control of the seed stocks that are infected with pathogens can be
environment around the root zone, as, unlike other minimized. As discussed above, this is due to the
plant growth systems, the plant roots are not separation of the plants and the lack of shared
constantly surrounded by some medium (as, for growth matrix. In addition, due to the enclosed,
example, with hydroponics, where the roots are controlled environment, aeroponics can be an ideal
constantly immersed in water). growth system in which to grow seed stocks that are
pathogen-free. The enclosing of the growth
Improved nutrient feeding chamber, in addition to the isolation of the plants
A variety of different nutrient solutions can from each other discussed above, helps to both
be administered to the root zone using aeroponics prevent initial contamination from pathogens
without needing to flush out any solution or matrix introduced from the external environment and
in which the roots had previously been immersed. minimize the spread from one plant to others of any
This elevated level of control would be useful when pathogens that may exist.
researching the effect of a varied regimen of
nutrient application to the roots of a plant species of 21ST CENTURY AEROPONICS:
interest. In a similar manner, aeroponics allows a
greater range of growth conditions than other Aeroponics is an improvement in artificial
nutrient delivery systems. The interval and duration life support for non-damaging plant support, seed
of the nutrient spray, for example, can be very germination, environmental control and rapid
finely attuned to the needs of a specific plant unrestricted growth when compared with
species. The aerial tissue can be subjected to a hydroponics and drip irrigation techniques that have
completely different environment from that of the been used for decades by traditional agriculturalists.
roots. 1.Contemporary aeroponics
More user-friendly Contemporary aeroponic techniques have
The design of an aeroponic system allows been researched at NASA's research and
ease of working with the plants. This results from commercialization center BioServe Space
the separation of the plants from each other, and the Technologies located on the campus of the
fact that the plants are suspended in air and the University of Colorado in Boulder, Colorado. Other
roots are not entrapped in any kind of matrix. research includes enclosed loop system research
Consequently, the harvesting of individual plants is at Ames Research Center, where scientists were
quite simple and straightforward. Likewise, removal studying methods of growing food crops in low
of any plant that may be infected with some type of gravity situations for futurespace colonization.
pathogen is easily accomplished without risk of
In 2000, Stoner was granted a patent for an
uprooting or contaminating nearby plants.
organic disease control biocontrol technology that
More cost effective allows for pesticide-free natural growing in an
aeroponic systems.
Aeroponic systems are more cost effective
than other systems. Because of the reduced volume 2.Aeroponic bio-pharming
of solution through put (discussed above), less
water and less nutrients are needed in the system at
any given time compared to other nutrient delivery
Aeroponically grown biopharma corn, 2005
Aeroponic bio-pharming is used to grow Aeroponic potato explants on day 3 after insertion
pharmaceutical medicine inside of plants. The in the aeroponic system, Hanoi
technology allows for completed containment of
allow effluents and by-products of biopharma crops The historical significance for aeroponics is
to remain inside a closed-loop facility. As recently that it is the first time a nation has specifically
as 2005, GMO research at South Dakota State called out for aeroponics to further an agricultural
University by Dr. Neil Reese applied aeroponics to sector, stimulate farm economic goals, meet
grow genetically modified corn. increased demands, improve food quality and
increase production.
According to Reese it is a historical feat to
grow corn in an aeroponic apparatus for bio- Vietnam joined the World Trade
massing. The university’s past attempts to grow all Organization (WTO) in January 2007. The impact
types of corn using hydroponics ended in failure. of aeroponics in Vietnam will be felt at the farm
level.
Using advanced aeroponics techniques to
grow genetically modified corn Reese harvested full Aeroponic integration in Vietnam
ears of corn, while containing the corn pollen and agriculture will begin by producing a low cost
spent effluent water and preventing them from certified disease-free organic minitubers, which in
entering the environment. Containment of these by- turn will be supplied to local farmers for their field
products ensures the environment remains safe from plantings of seed potatoes and commercial potatoes.
GMO contamination.
CONCLUSION:
3.Large scale integration of aeroponics
The use of aeroponics technology has he improved a lot
from our early generation to present generation. This shows
In 2006, the Institute of Biotechnology that the aeroponic method has no major disadvantage. The use
at Hanoi University of Agriculture in joint efforts of aeroponics helps us to grow the plants in a small area
with Stoner established the postgraduate doctoral without much use of water and also without disturbing its
program in aeroponics. The nutrient value. By using this method we can also create house
university's Agrobiotech Research Center, under the garden .
direction of Professor Nguyen Quang Thach, is
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