Rationale

I designed four alternate solutions for the water flow system in the Simulated Horseshoe Crab Habitat project. These solutions all must fulfill the task of filtering all dangerous or unwanted objects from the water, pump the saltwater throughout the tank at a constant rate, and control the temperature, oxygen level, and salinity level inside the tank environment. The final design will be integrated with the architectural design of the tank that will be provided by Miss Synek, and will allow for a group of 100 six month-one year old Horseshoe Crabs to live in this environment for six months.

            The first solution that was designed involves a pipe and drainage system in the tank that leads down a pipe underneath the actual tank. Inside the drainage pipe lays a layer of small gravel rocks which is supported by a small net. These rocks will allow for the water to filter itself naturally while moving through the gaps, and will stop any large pieces of debris from flowing down the drainage pipe into the reservoir tank. The remainder of the filtering system is located within the reservoir tank. A fine mesh net is placed a half inch under the rim of the tank, but is still above the water. This will allow for easy access to clean the net when required. The water will flow down to the bottom of the reservoir tank, where a pump will push the water through a pipe system that will deliver the water to each part of the tank. A bacterial solution will be circulated through the water to get rid of any harmful pollutants that are left over at the end of the process. Air stones will be placed in each compartment to allow for an acceptable amount of oxygen, and a water chiller will be attached to the tank in order to keep the temperature at 57 degrees Fahrenheit.

            The next solution contains all of the elements required for filtering inside the actual drainage pipe. A gravel net is located near the bottom of the drainage pipe, with a fine mesh net attached directly to the end of the pipe. In this solution, no bacterial solution will be introduced to the water, so this solution is less efficient than some of the others. The newly filtered water enters the reservoir tank, where it is delivered to the rest of the tank in the same way that was used in the previous solution. The environmental control features will also be the same in this solution.

            In the third solution, the drainage pipe has been kept clean of any additional equipment and all filtering takes place within the reservoir tank. This change was made so that there less of a chance for blockage to occur in the narrow spaces of the drainage pipe. The same gravel and mesh net combination will still be used, however this process will take place in the reservoir tank, where there is more space and maintenance would be simpler. The pump would send the water from the bottom of the reservoir tank to the rest of the tank through the same pipe systems. Environmental controls features will still be the same in this solution.

            My final solution involves filtering equipment in both the drainage pipe and the rest of the tank as well. Inside the drainage pipe, a single mesh net will be placed at the end of the drainage pipe. This change was made because this net will catch the same pieces of debris that the gravel layer would have caught, except this would require less material. While, this change would also mean more maintenance would have to be performed to clean the single filter more frequently, the benefits outweigh the consequences. The water flows from the drainage pipe into the reservoir tank, where the pump will take the water from the top of the reservoir tank to be delivered through the pipe system. A bacterial solution will be introduced into the water, which will clear out any harmful pollutants in the water. As with the other solutions, the environmental control features will be the same in this solution.