Post on 16-Oct-2020
Plant Factory (PF) Industry
and recent research in Taiwan
Wei FANG
Dept. of Bio-Industrial Mechatronics Engineering
National Taiwan University
2015.05.20 ~ 05.22
1
Outline
1. Introduction
2. Some numbers
3. Business models
4. Recent researches
5. Conclusion
2
Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA)
Plant Factory with
Artificial Light (PF_AL)Greenhouse: Plant Factory with
sunlight and/or supplemental light
NTU
A brief history of PF_AL in Taiwan (1/3)
National Taiwan University
supported by NSF, Taiwan
5
First PF_AL related research
1993
20 ft. container with
thermally insulated walls
Can PF_AL make
us richer, smarter,
greener, healthier,
and happier?9
NTU1996
LED related
research
A brief history of PF_AL in Taiwan (2/3)
10
Pulse light with adjustable intensity,
duty ratio, frequency
Patents:
2001 Taiwan
2001 China
2002 US
• PF_AL for tissue culture and for
Phalaenopsis seedling production with
movable light was developed in 2001.
• Two stories building with 7 layers each.
Central
Taiwan
Caps with various spectrums were developed
Essential 8 for Tissue cultureFang，2008
B401~500nm
G501~600nm
R601~700nm
IR701~800nm
CW (5500 K) 26 % 46 26 2
WW (2700 K) 10 45 41 4
8R1B 13 87
7R1G1B 13 7 80
3R3B3IR 46 42 12
6R 100
6B 100
6IR 100
11
Totally 27 spectrums of caps and tubes
were developed for TC and PF applicationsFang，2009
13
Can PF_AL make
us richer, smarter,
greener, healthier,
and happier?14
More than 100 times compare with open field production
10 layers > 300 kg/m2/year
Closed: PF_AL
More than 100 times?
Same amount of floor area
100 times of yield/value
Same amount of yield
99% of floor area can be saved
Paid for only 1% of land
Labor cost can also be saved
20
Can PF_AL make
us richer, smarter,
greener, healthier,
and happier?21
Price of Land vs. cost of Lamp
When the land is limited or
very expensive,
PF_AL is a good option for
food production.
22
Taipei
NTU
A brief history of PF in Taiwan (3/3)
Public attention of
PF_AL for the first time :
2010 Taipei Floral Expo
• booth of PF: 8 m x 50 m
• duration: one month,
8:00~21:00
Promotion (step 1/4)
• An experimental pilot plant factory was setup in NTU (2011.1.1)
• Up to now, more than 2200 visitors
Renovated from a discarded roof-top greenhouse
24
Demo facility
Wind + solar power assisted: 13 kW
Promotion (step 2/4)
2010Fang
2011Kozai
2011Takatsuji
2012Kozai
2013Fang
25
Books published
Promotion (step 3/4)
• Started from 2011, twice per year at the Extension center
of NTU
• More than 460 people were trained
• From various Industrial/Business/Agriculture sectors
26
Workshops (30 hrs)
Partners and Interested Parties
Research and educational institutions
Governments
Real estate developers and builders
Construction companies
HVAC industry
Electronics industry
Supermarkets
Restaurants
Institutional food services (hospitals, schools, etc.)
Consumers
Media
Etc.
Promotion (step 4/4)
27
NGOs
TPFIDA
CPFA
光茵均旺
野菜工房
麗萊登
詮興開發
庭茂農業
慶聲科技
賽門科技
工研院
台灣大學
富士通台灣植物工廠產業發展協會中華植物工廠協會
旺永
中華映管
銘祥科技
聚陽光能
晶發半導體
東大一
工研院南分院
金工中心唐榮集團
寰宇綠色
28
2013 Industrial
MAP
澳登堡、三愛、贏創、寰宇研華、創森、金寶、金頓
萬能科大、苗廣豐、賀田、野菜工房
麗萊登
詮興開發、中砂、綠舍天地
庭茂、太平洋、矽新連展、鐳德
慶聲科技
工研院
台灣大學、光茵、浩然、驊陞科技Avata、宇通物聯、億昇
日本大阪府立大學太平総研株式会社日本未來株式会社台灣植物工廠產業發展協會中華植物工廠協會農漁畜牧LED應用產業推動聯盟台灣智慧農業產業聯誼會台灣農業跨領域發展協會(AMOT)台灣經濟研究院創業投資商業同業公會
農試所、旺永
賽門科技、大同、華映、台達
益菱、銘祥科技
聚陽光能
晶發半導體
東大一
高海大屏科大台灣福蝦台灣重工聯邦奈泡綠陽光電
海博特、盛貽綠能金工中心、唐榮集團
富員、久德、欣陽、映興
太極光
碩園、樂佳
李時珍、振宇農業
精鑽、皇基、中興、大葉
德能科研、雅聞、尚懋
昊耕、成功大學
農委會
29
2014 Industrial
MAP
Outline
1. Introduction
2. Some numbers
3. Business models
4. Recent researches
5. Conclusion
30
Vegetables consumption per person per day
31
CountryDaily consumption of
vegetables /person/ day
South Korea 578 g
Spain 392 g
France 389 g
USA 337 g
Japan 285 g
Singapore 260 g (95 kg/yr)
Australia 255 g
UK 249 g
The Netherland / Taiwan 200 g (73 kg/yr)
How big is the market in Taiwan
• Local for Local
• 1 % of population (0.23 million)
• 200 g of leafy greens per day per person
• 460 PF_ALs with
daily production of
1000 plants@100 g FW per plant
32
Status of PF_AL in Taiwan (2014.6)
Around 45 parties involved
Around 56 plant factories
33
51 parties involved
62 plant factories
44
5
(2015.5)
Sites for PF_ALs in Taiwan
• Urban:
– One story of a building: many
– Renovated from unused
factory: some
basement: 2
karaoke store: 1
rooftop greenhouse: 1
• Rural
– In greenhouse: 2 (Agri. land)
34
Scale of PF_AL in Taiwan
80% PF_ALs are small (less than 500 plants per day).
35
Yasai Lab.
Largest in Taiwan
Daily：2.5 tons
Bench: H 7 m, L 30 m
Area: 400 ping (1 ping=3.3 m2)
1.8 million plants
Pad and Fan for cooling
Movable light panels
Retail Price (same with GH crops)
Before: 200NT$/kg
Recent: 92 NT$/kg (3 US$/kg)
Projected Monthly revenue (Max)：6.9 Million NT$
37
Types of Artificial Light developed
• LED tubes: 15~20 companies
– 80~120 lm/W
– 1.2 m (14 W, 20 W), 1.8 m (28W) ：600 (¥1800 ~ 4500)
• LED panels: 10~15
– 50 cm x 60 cm (30 W)000 ~ 1500 NT$ (¥3000 ~ 4500)
• T5 tube: 3~4
– 1.2 m (30 W)
• CCFL: 1 company
– 單價：70 ~ 150 NT$ (¥210 ~ 450)
38
Spectrum of artificial light
• More than 35 types
–White: with various color temperature
–UVA + White
–White + Red
–Red and Blue: various combinations
–R, G, B: various combinations
39
Recent
development
by Taiwanese
companies
1 FL +
14 spectrums
of LED
panels or
tubes
40
Outline
1. Introduction
2. Some numbers
3. Business models
4. Recent researches
5. Conclusion
41
Business models
1. Mass production + sale of vegetable
2. Mass production + various product lines
3. Mass production + Restaurant chain
4. Mass production + Experience Economy
5. Mass production + (organic) food store chain
6. Home appliance provider (including indoor green-wall)
7. Home appliance provider + Construction company
8. Shop use appliance provider
9. Aquaponic system provider focusing on CSA
10. Education: workshop, seminar, tours
11. Consultation
12. Turn key provider who never grow plants
13. Turn key provider with demo site
42
Mass production + sale of vegetable
• RTE, RTC
– membership
– Web
– High price Restaurants
• EAW, CAW
– Regular Restaurant
– Wholesale
– Supermarket
43
Mass production + chain Restaurant
2010 2013 2014
46
2010: 1 mass production center + 1 restaurant2014: 1 mass production center + 8 restaurants2015: 1 + 9
Mass production + Experience Economy
Full of great
memories and
great taste
47
50
Shop appliance
56
Turnkey provider with demo site
• 2013.11
– 400 plts/day, 300 m2
• 2014.4
– 300 plts/day, 165 m2
• 2014.9
– 800 plts/day, 495 m2
• 2015.4 (under construction)
– 300 plts/day, 165 m2
PF_AL inside an office building
Outline
1. Introduction
2. Some numbers
3. Business models
4. Recent researches
5. Conclusion
67
Recent researches
68
SystemsCultural Practice
Mecha-tronics
ICT
– Quantitative measures and improvement of performance in PF_AL
– Yield prediction based on nutrient uptake / water uptake in PF_AL
– Development of PF Growth model derived from greenhouse growth model assuming CO2,
DLI, nitrate in solution are constants
– Real time measurement of 3 D and fresh weight of hydroponically grown lettuce
in PF_AL
– Ion-selective sensing of macro-elements in hydroponic system
– New light source (OLED) for functional plants, Spectrums for red leaf lettuce
– Disinfection：Generation of electrolysis water for disinfection in PF
Recent researches
69
SystemsCultural Practice
Mechatronics
ICT
– Application of elite phototrophic bacterial inoculant to reduce nitrate content & enhance
growth of leafy greens in PF_AL
– Development of generic hydroponic culturing system
– New crops/functional plants with high nutritional and/or economical value
• WSN / IOT applied in PF_AL
• Fuel cell applied in PF_AL
• Traceability of PF products
Factors affecting efficacy and cost
effectiveness of light source on bench
• Light source:
– LED, CCFL, FL (T5, T8), etc.tube, panel, etc.
– Number of lamps/chips used
– Interval between lamps
• Reflectors:
– Overhead: types
– 2 sides, 4 sides, etc.
• Distance from light to plants
• Growth area covered (LAI)
70
Quantitative measures (1/4)
• Lm/W is no good for horticultural lighting
• PPF/W is wrong, should be
PPF x Area (in m2) / W
• PPF x Area / W = µmol / J
71
QE ratio
T5 FLs at 10 cm interval
T5 FLs at 20 cm interval w/ reflector
73
ArrangementQE ratiomol/J
1.0
1.2
1.3
1.6
1.8
Reflectors make a great difference
in improving the QE ratio
74
With reflector
PPF increase from 113 to 229 mol/m2/s
Cold Cathode Fluorescent Lamp
Efficiency of light source is too low
Lighting efficiency (QE Ratio)
Comp_Spec
of Light
sources
Reflectors
on top
No. of tubes
or panels
PPF*
μmol m-2 s-1
PPF x Area
( μmol s-1 )
Power
consumption,
W
QE ratio
μmol J-1
S_CW1.8 Y 6 Tubes 334.9 ± 86.6 723.4 172.97 4.2
T_V Y 9 tubes 281.6 ± 59.4 608.4 195 3.1
H_CW Y 9 tubes 273.9 ± 79.8 73.9 212 3.1
T_A Y 9 tubes 225.8 ± 49.1 487.8 189 2.6
E_CW Y 9 tubes 263.8 ± 64.2 569.8 228 2.5
T_A no need 12 panels 411.5 ± 103.2 888.9 432 2.1
T_N Y 9 tubes 186.7 ± 39.3 403.2 196 2.1
E_WW Y 9 tubes 210.8 ± 51.0 455.3 229 2.0
T_N no need 12 panels 378.4 ± 95.4 809.6 428 1.9
T_M Y 9 tubes 168.0 ± 39.1 326.9 193 1.9
T_M no need 12 panels 387.3 ± 99.4 836.5 442 1.9
T_Y Y 9 tubes 168.3 ± 34.7 363.5 188 1.9
S_R no need 12 panels 291.0 ± 71.3 628.6 334 1.9
T5FL_CW Y 9 tubes 250.0 ± 57.5 540 283 1.9
* Measured at 10 cm distance under light except the T5FL treatment (at 20 cm distance)
** Area of culture Bed on bench per layer = 1.8 m x 1.2 m = 2.16 m2
76
Quantitative measures (1/4)
• Some numbers to take home:
77
µmol / J Comment
< 2.0 Get help
2 ~ 2.5 Poor
2.5 ~ 3.0 Average
3.0 ~ 4.0 Good
> 4.0 Excellent* PPF is measured at 10 cm distance under light
Efficient LED tubes
• Feature: longer tube
– 1.2 m (20W) 1.8 m (28.8 W) at same price
– for 1.8 m x 1.2 m growth area
• 9 x 1.2 m tubes 6 x 1.8 m tubes
• No. of tubes reduced by 1/3
• Fixed cost reduced by 1/3
• Installation time reduced by 1/3
78
Feature: adjustable angle
Reflectors at both ends can be removed
Efficient LED tubes
79
old
new
Rotating angle of
end tubesPPFavg
μmol m-2 s-1
PPFavg x Area
μmol/s
Power consumption, W
Efficiencyμmol/J
S_CW1.8
(0 degree)313.6 ± 69.8 677.5 172.97 3.9
S_CW1.8
(20 degree)326.2 ± 77.4 704.6 172.97 4.1
S_CW1.8
(40 degree)334.9 ± 86.6 723.4 172.97 4.2
* Power consumption per tube is 28.83 W, number of LED tube used is 6 per cultural bed.
81
Efficient LED tubes
Quantitative measures (2/4)
• Knowing µmol / J (QE ratio) is not enough
We defined two new terms
1. QY: g_FW/mole of photons providedfrom seeding (sowing) to harvest
2. PY: g_FW/degree of power consumedfrom seeding (sowing) to harvest
82
Quantitative measures (3/4)
83
µmol/J
g_FW/mole provided
g_FW------------
degree of power
consumed
Effect of spectrums, nutrient, and all other environmental
and cultural related parameters/conditions can be
evaluated quantitatively.
Power consumption of artificial light
for Lettuce production:
100 g_FW < 1.5 degree
QY
PYPY / QY inmole/degree
Quantitative measures (4/4)
84
g_FW x $/g
degree x $/degree
Revenue
---------Elec. cost
With the price and electricity cost values available,
business decision can be made, status of integrated
technologies can be evaluated.
Worldwide electricity fee per degree
85
http://theenergycollective.com
Taiwan
Which crop make better use of light?
Lettuce 1 Lettuce 2 PY/QY
QYg/mole
PYg/deg.
QYg/mole
PYg/deg.
mole/deg. ratio
LED1 32.2 44.2 18.5 25.3 1.4 1
LED2 31.1 101.2 22.0 71.6 3.3 2.35
LED3 34.4 67.0 20.7 40.4 1.9 1.35
LED4 32.0 74.8 20.1 46.9 2.3 1.64
Avg. 32 72 20 46
Lettuce 1 generate 60% more biomass under same amount of light. (g/mol)
Lettuce 1 generate 56% more biomass under same power consumption. (g/deg)
87
Which LED is the best for the crop?Lettuce 1 Lettuce 2 PY/QY
QYg/mole
PYg/deg.
QYg/mole
PYg/deg.
mole/deg. ratio
LED1 32.2 44.2 18.5 25.3 1.4 1
LED2 31.1 101.2 22.0 71.6 3.3 2.35
LED3 34.4 67.0 20.7 40.4 1.9 1.35
LED4 32.0 74.8 20.1 46.9 2.3 1.64
Avg. 32 72 20 46
biomass production per power consumption: LED2 > LED4 > LED3 > LED1 for both lettuce
(can be seen under PY and mol/deg)
88
Mobility of lamps
Back & ForthAutomatic up & down
based on plant height
89
90
Wireless sensing of T, RH and PPF
Light
sensorT, RH
sensors
FW：75.6 g FW：61.2 g
FW：30.9 g
Automatic real time measurement of
3 D image and fresh weight
92
Imaging System
Weighing System
User Interface
93
F型手臂
馬達
攝影機
F arm
motor
camera
Automatic measurement of
3 D info of each plant
Real time Volume and Fresh weight
measurement
Making 8 lines into 1 line is the goal of research
95
Development of
ion-selective electrodes for the detection of
macro-elements in nutrient solution
Traditional sensors: 1000 US$ a pieceCost of new sensors: 1 US$ a piece
96
OLED vs. LEDs
Sprouts grown with OLED
has higher anti-oxidation
capability
BR
WWRGB
OLED
98
Fuel Cell in PF_AL
DMFC operation schematic
SFC EFOY COMFORT 210 105W
IRD DMFC 500W backup generator
99
PF_AL
1. A new industry is formed in Taiwan
2. Local for local» healthy and pesticide-free vegetable provider
» Replace imported leafy greens
3. Still waiting for organic liquid fertilizer to be
commercially available and the technology of renewable
energy to be mature
4. Many business models were under practice.
Some fail, some looks promising
5. Can play important role in urban agriculture and in smart
city
100
Conclusions
PF_AL can make us richer, smarter,
greener, healthier, and happier.
Q & A
101