Challenge

Growy is the first commercially viable vertical farm that grows various crops, herbs, and micro-greens. With their proven success in the Netherlands, they are eager to expand to other markets. They continuously lookout for ways to improve their vertical farming operations and become more circular and sustainable in the process. 

One problem that Growy currently faces is their reliance on fossil fuel carbon dioxide cylinders to foster and grow their crops. In line with their goal to become completely sustainable, Growy has been searching for alternatives that deliver the same quality as these carbon dioxide cylinders, but without the negative externalities. 

Solution

The current sustainable alternative for CO₂ cylinders is the usage of onsite direct air capture technology. These are devices that are capable of taking the carbon dioxide out of the atmospheric air and providing concentrated CO₂ to where it is needed. 

The real solution for Growy needed to be a compact version of this direct air capture technology that would be tailored towards vertical or container farms. This is exactly what Skytree was developing. Through close collaboration with each other, Skytree was able to successfully install the first working modular direct air capture device in Growy’s vertical farm. 

The Skytree pilot unit only weighs 45 kilograms and is smaller than 2 meters square. The testing facility was a container of 47 cubic meters and contained more than 100 plants divided over six installations of three floors each.

Results

Within 70 minutes, Skytree’s decentralized direct air capture technology was able to reach the required carbon dioxide target of 1200 PPM and consistently delivered these results throughout the test in Growy’s vertical farm with a marginal standard deviation of 81 PPM. Overall, proving that plants can live off the carbon dioxide enriched air and do not require external cylinder supplies to flourish. 

This decentralized direct air capture technology opens a new world of opportunities for vertical farms like Growy and other CO₂ dependent industries. These companies now have the option to switch to a circular, uninterrupted and sustainable alternative for their carbon dioxide supply.