Urban production: Smart rooftop greenhouses as a technology for industrial energy symbiosis

One approach for advancing industrial energy efficiency and energy flexibility of production systems is to connect independent production systems and local supply systems to energy networks. One technology that can be adopted is Smart Rooftop Greenhouses (SRGs). The main subject matter of SRGs is the combination of biomass production and waste heat usage from the factory as well as the smart grid integration of the collaborative production system. As an SRG can be heated with low temperature waste heat, a big energy efficiency potential in German industry can be addressed. Furthermore, the SRG allows for space to be used more efficiently for supporting land-use reduction goals. With a highly automated and digitalized plant production technology in a controlled environment like an SRG, the production of high value biomass can be automated and optimized based on production output, energy efficiency and energy flexibility. The aim of this publication is to present a concept for smart rooftop greenhouses. The paper is supported through a systematic literature review on the subject. The results of this review have been combined and further developed with new approaches. One new approach is the industrial energy symbiosis concept, which integrates the SRG into a micro-grid together with manufacturing processes. Another one is an interdisciplinary research approach combining industrial-manufacturing digitalization research with high-tech urban-farming research.