Active Soil Aeration Using Windmills
J. Wang, S. Thomas
We are proposing to use windmills to aerate anaerobic soils. In some areas the waste products have accumulated in excess, the oxygen in the soil has been depleted, and the soils have turned anaerobic. These areas without oxygen are anaerobic and the degradation of waste material doe not rapidly occur. With only anaerobic processe occurring, not only is degradation slow, but the by-products of some processe are toxic and unpleasant. Land areas that could benefit from additional aeration are those that have been artificially made anoxic, such as landfills and dredged canals, and areas that have been constructed simply to have a high productivity, such as a constructed wetland.
The proposed system consists of three separate embodiments. First, the prop and transmission will harness wind energy to turn the drive shaft. Second, the drive shaft will turn the crank shaft which will power the pump. Third, the pump will supply air to the holding tank, the humidifier, and ultimately the gas exchange plugs. The prop and transmission included within the system provide a means of converting wind energy into easily useable mechanical energy. The pump convets mechanical energy into the desired product, air pressure. The tank stores the compressed has and acts as a reservoir of air, so during periods of calm the tank will hold enough air to carry throughout the time period, or at least retard the depletion of soil around the gas exchange plug. As air is compressed it coools down, and while the relative humidity goes up, the absolute humidity goes down. WHen the gas is released it warms up and the relative humidity is very low. The addition of a simple bubble humidifier in line will prevent desiccation of the soil. The pump air will ultimately pass through the gas exchange plug before leaving the system. The plug will utilize a low flow rate to encourage mixing and gas exchange between the plug and soil along the pressure gradients.
