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Energy Efficiency in Greenhouse Evaporative Cooling Techniques: Cooling Boxes versus Cellulose Pads

Author

Listed:
  • Antonio Franco

    (ETSIA, University of Sevilla, Ctra. Utrera km 1, 41013 Sevilla, Spain)

  • Diego L. Valera

    (Centro de Investigación en Biotecnología Agroalimentaria—BITAL, University of Almería, Ctra. Sacramento s/n, 04120 Almería, Spain)

  • Araceli Peña

    (Centro de Investigación en Biotecnología Agroalimentaria—BITAL, University of Almería, Ctra. Sacramento s/n, 04120 Almería, Spain)

Abstract

Evaporative cooling systems using a combination of evaporative pads and extractor fans require greenhouses to be hermetic. The greatest concentration of greenhouses in the world is located in southeast Spain, but these tend not to be hermetic structures and consequently can only rely on fogging systems as evaporative cooling techniques. Evaporative cooling boxes provide an alternative to such systems. Using a low-speed wind tunnel, the present work has compared the performance of this system with four pads of differing geometry and thickness manufactured by two different companies. The results obtained show that the plastic packing in the cooling unit produces a pressure drop of 11.05 Pa at 2 m·s −1 , which is between 51.27% and 94.87% lower than that produced by the cellulose pads. This pressure drop was not influenced by increases in the water flow. The evaporative cooling boxes presented greater saturation efficiency at the same flow, namely 82.63%, as opposed to an average figure of 65% for the cellulose pads; and also had a lower specific consumption of water, at around 3.05 L·h −1 ·m −2 ·°C −1 . Consequently, we conclude that evaporative cooling boxes are a good option for cooling non-hermetic greenhouses such as those most frequently used in the Mediterranean basin.

Suggested Citation

  • Antonio Franco & Diego L. Valera & Araceli Peña, 2014. "Energy Efficiency in Greenhouse Evaporative Cooling Techniques: Cooling Boxes versus Cellulose Pads," Energies, MDPI, vol. 7(3), pages 1-21, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jeners:v:7:y:2014:i:3:p:1427-1447:d:33836
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Farmahini-Farahani, Moien & Delfani, Shahram & Esmaeelian, Jafar, 2012. "Exergy analysis of evaporative cooling to select the optimum system in diverse climates," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 40(1), pages 250-257.
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    1. Farrell, Eanna & Hassan, Mohamed I. & Tufa, Ramato A. & Tuomiranta, Arttu & Avci, Ahmet H. & Politano, Antonio & Curcio, Efrem & Arafat, Hassan A., 2017. "Reverse electrodialysis powered greenhouse concept for water- and energy-self-sufficient agriculture," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 187(C), pages 390-409.
    2. Aleksejs Prozuments & Arturs Brahmanis & Armands Mucenieks & Vladislavs Jacnevs & Deniss Zajecs, 2022. "Preliminary Study of Various Cross-Sectional Metal Sheet Shapes in Adiabatic Evaporative Cooling Pads," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(11), pages 1-10, May.
    3. Mahrokh Farvardin & Morteza Taki & Shiva Gorjian & Edris Shabani & Julio C. Sosa-Savedra, 2024. "Assessing the Physical and Environmental Aspects of Greenhouse Cultivation: A Comprehensive Review of Conventional and Hydroponic Methods," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(3), pages 1-34, February.
    4. Chiara Bersani & Ahmed Ouammi & Roberto Sacile & Enrico Zero, 2020. "Model Predictive Control of Smart Greenhouses as the Path towards Near Zero Energy Consumption," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(14), pages 1-17, July.
    5. Subin Mattara Chalill & Snehaunshu Chowdhury & Ramanujam Karthikeyan, 2021. "Prediction of Key Crop Growth Parameters in a Commercial Greenhouse Using CFD Simulation and Experimental Verification in a Pilot Study," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 11(7), pages 1-23, July.
    6. Salins, Sampath Suranjan & Kota Reddy, S.V. & Shiva Kumar,, 2021. "Experimental Investigation and Neural network based parametric prediction in a multistage reciprocating humidifier," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 293(C).
    7. Antonio Franco-Salas & Araceli Peña-Fernández & Diego Luis Valera-Martínez, 2019. "Refrigeration Capacity and Effect of Ageing on the Operation of Cellulose Evaporative Cooling Pads, by Wind Tunnel Analysis," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(23), pages 1-11, November.
    8. Tejero-González, A. & Franco-Salas, A., 2021. "Optimal operation of evaporative cooling pads: A review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 151(C).
    9. Anhui He & Xiao Wu & Xinfeng Jiang & Reyimei Maimaitituxun & Ayesha Entemark & Hongjun Xu, 2023. "A Study on the Impact of Different Cooling Methods on the Indoor Environment of Greenhouses Used for Lentinula Edodes during Summer," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 13(8), pages 1-16, August.
    10. Eloy Velasco-Gómez & Ana Tejero-González & Javier Jorge-Rico & F. Javier Rey-Martínez, 2020. "Experimental Investigation of the Potential of a New Fabric-Based Evaporative Cooling Pad," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(17), pages 1-13, August.
    11. Giuseppina Nicolosi & Roberto Volpe & Antonio Messineo, 2017. "An Innovative Adaptive Control System to Regulate Microclimatic Conditions in a Greenhouse," Energies, MDPI, vol. 10(5), pages 1-17, May.
    12. Kumar, Shiva & Salins, Sampath Suranjan & Reddy, S.V. Kota & Nair, Prasanth Sreekumar, 2021. "Comparative performance analysis of a static & dynamic evaporative cooling pads for varied climatic conditions," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 233(C).
    13. Tsafaras, I. & Campen, J.B. & Stanghellini, C. & de Zwart, H.F. & Voogt, W. & Scheffers, K. & Harbi, A. Al & Assaf, K. Al, 2021. "Intelligent greenhouse design decreases water use for evaporative cooling in arid regions," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 250(C).
    14. Ana Tejero‐González & Antonio Franco‐Salas, 2022. "Direct evaporative cooling from wetted surfaces: Challenges for a clean air conditioning solution," Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Energy and Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 11(3), May.
    15. Abohorlu Doğramacı, Pervin & Riffat, Saffa & Gan, Guohui & Aydın, Devrim, 2019. "Experimental study of the potential of eucalyptus fibres for evaporative cooling," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 131(C), pages 250-260.

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