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Growth on Internal Limiting Factors

Description:

The production of a product is limited by its own recycling products, which are needed for the production process.

Examples:

  • The recycle of nutrients in a balanced aquarium; nutrients are the limiting factor.
  • Recycle of Chlorophyll
    		•  Diagram

    Variables:

    I = energy source from outside the system
    TN = total materials available for recycle
    N = storage of recycled material
    P = production of Q
    Q = storage of the product that will be recycled
    F = fraction of Q that is nutrients
    K1, K2 = increasing and decreasing factors of Q

    Equations:

    N = TN - F*Q
    P = K1*I*N
    DQ = P - K2*Q
    P = (K1*K2*TN*I)/(K2 + K1*F*I)

    Simulation:

    The graph shows the production of P in function of the source I. (red: entered value of TN. blue: double value of TN)
    Source code: Recycle.java

    "What if" Experiments:

  • What is the effect of increasing the total materials TN available for recycle?
  • What is the effect of increasing the percent of storage Q recycled per unit time?
    		•