Student Investigators: Samuel Beck, Bradley Bernard, Rheagan Chambers, Kristen Galloway, Brandon Landry, Alexandra Williams

Faculty Advisors: Dr. Steven Hall, Dr. Brent Christner, Noelle Bryan, Charles Malveaux

Background

Assembly

Bio-precipitation is the study or concept of particular

microbes that highly organize water molecules, so that the
freezing temperature of the water is increased by 7 C [1].
These microbes are called ice-nucleating (IN) bacteria, and
they are known for being plant pathogens. In the United
States, nearly one billion dollars go to waste potentially
due to these ice-nucleating bacteria causing frost damage
to the crops [2]. The three current methods for studying
bacteria in the atmosphere include the HASP (High
Altitude Student Platform), hailstones, and ice core
samples.

Objective

Results
Wind Vane Alignment

Figure 3. Wind vane alignment relative to the wind direction

was found to be within the acceptable 15. At 3.3 mph, the
wind vane was exactly aligned with the wind direction.

Fluid Dynamics

Pressure Sensor

Figure 1. Exploded view of ACROBE intakes.

To develop an efficient device that will collect microbes

in order to increase bacterial data at known altitudes
satisfying Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
regulations. This will be accomplished by mounting the
ACROBE to an Unmanned Aerial System-Hexacopter
(UAS-H).

Design Specifications

Weight of ACROBE
Modularity to aid in repair and disassembly
Operate between 40 F and 100 F (4.44C and 37.78 C)
Sampling Time: 2.5-20 minutes
Compliance with FAA regulations

Figure 4. Fluid flow

simulation through ACROBE
with an average of 21 m/s
through the inlet tubes.

Figure 5. As throttle speed increases, the

flow becomes more turbulent, causing
erratic values read from the pressure
sensor. A running average was created in
the code to smooth the pressure sensor
values sent to the DC motor. This lends to
more efficient bacterial collection and
energy retention.

Bacterial Collection
Figure 2. Circuit schematic for ACROBE.

Budget
Electronics
ACROBE Materials
Testing Materials
Miscellaneous
Total

$341.50
$138.97
$383.53
$190.70
$1,054.70/$1,100.00

Testing
Fluid Dynamics
Autodesk CFD Simulation
Intake Placement
Controls
Wind Vane
Pressure Sensor
Bacterial Collection
Quantification

Figure 6. Image from

hemocytometer indicating
1.7x108cells/mL with 2.5
minute collection and 48
hour incubation.

Figure 7. Press
plate from
collection disk
after Trial 1.

Figure 8. Control
plate from Trial 1.

References:

Acknowledgements:

[1] Christner, Brent C. "Cloudy with a Chance of Microbes." News Magazine of the American Society for Microbiology Feb. 2012: 70-75.
Web. 20 Nov. 2014.
[2] Smith, A., and R. Katz, 2013: U.S. Billion-dollar Weather and Climate Disasters: Data Sources, Trends, Accuracy and Biases. Natural Hazards.

Thank you to the following individuals for their assistance:

Dr. Chandra Theegala, Dr. Daniel Hayes, Anna Dugas, Tom McClure, Angie Singleton, and Donna Elisar