Browsing by Author "Bamsey, Matthew"
Now showing 1 - 9 of 9
- Results Per Page
- Sort Options
Item Early Trade-offs and Top-Level Requirement Definition for Antarctic Greenhouses(46th International Conference on Environmental Systems, 2016-07-10) Bamsey, Matthew; Zabel, Paul; Zeidler, Conrad; Vrakking, Vincent; Schubert, Daniel; Kohlberg, Eberhard; Stasiak, Michael; Graham, ThomasThe development of plant production facilities for extreme environments presents challenges not typically faced by developers of greenhouses in more traditional environments. Antarctica represents one of the most inhospitable environments on Earth and presents unique challenges to facility developers with respect to environmental regulations, logistics, waste management, and energy use. The unique challenges associated with plant production in Antarctica heavily influence the selection of subsystem components and technologies as well as the operational paradigms used to operate the facilities. This paper details a wide array of the early design choices and trade-offs that have arisen in the development of Antarctic plant production facilities. Specific requirements and several guidelines stemming from the Antarctic Treaty’s Protocol on Environment Protection and their influence on Antarctic plant production facilities are described. A review of guidelines for Antarctic greenhouses published by several national Antarctic operators is also described. The specific technology choices of several past and present Antarctic greenhouses are summarized, as are the general operational strategies, such as solid and nutrient solution waste handling. Specific lessons learned input was compiled directly from developers and operators of a number of these facilities. A discussion on the Antarctic climate, differences in Antarctic installation locations, internal versus external station plant growth facilities, preshipment testing programs, carbon dioxide enrichment and numerous other Antarctic facility design trade-offs are elaborated. It is hoped that this paper can serve as a useful checklist for future Antarctic plant production facility developers.Item Future Exploration Greenhouse Design of the EDEN ISS Project(47th International Conference on Environmental Systems, 2017-07-16) Zabel, Paul; Bamsey, Matthew; Zeidler, Conrad; Vrakking, Vincent; Schubert, Daniel; Romberg, OliverThe Future Exploration Greenhouse (FEG) is the heart of the international EDEN ISS project, which aims to investigate and validate techniques for plant cultivation in future bioregenerative life support systems. The EDEN ISS project partners designed and built the Mobile Test Facility (MTF), which consists of two modified 20 foot shipping containers. The FEG is integrated into one of these containers. It has a shelf-like plant cultivation system with up to four levels for growing plants and it has a cultivation area of roughly 12.5 m². The FEG is designed to accommodate differ-ent plant species ranging from leafy greens (e.g. lettuce, spinach) to tall growing plants (e.g. tomato, cucumber). The plants grow in customized trays which hold the plants in position and contain the plants’ roots. The trays can be connected to one of the two nutrient solution supply lines, each line providing a different nutrient mix. All plants grow in the same atmosphere and water-cooled LED lamps provide the light energy for photosynthesis. The FEG design has evolved from early designs in 2014 over the preliminary design by the end of 2015 to the final design which is described in this paper. Following assembly, integration and testing, the complete MTF will be shipped in October 2017 to Antarctica, where it will arrive in December 2017 and undergo a 12 month space analogue mission.Item Introducing EDEN ISS - A European project on advancing plant cultivation technologies and operations(45th International Conference on Environmental Systems, 2015-07-12) Zabel, Paul; Bamsey, Matthew; Zeidler, Conrad; Vrakking, Vincent; Johannes, Bernd-Wolfgang; Rettberg, Petra; Schubert, Daniel; Romberg, Oliver; Imhof, Barbara; Davenport, Robert; Hoheneder, Waltraut; Waclavicek, René; Gilbert, Chris; Hogle, Molly; Battistelli, Alberto; Stefanoni, Walter; Moscatello, Stefano; Proietti, Simona; Santi, Gugliemo; NAzzaro, Filomena; Fratianni, Florinda; Coppola, Raffaele; Dixon, Mike; Stasiak, Mike; Kohlberg, Eberhard; Mengedoht, Dirk; Bucchieri, Lorenzo; Mazzoleni, Erik; Fetter, Viktor; Hummel, Thomas; Boscheri, Giorgio; Massobrio, Federico; Lamantea, Matteo; Lobascio, Cesare; Petrini, Alessandro; Adami, Marco; Bonzano, Giuseppe; Fiore, Lorenzo; Dueck, Tom; Stanghellini, Cecilia; Bochenek, Grazyna; Gilley, Anthony; McKeon-Bennett, Michelle; Stutte, Gary; Larkin, Tracey; Moane, Siobhan; Murray, Patrick; Downey, Peter; Fortezza, Raimondo; Ceriello, AntonioPlant cultivation in large-scale closed environments is challenging and several key technologies necessary for space-based plant production are not yet space-qualified or remain in early stages of development. The EDEN ISS project foresees development and demonstration of higher plant cultivation technologies, suitable for future deployment on the International Space Station and from a long-term perspective, within Moon and Mars habitats. The EDEN ISS consortium will design and test essential plant cultivation technologies using an International Standard Payload Rack form factor cultivation system for potential testing on-board the International Space Station. Furthermore, a Future Exploration Greenhouse will be designed with respect to future planetary bio-regenerative life support system deployments. The technologies will be tested in a laboratory environment as well as at the highly-isolated German Antarctic Neumayer Station III. A small and mobile container-sized test facility will be built in order to provide realistic mass flow relationships. In addition to technology development and validation, food safety and plant handling procedures will be developed. This paper describes the goals and objectives of EDEN ISS and the different project phases and milestones. Furthermore, the project consortium will be introduced and the role of each partner within the project is explained.Item Resource Consumption and Waste Production of the EDEN ISS Space Greenhouse Analogue during the 2018 Experiment Phase in Antarctica(2020 International Conference on Environmental Systems, 2020-07-31) Zeidler, Conrad; Vrakking, Vincent; Zabel, Paul; Bamsey, Matthew; Schubert, DanielEDEN ISS is a European project focused on advancing bio-regenerative life support systems, in particular plant cultivation in space. A mobile test facility was designed and built between March 2015 and October 2017. The facility incorporates a Service Section which houses several subsystems necessary for plant cultivation and the Future Exploration Greenhouse. The latter is built similar to a future space greenhouse and provides a fully controlled environment for plant cultivation. The facility was setup in Antarctica in January 2018 and successfully operated between February and November of the same year. During this approximately nine month period, 268 kg of fresh edible biomass was produced. The cultivation of crops requires a number of resources like water, nutrients and carbon dioxide, but also consumables such as cleaning agents, gloves and towels. The facility also produces waste in various forms such as waste water from cleaning, paper and plastic. In this paper the solid and liquid waste is compared with the resources needed for optimal crop growth on the approximately 12.5 m² of cultivation area inside the EDEN ISS facility. In total, approximately 18 kg of mineral salts were required to prepare the nutrient solution over this initial experimental period. In addition, more than 2,500 liters of reverse osmosis water was supplied to the facility over this period. The consumable waste from the bins inside the EDEN ISS facility consisted of around 9 kg of dry paper and 5 kg of plastic waste.Item Review and analysis of plant growth chambers and greenhouse modules for space(44th International Conference on Environmental Systems, 2014-07-13) Zabel, Paul; Bamsey, Matthew; Schubert, Daniel; Tajmar, MartinThe cultivation of higher plants occupies an essential role within bio-regenerative life support systems. It contributes to all major functional aspects by closing the different loops in a habitat like food production, CO2 reduction, O2 production, waste recycling and water management. Fresh crops are also expected to have a positive impact on crew psychological health. Plant material was first launched into orbit on unmanned vehicles as early as the 1960s. Since then, more than a dozen different plant cultivation experiments have been flown on crewed vehicles beginning with the launch of Oasis 1, in 1971. Continuous subsystem improvements and increasing knowledge of plant response to the spaceflight environment has led to the design of VEGGIE and the Advanced Plant Habitat, the latest in the series of plant growth chambers. The paper reviews the different designs and technological solutions implemented in higher plant flight experiments. They are analyzed with respect to their functional (e.g. illumination source, grow medium), operational (e.g. illumination period, air temperature) and performance parameters (e.g. growth area, biomass output per square meter). Using these analyses a comprehensive comparison is compiled to illustrate the development trends of controlled environment agriculture technologies in bio-regenerative life support systems, enabling future human long-duration missions into the solar system.Item Service Section Design of the EDEN ISS Project(47th International Conference on Environmental Systems, 2017-07-16) Vrakking, Vincent; Bamsey, Matthew; Zabel, Paul; Zeidler, Conrad; Schubert, Daniel; Romberg, OliverThe international EDEN ISS project aims to investigate and validate techniques for plant cultivation in future bioregenerative life support systems. To this end the EDEN ISS project partners aim to design and build the Mobile Test Facility, which consists of two modified 20 foot shipping containers. One of these shipping containers is designated the Service Section and houses the bulk of the subsystem components, such as the Air Management System and Nutrient Delivery System, as well as a rack-sized plant cultivation system, which uses a standard International Space Station payload form factor. The subsystems within the Service Section ensure that the approximately 12.5 m² of cultivation area in the second container, the Future Exploration Greenhouse, have the proper environmental conditions, nutrients and illumination for optimal crop growth. The EDEN ISS project concluded its main design phase with a Critical Design Review in March 2016, thereafter proceeded into the hardware development and procurement phase of the project. This paper describes the final design of the Service Section at the start of the assembly, integration and testing phase, which will run until the complete Mobile Test Facility is shipped to Antarctica, where it arrives in December 2017, for a 12 month space analogue mission.Item Status and Future of CSA’s Food Production Initiative - A Strategic Vision for Canada’s Future in Lunar Food Production(2024 International Conference on Environmnetal Systems, 2024-07-21) Zeidler, Conrad; Patterson, Christopher; Tremblay, Mathieu; Bamsey, Matthew; Graham, ThomasIn the next decade humans will return to the lunar surface. In contrast to historic campaigns, this next era will emphasize sustainable and collaborative exploration, allowing for a sustained human presence on the surface. Canada, along with international partners, are actively developing mission architectures and infrastructure intended to support and ensure a sustainable presence, while also supporting meaningful lunar science. Based on the 2019 Canadian Space Strategy, the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) established its Food Production Initiative tasked with advancing the state of controlled environment agriculture and advanced life support systems providing food and life-support services for lunar exploration missions. A key strategy of the Food Production Initiative was to consult directly with Canadian industry and academia through the establishment of the Food Production Topical Team. The Food Production Topical Team engaged over 40 leading experts in areas relevant to food production and terrestrial controlled environment agriculture. This group provided insight and recommendations to guide investment needed to address the mandate of the Food Production Initiative; to establish Canada as a leader in lunar food production and to provide one or more critical systems to an international lunar surface food system partnership. In this context, a full-scale lunar food production system was proposed, which would significantly support international efforts to expand human presence beyond low-Earth orbit and help secure the future of the Canadian astronaut program. Mid-term milestones towards this possible flagship level contribution were proposed including a small lunar plant growth payload and a high-fidelity bioregenerative life support testbed. All proposed activities should create tangible socio-economic benefits, including advancing food security in Canada�s northern and remote communities. This paper presents the findings and recommendations of the Food Production Topical Team as well as the ensuing vision statement, strategy and related infrastructure/ hardware roadmap from subsequent CSA consultation and analysis.Item Status of the EDEN ISS Greenhouse after on-site installation in Antarctica(48th International Conference on Environmental Systems, 2018-07-08) Schubert, Daniel; Bamsey, Matthew; Zabel, Paul; Vrakking, Vincent; Zeidler, ConradEDEN ISS is a European project focused on advancing bio-regenerative life support systems, in particular plant cultivation technologies and procedures for space and planetary habitats. Essential Controlled Environment Agriculture technologies were designed, developed and integrated within a Mobile Test Facility, consisting of two interconnected 20 ft shipping containers. The main EDEN ISS cultivation area is called the Future Exploration Greenhouse and is designed as a single cultivation room with unified environmental settings and a 17:7 h light-dark photoperiod. During an analogue test mission at the German Neumayer III research station in Antarctica, the greenhouse provides a variety of fresh pick-and-eat crops for the overwintering crew of 10 members. This is of particular importance during their 6-7 months long isolation phase, when no plane or ship resupply of the station occurs. This paper provides an overview of the as-built design configuration and outlines the main steps of the assembly, integration and test phase that took place between October 2016 and September 2017. Further, insight into the preparation procedures for the Antarctic mission is given, which led to the final mission preparation and transport logistics of the test facility. In December 2017, the analogue mission officially started with the on-site installation of the facility at Neumayer Station III. The paper gives an overview of the on-site build-up phase and the activities involved in putting the facility into its nominal operations mode. The paper concludes with a lessons learned and off-nominal issue section, gathered during the first months of operation in Antarctica.Item The preliminary design of the EDEN ISS Mobile Test Facility - An Antarctic greenhouse(46th International Conference on Environmental Systems, 2016-07-10) Zabel, Paul; Bamsey, Matthew; Zeidler, Conrad; Vrakking, Vincent; Schubert, Daniel; Romberg, Oliver; Boscheri, Giorgio; Dueck, TomEDEN ISS is a European project to investigate cultivation techniques of plants in space for future bioregenerative life support systems. The technologies will be tested in a laboratory environment as well as at the highly-isolated German Antarctic Neumayer Station III. A small and mobile container-sized test facility will be built in order to provide realistic mass flow relationships. This paper provides a summary of the activities performed in the design phase of the project. The design phase started with the kick-off meeting in March 2015 and focused on the requirements definition and design of the greenhouse. The EDEN ISS partners met for a design workshop from September 7th to September 18th 2015 in the Concurrent Engineering Facility of DLR’s Institute of Space Systems in Bremen, Germany. The purpose of the workshop was the generation of a preliminary design for the mobile test facility. The mobile test facility will be built later in the project and used to conduct an over one year long experiment campaign beginning in December 2017 in Antarctica. During the two week workshop, the consortium members worked on their respective subsystems and on how their systems can be integrated in the overall greenhouse. The design of each subsystem was greatly improved. System budgets (e.g. mass, power) were calculated, engineering drawings made and estimates with respect to inputs and outputs conducted. A very important step was the consolidation of the system and subsystem requirements. This paper summarizes the results of the design work-shop and describes the preliminary design of the EDEN ISS mobile test facility.