WIR! – Physics for Food

Duration from 1.4.2024 – 31.12.2025, funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) under the funding code (FKZ) 03WIR2817.

Vertical farming concepts are increasingly becoming important as an additional method to grow crops, especially leafy greens, in urban environments. The cultivation in strictly controlled settings on stacked levels offers the advantage of small footprints, multiple growth cycles and yields that can far exceed traditional methods independent from local or general climatic conditions. However, the therefore necessary fully electric operation is energy intensive, requires high hygienic standards to prevent plant diseases, and is depending on an efficient use of resources, in particular water. Plasma methods offer different possibilities for respective improvements. A dedicated water treatment in a recirculating approach reduces fresh water need while at the same time eliminating pathogens and substituting nitrogen fertilizers. In addition, pesticides can be replaced, or might not even be necessary when using plasma-treated seeds, and an already observed growth stimulation can be exploited to further increase harvest yields. Altogether the approach, hence, presents unique possibilities for the application of findings from the associated Wir! projects ‘Physics for Seed Treatment’, ’Physics for Cropping Systems’, and ‘Physics and Ecology’.