No. 774: Growing vegetables using carbon dioxide in exhaust gases from industrial plants (September 19, 2013)

Technology:

Greenhouse cultivation

JFE Engineering developed a system for efficient vegetable growth with the help of carbon dioxide contained in exhaust gases from industrial plants and electric power plants besides exhaust heat from them. The system can produce two times more vegetables than outdoor culture and 20% more vegetables than greenhouse culture. The new system recovers carbon dioxide from the exhaust gases and sends it into the greenhouse at the optimal concentration for vegetable growth. Because it employs the special purification unit, safe carbon dioxide without impurities can be recovered.

The system is priced at 2,000 million yen for a 50,000-square-meter greenhouse. For farmers without a plant, the company will market a model complete with a gas engine with an output of 1,000 kW for the purpose of utilizing power and heat created by the gas engine. The gas engine emits 0.5 ton of carbon dioxide per hour. However, in the case of a 50,000-square-meter greenhouse, vegetables being grown absorb all carbon dioxide emitted from the gas engine. Production cost of vegetables can be reduced by 30% because of increased shipments and decreased labor cost. The initial investment can be recouped in seven to eight years. The company is also working on a regional model that recovers carbon dioxide from an industrial park and sends it to farmlands in a region using pipes.  

 The image of a new system 

developed by JFE Engineering