{"id":16800,"date":"2014-02-17T18:24:05","date_gmt":"2014-02-17T22:24:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.fondriest.com\/news\/?p=16800"},"modified":"2021-11-10T16:42:57","modified_gmt":"2021-11-10T20:42:57","slug":"iowa-scientists-pursue-nutrient-moisture-temperature-data-square-inch-soil-sensor","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fondriest.com\/news\/iowa-scientists-pursue-nutrient-moisture-temperature-data-square-inch-soil-sensor.htm","title":{"rendered":"Iowa scientists pursue square-inch soil sensor for nutrient, moisture and temperature data"},"content":{"rendered":"

A research team at Iowa State University received a $1 million grant for their continuing work on a wireless soil sensor that will help farmers dig up dirt on nutrients, moisture and temperature.<\/p>\n

The sensor will help farmers monitor the quality of their soil, and determine where to water and fertilize their crops. Ratnesh Kumar, professor of electrical and computer engineering at ISU and leader of the research team,\u00a0hopes the sensor will help reduce nutrient loads across Iowa.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe entire state of Iowa has a single \u2018prescription\u2019 for fertilizer that is made at the state level,\u201d Kumar said. \u201cWe should be making a recommendation for each farm.\u201d By increasing accessibility to nutrient data, the sensor could make that a reality.<\/p>\n

Kumar’s team was one of 17 awarded grants by the National Science Foundation\u2019s Cyber-Innovation Sustainability Science and Engineering program.\u00a0Developed by researchers from ISU\u2019s agronomy and electrical engineering departments, the soil sensor monitors nutrient levels, moisture and temperature. The sensor measures conductivity and impedance to obtain soil properties with high precision.<\/p>\n

The current model is an upgrade of a previous version that was about a foot long — too big to conveniently place underground. The researchers minimized the design by working with metamaterials, fabricated materials that possess unusual electromagnetic properties. In doing so, they reduced the size to a square inch.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe prototype can measure soil moisture and conductivity,\u201d Kumar said. \u201cRight now we measure the bulk conductivity of all the ions. Going forward, we need to be able to measure fractions of ions to see how many of each nutrient exist.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"The

The sensor (Credit: Suhaib Tawil\/Iowa State Daily)<\/p><\/div>\n

One of the sensor\u2019s distinguishing features is its wireless capabilities. Similar devices rely on transmitting antennae to protrude from the ground, potentially interfering with farming work. Kumar\u2019s sensor can interface with laptops or cellphones without an antenna.<\/p>\n

Although the sensor hasn\u2019t yet been used in the field, Kumar said he and the other researchers plan to test it once the weather warms up.<\/p>\n

\u201cOnce the winter is over we\u2019ll be able to go to the field and test it there,\u201d he said. \u201cOnce we have enough confidence, we\u2019ll try to work with farmers.\u201d<\/p>\n

Iowa, being the nation\u2019s largest producer of corn, seems like a natural place to test the sensor. However, Kumar said his team is making connections with farmers in India as well, who would use the sensors to plan irrigation.<\/p>\n

\"Ratnesh

Ratnesh Kumer (Credit: Suhaib Tawil\/Iowa State Daily)<\/p><\/div>\n

The ISU researchers designed the sensor with agriculture in mind, but Kumar said it is useful for \u201cany application that will benefit from electrical property base measurements.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen oil spills happen, the oil basically floats on the ocean\u2019s surface as a sheet,\u201d Kumar said. Restoration teams use cleaners to break the oil into smaller particles, but some of the oil inevitably settles into the water column.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne thing we have talked about is using these sensors in the coastal areas to see how much of the oil is still there,\u201d Kumar said.<\/p>\n

As the sensor development progresses, Kumar said the team may explore fitting the wireless interface onto other types of sensors.<\/p>\n

Top image: A farmer applies nitrogen fertilizer to a corn field in Iowa (Credit: U.S. Department of Agriculture, via Wikimedia Commons)<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A square-inch, wireless soil sensor that measures moisture and nutrients is in the works at Iowa State University. It could help cut nutrient loads.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":18,"featured_media":16805,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[345,60,138],"class_list":["post-16800","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-earth-atmosphere","tag-earth-atmosphere","tag-featured","tag-soil"],"remote_post_permalink":false,"remote_post_featured_image":false,"yoast_head":"\nScientists pursue square-inch soil sensor for nutrient, moisture and temperature data<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A square-inch, wireless soil sensor that measures moisture and nutrients is in the works at Iowa State University. 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