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Agricultural engineering is the engineering discipline that applies engineering science and protect the environment, and they design in machineries and structures and alternative energy systems to meet the needs of agricultural operations. Agricultural processing engineering includes: Flow behavior of powder and granular food products; aseptic processing of food products; food biosensors; on-line computer control of food processing operations; modeling heat transfer mechanisms during thermal processing of foods; smart food.

[edit] Specialty Areas

Agricultural and Biological engineering (ABE) embraces a variety of specialty areas. As new technology and information emerge, specialty areas are created :

a. Natural resources: Our environment is fragile. The 1930s Dust Bowl and climatic events like the El Niño phenomenon remind us that our soil and water are vulnerable to degradation by both natural and man-made forces. Agricultural engineers with environmental expertise work to better understand the complex mechanics of these resources, so that they can be used efficiently and without degradation. These engineers determine crop water requirements and design irrigation systems. They are experts in agricultural hydrology principles, such as controlling drainage. They implement ways to control soil erosion and study the environmental effects of sediment on stream quality. Natural resources engineers design, build, operate and maintain water control structures for reservoirs, floodways and channels. They also work on water treatment systems, wetlands protection, and other water issues.

b. Power systems and machinery design focuses on designing advanced equipment, making it more efficient and less demanding on our natural resources. They develop equipment for food processing, highly precise crop spraying, agricultural commodity and waste transport, and turf and landscape maintenance, as well as equipment for such specialized tasks as removing seaweed from beaches. This is in addition to the tractors, tillage equipment, irrigation equipment, and harvest equipment that have done so much to reduce the drudgery of farming. Their work remains challenging as technology advances, production practices change and equipment manufacturers expand globally.

c. Structures and environment: Agricultural engineers understand the importance of creating and maintaining a healthy environment for growing agricultural commodities and for the laborers who produce them. They also understand that our natural resources must not be diminished, in quality or availability, by agricultural operations. Toward these ends, Agricultural engineers with expertise in structures and environment design animal housing, storage structures, and greenhouses, with ventilation systems, temperature and humidity controls, and structural strength appropriate for their climate and purpose. They also devise better practices and systems for storing, recovering, reusing, and transporting waste products.

d. Food processing: Food, fiber, and timber are only the beginning of a long list of products that benefit from efficient use of our natural resources. The list is growing - it includes biomass fuels, biodegradable packaging materials, and nutraceuticals, pharmaceutical and other products - and is limited only by the creative vision of food and bioprocess engineers. These engineers understand microbiological processes and use this expertise to develop useful products, to treat municipal, industrial and agricultural wastes, and to improve food safety. They are experts in pasteurization, sterilization, and irradiation, and in the packaging, transportation and storage of perishable products. Food and process engineers combine design expertise with manufacturing methods to develop economical and responsible processing solutions for industry. And food and process engineers look for ways to reduce waste by devising alternatives for treatment, disposal and utilization.

e. Information and electrical technologies is one of the most versatile specialty areas, because it is applied to virtually all the others, from machinery design to soil testing to food quality and safety control. Geographic information systems, global positioning systems, machine instrumentation and controls, electromagnetics, and -"bioinfomatics"- biorobotics, machine vision, sensors, spectroscopy - these are some of the exciting information and electrical technologies being used today and being developed for the future.

f. Forest engineering: Agricultural engineers apply engineering to solve natural resource and environment problems in forest production systems and related manufacturing industries. Engineering skills and expertise are needed to address problems related to equipment design and manufacturing, forest access systems design and construction; machine-soil interaction and erosion control; forest operations analysis and improvement; decision modeling; and wood product design and manufacturing. Forest engineers are involved in a full range of activities in natural resource management and forest production systems.

g. Alternate energy resources: Our high standard of living and comfort could not be maintained without energy to power the machines, devices, and systems in our homes and workplaces. But many energy sources are nonrenewable and create undesirable byproducts. Biological and agricultural engineers are at the forefront of the effort to identify and develop viable energy sources - biomass, methane, and vegetable oil, to name a few - and to make these and other systems cleaner and more efficient. These specialists also develop energy conservation strategies to reduce costs and protect the environment, and they design traditional and alternative energy systems to meet the needs of agricultural operations.

h. Aquacultural engineering: Agricultural and Biological engineers help design farm systems for raising fish and shellfish, as well as ornamental and bait fish. They specialize in water quality, biotechnology, machinery, natural resources, feeding and ventilation systems, and sanitation. They seek ways to reduce pollution from aquacultural discharges, to reduce excess water use, and to improve farm systems. They also work with aquatic animal harvesting, sorting, and processing.

i. Nursery and greenhouse engineering: In many ways, nursery and greenhouse operations have similar needs - irrigation, mechanization, disease and pest control, and nutrient application. However, other engineering needs also present themselves in nursery and greenhouse operations: equipment for transplantation; control systems for temperature, humidity, and ventilation; and plant biology issues, such as hydroponics, tissue culture, and seedling propagation methods. And sometimes the challenges are extraterrestrial: Agricultural engineers at NASA are designing greenhouse systems to support a manned expedition to Mars!

j. Safety and health: Farming is one of the few industries in which entire families - who often share the work and live on the premises - are vested and are at risk for injuries, illness, and death. Agricultural and Biological engineers analyze health and injury data, the use and possible misuse of machines, and equipment compliance with standards and regulation. They constantly look for ways in which the safety of equipment, materials and agricultural practices can be improved and for ways in which safety and health issues can be communicated to the public.

k. Agricultural processing engineering: Flow behavior of powder and granular food products; aseptic processing of food products; food biosensors; on-line computer control of food processing operations; modeling heat transfer mechanisms during thermal processing of foods; smart food systems; storage reaction kinetics of biotechnology-derived products; mechanical properties of food and other biological materials; dielectric properties of food and other biological materials; new technologies in food processing; constitutive models for bulk foods; microscopic approach for load response of granular materials; thermophysical properties of freezing and frozen foods; failure mechanisms of food and other biological materials; computer models of food products during microwave heating; numerical modeling of food processing operations; microwave processing of foods; food safety during minimal and added-value processing; industrial microbiology/fermentation.

L. Soil and water engineering: Engineering principles of soil and water conservation; open channel flow principles, hydraulic grade stabilization, erosion control, storm water management, design of structures for floodwater routing, culvert design, design of waterways and agricultural reservoirs, stream bank protection, water quality assessment, groundwater flow, surface water modeling.

July 2, 1862 Congress approved “Land Grant Act” for establishment of agricultural colleges in different states.

March 2, 1887 Congress supplement above act to establish Agricultural Experiment Stations (Hatch Act).

August 30, 1890 Congress appropriated $15,000.00 for first 10 years and raising it to $25,000.00 thereafter.

April 11, 1899 Treaty of peace by which March 12, 1903 University of Puerto Rico, R 1278)

May 27, 1907 Dr. D. W. May Director of Federal Experiment Station at Mayaguez conceived the idea of agricultural school in Mayaguez.

March 12, 1908 Resolution by Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico to solicit US Congress to apply acts of July 2, 1862, August 30, 1890 and March 01, 1907 to Puerto Rico.

1909 Between February 9 to November 02: J.J. Cartagena sold 100 acres (0.40 km²) to establish agricultural school. It was known as University Farm.

July, 1911 Sugarcane Experimental Station in Río Piedras submitted its first annual report to Sugar Grower’s Association.

November, 1911 Architect Holmes of Insular Government was in Mayaguez to inspect the site of erection of College of Agriculture. First dean Dr. F.L. Stevens was appointed.

1912 During 1911-12, agricultural faculty in Mayaguez was engaged in teacher’s training around the island.

September 16, 1912 First class of Fall semester started in College of Agriculture, Mayaguez. College of Agriculture was changed to College of Agriculture and Mechanics Arts (CAAM) of University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez.

March 07, 1912 Legislative Assembly appropriated $30,000.00 to erect a building for College of Agriculture of University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez.

June 16, 1913 Agriculture College Weekly (Page 204 to 210) indicates courses in engineering but no faculty in engineering.

1913 District Commander of Puerto Rico (September 13, 1913) and US Assistant Secretary at War (January 31, 1914) Granted license to agricultural college in Mayaguez to occupy and use the land/buildings (Mayaguez Fort Reservation & Little Point, Algarrobo).

February 09, 1914 Dr. F.L. Stevens delivered his farewell address. Agriculture was developed first and then engineering was added later.

1914 Sugar Growers transferred sugarcane Experiment Station to Board of Commissioners of Puerto Rico. Annual Reports till 1914 were submitted to Sugar growers by Director J.T. Crawley.

1915 Mr. R.S. Garwood was appointed Dean till 1920.

1915 First graduating class from CAAM included fifteen graduates in agricultural science.

October 19, 1916 Association of Sugar Chemists was formed with Prof. F.A. Lopez-Dominguez as president.

1917 Manuel L. Vicente, Assistance Professor in Civil Engineering was appointed in 1916 with CAAM. He later became Chairman of newly created Division of Agricultural Engineering in the Agricultural Experiment Station of U.P.R. during 1933-43. This Division has also been called engineering section at many times.

1917 Sugarcane Experiment Station, Rio Piedras was transferred to Department of Agriculture and labor. It was renamed as Insular Experiment Station. Same year Department of Agriculture was organized.

1917 First issue of The Journal of Agriculture of Puerto Rico was issued by Insular Experiment Station. This journal was later renamed to Journal of Agriculture of University of Puerto Rico on November 15, 1933.

March 19 to 21, 1918 First Agricultural Congress in Mayaguez.

1918 Luis C. Manzón, Juan M. Pérez and Fernando Saldaña Davila were first graduates in Sugar Engineering from CAAM.

October 11, 1918 Buildings and equipments at CAAM were destroyed by the earthquake.

1919 B.Sc. in Sugar engineering was eliminated and BS in sugar Chemistry was added.

May 23, 1919 Alumni of CAAM was started.

June 03, 1919 Legislative of Puerto Rico appropriated $35,000.00 for buildings and equipments at CAAM.

July 20, 1921 Legislature of Puerto Rico appropriated $300,000 for reconstruction of necessary buildings in new building for Agricultural, Civil, Mechanical and Electrical Engineering.

July 5, 1925 Sugarcane Technologists Annual Meeting, San Juan.

1925 Dr. Frank D. Kern on loan from Pennsylvania State University as Dean of CAAM. September 30, 1925 to July, 1926.

1927 Prof. H. T. Cowles was Dean of CAAM. July 1, 1926 to July 11, 1927.

1927 Dr. Carlos A. Figueroa was Dean of CAAM. From July 1927 to June 1932.

1928 September 13: Hurricane San Felipe hit Puerto Rico.

1928 First irrigation system was installed for sugarcane, grazing, tobacco, sea-land cotton on 60 acres (240,000 m²) in Isabela Irrigation District.

1928 Isabela Agricultural Experiment Substation moved to its present location.

1930 Rafael A. Gonzales, Chief Engineer with Isabela Irrigation Service, planted first experiment on irrigation in sugarcane at Isabela.

1931 International Society of Sugarcane Technologists held its meeting in Puerto Rico.

April 23, 1931 Department of Agriculture & Labor was changed to Department of Agriculture & Commerce by virtue of Law No. 25

July 1, 1931 Mr. F.A. Lopez-Dominguez hired Manuel L. Vicente, Civil Engineer to head engineering section of Insular Experiment Station at Rio Piedras. He indicated in his report “AGRICULTURAL ENGINEERING AND SECTION WAS ORGANIZED TO STUDY IRRIGATION, RURAL CONSTRUCTION, MACHINES AND FARM IMPLEMENTS ETC.” Vicente regularly presented written progress report to the Director during 1933-1943.

September, 1931 Cyclone San Nicolas hit Puerto Rico.

1932 September 26: Cyclone San Ciprian hit Puerto Rico.

March, 1932 International Congress of Sugarcane Technologists in San Juan.

1932 First students graduated from CAAM in electrical engineering.

1933 Non-engineer Jóse Adsur was appointed as assistant engineer to work with Manuel L. Vicente. Jóse was later transferred to Division of Genetics of Agric. Exp. Station in 1935.

August 16, 1933 Legislative assembly of Puerto Rico passed a joint resolution no. 3 to accept benefits of Hatch. Supplementary acts of the US Congress were extended to Puerto Rico by act on March 04, 1931.

November 15, 1933 Insular Experimet Station started working as “Agricultural Experiment Station of the College of Agriculture and Mechanics Arts of University of Puerto Rico.” Name of journal was changed to “The Journal of Agriculture University of Puerto Rico.” AGRICULTURAL ENGINEERING DIVISION WAS ALLOCATED $144.37 OUT OF $109,557.10 total budget during 1933-34. Budget limitations did not allow engineering division to grow.

1934 Agricultural Experiment Station at Rio Piedras allotted $2,291.66 to engineering section out of $108,177.38 during July, 1934 to June 1935.

1935 Dr. Harry G. Parkinson of Pennsylvania State University was Dean of CAAM during fall 1934 to May 1937. Agricultural Experiment Station (AES) allotted $768.88 to engineering section out of $18,610.84 during July 1935 to June 1936.

1936 Mr. F.A. Lopez, Director of AES, defined duties of Division of Agricultural Engineering. ( in his annual report of 35-36) as : ‘The work of this division has do primarily with the preparation of different types of terrace for control of soil erosion. The engineering also has the charge of all work pertaining to repair of buildings, care of roads, drainage fields, Upkeep of equipment and machinery, preparation of plans and survey of aerial maps in relation to soil survey”. Vicente outlined a well established experiment on terraces and emphasized a greater need of adequate farm equipment. In February 1936, Vicente was transferred temporarily to Planning Division of Puerto Rico Reconstruction Administration to organize aerial maps.

1937 Main AES buildings at Rio Piedras was completed at the beginning of 26th year of AES. Dr. Melville Cook et al. prepared silver jubill history of AES.

1937 Vicente M. L. reported research on study of traction on different kinds of soils using oxen, (lack of equipment and technical help hindered progress), relative efficiency of terraces, and tractor survey of the island. He also acted as an inspector in the construction of agronomy building.

1938 J. A. B. Nolla, director AES, reported 1.9 millions acres (90%) of farm land during 1935 and a population of 1.8 millions persons on 3,600 square miles (9,300 km²) of Puerto Rico.

1939 Dr. Miguel A. Lugo-Lopez recalled that Jorge Rodriguez Arias was his teacher in 1939-40 at CAAM, he worked closely with L.J. Willardson at Lajas and I. O. Israelson 1955. He recalled his memory having met Vicente, Rivera, Segarra, in 1943 and Carl Hall in 1962 and that probably Camelo A. Gonzales was working in rural electrification with SEA in Arecibo area in sixties.

1940 J. A. B. Nolla, director AES, reported that island was able to produce 50% of retail value of food consumed, 90% of fruit and nuts consumed, 94% of eggs, 90% of starchy vegetable and 82% of green, yellow and leafy vegetable.

1940 A wooden building for the “Agricultural Engineering Section” was constructed on the eastern side of Jesús T. Piñero Building” at UPRM. In the August of 1983, this wooden building was demolished to erect the extension to Piñero building. The construction was completed in September of 1984 at a cost of $1.5 million and the extension with a total floor area of 2,050 square feet (190 m²) was inaugurated on October 19,1984. The Department of Agricultural Engineering was moved in August of 1983 to the “Agricultural Machinery Laboratory” that was constructed in the seventies.

1943 Mr. Arturo Roque, director AES, noted in his report “AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH HAS CONTRIBUTED VERY LITTLE TO ENGINEERING”. It should be possible to organized research on IRRIGATION AND DRAINAGE, FARM BUILDING, FARM MACHINES. Paul L. McConnie resaved his DS degree in AGRIC. ENGG. From Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA and is probably FIRST AGRICULTURAL ENGINEER OF PUERTO RICO ORIGIN. HE SETTLED IN SAN JUAN AREA. He talked on Agricultural engineering history on May 09, 1988 at the spring meeting of ASAE Section.

1943 October 14: Cyclone San Calixto hit Puerto Rico.

October 1943 Engineer Luis Stefani Raffuci was appointed Vice-Chancellor of CAAM, Mayaguez.

1944 Non Engineer Carlos J. Clavell was appointed in charge of engineering section of AES, Río Piedras. He was helped by J. Diaz’ Rivera, engineer. Arturo Roque Director AES, reported in 1940 census for Puerto Rico “2.25 millions cuerdas, 2.0 million persons, 1.3 million cuerdas in arable land of which 0.9 under cultivation with 600 persons/sq. miles.

1945 Agronomy and horticulture Department of AES, Río Piedras employed R. Torres as research assistant in Agricultural Engineering. It cannot be confirmed if he was an engineer.

1948 In the College of Agricultural Sciences, Agricultural engineering department was organized with staff of two members and with doctor Jorge H. Rodríguez Arias as founding director.

1957 Agricultural Engineering Section was created in Agricultural Extension Service in Río Piedras with one staff and three specialists in 1956 in Rural electrification, farm power, and farm structure

1957 The Agricultural Engineering Section of AES was integrated with other similar units, and office was located at Mayaguez.

1958 Agricultural engineer in Irrigation and drainage was added for Agricultural Extension Service in Río Piedras.

1959 Pursuant to a recommendation by Agricultural Committee, University Chancellor brought all leadership and administrative reponsability for all programs in agricultural engineering and personnel in all three functions teaching, research and extension- under a single Director with offices at the Mayaguez Campus.

January 20, 1966 Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico approved the “University of Puerto Rico Law”. Agricultural Engineering Department became first integrated department in the College of Agricultural Sciences under the new status.

October 1, 1979 Agricultural Experiment Station hired Megh R. Goyal, Agricultural Engineer, to initiate research and extension activities in Trickle Irrigation. First research experiment on tricle irrigation in vegetable was installed at Fortuna Substation at Juana Díaz- Puerto Rico.

August 1982 Agricultural Engineers Anand D. Sharma to work in coffee processing and Yoosef Shahabazi in waste management were hired.

January 1984 Self study report on the Agricultural Engineering Department was prepared by Dr. Anand D. Sharma.

1982-2007 During this period Directors of Department of Agricultural Engineering at UPR-RUM were: Rene Otero Dávila, Allan L. Phillips, Luis Pérez Alegría, Alberto Pantoja, Fernando Pérez Muñoz, and Héctor López

April 26, 1999 Academic Senate of UPR-RUM approved that the name of Department of Agricultural Engineering be changed to Department of Agricultural Engineering and Byosistems (Certification #99-12).

August 1999 Eric W. Harmsen joined as Associate Professor in Agricultural Engineering Department, University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez, to teach courses in agricultural water management with emphasis in Agricultural hydrology and agroclaimatology.

September 16, 2005 Puerto Rico Section of ASABE recognizes Dr. Megh R. Goyal as Father of Irrigation Engineering in Puerto Rico.

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