The Ultra-Clima is a semi-closed greenhouse concept with 5 key starting points. In the coming months we will provide an explanation of each individual starting point or one of the components. This article is about saving energy using this technology.
Meanwhile, there are 31 projects worldwide covering about 193 hectares of Ultra-Clima projects. Countries that were already on the Ultra-Clima list include the United States, Australia, France, Russia, Mexico, Japan, Turkey and Slovenia, and counting! Also thanks to the energy-saving concept.
Savings through LT heating
The return temperatures of the heating water are very low. Heating is primarily based on LT (approx 45˚C) water via heating elements in air treatment cupboards. The low temperatures ensure further cooling down of flue gases, allowing for saving on gas. In principle, more than one LT source may be used.
Savings based on outdoor air dehumidification
From multiple research studies and practical experience, it has become clear that heating outdoor air can enable dehumidification with far less heat. This is a method that is also applied in the Ultra-Clima greenhouse.
Savings due to the use of residual heat from lighting fixtures
Due to the option of recirculating the air in the top of the greenhouse, the residual heat of lighting fixtures can be transported to the bottom side of the crops. It is a fact that under high pressure, sodium lamps convert about 25% of electric power into light, and the rest comes out as heat. Most of this heat can be reused in the Ultra-Clima greenhouse. This provides a significant saving for each used kW/h. This means that the high-pressure sodium lamp, based on equal power consumption and equal light units produced, becomes very similar to the LED lamps in terms of power consumption.
Reusing residual heat of high-pressure sodium lamp.
If you would like to know more about the possible energy savings using the Ultra-Clima greenhouse, please do not hesitate to visit our website or contact Kubo at: