Incubator for solar energy

Students of NLU have successfully built solar-powered automatic incubators with a hatching rate of over 85%.

Le Tan Phuc, a student of automatic control, shared his idea, starting in May last year, when the dry season in rural areas often resulted in sudden power outages, resulting in incubation of chicken eggs. The farmers are much affected. Phuc thinks of using solar energy to help farmers increase production.

"The incubation method has gradually been replaced by automatic incubators using electricity. Automatic incubator machines imported from abroad, consuming electricity, high prices should not. It is suitable for small rural production in Vietnam, " Phuc added.

The incubator that Phuc produces can work more than 14 hours without sunlight, saving over 90% of electricity. The temperature inside the incubator remains stable at 37.5 degrees Celsius and for every 90 minutes, the eggs will automatically inverse. As a result, the percentage of eggs hatched was over 85%, higher than some types of incubators using conventional electricity.

The machine consists of three main parts: solar battery, water heater and incubator. Solar panels will absorb the converted sunlight into electricity stored in the battery to provide for the temperature control of the incubator. Solar water heaters will provide heat, which increases the temperature inside the incubator.

Le Tan Phuc at the Energy Saving Innovation Awards. (Photo provided by the author)

Le Tan Phuc said that automatic incubators use solar energy to help farmers, especially people in remote areas have no electricity network.

Phuc's research won the second prize in the "Energy Saving Innovation 2011" competition .