A Novel Hydroponic Based on Hybrid Renewable Energy System

Hydroponic farming, a soilless technique, has become increasingly popular and is considered the future of agriculture in water-deficient areas like Saudi Arabia. These regions tackle the challenge of cultivating fruits and vegetables with an automated hydroponic system. This system uses ozone filtration, is self-installed, and includes PV, DG, battery, converter, and AI for independent functioning. It employs ozonic methods to cleanse and filter water, eliminating the need for human intervention, and offers customizable options to accommodate various locations. The proposed hydroponic system will use sensors as input and output devices, run on a hybrid renewable energy system (HRES), and integrate water pumps, dosing pumps, and lighting sources. By integrating solar panels, batteries, converters, and a diesel generator (DG), the goal is to decrease CO₂ emissions, water, and power usage, and utilize AI for disease detection. This cutting-edge system tackles multiple challenges in hydroponic agriculture, such as sporadic solar energy, efficient energy storage, converter performance, and diesel generator emissions, aiming to reduce energy wastage and emissions while maintaining dependable operation. The proposed design method assesses the energy needs for growing hydroponic lettuce, cutting down on water and energy usage by decreasing the water pump's running time to only 4 hours instead of 24 hours. This results in a 40% reduction in energy and cost savings with the ideal sizes of PV, battery, DG, and converter. The system, utilizing HOMER and GAMS software, presents cost and energy savings and operational expense reductions, offering advantages for business owners, agricultural enthusiasts, and individuals looking into agricultural investments. This system could boost local investment in agriculture and technology sectors, in line with Saudi Vision 2030.