A unique hothouse has been created by scientists from Poznan University of Life Sciences. Thanks to insulated walls and a climate control system heating costs are ten times lower with crop yield at the same level as in traditional hothouses.

Compared with standard hothouse production and traditional processing of bio-waste the technology developed in Poznan allows for reducing CO2 emission by 95 percent. It will also reduce water usage by 80 percent since water in the hothouse circulates in a closed circuit. The costs of fertilisers and plant protection will also be lower. The cost of building the new design hothouse is 10 to 20 percent higher compared to traditional design.

This is the only construction of its kind in the world. According to Wlodzimierz Krzesinski from the Faculty of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture of the Poznan University of Life Sciences, the hothouse was designed in the framework of an international project. Two companies from Norway and one from the Netherlands participated in the project.

“The foam in the walls provides thermal insulation. The lamps that provide light to the plants create enough heat,” Krzesinski explained. He added that some thermal energy is stored in buffer tanks and is used to heat the hothouse during the night when the lamps are switched off.

“Research on such systems has been conducted in many countries for the past 30 years. Small, experimental constructions were built but our design is the first that can be used on commercial scale,” said Krzesinski.

"Construction elements of the hothouse were provided by a Dutch company. Our university designed the control system including devices that collect, store and release heat, climate controlling computer and necessary software. We are finishing the testing phase. One company from Norway is negotiating the purchase of the license for our technology. Commercially operating hothouses could be built there even this year,” Krzesinski told PAP.

The innovative hothouse in Poznan is visited by representatives of schools and commercial companies from all over the world. According to Wlodzimierz Krzesinski this solution can prove useful both in countries in the north of Europe and in Africa. (PAP)

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