Solar Powered Agricultural Spraying Machine

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Abstract:  India is the land of villages. This being said the major occupation of people in India is agricu agricultu lture re.. The proj project ect deals deals with with develop developmen mentt of solar solar agricu agricultu ltural ral sprayer sprayer.. The  problems faced by Indian farmers today are solved by developing a solar powered  agriculture sprayer machine. This machine is platform mounted with pesticide tank on the platform. The machine is operated electrically using solar energy from the PV panel  mounted on the machine.  Keywords: Platform Platform !armers "olar "olar "prayer etc etc INTRODUCTION India is the land of villages. This being said the major occupation of majority of villages in Indi Indiaa is agri agricu cult ltur ure. e. Near Near about about 70% 70% peopl peoplee are are depe depende ndent nt upon upon agric agricult ultur ure. e. Agriculture has been the backbone of the Indian economy and it ill continue to remain so for a long time. It has to support almost !7 per cent of orld population from ".# per  cent of orld orld geogra geographi phical cal area area and $." per cent of orld orldss ater ater resour resources ces.. The economic reforms& initiated in the country during the early !''0s& have put the economy on a higher groth trajectory. Annual groth rate in ()* has accelerated from belo +  percent during the initial years of reforms to more than , percent in recent years. This happened mainly due to rapid groth in non-agriculture sector. The orkforce engaged in agriculture beteen !',0-,! and "00+-07 itnessed a very small decline from +0./  percent to /" percent. Indian Indian agricul agricultur turee is charact characteri eried ed by agro-e agro-ecol cologi ogical cal divers diversiti ities es in soil& soil& rainfal rainfall& l& temperature& temperature& and cropping cropping system. system. 1esides 1esides favorable favorable solar energy& energy& the country receives about # trillion m # of rainater& !$ major& $$ medium and // minor rivers share about ,#  per cent of the drainage basin. About "!0 billion m# ater is estimated to be available as ground ater. Irrigation ater is becoming a scarce commodity. Thus proper harvesting and efficient utiliation of ater is of great importance. The The nati nation on is stri strivi ving ng to find find ays ays and and mean meanss to keep keep its its burg burgeo eoni ning ng popul populat atio ion n ade2uately fed. 3n the one hand it is facing the problem of declining productivity and on the other& challenges posed by liberaliation. In such a scenario& leveraging the available natural resources and e4isting infrastructure is the only ay to make the ends meet. 5anagement of the already built infrastructure in harmony ith natural systems is the clarion call of the day. 6noledge of the e4tent of e4isting infrastructure and natural resources is one of the most basic pre-re2uisites to utilie them effectively and in a sustainable sustainable manner. The discipline discipline of agricultur agricultural al engineering engineering endeavors to develop develop technologies for enhancing productivity and igure ! )istrict 8ise Average 9ainfall in India As compared to other fields globaliation in agriculture system is less. 1ut& ith recent advancements in engineering and technology& there also have been changes in agricultural technology and practices. Though there are advancements people still follo old  practices due to the lack of money and high cost of technically advanced agricultural e2uipments. igure supplied by national income committee and central statistical sho clearly that agricultural contributed /7% of the national income means agriculture field takes lions shares in national income. :omparison can made beteen the positions of agricultural in India ith that in other country as regards shares of agriculture in India ith that in other  country as regards shares of agriculture in national income. The more developed a country the smaller is share of agriculture in national input. India& having not yet reached the stage of advanced economy& has an agricultural sector hich is skill the dominant one in the country.  According to a study made by I;A<& it is found that hoes& pangas& a4es and shovels are the main farm tools used by the farmers in India for agricultural operation. These tools are conventional& time immemorial and no improvement in agricultural practice is adopted. =ence& it is necessary to develop a system hich results in drudgery reduction and is user friendly to agricultural community in India. The productivity of farms depends greatly on the availability and judicious use of farm  poer by the farmers. Agricultural implements and machines enable the farmers to employ the poer judiciously for production purposes. Agricultural machines increase  productivity of land and labour by meeting timeliness of farm operations and increase ork out-put per unit time. 1esides its paramount contribution to the multiple cropping and diversification of agriculture& mechaniation also enables efficient utilisation of  inputs such as seeds& fertilisers and irrigation ater. Farm Mechanization arm 5echaniation in Indian agriculture started ith the establishment of the :entral Tractor 3rganisation >:T3? mainly for land reclamation and development& mechanical cultivation and reduction of sanccharum spontanium. igure " Tractor orking in a farm arm mechaniation saves time and labour& cuts don crop production costs in the long run& reduces post-harvest losses and boosts crop output and farm income. ;teady groth is observed in manually operated tools& animal operated implements& and e2uipment operated by mechanical and electrical poer sources in India. In manually operated e2uipment& the number of sprayers has almost doubled. After liberaliation and ith development of prototypes of machines& manufacturing got a big boost particularly in =aryana& *unjab& 9ajasthan& 5adhya *radesh and @ttar *radesh states of India. The Indian agricultural e2uipment market is e4periencing a rapid groth ith e4pected strong potential for future groth as ell. The demand for agricultural machinery in Asia-*acific region as more than tice than in any other region. In Asia-*acific& India has remained one of the primary nations hich fuelled the groth of the agricultural e2uipment market. The tractors& poer tillers& combine harvesters& rotavators& threshers and rice transplanters are some of the e2uipment for hich a surge in demand has been itnessed over the past fe years. 5echaniation is vieed as package of technology to >i? ii? Increase land utiliation and input use efficiency >iii? Increase labour productivity using labour saving and drudgery reducing devices besides& being cost effective and eco-friendly. Appropriate machinery have been adapted by farmers for ensuring timely field operations and effective application of various crop production inputs utiliing human& animal and mechanical poer sources. )iverse farm mechaniation scenario prevails in the country due to sie of farm holdings and socio-economic disparities. Indian agriculture continues to be dependent upon human. =and tools and animal dran implements are e4tensively used hich involve a great amount of drudgery. 3ver the last fe years& there has been considerable progress in agriculture mechaniation. It is generally believed that the benefits of modern technology have been restricted to farmers ith large land-holdings. et the fact remains that even small farmers are adopting and utilising selected farm e2uipments for efficient farm management through custom hiring. 5echanical e2uipments for various farm operations like tillage& soing& irrigation& plant protection and threshing etc are generally being used  by the farming community. Status of Farm Mechanization in India particularly 8estern and Tarai belt? have achieved a faster groth in mechaniation over various *lans  The sale of other implements and machines like combine harvesters& threshers and other poer-operated e2uipment have been increasing almost throughout the country  The pace of mechaniation in North-more than $00 litres Fha? ". Co volume sprayer >/ to $00 litresF hectare? #. @ltra lo volume sprayer >@CE? spray >less than / litres Fha?. The selection techni2ue depends up on type of vegetation& kind of pests and approach to the field. U#TRA #O& %O#UM$ S'RA($R  @CE ;prayer is used to spray chemicals on ro crops like cotton& copea& groundnuts & tobacco and vegetables. It is ideally suited for home gardens. It is a handheld sprayer ith a spinning F rotating disc designed for ultra-lo volume >@CE? and  controlled droplet application of insecticides& fungicides& pesticides& herbicides and all li2uids. 9otating disc technology ensures efficient li2uid atomiation to give appropriate droplet sie. @CE formulations are applied at only "./-7./ litres F ha. 3ne hectare of crop can be treated in around "./ hour  )AND ATOMI*$R This sprayer is also ideally suited for home gardens and small fields. It consists of a container of 0./ to #./!it capacity a built in air pump& pressure gauge & nole and flo cut off lever. The tank is to be filled ith G th volume. The pump is operated to build  pressure in the tank of 0.!/-0.# kgFcm" . 8hen the flo cut off lever is pressed & the fluid passes through the nole and spraying is done. The application rate ranges from $/ to !00 litres Fha. )AND COM'R$SSION S'RA($R   It is suitable for applying chemicals for field crops and lans. ;imilar to hand atomier  this sprayer also consists of a tank of !0-!" lit capacity for holding spray material & a vertical air pump & pressure gauge& filling port& spray lance & nole and a flo control lever. The chemical tank is filled 7/-,0 % volume .The pump is operated to pump air in to the tank to build pressure up to ".0 H #./ kgFcm". 8hen the flo cut off lever is  pressed& the fluid passes through the nole and spraying is done. The sprayer is carried on the shoulder of the operator. The application rate ranges from $/ to !00 litres Fha. +NA'SAC+ S'RA($R ,)AND O'$RAT$D- This sprayer is suitable for applying chemicals to several field crops. The operator carries the sprayer on his back and hence the name knapsack sprayer. It has a flat or bean-shaped tank of !0-!/ litres capacity.& a hydraulic pump fitted inside the tank& a handle to operate   the pump& agitator& filter& delivery hose& and spray gun ith nole and flo control lever.  The tank is made of either brass or *E: material. The tank is filled ith chemical solution. 8hen the pump is operated& it dras the fluid through the suction hole and delivers it to the spray gun& 8hen the cut off lever is pressed spraying is don e through the nole as fine droplets. The pressure developed in these sprayers depends on the pump and varies from # to !" kgFcm" The application rate is /00 litFha. The coverage is 0./-!.0 haFday. Sa.ient !. ". features @seful Cight in to eight #. =igh $. 9obust /. 1oth of develop and easy /nasac/ high to carry ork on rate and left pressure the ith back +.!0-!/ of and simple and sra!ers0 right less effort. the operator.. economical. to maintain. hand operation lit. capacity 7. <98? pipe is manufactured by rolling metal and then elding it longitudinally across its length. These  pipes not only provie sufficient strength in e4treme conditions of the machine but also are economical. Thus to fabricate the frame <98 steel pipes ith 0.7/ inch s2uare cross section ere chosen.  !igure: "#uare $%& pipes Se.ection of So.ar ane.: The selection of solar panel as very imporatnt as the machine is solar poered. The solar panel selected should meet the folloing re2uirements !? ;hould be affordable "? ;hould be able to mount in least space #? ;hould charge the 1atteyr in day long cycle :onsidering these thisng sin mind the solar panel of !0 8 as choosen Se.ection of so.ar char"e contro..er: The solar charge controller plays a major role ithout hich it is not possible to charge the battery. As the charge controller regulates the charge coming out of the solar panel and supplies it to the load the charge controller selected should meet the folloing re2uirements !? ;hould be economical "? ;hould deliver the current re2uired by the load #? ;hould regulate the solar panel voltage to battery $? ;hould have battery lo cutoff function. 6eeping folloing things in mind& and considering the load current of  / A the + A charge controller as choosen. Se.ection of sra! um: ;ince the entire system is designed to handle the load of  / amp the pump hich consumes less than / A of current as chosen. The pump chosen is !" E #./ A pump. Se.ection of o2er s!stem: Though the system is poered using solar energy& it re2uires battery to store the charge. The battery selected need to meet the oflloing re2uirements !? To give sufficinet backup for spray pump "? ;hould charge easily #? Cong battery life $? :ompact and economical 1ased on the folloing re2uirements the batteyr choosen as 7." A= !" E  battery. STANDARD COM'ON$NTS US$D IN T)IS 'RO6$CT: 4- So.ar 'ane.: This project uses !0 att soalr panel. the folloing are the specifications of !0 8att soalr panel. ;olar panel refers to a panel designed to absorb the sunDs rays as a source of energy for generating electricity or heating. The primary component of  a solar panel is the solar cells& or photovoltaic cell. This is the key component that converts sunlight into electricity. At the present time about ,0% of all solar panels are made from crystalline silicon >i.e.&monocrystalline& polycrystalline& amorphous silicon& or hybrids? solar cells. Typically the solar cells are laid out in a grid pattern H ith perhaps as many as 7" different solar cells. The other "0% consist primarily of solar cells made mostly from :admium Telluride and a small but groing amount from :I(;. The appeal of these types of cells is their lo cost resulting from the fact they can be made in large single sheets. Cots of small solar cells spread over a large area can ork together to provide enough poer to be useful. The more light that hits a cell& the more electricity it  produces& so the machine is usually designed ith solar panels that can alays be  pointed at the ;un even as the rest of the body of the machine moves around. igure # ;olar *anel This project uses a !0 8att !" E solar panel as it is sufficient to charge the  battery. The technical specifications of the solar panel are as shon belo. ;pecificationsB 5a4 9ated *oer >*ma4? Eoltage at 5a4 *oer >Emp? :urrent at 5a4 *oer >Imp? 3pen :ircuit Eoltage >Eoc? ;hort :ircuit :urrent >Isc? Cength 4 8idth 4 )epth >inches? !0 8atts !7.# Eolts 0./' Amps "!., Eolts 0.+$ Amps !#., 4 !!., 4 0.', 7- Char"e contro..er: The charge controller is the device hich is used to charge the battery and take the load using the electricity generated by solar panel. In our project as the net load ill never e4ceed / amp& / to !- amp solar charge controller should sufficient. A charge controller is an essential part of nearly all poer systems that charge  batteries& hether the poer source is *E& ind& hydro& fuel& or utility grid. Its purpose is to keep your batteries properly fed and safe for the long term. The basic functions of a controller are 2uite simple. :harge controllers block reverse current and prevent battery overcharge. ;ome controllers also prevent battery over  discharge& protect from electrical overload& andFor display battery status and the flo of   poer. 1locking CetDs e4amine each 9everse function individually. :urrent *hotovoltaic panels ork by pumping current through your battery in one direction. At night& the panels may pass a bit of current in the reverse direction& causing a slight discharge from the battery. >3ur term JbatteryJ represents either a single battery or bank  of batteries.? The potential loss is minor& but it is easy to prevent. ; ome types of ind and hydro generators also dra reverse current hen they stop >most do not e4cept under  fault conditions?. In most controllers& charge current passes through a semiconductor >a transistor? hich acts like a valve to control the current. It is called a JsemiconductorJ because it passes current only in one direction. It prevents reverse current ithout any e4tra effort or cost. In some controllers& an electromagnetic coil opens and closes a mechanical sitch. This is called a relay. >ou can hear it click on and off.? The relay sitches off at night& to  block reverse current. If you are using a *E array only to trickle-charge a battery >a very small array relative to the sie of the battery?& then you may not need a charge controller. This is a rare application. An e4ample is a tiny maintenance module that prevents battery discharge in a  parked vehicle but ill not support significant loads. ou can install a simple diode in that case& to block reverse current. A diode used for this purpose is called a Jblocking diode.J *reventing 3vercharge 8hen a battery reaches full charge& it can no longer store incoming energy. If energy continues to be applied at the full rate& the battery voltage gets too high. 8ater separates into hydrogen and o4ygen and bubbles out rapidly. >It looks like itDs boiling so e sometimes call it that& although itDs not actually hot.? There is e4cessive loss of ater& and a chance that the gasses can ignite and cause a small e4plosion. The battery ill also degrade rapidly and may possibly overheat. <4cessive voltage can also stress your loads >lights& appliances& etc.? or cause your inverter to shut off. *reventing overcharge is simply a matter of reducing the flo of energy to the battery hen the battery reaches a specific voltage. 8hen the voltage drops due to loer sun intensity or an increase in electrical usage& the controller again allos the ma4imum  possible charge. This is called Jvoltage regulating.J It is the most essential function of all charge controllers. The controller Jlooks atJ the voltage& and regulates the battery charging in response. ;ome controllers regulate the flo of energy to the battery by sitching the current fully on or fully off. This is called JonFoff control.J 3thers reduce the current gradually. This is called Jpulse idth modulationJ >*85?. 1oth methods ork ell hen set properly for  your type of battery. A *85 controller holds the voltage more constant. If it has to-stage regulation& it ill first hold the voltage to a safe ma4imum for the battery to reach full charge. Then& it ill drop the voltage loer& to sustain a JfinishJ or JtrickleJ charge. To-stage regulating is important for a system that may e4perience many days or eeks of e4cess energy >or  little use of energy?. It maintains a full charge but minimies ater loss and stress. The voltages at hich the controller changes the charge rate are called set points. 8hen determining the ideal set points& there is some compromise beteen charging 2uickly  before the sun goes don& and mildly overcharging the battery. The determination of set  points depends on the anticipated patterns of usage& the type of battery& and to some e4tent& the e4perience and philosophy of the system designer or operator. ;ome controllers have adjustable set points& hile others do not. 8- 'um: The pump is used to pump the li2uid form the tank and push it ith high pressure to the nole of the sprayer. • • • The specifications of the pump areB 3perating EoltageK !" E :urrent K #./ Amp )ischarge K $ to + Citres per minute 9- Batter! : The battery used in this project is !" E 7." A= sealed lead acid battery The specifications of the battery are as follosB ;l. No ! " # *arameter Eoltage :urrent *oer CA#CU#ATIONS: • Time re2uired for battery charging The poer of the battery K !" 4 7." K ,+.$ 8 Ealue !" E 7." Amp ,+.$ 8att The solar panel poer inputK !0 8 The time re2uired for charging full battery K ,+.$F!0 K,.+$ hours Assuming day long cycle of , '- hours the battery can be charged completely in one day • The poer consumed by motor is given by * K !" 4 #./ K $" 8 8e kno the poer rating of the battery is ,+.$ att Therefore the battery backup is given by ,+.$ F $" K ".0/ hours M$C)ANICA# FABRICATION: A)EANTA(<; AN) )I;A)EANTA(<;B 4789- Ad1anta"es: ;olar poered hence doesnt re2uired electricity in villages for charging :an be used in remote locations. )oesnt re2uire farmers to carry heavy tanks on their back  :an be upgraded to higher tank capacity ith ease Disad1ata"es: !? 9e2uires some initial investment "? 1attery maintenance is re2uired after some time