HYDROTECHNOLOGY - Starting a New Science*
*Author: Elson Silva , Ph.D. Soil Science - Pennsylvania State University , USA
What is HYDROTECNOLOGY?
Apparently complicated Hydrotechnology can be as simples as demonstrated in few minutes by employing a cup of water and a drying paper hanging in the wall.
This figure below shows visually the spatial dynamics of continuous water movement in the drying paper. Water moves in response to a hydraulic gradient potential pursuing a balance and guiding new technical frontiers as it portrays new Hydrodynamic conceptions absent on textbooks:
‘Hydrotechnology is the science of Hydrogeology working on artificial porosity’ which allows a spatial modeling of pores geometry, revealing new Hydrodynamic conceptions of molecular connectivity for self-sustaining and reversible Unsaturated Hydraulic Flow. The pores can be connected longitudinally as a cylindrical format boosting a more efficient anisotropic hydraulic flow. A flexible artificial porosity arranged in the transition of Saturated and Unsaturated Hydraulic Zones attains self-sustaining reversible properties for fluid supply and/or drainage resulting from the differential hydraulic potential. Hydrotechnology can be expanded even more toward mass flow dynamics when the molecular connectivity affects the performance of kinetic energy exchange. It can take place between inertial and rotating forces of non-partitioning flow on geometric curves and molecular dragging.
Capillarity aims at capturing the Hydraulic Unsaturated Flow phenomenon. But, it faces spatial restriction for contention as it is based on the tube theory, becoming unable to represent and make up a porosity system entirely. Such limitations can be reduced and upgraded by tubarc (tube + arc), which allows a constant lateral flow through a continuous lateral opening in the cylinder. In the granular porosity of soils and rocks, the pores are randomly distributed. By tubarc artificial porosity, the pores can be continuous and longitudinally connected having lateral flow by the tubarc geometry. As it can be noticed, tubarc also increases the surface area increasing the attraction of solid phase consequently resulting in a larger hydrophilic effect.
HYDROTECHNOLOGY is resetting Hydrology cradle to 70,000 years ago
Geological porosity was the first to appear in Nature by rock weathering making up the soils about 2 billions of years ago. Live beings created the biological porosity about a billion of years ago as multicellular plants and animals increased in size developing varied mechanisms for internal fluid cycling. Now we are creating a technological porosity taking insights from geological and biological porosities considering human limitations to handle matter at molecular level and modeling of pore geometry to comprehend new hydrodynamic properties of unsaturated hydraulic flow not yet portrayed on human knowledge.
Antoine Lavoisier created Modern Chemistry a new science in 1778 by ‘Equal Mass Law Equation’ at a time that communication systems were very rudimentary. Albert Einstein himself did not create a new science. But, we are creating a new science Hydrotechnology due to a technological opportunity. Although the main objective is the alignment of ideas to explore a huge scientific gap ignored more than a century in the functioning of fluidic devices, Hydrology. Historically the Classic Hydrology started about six thousand years ago in the irrigation of Egypt a esopotamia l owlands. But, we must emphasize that Hydrotechnology is an ancient branch of Hydrology that started being explored and comprehended in the basic principles around 70,000 years ago. It took place when early humans invented rudimentary oil lamps on shell and hollow rocks burning animal fat soaking mosses as wicks.
Vertical flow in Unsaturated Zone is explained by Classical Hydrogeology taking place in nature:
In the cup, water in the surface has zero hydraulic pressure (dashed line), becoming positive downward as the increasing weight of a vertical column of water within the Zone of positive pressure. Water raises in the paper by hydrophilic attraction to the solid surface of porosity reducing gravity force getting an increasing Negative Pressure upward in the Zone of negative pressure, technically called Unsaturated Hydraulic Flow.
Although SHF – Saturated Hydraulic Flow (+) is opposite to UHF – Unsaturated Hydraulic Flow (-) in relation to potential pressure, the hydrodynamic properties are independent and asymmetric, non complementary:
1. The SHF has unlimited horizontal movement depending on the length of draining slope. The UHF has radial movement sustained by molecular connectivity from a permanent saturated source. The radial format of expansion in the paper explains a chain of molecular tension from a saturated source. The potential of UHF depends on the quantity of attraction force in the solid surface of porosity and weight of water volume hanging in the pores as associated to the exponential r2 to volume and 2r to perimeter area of the cylinder in the case of longitudinally continuous pores.
2. The SHF can receive pressure increment adding to gravity force in order to increase flow while UHF needs a reduction of gravity force. It happens as molecules flow in response to attraction to solid surface of porosity making up a suction gradient by reducing gravity force. Consequently, having lower gravity force, it determines larger radial unsaturated flow.
3. Pressure is used to push while suction is used to pull the hydraulic flow which represents an asymmetric dynamics in the molecular behavior of mass flow. As analogy it would be like a train bearing many connected cars over the rail which can be pulled and/or pushed. But, without rails it could still be pulled in case there was surface strengthen. This property is relevant to filtering processes by molecular dragging and surface transport of particles by erosive forces a self-cleaning. Pressure takes to clogging while suction does not clog while molecular connectivity stands in the mass flow.
The reversible flow transmission between compartment and tubarc geometry (tube+arc) to correct capillarity are proposals that were patented in the US
The technical importance of Hydrotechnology can be verified by exploratory analysis of the conductivity parameters: Thermal, Electric, and Hydraulic; mentioned in the issued patents in the US
USPTO search issued patents on:
Thermal/Heat Conductivity 100.744 176.074
Electrical/Electric Conductivity 76.949 139.254
Hydraulic Conductivity 750 1.329
Wick/wicking 33.577 66.415
"Violation of science: bad apples and/or systems failure?"
It can be concluded that Unsaturated Hydraulic Conductivity mentioned in only 29 issued patents had been ignored by USPTO inventors opening a wide way for a new science - Hydrotechnology. A large number of issued patents that mention the term ‘wick/wicking’ 33,577 (66.415) issued patents shows a huge technical-scientific gap as lay people unaware of Hydrology try to develop fluidic devices without checking specialized scientific literature. The word ‘wick/wicking’ is not found in the scientific books of Hydrology, Hydrogeology, or Soil Physics.
Henry Darcy proposed Darcy’s Law in 1856 about Hydraulic Conductivity and afterward in 1907 Edgard Buckingham proposed a change in the equation to Unsaturated Hydraulic Flow (Soil Physics, Jury et al., 1991, John Wiley). It has been observed that many inventors employing the terminology ‘wick/wicking’ neither understand the functioning of oil lamps nor Hydrogeology, concerning the functioning of Hydraulic Zones. They come up with scientific flaws as wicks only have negative hydraulic flow (unsaturated). Wick is a porous flexible structure that moves fuel toward the flame (Unsaturated Hydraulic Flow). Besides of hydrodynamic properties, wicks also need to resist to high temperatures of flames. It is a basic Etymological flaw to call something as a wick that fails as wick on oil lamps. Even more, wicks could never be used as a draining porosity. After all, wicks never worked in the bottom of oil lamps.
Hydrotechnology is endowed with a huge technological potential for about 50 to 100 thousand new patents if USPTO were doing its institutional duty!
How to explore HYDROTECHNOLOGY?
In order to facilitate a wider comprehension in this starting period of technological learning three areas are proposed to introduce this new science. Anybody having access to Hydrotechnology can explore it on many varied levels of complexity and understanding. Afterwards such divisions can be updated and restructured in response to a feedback to foster improvement and technological development.
1) Self-Watering Potted Plants
Self-watering pots are considered as anti-dengue for containing irrigating water in a sealed container.
The dynamic functioning of self-watering pots reveals a complex hydrology ignored to fluidic devices of high tech still unknown to modern scientists and inventors. The self-watering system is a highly advanced gardening that offers basic teaching on the fundamentals of fluid movement between Hydraulic Zones. Making and testing self-watering pots is enlightening from lay people to scientists interested in understanding new conceptions not yet mentioned in Hydrology textbooks.
Prototypes can be made by using disposable plastic bottles, scissors, and a synthetic cord easy to find and test. The self-watering system has two containers overlapping and fitting having irrigation water in the lower compartment and rooting media in the upper one. Water is supplied constantly as continuous irrigation from the water deposit to the rooting media by a porous interface, a synthetic cord (wick) that supplies water under demand by unsaturated hydraulic flow as required by the plant. In order to achieve the best efficiency to self-watering it is advisable to make two holes in the bottom of the rooting compartment inserting the cord as ‘U’ upsided letting two legs hanging inside the water deposit. By gravity action the weight of the rooting media over the cord in the bottom between the two holes ensure permanent contact and continuous hydric connectivity for safe irrigation.
Self-watering involves a soil-water-plant system. Water is stored in the lower compartment under the rooting container supplying water constantly to the plant as required. Soil is a porous system that about half of its volume is solid and half bears varied levels of water and air. Water is lost constantly by plant evapotranspiration then triggering water absorption by the roots in the rooting compartment. The hydraulic differential resulting from water losses induces a continuous water recharge by the cord moving water from the deposit.
Water Balance allows an evaluation of water consume over time for educational purposes. This can be achieved simply by gauging water losses during water recharge and/or grading the water compartment. Unsaturated Hydraulic Conductivity (UHC) is the amount of water (volume) crossing a section of two cords (area=pi.r2) by time unit.
Unsaturated Hydraulic Conductivity (UHC) = volume/area/time = mm3/mm2/s = mm/s
A potted African violet consumes about 1 ml/hour or 24 ml/day of water. Half liter of water is enough for about 3 weeks. Water recharge is done regularly between 2 and 4 weeks depending on the plant and deposit capacity.It is important to take into account that human perception for gardening change by self-watering making it easier to handle, as recharge takes place sparsely and irrigation occurs with no excess or shortages of water. Plants develop a certain turgidity in the leaves as a physiological response to constant water luxury which is not affected by the drying cycle of conventional irrigation. Water availability to the roots is near always at uniform rates due to continuous recharge of rooting media.
Simple prototypes (lest) can be made with disposable plastic bottles horizontally cut as lower parts match one on the top of the other. More advanced prototypes (right) require skills to cut plastic and a combination of food pots in the market. It does require skills with high velocity drills for handcrafting. A reduction of algae growth in the water compartment is attained by employing semi opaque colors to water compartment.
Advanced prototypes can employ hard plastic or even glass material:
Derived Technologies: microfluidic devices, biotechnology, irrigation on demand, molecular drainage, fuel cells, pens and markers, self-rechargeable ink, cartridges, lancet for blood collection, heat pipes, humidifiers for hospital devices, etc.
2) ORI – Organic Residue Injector ‘Carla Pazin’
Contention system for continuous injection of fresh organic residues from kitchen. Fresh organic residue from kitchen is difficult to handle as it easily decomposes emitting stinking gases that allure insects and animals. By simply dumping it in the landscape presents many disadvantages like aesthetics, health, and practical issues resulting many damages that are usually avoided.
ORI is an innovative device for injection of fresh organic residues directly to underground in the soil for earthworms and plant roots. Fresh organic matter can be used near its sources to improving soils of yards, gardens, squares, and public areas. This practice was improved by the use of a practical device, functional, and safe creating a sturdy and dynamic interface for injection of fresh organic residue straight to the soil. High production of fresh organic residues at condominiums can be directed to public and agricultural areas mainly to perennial crops like orchards, providing a continuous underground fertilization saving on chemical fertilizers.
ORI involves the complexity of soil-water-plant system as the hydrodynamic flow is critical to avoid leachate common to landfills. It must keep safe levels of water discharge lower than equivalent evapotranspiration rates as a common agricultural practice of or organic matter fertilization. ORI device should work entirely as unsaturated hydraulic condition letting the soil matric potential disperse exceeding water by suction and favoring a good aeration. The presence of oxygen is important in the process for biological degradation to prevent anaerobiosis which can lead to lactic acid inhibiting the organic matter decomposition because of acidity levels.
The device contention offers adequate sealing to avoid stinking, proliferation of insect larvae, and animal’s access.
3) CentrÃfugal Pumps
The properties of Unsaturated Hydraulic Flow take place under normal gravity condition. Then, complexity starts to build up by employing rotating forces to speed up the Unsaturated Hydraulic Conductivity adding kinetic energy and preserving molecular connectivity on mass flow dynamics.
How to speed up Unsaturated Hydraulic Flow and observe molecular connectivity: Tubarc, Conductivity, and Unsaturated Hydraulic Flow
The functioning of traditional centrifugal pumps shows that the process of adding kinetic rotating energy ignores the flow mass dynamics as impellers makes expansion of mass flow radially outward which is the causes of gases, noises, and cavitation.
The masstubarc pump suggests a radial tube to preserve molecular connectivity in the process of adding rotating kinetic energy. It can explore tubes having uniform circular area (figure above), increasing or decreasing as conic, and varied geometry of arcs, or details that can affect the energetic conversion between rotating and inertial forces.
The next step is to develop the centrifugal pumps and test the format of arcs in the Exchange of kinetic energy between inertial and rotating forces.
Derived Technologies: pumps, filters, turbines, fans, propellants, engine burning biomass on continuous mass flow, etc.
Technological Surprises:
A farmer exporter of cacti insisted that self-watering system was harming cactus because of the excessive water supply. Then, around 80 cacti were set on self-watering pots in 1999. The two first pictures were taken in 2001 and the last one in 2012 showing plant performance. It can be assumed that all plants enjoy easy water uptake. But plants from arid climates like cactus do not tolerate lack of oxygen in the roots. The self-watering system always supply water abundantly as well as oxygen to the roots since it offers aeration rates from 7% to clay soils to 18% to sandy soils. Cacti grown on conventional pots perish easily on excessive watering because of stagnant water also removes oxygen to the roots.
