BIOSYSTEMS ENGINEERING

1. BIOSYSTEMS ENGINEERING 2nd Week (19 -22/ July, Semester 1, 2010/2011) Prof Madya Dr Mahmad Nor Jaafar

2. Introduction to Concept of Biological systems • Biosphere, Biomes, Ecosystem, regions • Anthropogenic Biomes, • Agro-systems • The systems concept

3. The analysis, design, & control of biologically- based systems for the sustainable production & processing of food & biological materials & the efficient utilization of natural & renewable resources in order to enhance human health in harmony with the environment.

4. The Bioshpere • The space where biotic & abiotic worlds meet, at the overlap & interface of the 3 major spheres: • atmosphere • lithosphere • the hydrosphere (Archer et al., 1987), illustrated in Fig. 1.2.

5. The Bioshpere • The biggest unit of biological systems . • Biomes are subsets of ecosystem biosphere determine by macroclimate : • Biomes Ecosystem processes ---- f( C) • C = Climate ( Precipitation &Temperature ) • .

6. Conventional Biomes ecosystem processes are a function of macroclimate (latitude, altitude, circulation) Ecosystem processes = f(C) C= Climate (precipitation & temperature)

7. Anthropogenic Biomes A Working Hypothesis: ecosystem processes in anthropogenic biomes are primarilya function of human populations and their ecosystem interactions (land use) Ecosystem processes= f(P,T) (in anthropogenic biomes) P= Population density T = Land use (how land & resources are used)

8. Lithosphere Biosphere “Biosystem” Hydrosphere Atmosphere Figure 1.2. Schematic representation of the biosphere as an interface of the atmosphere, lithosphere, and hydrosphere

9. A system with life, components of subsystems. Biosphere  Biggest unit of Biosystem Input Output

10. Biosphere- A biological system

11. Systems concepts • “system” defined as anything formed of parts or components placed together & interconnected to make a regular whole working as if one body or entity as it relates an input to an output, or a cause to an effect.

12. At least 4 concepts in this definition • A system is made up of components or subsystems which have defined relationships. • Each of these components are linked in such a manner that the output of one is an input to the other. • The successful operation of one component depends upon the other (unity). • System components are interconnected to form one body or entity in order to achieve its purpose.

13. “system” • Input • Output • Parameters • State variables • Boundary • Environment

14. Controllable input • Materials or energy which are required to bring about the desired system output. • These variable can vary with time. Examples: • Water - in soil-plant systems animal production systems, & river or lake systems. • The volume of water flowing into a river may vary during the day. • Food intake - to the body.

15. Exagenous Input • Materials or energy, which influence or affect the biosystem but the biosystem cannot affect them (at least for the system under consideration) Examples: • Solar radiation, air temperatures & rainfall - to people, forest, crop, urban, & economic systems.

16. Desired Output • The transformation product of the material input & the system processes (accounting for technologies) through the use of energy & labour. Example: • Forage & grain - of the animal system • Profit - of a farm system • Potable water - of a regional system

17. Undesired By-Products • The undesired results as the biosystems functions to produce the desired outputs. Example; • Nitrate leaching - of crop production system • Phosphate runoff - of animal production system • Water pollution - of an industrialized economy

18. State variables • summarize the status of the system • knowing the state variable (S) at any initial time t

19. System Parameters • Factors which determine the initial structure & condition of a biosystem • Constants representing technology or information • Parameters are differentiated from state variables in that, for deterministic systems, they do not change with time during the operation of the system

20. System Boundary • The separation (real or imaginary) between the system & the environment Example: • the physical boundary of a household system maybe the house structure itself, • everything inside the house belongs to the system, • everything outside belongs to the environment

21. Environment Biosystem ► Environment • The set of objects, factors, & influences outside the boundary of the system • Signals crossing the boundary into the system must be one-way direction • The signal may affect the system but the system output should not affect the environment to the extent that it would modify the signal (Eisen, 1988)

22. The environment may occur in the following forms : • Natural environment • State-of-resource-and-technology environment • State-of-knowledge environment • Institutional and Social Environment • Economic Environment

23. Natural environment • For a biological (e.g. crop production) system, the natural environment may include solar radiation, rainfall, ambient temperatures, and wind speed

24. State-of-resource-and-technology environment • Formulation & structuring of a crop production system may be affected by the type of irrigation to be employed, or the crop variety to use, or the fertilizer management to practice. • Affected by the availability of production inputs, accessibility to markets, etc

25. State-of-knowledge environment

26. Institutional and Social Environment • The institutional, organizational, & social structures(eg: government laws, regulatory bodies, lobby groups, commodity associations, social customs, personal preferences, & manpower skills) may influence the evaluation of objectives & the structuring of the biosystem. Examples: • Certain coomodities dominate the market because of trade agreements

27. Economic Environment • Input costs • Product prices • Marketing costs • Other economic factors • The formulation • Structuring • Synthesis of a biosystem affect • Example: • Cheaper inputs are likely preferred over more expensive

33. Engineering Principles Basic engineering skills include; • Analysis • Design • Control

34. Analysis • The process of finding the solution (output) of a specified system process, given a description of the system inputs. Input Output ?

35. Design • The specification of the system process in order to match specific input to desired output. Input Output

36. Control • The specification of inputs in order to achieve desired outputs given a description of the system process. Input ? Output

37. System analysis • The application of organized analytical modeling techniques appropriate for explaining complex, multivariable systems (Vaidhyanathan, 1993)

38. Growth • The principle of gradual development of living matters toward maturity • A process involving an increase in size, weight, power, wisdom, & many other factors • Decay = the antithesis of growth

39. Material Energy Actuating signals Goals or objectives Bio-control structure Bio-process structure Output Bio-sensor Figure 1.5. A generalized structure of a closed-loop biosystem

40. Biosystem structure • Broadly represented by a control structure that is human-dominated interfacing with the real structure (natural, biological, & physical) (Alocilja & Ritchie, 1992)

41. OPEN-LOOP system Controller Corn plant To grow corn Healthy or dying? Figure 1.7. Schematic diagram of a open-loop corn plant culture

42. CLOSED-LOOP control system Controller Corn plant To grow corn Healthy or dying? Measurement Figure 1.8. Schematic diagram of a closed-loop corn plant culture

43. Closed –loop control system Material Energy Actuating signals Desired path Brain, arms & legs Bicycle Output Visual measurements Figure 1.9. A schematic diagram of a rider-bike control system