AGRICULTURAL & ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING
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Item Postharvest Practices among Grain Farmers in Oyo State, Nigeria(Department of Agricultural and Environmental Engineering, University of Ibadan, Nigeria, 2021) Omobowale M.O.The need for adequate postharvest crop management has come to the fore in sub-Saharan Africa. A survey was conducted in ten farm settlements in Oyo state, Nigeria, where 400 farmers w interviewed. Respondents were predominantly males (82%), and about 33% did not undergo any formal educa io ,. About 39% reported hardly ever seeing agricultural extension agents coming to train them on mitigation of po; uar est losses, while 87% of the farmers agreed that they experience significant postharvest losses. Observations revealed a low level of postharvest mechanization, while storage structures and processing equipment installed at the inc ption of the settlements were in a state of disrepair. Maize threshers were found in all settlements however, b1 owers, dryers and modern storage facilities which would ensure that grains are processed and stored properly were unavailable. Inability to effectively stop insect damage to stored grains makes over 80% of the farmers to apply unapproved chemicals such as DD—Force (Dichlorvos as active ingredient) on harvested crops despite the threat to human health. Moreover, about 60% of the farmers surveyed were unaware of aflatoxin related issues. An obv; ,us g p in information dissemination to farmers in hard-to-reach locations must be eradicated if sub-Saharan Africa will achieve food securityItem Evaluation of market-level storage structures and postharvest losses of selected fruits and vegetables: A case study of five markets in Ibadan(Department of Agricultural and Environmental Engineering, Faculty of Technology, University of Ibadan, Nigeria, 2021) Omobowale M.O.. Although several measures have been adopted to enhance food storage in sub-Saharan Africa, postharvest losses continue to increase. Addressing the negative *re. , re quires up-to-date information on current practices by agroallied personnel involved in the postharvest handling oi perishables to proffer effective solutions. This study explored the level of postharvest losses in fruits and vegetables in five markets in Ibadan, Nigeria. The proportionate sampling technique was employed to collect data from 235 ellers in the markets using a questionnaire. The percentage of grade loss in the supply chain was classified as bruises, mold, and rot. It was revealed that the quality of about 89.2% of the fruits and vegetables degrade during and au'r transportation. Storage conditions which include keeping the produce on a wooden platform, on the bare floor in stalls, and storage in non-ventilated enclosed rooms remain crude and this also contributes to losses incurred. Imr-ov^ment and maintenance of road infrastructures, the establishment of improved storage facilities and the introduction of modern storage technologies would be recommended for reducing postharvest losses of fruits and vegetables i. mai. ets of Ibadan.Item Performance evaluation of the DehytrayTM solar drying device using plantain, pepper and okra under the tropical conditions of Oyo State, Nigeria(Department of Agricultural and Environmental Engineering, Faculty of Technology, University of Ibadan, Nigeria, 2021) Omobowale M.O.; Olenloa, A.E.; Okoro, N.E.Item Development of Internet of Things (IoT) Enabled Device for Environmental Control In Livestock Structures(Department of Agricultural and Environmental Engineering, Faculty of Technology, University of Ibadan, 2024) Omobowale M.O.Ventilation plays a critical role in maintaining optimal condition^ for livestock health and productivity. The deployment of smart technologies is gainf g ascendancy in 21st century agriculture and through the deployment of sensors and Internet of Things (IoT) technology, the efficiency and sustainability of livestock production sy wm in Nigeria can be improved, ultimately benefiting both farmers and animals. This project was carried out to develop an IoT- enabled device for the ventilation of livestock structures. This made it possible to collect real-time data on temperature, humidity, and air quality within the livestock structures, thereby enabling farmers to make informed decisions about ventilation adjustments. Data collected by IoT sensors can also be stored and analyzed on cloud-based platforms, providing farmers with historical trends and insights; information which can be valuaJe for making informed decisions. The device was tested at the University of Ibadan Teaching and Research farm, and the performance was satisfactory. In order improve the management of livestock, farmers are advised to deploy such systems to monitor and control the ventilation system remotely, and in real-time.Item DEVELOPMENT OF AN ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE BASED SYSTEM FOR NUTRIENT DELIVERY TO GREENHOUSE GROWN CROPS(Department of Agricultural and Environmental Engineering, Faculty of Technology University of Ibadan Nigeria., 2023) Omobowale M.O.Applying nutrients to crops either on the field or in a greenhouse has been a manual process, especially in developing countries where farmers or greenhouse attendants introduce nutrients based on intuition, or at specific intervals, not knowing exactly when a crop requires the said nutrients. This is one of many reasons why artificial intelligence has been introduced into the agricultural sector. This project was designed to develop an artificial intelligence-based system for the automatic delivery of nutrients to greenhouse-grown crops. The system was built with an Arduino microcontroller serving as the brain box of the system, a soil Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Potassium (NPK) sensor for reading nutrients level, an organic light-emitting diode which display. +he specific nutrient level in mg/kg, while a solenoid valve was incorporated into the delivery mechanism. T. e da*r was logged onto a secure digital (SD) card via SD module installed on the Arduino board. The microcontroller was configured to interpret the varied states of the soil as relayed by the soil sensor; and this involved data capture from NPK sensor, data processing to determine when to release nutrients, and delivery of nutrients if the solenoid valve is activated. The system was evaluated on soil whose nutrients were leached out, placed in a greenhouse, and the performance was satisfactoryItem Conference proceedings(Nigeria, 2024) Omobowale M.O.A low cost meter was developed as part of a USAID funded Feed the Future project headquartered at Kansas State University to reduce post-harvest loss (PHL) of grains and is referred to as the PHL moisture meter. It actually measures the temperature (T) and relative humidity (RH) of the air space between grain kernels and calculates the equilibrium moisture content (EMC) to determine grain moisture. The meter was built and evaluated in laboratory studies in the U.S. and field tested in Ghana and Nigeria. Meter accuracy was compared to two commercial meters: (a) John Deere Chek Plus-SW08120 grain moisture tester and (b) bench top DICKEY-john GACO2100 Agri meter. The portable JD meter is a low cost meter by developed country standards (~US$250, 2016 price), whereas the GAC2100 benchtop moisture meter is a USDA-GIPSA-approved tester that is highly regarded in the US grain trade and has been used for many years. Laboratory studies indicated that the PHL moisture meter requires approximately six minutes to make a measurement due to the time required for the probe tip and sensor to equilibrate to the air within the grain mass. Field tests have shown the accuracy of the PHL moisture meter was comparable to that of the GAC2100 moisture meter for maize below 15% MCwb. Measurement differences averaged over many readings showed a positive offset of 0.45% for the PHL meter relative to the GAC2100, whereas the John Deere SW08120 moisture meter was found to have an offset of 2.37% MCwb.