Design, Management and Environmental Control of Greenhouses
Description
The scope of the course is to convey the fundamentals of design management and environmental control of crop production systems under controlled environment. Whereas the focus will be greenhouses, attention will be also given to other alternatives, such as vertical farming systems, plant factories and screenhouses. During the course basic design considerations will be analysed together with the main systems used for controlling the aerial environment (ventilation, heating, cooling and shading). Techniques and technologies for integrated pest management will be presented together with automation and robotics applications. Optimum control via experts and AI systems will be introduced. Finally some basic insights into sustainability issues will be covered.
Learning objectives
Students completing this course will be able to:
- Understand the main design and structural characteristics of greenhouse.
- Calculate required ventilation / cooling /heating for greenhouses and select appropriate systems.
- Comprehend the importance of environmental control systems and their integration in controlling the indoor environment of a greenhouse
- Be familiar with the main automations and robotics systems used for greenhouse crops.
- Get insights on novel controlled environment production systems (i.e. vertical farming systems)
- Comprehend the main environment control aspects for greenhouses.
- Comprehend the main sustainability issues of greenhouse crops.
| WEEK | Lectures |
| 1ST | Design and structural specifications of greenhouses – (Bartzanas) |
| 2ND | Internal environment of greenhouses – (Bartzanas) |
| 3RD | Natural ventilation systems – (Bartzanas) |
| 4TH | Cooling systems – (Bartzanas) |
| 5TH | Heating systems – (Bartzanas) |
| 6TH | Integrated pest management systems and technologies – (Bartzanas) |
| 7TH | Vertical farming systems – (Bartzanas) |
| 8TH | Hydroponics systems – (Savvas – Katsoulas) |
| 9TH | Automation and robotics – (Arvanitis – Loukatos) |
| 10TH | Climate control systems for greenhouses – (Ferentinos) |
| 11TH | Sustainability issues in greenhouses – (Bartzanas) |
| 12TH | Examples and Exercises (Arvanitis-Loukatos) |
| 13TH | Examples and Exercises (Bartzanas) |
Assignments – Indicative
- Estimation of ventilation rates throughout a year (Bartzanas)
- Evaluation of heating and cooling demands throughout a year (Bartzanas)
- Regulation of Environmental Factors through Advanced Control Techniques (Arvanitis/Loukatos)
- Estimation of main inputs – outputs sources in terms of energy for a greenhouse crop (Bartzanas)
Exams, marking and student assessment
Assignments: 70%, Written exam(s): 30%