Energy use optimization of vertical farming systems

Background

Vertical farming systems are becoming increasingly prevalent in urban areas, and often located indoors (e.g. in basements, parking garages, or containers in or near buildings). These systems utilize light-emitting diodes for artificial lighting to control plant growth. While LEDs are efficient, the shear number of LEDs in vertical farms make them a large source of energy demand, and simultaneously a source of heat production. Furthermore, vertical farms need to keep a constant temperature, and as such this heat could be used for other purposes in urban areas. As such, HVAC system are also of utmost importance for vertical farms to keep conditions at a consistent temperature and provide sufficient airflow. An untapped potential for vertical farms is to utilize waste heat to reduce energy demand and also provide a new stream of revenue.

Aim

The aim of this thesis is to study potential methods to exploit this heat and business models for utilizing waste heat from commercial vertical farms in Stockholm to improve their economic performance.

Supervisors

KTH-SEED and IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute, Michael Martin