Fatima H.

Khanafer

Some Questions and Problems:

What program should be included to serve the surrounding

community?
Would the local citizens participate in community gardening?

What kind of natural energy resources are available to this

project?
If waste incineration is a major renewable energy producer for the VF
as a bldg. type, how can one manage this process in a densely
populated urban area? How can one harvest waste from the
surrounding area?

How should the VF as a high-rise structure relate to the existing

fabric?
How should the buildings base both in suggested program & scale
Proposal:
relate to that fabric.
1. Industrial/experimental farming
.Farming support facilities (storage,Labs,working areas,private
lounge)
.Hydroponic growing area
.Aqauponics
.Crop storage
.Seed nursery

2. Tower base
.Community garden
.Farmers market
.Shops
.Civic plaza
.Distribution/ packing facility
3. Water purification component
.Anaerobic septic tank
.Aerobic reactor
4. Water collection component+ water tanks
5. Communal green house
.Anaerobic septic tank
.Aerobic reactor

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Fatima H. Khanafer

How a Vertical Farm Works?

American entrepreneur John Edel is the founder of a vertical farm "The
Plant, says: The key to this farm is the closing of loops: energy loops;
resource loops; money loops -- by keeping jobs local. If you can close the
loops, you can make things more sustainable.
Source:http://edition.cnn.com/2012/05/29/us/plant-chicago-eco-farm/

Source: ibid

So if one were to build a vertical farm, how would it be?

Fueling the farm and water supply:
i. powered by wind, solar energy (solar cells, photovoltaic glass) or
another sustainable fuel. For example, left over plant mass from crop
production or biomass from wastewater treatment vertical farms
would be incinerated and converted to biofuel.
ii.Any water needed for our farm would come from: 1) Recycled
municipal waste water from a nearby standalone waste water
treatment vertical farm. The water could then be recycled within our
crop farm. 2) Transpired water could be recollected by placing
dehumidification devices on each floor, recollecting the water and
putting it back in to circulation. 3) Rain water collected from the roof
top.
.Building designed for maximum light efficiency :
i. The building architecture itself would be optimized for maximum light
efficiency. Windows and rooftops could be designed to get the most
out of the sun according to seasonal variation.
ii. Additional lighting would be required preferably form of LED lighting.

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Fatima H. Khanafer

How a Vertical Farm Works?

Growing floors, form and function:
i. Technology within the vertical farm would be similar to the principles
of Maximum yield and High rise crops (Despommier, 2010a).
ii.an automated conveyor would be used to move the plants from one
end of the floor to the other while the plants grow from seedling to
mature and reach the harvester at the opposite side. Along the way,
water and lighting could be optimized for each growth stage. To add
additional efficiency, plants could be stacked in layers on each floor,
using existing hydroponic growing technology (Despommier, 2009).

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Fatima H. Khanafer

Cultivating systems

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Fatima H. Khanafer

Cultivating systems

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Fatima H. Khanafer

What can be grown

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