Other websites

• https://cordis.europa.eu/project/id/827952

Additional info

Greenhouse based horticultural projects (GBHP) represent a valuable solution, compared to outdoor vegetable farms, as they can offer dramatic savings in water consumption and a longer growing season even in areas with extreme climate conditions. However, greenhouse horticulture development in those areas is hampered by poor infrastructures, e.g. absent/unreliable electricity grids and gas networks.
The SPRHOUT technology, developed by SOLHO, represents a solution to such issue, since it allows the deployment of totally off-grid greenhouses in the so-called “sunbelt area”. It is a cutting edge technology, based on an innovative Thermal Energy Storage (TES) system called TESMOD, which uses solar energy to fulfil the power needs of a greenhouse facility. The SPRHOUT solution is modular and can be applied both to small horticultural projects and to large greenhouse facilities.

The Phase 1 project objectives were to:
- Optimize the energy system in order to validate its performances;
- Perform dynamic modelling simulation of the SPRHOUT in order to assess the performance of the control algorithm.

In addition to the above, other project objectives included business feasibility tasks in order to:
- Conduct a strategic market analysis aimed at carrying out cost benefit analysis in target application scenarios;
- Refine the Business Model to define the optimal pricing strategy;
- Review the financial model so as to ensure that all life-cycle costs are fully reflected.

The SPRHOUT system operates harvesting solar energy in the solar field and storing it in the form of heat in the thermal energy storage. The stored energy is withdrawn when needed to heat up the greenhouse and/or to be converted into cooling by means of a thermal driven chiller. The SPRHOUT features a backup unit (e.g., a biogas or fossil fuel burner) which makes up for missing solar input and guarantees 100% redundancy minimizing the risks for the crop.