A Study of Heat Insulation Methods for Enhancing the Internal Temperature on Artificial Stingless Bee Hive

Abstract

The stingless bees have gained a large popularity among the beekeepers, particularly in tropical and subtropical regions such as the Americas, Africa, and Southeast Asia. This is because the honey of stingless bees has a distinct flavour and is highly valued for its medicinal qualities. Traditionally, stingless bee colonies constructed from wood logs are fragile and vulnerable to outside attacks. These predator or parasite attacks can cause Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) if not eliminated. Thus, a PVC, 3D-printed PET-G, and acrylic artificial hive has been created to replace the old one. According to earlier research, stingless bees are especially susceptible to temperatures above 38°C. This paper's main goal is to discuss the results of studies on the best artificial hive insulation method. Over a month and a half, clay, wood powder, polystyrene, bubble aluminium foil, and a water- cooling system were tested as insulators. Results shows that artificial hives with bubble aluminium foil have the biggest average difference between internal and external temperatures (6.4°C) and are closest to traditional hives (8.6°C). The average temperature difference between the artificial hive's exterior and inside was 2.9°C without heat insulation. Clay-insulated artificial hives have the lowest standard deviation value for humidity at 0.46. Since temperature is vital to stingless bee survival, bubble aluminium foil container is the best insulation solution since it increases heat resistance more than other materials.