What is Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering?

To start, I will explain how I got into this field of study. I love math and science and I grew up on a small farm. I knew I wanted to help people, especially farmers. I first discovered engineering in 9^th grade when I was talking to my high school counselor and decided that is what I wanted to do with my life. It was not until I visited North Dakota State University (NDSU) for the first time that I discovered there was a way I could achieve my goal.

I am a third year student in Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering or (ABEN). I am asked about ABEN engineering all the time because it is a relatively small engineering discipline here at NDSU http://www.ndsu.edu/aben/. The official definition is "The application of math and science to improve production and processing of agricultural goods." That definition is always hard for me to remember so instead I remember the four F's: Food, Fuel, Fiber, and Feed. This means that anything produced from agricultural goods can be considered ABEN engineering and as a result this type of engineering is very diverse.

Here at NDSU ABEN has two separate concentrations of engineering.  First there is (AGEN) Agricultural Engineering and second is the (BSEN) Biosystems Engineering. There is considerable overlap between these concentrations but additional requirements for BSEN include a heavier emphasis on fundamental biology and chemistry. Where the AGEN has a heavier emphasis in the engineering sciences.

The BSEN concentration deals with the processing of biomass products for food, fuel, fiber and feed. Biosystems engineering uses different types of materials like starch and sugar crops, oil-seeds, algae and manure to produce bio-energy. Some examples of bio-energy are ethanol and bio-diesel. A new project currently being worked on is using algae as a bio-energy source. It can produce over 100 times the amount of energy than say starch crops can. The major draw back though is the way it is grown, (in small cylindrical glass/plexiglass tubes) which makes it very expensive. Biosystems Engineering is responsible for helping to minimize the dependence on fossil fuels throughout the world.

Within the AGEN concentration there are two sub-categories,  Agricultural Systems or Environmental Systems.

Within the Agricultural Systems sub-category there are several different emphasis’s that you can concentrate on. The power and machinery, structure and environment control, electrical, and computer aided design.  Those that put an emphasis in the power and machinery develop and improve already existing machinery in order to increase production or somehow improve the agricultural process in a way that saves money or time and the environment. Some possible jobs are designing tractors, combines and other farming equipment such as no-till planters. No-till planters are easier on the ground and soil because you do not till the ground before you plant your crop.

A person who puts emphasis in the electrical side of engineering is responsible for improving production in the agricultural process the same as the power/machinery.  They do it by improving or developing electrical systems like the precision GPS systems that can plant a field by itself. All the operator has to do is turn the tractor around. For the rest of the descriptions of the different emphasis’s go to http://www.ndsu.edu/aben/students/undergraduate_programs/aben/curriculum/agricultural_engineering_concentration/ 

Then there is the Environmental Systems sub-category which is what I am interested in. This sub-category deals with the conservation and management of soil and water resources and the impact farming, construction, or anything unnatural has on the land. This sub-category puts an emphasis on conservation, irrigation engineering and hydrology. Within this sub-category a person can get a number of jobs working for the NRCS (Natural Resource Conservation Service) or for the USDA. This sub-category is important because without suitable soil and water there would be very poor crops and as a result people would suffer. They would suffer because there would not be enough crops to provide for the growing population of the world.

Most engineers get in to engineering because they want to help people and improve their quality of life. ABEN is more specifically geared towards helping farmers and through the farmers we help the people. We are striving to help make farming easier on the land and on the farmers themselves. We are doing this through improvements of the machinery and fuel farmers use, and in our understanding of our most valuable resources; the land, water and air.