Urban Farming Project

Sprague, Jax R.; Koethe, Douglas C.; Cicione, Brendan M.; Kirsh, Joseph A.; Sanchez, Jasmin A.

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Urban Farming Project

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Flats Mentor Farm (FMF) currently irrigates 4 acres of farmland by pumping well water to holding tanks, from which farmers must fill buckets and carry some distance to their plots to manually water their crops. The project team, in conjunction with representatives from FMF, developed and proposed alternative irrigation methods to replace the existing system, considering various irrigators, filtration systems, and pump designs, and eventually deciding on a MegaNet sprinkler system driven by a gasoline-powered pump, connected with layflat line and PVC connections. To simulate the system, the project team built a small-scale prototype simulating irrigation for a 25’ by 25’ plot using a 0.5 hp pump. Difficulties in layflat line and slip-on PVC connections prevented the prototype from reaching the desired pressure (35 psi). Nevertheless, the irrigation system prototype demonstrated proper MegaNet sprinkler function at low pressure (6 psi). Prototype irrigation system function, despite a proportionally weaker prototyping pump, also suggests proper pump function in the full-scale design.

This report represents the work of one or more WPI undergraduate students submitted to the faculty as evidence of completion of a degree requirement. WPI routinely publishes these reports on its website without editorial or peer review.

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