1. APPLICATIONS OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY IN
AGRICULTURE: WSNS FOR ENVIRONMENTAL
MONITORING
By
Yasser Mahmoud Awad, PhD
Faculty of Agriculture
Suez Canal University
SRGE 08/14/2014 – Ismailia, Egypt

2. Scientific Research Group in Egypt
www.egyptscience.net

3. Overview
 Introduction
 WSNs
 Applications
 Current works
 Conclusions

4. Introduction
 Environmental degradation is due to the depletion of natural
resources, including water and soil by mainly unsustainable
human practices and activities.
 Plant nutrition needs should be addressed not only in the
nutrient content but also in the balance of the content in Plant
organs over the entire period of plant growth.

5. Problematic: Climatic Change
Temperature change (oC) relative to
1900
1940 1970 1994
Greenhouse gases 0.10 0.38 0.69
Sulfate emissions -0.04 -0.19 -0.27
Solar forcing 0.18 0.10 0.21
Volcanic forcing 0.11 -0.04 -0.14
Ozone -0.06 0.05 0.08
Net 0.19 0.17 0.53
Observed 0.26 0.21 0.52

6. Climate Change Impacts
Agriculture Water
Resources
 Shift in food growing
areas.
 Changes in crop yields.
 Increased irrigation
demands.
 Increased pests, crop
diseases and weeds in
warmer areas.
 Decreased water
quality.
 Increased drought.
 Increased flooding
(Torrent in 2009 in
Sinai).
Pollution
Heavy metals
Organic Pollutants

7. Introduction
Research questions Scientific approach
Will the earth continue to get warmer? The global average temperature rise is > 0.6 oC. Continuous
monitoring of weather by Wireless Sensors Instrumentation
Systems.
How rapidly could climate shift in
Egypt?
Building dataset for weather, after which further analysis and
modeling should be performed.
What are the effect of increased CO2
level or temperature on various crops?
Further measurements and monitoring of plant responses
under lab and field conditions.
Can soil absorb more CO2? It can occur through applying biochar and polymeric
conditioners to reduce CO2 emission and maintain soil organic
matter.
In case of Egypt, what are the possible
mitigation technologies?
Regional experimental findings with IT can produce various
scenarios to mitigate climate change impacts on agriculture.

8. In Case of Egypt

9.  Proximal sensing
deployment strategies
that are based on: real
time (a), map-based (b),
and integrated (c)
approaches.
Applications

10. Prototype sensor integrating optical, mechanical
and capacitance components
Sensor system integrating soil electrical
conductivity and pH mapping
Applications

11. Applications
 Applying the X-ray fluorescent (XRF) and mid-infrared (MIR)
spectroscopy for monitoring plant nutrition needs during
growth stages.

12. Gas Exchange and Fluorescence | LI-CO
Applications

13. Hydroponics

14. Sensors for Monitoring Greenhouse

15. SMART IRIGATION SYSTEM
Sensors for Smart Irrigation in Field

16.  Soil Moisture
Sensors
Applications

17. Fertilization Management Software

18. Sensors for Water Quality in Aquaculture

19. SMART
IPhoneOver fertilization symptoms
Mobile-Based Applications

20. Current work
 WSNs for environmental monitoring to reduce emission
of Green House Gases (GHGs), especially CO2.
 WSNs for monitoring of water quality in Aquaculture
(Aquaponic Project).
 Manage pollution technically: Water quality monitoring
systems.
 Thermal imaging technique and the early detection of
plant diseases and stress.

21. Thermal Sensing of Plant Disorder
 Thermal imaging technique of normal and infected leaves
for early detection of powdery mildew in wheat after the
artificial infection in a pot experiment under greenhouse
conditions.
 Infection with powdery mildew pathogen induced changes in
leaf metabolism, contributing to a distinct thermal signature
characterizing the early and late phases of the infection.

22. Thermal Sensing of Plant Disorder
Powdery mildew in wheat caused by Erysiphe
graminis f. sp. tritici
Thermal image of infected leaves

24. Conclusions
Applying agriculture
and IT is a promising
solution to improve the
quality of life (QOL)

25. Recommended Literature

26. For further questions:
Yasser M. Awad
ryasser@gmail.com