Canadian Integrated Northern Greenhouse (CING): Designing the Outer Structure and Pivoting Hydroponic Systems

摘要

The Canadian Integrated Northern Greenhouse (CING) project aims to combine many greenhouse and growth chamber technologies in order for a shipment container to be used to grow fresh foods year round in Northern Canada (greater than 60 degrees in latitude). Many components of the structure as well as the functioning and orientation of the equipment inside the greenhouse must be designed conjointly to ensure the proper and optimal working of this multipurpose system. These optimizations would ensure affordable fresh produce to Northern communities.The shell design consists of a 40 ft long shipping container, oriented on the East-West axis with a south facing glazed wall at 90 degrees to the horizontal and a glazed horizontal roof. The structure is operational year round as it incorporates a mechanism that, when closed, easily converts the greenhouse into a growth chamber. This greenhouse design aims to minimize the energy input required for its operation.The other design consideration that was of importance was to maximize the amount of light that is entering the CING and how much light is intercepted by the plants. A new design for pivoting hydroponic systems oriented in a North-South direction allows for more direct sunlight to be intercepted by the plants throughout the day. Configurations that optimize the number of pivoting systems depending on what type of plants grown have been considered and a prototype was built and tested.Observations made through simulations show that closing the structure at night saves up to 29% in terms of energy year round. With the structure open, an exterior reflective panel increases solar transmittance up to 30%. The pivoting hydroponic system prototype showed that if implemented the systems would be very versatile, maintenance and pest control would be simple, mobility between the rows would be increased and over 300 short plants could be accommodated in the summer months.