The addition of liquid fertiliser to closed-loop hydroponic systems is necessary to provide the nutrient ions necessary to promote the growth of the plants they support.
Traditionally, establishing ion concentrations in hydroponic solutions is undertaken using in-line electrical conductivity (EC) measurements. Although EC measurements are accurate in providing a value for total ion availability, they do not provide information regarding the concentration of individual ions, where deficits of one ion type can lead to poor plant yield.
In order to measure individual ion levels, time consuming and often expensive laboratory analysis is required. This tends to limit the number of samples taken and results in a time-lag in data availability for subsequent adjustment of nutrient solutions.
In this collaborative project, CultinovaEDGE™ hardware was used to control and optimise ion availability in closed-loop hydroponic systems as part of a solution employing a novel automated in-line approach for the measurement and control of individual ions.
