Operation

Prevention

ABP:

Conrad Spirit of Innovation Challenge 2017

Gulliver Preparatory School Engineering

Algae

Bloom

Lauren Lugones, Samuel Cabrera, Stephen Seruya, Ella Wahlestedt, Philip

Gubbins

Business Prospectus: A) Business Description

We plan to develop a product that acquires information about the quality of the water and
works in accordance with a weir-like system that extracts and recycles nutrients, like nitrogen
and phosphorous, from a eutrophic marine environment. This concept is unique in that the weirlike system will direct water flow through a system, which introduces ethanol, to facilitate the
growth of bacteria to outcompete the algal growth. This bacteria would then be put through
turbulence to allow for the production of a foam much like a protein skimmer to be used as a
fertilizer. This system differs from existing ones in that it not only filters out the desired nutrients
from the environment, but allows for access to recycled, easy to use fertilizer. All the while not
being invasive to the environment itself, for example, not using chemicals that are devastating to
the wildlife. The product alongside this system will act as a sensory feedback system that
measures the different properties of the water, specifically nutrient concentration, water
temperature, and water flow. These factors are the main contributors to the growth of algal
blooms. The information obtained about the quality of water will allow us to add ethanol to the
water in regulated amounts, and this information can also be uploaded into a public database for
scientists and environmentalists to utilize.
Our product would appeal to environmental organizations that run water sources that are
loaded with an excess of nutrients, specifically phosphorus and nitrogen. One specific example is
The Everglades Foundation, a 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization that is dedicated to leading
efforts to restore and protect the Florida Everglades. Because the Florida Everglades is practically
in our backyard, we were able to establish a strong relationship with the Everglades Foundation
and they have displayed a willingness to help us develop and test our products. Our device can
not only be used in The Florida Everglades but in any freshwater ecosystem that has an excess of
phosphorous and nitrogen. Our product would also appeal to farmers and communities living
near affected waterways, and perhaps encourage their participation in taking care of their local
environment.
There are several factors that may contribute to the success of our business. The products
solves a worldwide issue, while efficiently providing an environmentally friendly, recycled
fertilizer. The product also provides scientists and environmentalists with information on water
quality in a specific region. Due to the relatively small amount of ethanol used, there wont be
any undesired effects. Portability and adaptability are crucial advantages of our product, as they
facilitate the systems ability to be implemented wherever it is needed most at any time.

Business Prospectus: B) Market Analysis

Our product is predicted to be implemented in areas which contain freshwater lakes that
are high in nutrient concentration, specifically phosphorous and nitrogen. The team predicts that
the product would be of interest to any individual or organization with the goal of restoring and
recovering these bodies of water, which are affected by nutrient pollution. The consumer market
would therefore include local farms, environmental agencies, and government organizations.

The excess of nutrients in the

freshwater lakes is the result of fertilizer
runoff from nearby farms. It is for this reason
that the team predicts that these farms, which
include vegetable farms, citrus groves, cattle
Figure 1. Shot of the Everglades
ranches, and dairy farms, would ultimately be
the main
end user. Our device would act as an
incentive for these farms to have a green
footprint. Additionally, our device creates a fertilizer-rich foam as a byproduct, which would allow
local farms to use the byproduct as a substitute for traditional fertilizer. This recycling process
would lower the overall costs for agricultural farms, as they would not need to purchase as much
fertilizer.
The device is also predicted to be sold commercially to any environmental agency,
environmental foundation, or individual that is working to restore a specific body of water
affected by nutrient pollution. The team would be willing to pursue U.S. government contracts as
well, as the partnership would ensure that the product gets produced and distributed quickly and
efficiently. Even though the team has focused our efforts on restoring a specific body of water,
the Everglades, we predict that our project can be implemented in areas all over the world, which
are affected by nutrient pollution. This would expand our market to include more buyers, both
nationally and internationally.

Business Prospectus: C) Competitive Analysis

There is currently little competition within the phosphorus and nitrogen removal market,
hence the Everglades Foundations competition awarding a large sum of money to the team
coming up with the best solution. Many existing solutions do not address the need for a system
that recycles the nutrients in the form of fit for use fertilizer. And even more do not remove
phosphates and nitrates from the water in a clean self-sustaining way. Other competitors ignore
the importance both nutrients have together in the extent of algal growth. In implementing the
weir system design with ethanol, bacteria, and turbulence as the method of filtration, alongside
the system there shall be a separate arrangement, of sensors, that will measure concentrations
of phosphorus and nitrogen, water flow, and water temperature. These sensors themselves are
an innovation where many contemporaries will instead focus upon the one parameter of nutrient
concentration.
Current removal technologies include those categorized as mechanical, chemical, and
natural solutions. Mechanical solutions such as sifting sands and other minute particle filters
work in large industrialized settings and can be very costly to implement, while being difficult to
recycle the nutrients themselves. The same goes for chemical solutions, such as those used in
water municipalities to clean water, in that many methodologies today involve putting potentially
disastrous chemicals in marine environments to kill algae, this does not solve the underlying
problem as it does not remove the nutrients whatsoever. Natural solutions such as algae itself,
which is difficult to collect, or other flora can allow for easy access to ready fertilizer, however
they themselves may become invasive species, or outcompete local plants and animals.
The weir system intended to be implemented would be a combination of chemical and
natural solutions in that ethanol -simple sugars- would be introduced (via gravity) at a very small
measured dosage to an environment to encourage bacteria already present to outcompete the
algae in the water for those nutrients that are being removed. The bacteria, now with the

nutrients within, are then run through turbulence to, much like in a protein skimmer, bubble up
into a foam. This foam can then be collected and used as fertilizer in liquid sprays. This system
allows for noninvasive removal of nutrients, and easy to use fertilizer all the while keeping
maintenance relatively low by using the flow of water to the advantage in causing turbulence
and collecting foam.
The sensory part of the system itself is self-sustaining through the use of clean renewable
energy. The system will be able to stream the data that is being collected through a server so
everyone who the consumer wants to have access to it can. One of the largest points the
Everglades foundation and other scientific communities involved have complained about was
having to, on a regular basis, go to the everglades to collect information. By efficiently and
cleanly removing nutrients, and providing easy access to both fertilizer and important scientific
data, the system can further facilitate the prevention of algal blooms.

Business Prospectus: D) Cost

Since our resources are not uncommon and are easily available, there is no need for a
custom order from a chemical or pipe company. We plan to acquire these materials from store
walk-ins. The cost of cellulosic ethanol is 94 cents per liter. Cellulosic ethanol is made from
cellulose; we chose to use this type of ethanol because the only type of ethanol that is available
to us is cellulosic ethanol. One inch diameter, 10 foot long PVC pipe. Various pvc pipe
connectors. A 30 ft coil of elastic tubing for the system.
We chose to use off-the-shelf materials to expedite and ease the manufacturing process.
This makes the product more expensive. After two business pitches, to venture capitalists,
parents and friends team acquired funds for both research, development and building a working
prototype. The team were granted approximately 3,000 U.S.D. for research and development and
then 2,000 U.S.D. for building a working prototype. If mass production is chosen the bulk
purchase of these off-the-shelf items may reduce the price up to 50%. This would require a
materials list and assembly procedure that will be done in the future.
As for the electronic section of the device the cost must include all the sensors and the
main chip that will control them. Around 1,000 U.S.D. of the research and development budget
has been allocated to working on the electronics. The estimated price of producing the electronic
section is around 600 U.S.D. An Arduino Uno will be used as the main component for
management and transmitting the information. In addition to this the team will setup a server on
location, at the device. To enable a remote connection to the device a HC-05 Bluetooth module
will be used. To measure the phosphorous concentration in the water a 1k Ohm Photo resistor
and LED light will be used. The DS18B20 is a digital thermometer for the temperature data
collection. A Hall Flow Sensor for the speed of the water flow which works using a turbine. The
team will also use API Phosphate test for the detection of phosphorus in combination with the
other pieces. Two peristaltic pumps like the Variable-Speed Pump for pumping the chemical
reagents and the water inside on the system. Other miscellaneous electronic pieces will be used
for the circuitry.

Figure 2: Itemized cost list

Business Prospectus: E) Funding Sources

The team hopes to acquire funding from
multiple sources. These funding sources include
government contracts, development grants, venture
capital, and from private investment companies.
The team has already been successful in acquiring
financial investments from personal friends and
family. When the idea came to the team to discover
a way to remove phosphorous from the Everglades
in early 2015 Last October our school had a proposal
night of multiple projects to Figure 3: Everglades Foundation Logo
generate money to fund the
research
and
development costs. The team presented this project to our friends and family during this event,
and the donations received will go to fund the development of a prototype. The team has
received funding from private investors specifically for use to develop our device. The private
investor is also affiliated with The Everglades Foundation and has helped us further design and
develop our device.
Another path the team could take for supplication of resources is with local communities
around the affected area that produce sugarcane and ethanol, which could through a cooperative
agreement in helping take back their communities from the algae, be supplied to the team and
system for nutrient-removing purposes.
Should the team advance to the Final Round, we plan to make the drive from Miami to the
Kennedy Space Center, where the Innovation Summit will be held. The engineering department
at our school has acquired significant funds from both this project and projects created in the
past to help lower the costs to travel to Kennedy Space Center. The students would have to pay a
certain percentage of the cost to travel to Kennedy Space Center.

Technical Concept Report: A) Technical Summary

The team plans on creating a system containing two devices that will work in tandem with
one another to measure the quality of a body of water
as well as remove any extra phosphorus and nitrogen
within the water.
The first part of the system is a weir-like device
that will be used to remove phosphorus and nitrogen
from the water. The weir will focus on flow of water
through the system. Ethanol will be used to facilitate
the growth of bacteria, which is intended to compete
with the algae for nutrients. The bacteria would be
exposed to water turbulence, creating foam. Nitrogen
and phosphorus is intended to be harvested from the
foam. This device is intended to be portable and be
adaptable to various environments, to maximize its utility and efficiency.
The sensory part of the system will help determine where nutrient concentrations are
worst and therefore where the system will be placed. Figure 4: Growth of algae after nitrogen and phosphorous
was added to fresh water.
This second part of the system is a
device that will be attached to the
weir-like device in order to measure
three major factors that affect the
growth of algal blooms: nutrient
concentration, water temperature,
and water flow. To measure nutrient
concentration, the team will build a
small chamber that allows water to
enter through a check valve. While
inside the chamber, chemicals will
be
released into
the
water,
changing its color and darkening it
based on how much phosphorus and nitrogen is in the
water. A light source on one end of the chamber will Figure 5: Growth of algae over time.
allow a photo resistor on the opposite end to record the amount of light filtering through the
water, indicating the concentration of the nutrients within the water. This chamber-like system
will be placed both at the beginning and end of this weir-like system in order to accurately
monitor its effectiveness. A waterproof thermometer will be used to measure the temperature of
the water. To record the water flow, the team is interested in utilizing turbines that will record the
flow as they can also potentially power the system in all. However, the team has yet to decide
whether water turbines are the choice for supplying power to the system. All of this information
is going to be compiled in an Arduino chip and streamed to a server, which will be accessible to
researchers, scientists, and anyone else who may be interested in the information.
The team also ran many preliminary experiments to determine variables within the
system. Figure 4 shows various cups of fresh water where different amount of phosphorous and
nitrogen were added. In cup 7 and 8, both nutrients were added, this is why there is a presence
of algae when both phosphorous and nitrogen were added. Figure 5 shows an accumulation of all
the algae the team was growing. The team has also run various experiments attempting to
decrease algae growth with ethanol. The team has currently reduced the amount of nitrogen and
phosphorus in the water. Shown in figure 6 are various cups with algae, nitrogen and
phosphorous. Later, detergent and ethanol were added to see how it would affect algae growth.

On the right the ethanol was used and the algae died, proving that ethanol can reduce the
amount of algae in the water. These are preliminary tests so some more extensive tests still need
to be run.

Technical Concept Report: B) Need Statement

Toxic blue-green algae has caused beach closures on Floridas Treasure Coast in June of
2016. The main causes of the toxic algae is nutrient influx from farms located around Lake
Okeechobee. Many farms use phosphorus and nitrogen rich fertilizers to spark the growth of their
crops. The main criminal of this problem is U.S. Sugar, one of the largest sugar farmers in the US
holding over 450,000 acres of land in Florida. Many of the wetlands in the area have been
drained to give more area for farming to these big sugar companies. There was also a dike built
around Lake Okeechobee to prevent water from going into the farms and to allow for water
overflow during the many hurricanes that passed through
Florida in the 1920s. This dike redirects all Figure 4: Preliminary ethanol experiment.
the water that should naturally flow slowly
through Floridas historical river of grass into two canals that
flow east and west. The water exiting east and west has an
excess of both phosphorus and nitrogen which sparks a
process called eutrophication that stimulates an explosive
growth of algal blooms.
The complete alteration of the water flow shows short
and long term effects on the Everglades. For example, many
animals had specific water depth requirements that allowed them to survive. All species have
also shown a significant decrease in population since the Everglades are slowly shrinking as a
result of the decreased water flow. The Everglades used to be Figure 5: Dog swimming in toxic algae
a
fishermans paradise since it used to be an estuary for many infected water
fish but now since the water flow is altered for agricultural and developmental benefits it
decreases the amount of fish that could survive in the new conditions presented. By the
damaging new water flows the Everglades is now more prone to plant invasions. The invading
plants grow ridiculously fast killing the slower growing native plants. As a result of the alteration
of water flow there has been a decrease in wading bird nest colonies. It is estimated that in the
1870s there was an upward of 2.5 million wading bird nests in south Florida. In the late 1800s
extensive commercial hunting caused a decline in the bird populations since their feathers were
used by millinery manufacturers, a type of women hat. Excessive amounts of algae in our waters
cause disruption to various industries, makes our waters unsafe for swimming, and has led to
depleting sea-life populations.
Excess phosphorus in the everglades harms water quality and fuels harmful algae growth.
The nutrient pollution has also increased weed growth and stunted plant growth in the Florida
Everglades. It also harms beneficial root fungi of plants which normally help plants absorb water
and nutrients. The excess phosphorous decreases plants availability to uptake iron and zinc and
minimizes the plants ability to create chlorophyll. The excess phosphorous also affects the fishing
industry.
The excess nutrients that has caused the Everglades and other freshwater ecosystems
around the world can potentially impact the way of life not only in the greater Miami area but
anywhere that is affected by nutrient pollution. Nutrient pollution has great effects on the
environment it is present in, the health of the people and the economy. This affects the economy
because government and private agencies spend a lot of money each year to try to protect the
plants and animals that are being killed by nutrient pollution. Since nutrient pollution normally

happens in freshwater ecosystems, the excess of nutrients could potentially harm the clean
drinking water for many cities that rely on these freshwater sources. Government agencies would
have to put in more money to purify the water of the phosphorous and nitrogen to effectively
clean the water.
According to the Everglades foundation restoring the Everglades would generate an
increase of economic welfare of approximately of $46.5 billion. Groundwater purification brings in
$13,150,000,000. Real estate services will bring in $16,108,000,000. Park visitation as a result of
restoration will bring in $1,311,588,000. Open space will bring in $830,000,000. Commercial
finishing will bring in $524,100,000 and recreational finishing will bring in $2,037,000,000.
Wildlife habitat and hunting services will bring in $12,539,900,000. This adds up to a total of
$46,501,288,000. This economic growth comes in with an initial investment of $11,500,000,000
of restoring the Everglades. This can be summarized as for every $1 invested in Everglades
restoration $4.04 are created.
Restoring the Everglades will not only generate income but will also generate job growth.
It is estimated by the Everglades Foundation that a total of 442,664 jobs will be created. 6,798 of
those jobs will be in commercial fishing and 36,868 in recreational fishing.
Residential
construction and real estate services is estimated to create 273,601 jobs. Tourism will create
48,552 jobs. Agriculture will create approximately 3,724 jobs and wildlife habitat.

Technical
Technology

Concept

Report:

C)

Background

Competing technologies include products resolving water treatment such as

those used municipally, copper ion and silver filtration (often used to remove contaminants or
purify the water for drinking or recreational purposes), and industrial sifting sand treatments.
Other existing technologies include those used recreationally with pets like fish in aquariums,
such as protein skimmers which through turbulence cause the proteins in the water that would
otherwise harm the environment to foam up (and later be skimmed to fully remove from the
system). Other products include those natural solutions as found in the company UltraPhos Filter
where sacks of biological material are used to filter out select nutrients, or bacteria in aquarium
systems facilitated in their growth by buckyballs or other objects with a high surface area. The
weir system will be innovative and better than existing technologies as it is based upon a
combination of pre-existing technologies, allowing for not just the removal of nutrients as found
in many filtration systems, but the ability to recycle the nutrients with ease. To do this the
system combines the natural power of the water flow as harnessed by already existing weir
systems, while adding onto this structure an ethanol drip (ethanol being a frequently used
technology in aquarium enthusiasts to aid in nutrient filtration), and a protein skimmer to then
remove the nutrients from the water for easy recycling via the bacteria being foamed up.
The sensor is the HydroCycle-P04 Phosphate sensor created by the company
Sea-Bird Coastal. This machine is proficient at finding the concentration of phosphorous in
water. This info can go into the software built for the detection device. This machine is massive
and bulky and does not solve the problem instead only collecting data. In smaller scale tests like
in fish tanks different chemicals can be used to stain the water and change it a color with
intensity directly proportional to the concentration of phosphorous. Algeon consists of two
reagents that will stain the water a dark blue that gets darker the more phosphorous in the
water. This is then compared to a gradient that is supplied by the manufacturer to find the
concentration of phosphorus. Though practical for small scale experiments it has many
inconveniences as it all has to be done by hand. Our system incorporates a middle ground

between electronic and chemical detection by pumping 5 ml of the everglades water

electronically and then pumping both reagents from the company Algeon that specifically
detect phosphorus were designed. As the water darkens in accordance to the concentration of
phosphorus due to the reagents a light of a certain frequency will be shined from one of the sides
of the chamber. Directly in parallel a photo resistor will adjust its resistance depending on the
brightness of the light. This information will determine the concentration of phosphorus. It is also
better than the competition as it is able to stream the information for ease of data collection.
This philosophy of efficient data collection continues with the other sensors. Using a Hall Flow
Sensor connected to the Arduino we are able to capture the information of the water flow speed
and transmit it. This beats most other sensors as it will be able to send the data online. The
Thermometer again beats other water temperature measuring devices by being able to transmit
the information online. The DS18B20 gives of accurate measuring of the temperature. As all of
these sensors come together it makes finding the data needed much more efficiently than any
other system. To automatize everything an Arduino brand chip will be used to both store and
transfer the data. In addition so some network connectors we will setup a server which can be
accessed to get information collected.

Technical Concept Report: D) Concept Detail

The weir-like device will be able to be placed at the mouth of any body of water that has
an overabundance of nutrients. Once the system is set up, water will be able to flow through the
system, where ethanol will be injected into the water, stimulating the growth of bacteria. By
stimulating the bacterias growth, it will be able to outcompete the algae for the nutrients
contained within the water. The water will then become subject to turbulence, creating foam -like
a protein skimmer- that will contain these nutrients. The foam will then flow up the pipes and
collect on top of the system while the water continues to flow straight and out of the system.
Once the foam is collected, the phosphorus and nitrogen contained inside the foam will be able
to be recycled.
While entering the weir-like device, a check valve will allow some of the entering water to
flow into a separate part of the system that will measure the concentration of nutrients in the
water. This separate device will allow the water to gather in a chamber. Once there is enough
water within the chamber, the check valve will prevent any more water from entering this part of
the weir. The chamber will then inject the water with chemicals that will change the color of the
water to a blue tint. The blue tint will depend on how much nitrogen and phosphorus is in the
water. A light source placed on one end of the chamber will then illuminate the chamber. A photo
resistor on the opposite end of the chamber will then record the amount of light passing through
the tinted water. The darker the blue, the less light will pass through, which will cause the photo
resistor to read a smaller value, which will indicate a greater amount of phosphorus and nitrogen
in the water. The lighter the blue tint is, the more light will be able to pass through the water,
and the higher the value of the photo resistor will be, indicating less amounts of nitrogen and
phosphorus. The water will then be released back into the weir device in order to allow the water
to go through the nutrient removal process. Another chamber device will also be placed at the
end of the weir device in order to measure the water after having gone through the removal
process in order to accurately measure the effectiveness of the teams device. The system will
also have multiple turbines placed in the water in order to accurately measure the flow of the
water based on how fast the blades are rotating. A water proof thermometer will be attached to
the device to measure the temperature of the water. An Arduino chip will be used to stream the
data collected to a server that can be accessed by scientists, researchers, and anyone else who

is interested in the information in order to facilitate the development of future devices to solve
the problem.
Depending on the size of the mouth of the water source one must place an accordingly
sized weir system on it. Once the system is secured on the mouth, water will flow from one side
to the other. As the water flows inside a small portion of it will be channeled into a separate
chamber through a check valve. In this chamber two chemicals will be administered that will
force a change of color in the water to that of a blue tint, the more nutrients in the water the
darker the tint is. After a certain period of time that there is water in the system the Arduino chip
will turn on the flashlight within one side of the chamber. Directly in front of it is a photo resistor
which will measure how much light is filtering through, the photo resistor resistance value,
measured in Ohms will be higher the more light is filtering through and thus the more nutrients
the less resistance. This recording of Ohms will be sent into a serial port in the Arduino which will
translate the resistance into numbers and they will be displayed on the serial screen. This
custom-made device along with a thermometer and a water turbine will allow the team to
accurately test the key factors of algal growth, thus allowing them to properly adjust the
functionality of the weir system to best counteract the conditions of the body of water.

Graphical Representation:

Figure 9. Preliminary Design Sketch

Figure 9 shows a preliminary

sketch for the design of a
single pipe of the weir system.
Water will come in from the
bottom as well as ethanol fed
by gravity. As per the water
flow in the river the water and
ethanol will head up through
the pipe over limestone which
provides surface area for the
bacteria and nutrients.
Outflow would go out the back
of the pipe and abrasive
material and air would cause
foam to form and collect
above the system.

Figure 10: Real world weir model from Seattle.

Figure 11: The team after presenting to possible investors and was able to acquire funding.

Figure 12: The team was invited to the George Barley Water Science Prize Round 1 to view winning submissions. The team also
received valuable input from scientists and experts at the event.

Figure 13: Updated CAD image of weir system and testing system.

Figure 14 shows preliminary

design of basic circuitry for
some aspects of the sensing
portion of the project. Includes
motors for water flow speed
measurement. Also, a
thermometer to measure the
temperature of the water.
Finally, a photo resistor that in
tandem with the LED will
measure the concentration of
phosphorous through a water
color changing test.

Figure 14: Arduino chip / circuit layout with photo resistor, thermometer and water flow
measurement tool.

Video Link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6TBmAv0zVTw

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