Improving the Performance of Montel’s LoopAir High-Density Vertical Farming System

Canadian indoor farmers are facing significant challenges related to out-of-season production, including pricing and consistency of electrical supply, pollination, and competition with international producers. The overarching goal of this project is to help Canadian industrial partners address some of these challenges through the development of sustainable technologies. Therefore, the goal of the proposed project is to improve the existing high-density indoor vertical farming platform developed by our industrial partner. This enhancement involves integrating advanced air circulation technology recently developed by the Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) team. The technology originated from a homegrown Innovation challenge project funded by the Weston Family Foundation. The primary goal of this Mitacs project is to optimize air circulation and recover the heat generated within the vertical farm environment, thus maximizing its efficiency and productivity. This project represents a significant step forward in addressing challenges in high-density indoor growing platforms by integrating an innovative air circulation system into existing indoor vertical farms.
The optimized platform will provide indoor farmers with the technology to produce a minimum of three crops annually with the possibility of continuous replacement of plants in each growing area. The outcome of this project will greatly benefit the industrial partner by gaining a competitive edge in vertical farming technologies. This adaptable technology can also be retrofitted into existing greenhouse setups, further enhancing the industrial partner’s versatility and amplifying Canada’s production capacity.

Faculty Supervisor:

Habiba Bougherara;Leslie G Campbell;Thabet Belamri

Student:

Partner:

Montel;Weston Family Foundation

Discipline:

Engineering

Sector:

Other services (except public administration)

University:

Toronto Metropolitan University

Program: