Experimental evaluation of the thermal and hygrometric behavior of a Colombian greenhouse used for the production of roses (Rosa spp.)

Abstract

The spatial behavior of the environmental variables involved in rose production is one of the factors of greatest current interest in the Colombian ornamental sector. The aim of this work consisted in the evaluation of a passive greenhouse through an experimental approach that included the capture and recording of data through a grid of 40 sensors homogeneously distributed inside the greenhouse. The data processing was carried out through the application of geostatistical techniques that allowed to obtain contour plots for 5 levels of radiation intensity. The results of the exploratory analysis showed that the behavior of temperature, relative humidity and vapour pressure deficit are not the most suitable for rose production, mainly for the conditions of the night period where the temperature exhibited values below 12.5 °C, the relative humidity was above 90% and the vapour pressure deficit was below 0.1 kPa. On the other hand in the structural analysis the circular model of theoretical semivariogram was the one that better degree of adjustment presented in comparison with the experimental data finding that a strong spatial dependency exists for the studied variables, the prediction of the not sampled points was made by means of the method of ordinary kriging finding that horizontal gradients of temperature and relative humidity exist inside the greenhouse that increases in magnitude according to the level of radiation arriving to reach values of 6.1 °C and 30.4%.

Contribution to the Sustainability of Agricultural Production in Greenhouses Built on Slope Soils: A Numerical Study of the Microclimatic Behavior of a Typical Colombian Structure

“…The figure shows that both the TD thermal gradient and the climatic heterogeneity are dependent on the level of solar radiation; therefore, the higher the radiation levels, the greater the thermal gradients and spatial variability of the temperature inside the greenhouse. These results are consistent with those reported in previous studies of the microclimatic behavior of Colombian greenhouses [65,70,71]. Finally, it is important to mention that the results obtained in this research are a relevant technical input that will allow future microclimatic optimization strategies to manage the temperature conditions inside roof structures built on slope soil.…”

“…Another factor related to the behavior of temperature is its spatial distribution. In recent years, the interest of researchers has focused on determining and studying the heterogeneous distribution of temperature inside greenhouses, since it is a factor that affects the quantity and quality of the final products harvested [68][69][70].…”

“…Regarding the evaluation of the spatial distribution of the temperature, it can be observed that there are behaviors that can be considered as homogeneous for the hours 6:00 and 17:00 where the ∆T inside value showed values lower than 2 • C [70]. For the remaining hours, a high thermal heterogeneity is observed between 9:00 and 16:00 h, where the ∆T inside value reached a magnitude of up to 16.93 • C at 13:00 h. This value may be considered too high and inadequate, even more so if we take into account that it is a greenhouse composed of only five spans and that additionally it does not have porous insect-proof mesh protection in the ventilation areas.…”

Research on the Microclimate of Protected Agriculture Structures Using Numerical Simulation Tools: A Technical and Bibliometric Analysis as a Contribution to the Sustainability of Under-Cover Cropping in Tropical and Subtropical Countries

“…The behavior of the microclimate in a protected agriculture structure is also highly dependent on the energy transfers via solar radiation [190]. Likewise, the level of radiation intercepted by the roof and transferred to the interior of the structure directly influences plant physiological processes, such as transpiration and photosynthesis [191,192]. Therefore the coupling of a solar radiation model able to efficiently and realistically simulate radiative transfers has been increasingly an area of interest and continuous development in this area of knowledge [41].…”

Influence of the Height in a Colombian Multi-Tunnel Greenhouse on Natural Ventilation and Thermal Behavior: Modeling Approach

“…Another relevant criterion to be analyzed is the uniform distribution of temperature in the cross axis of the greenhouse. This is undoubtedly a factor that has received more attention in recent years, since it has a direct influence on the physiological behavior of the plants and on the final yield of the crops [58,82]. Therefore, for this study, the values obtained in the cross section of each of the greenhouses were plotted as a function of wind speed (Figure 12).…”