SBIR-STTR Award

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project entitled "A sustainable Wavelength Selective Energy Producing Greenhouse" will demonstrate a greenhouse that can utilize land for both food production and electricity production. A cost effective and highly durable greenhouse panel has been developed that simultaneously facilitates plant growth, reduces cooling requirements and generates power at less than $1/watt incremental cost. The greenhouse uses a proprietary material to selectively absorb the green portion of the solar spectrum that is not used by plants. The Green light is then transferred to photovoltaic cells mounted at the edge of the panel for power. The color tuning associated with controlling the red/blue ratio of transmitted light has been shown to facilitate fruit production in tomatoes and increase flower production. The color tuning materials have achieved greater than a 20 year lifetime in full sun based on high humidity / high intensity UV aging studies. This project will build a full greenhouse with these materials and obtain results on both plant growth and demonstrate a sustainable, energy neutral, "off the grid" greenhouse. The broader impact/commercial potential of this project will be to better utilize the limited land and water resources of this country. Much of the remote land that might be suitable for solar energy is too far from transmission lines or sub-stations to be economically viable and is environmentally sensitive. Agricultural land already coexists with population centers and contains the necessary infrastructure for power transmission. Merging both power generation and food production can increase the productivity of land near population centers with greenhouses that will bring the food source closer to the consumer, extend the growing season and conserve/recycle valuable water resources. The commercialization of this power generating greenhouse will start a complimentary energy-agriculture industry that can best utilize our scarce natural resources. Greenhouse construction is a multi-billion industry and is growing as population and food consumption grows. The project will work with local universities to create a new generation of botanist/biologist/physicist that can serve a rapidly growing solar/agriculture market sector. The demonstration greenhouse will be used as a learning center for students from middle school to graduate school

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) phase II project will demonstrate a sustainable wavelength selective energy producing greenhouse covering that will provide a second harvest of electricity for greenhouse growers of vegetables and flowers. The greenhouse uses a proprietary method to selectively absorb only the green portion of the solar spectrum that is not used by plants and utilize this light to generate electricity. Plant growth is helped by controlling the spectrum of the light for most efficient growth. This cost effective and highly durable greenhouse cover will be tested in a commercial greenhouse growing environment. The broader impact/commercial potential of this project will be to reduce the energy required to produce food in the United States and lower the carbon footprint for greenhouse grown products. The greenhouse covering will help the rapidly growing local food industry by improving the economics of small scale greenhouse production and save natural resources by growing food close to where it is consumed. The commercialization of this product will create a completely new energy source that can pay for itself in 5 years and can also provide fresh flowers and vegetables to local consumers.