Biography
I am currently a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Forestry and Natural Resources, Purdue University. How to produce more food in a sustainable way with higher resource use efficiency and lower pollutant production is the trend in the future. Aquaponics has been considered as an alternative technology for sustainable food production, producing more food on less land using less water with less environmental impacts. However, due to the scarcity of freshwater resources, adopting salt or brackish water in a food production system offers the potential of conserving freshwater resources and will likely become the future trend of food production. Therefore, the aim of my Ph.D. study is to develop marine aquaponics, in which Litopenaeus vannamei and halophytic plants are target crops. Moreover, to alleviate energy consumption, I designed a water-pump-less aquaponic system, which was an innovative design, to conduct my research.
Before I came to the USA to pursue my Ph.D. degree, I obtained my bachelor’s and master’s degree in aquaculture at National Taiwan Ocean University (NTOU). The goal of my master’s research was to develop an approach to achieve zero water exchange for shrimp culture. After that, I worked for Grobest Holdings Limited for 3.5 years. I served as a researcher, then transferred to the general manager’s office for a project focused on training local shrimp culturists.
My future research plan including a) explore more suitable species combination for marine aquaponics; b) develop specific feed for aquaponics; c) optimal conditions for marine operation; d) assess the economic value of halophytic plants on the market and develop sales channels for the future production; e) help developing countries to improve food production systems and food security issues, etc.
RESEARCH INTERESTS
- Aquaponics
- Aquaculture
- Shrimp farming
- Halophytes
- Multi-trophic systems
- Sustainable food production
- Sustainable feeds
- Water quality management
RESEARCH EXPERIENCE
- Evaluation of Pacific whiteleg shrimp and three halophytic plants in marine aquaponic systems under three salinities
- Investigation of stocking density ratios of shrimp to plants and two C/N ratios in marine aquaponics
- Effect of different protein levels in the shrimp feed on water quality and the growth performance of Pacific whiteleg shrimp and three halophytic plants in marine aquaponics
- Effect of pH and molasses supplement on the performance of marine and freshwater aquaponics
- Effects of different probiotics on water qualities and growth in close culture system of Litopenaeus vannamei
GRANT WRITING EXPERIENCE
- Marine aquaponics: determining the optimal ratio of shrimp to plant crops (2018)
- The development of marine aquaponics – a sustainable and potential food production in the near future – In Review (2021)