Modeling Bibb Lettuce Nitrogen Uptake and Biomass Productivity in Vertical Hydroponic Agriculture

Andrew Sharkey, Asher Altman, Abigail R. Cohen, Teagan Groh, Thomas K. S. Igou, Rhuanito Soranz Ferrarezi and Yongsheng Chen ()
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Andrew Sharkey: School of Civil & Environmental Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA
Asher Altman: School of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA
Abigail R. Cohen: School of Civil & Environmental Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA
Teagan Groh: School of Civil & Environmental Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA
Thomas K. S. Igou: School of Civil & Environmental Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA
Rhuanito Soranz Ferrarezi: Department of Horticulture, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA
Yongsheng Chen: School of Civil & Environmental Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA

Agriculture, 2024, vol. 14, issue 8, 1-22

Abstract: Global fertilizer production and mismanagement significantly contribute to many harmful environmental impacts, revealing the need for a greater understanding of crop growth and nutrient uptake, which can be used to optimize fertilizer management. This study experimentally adapts first-principles microbial modeling techniques to the hydroponic cultivation of Bibb lettuce ( Lactuca sativa ) under nitrogen-limited conditions. Monod and Michaelis–Menten’s approaches are applied to predict biomass productivity and nutrient uptake and to evaluate the feasibility of reclaimed wastewater as a nutrient source of nitrogen. Experimental and modeling results reveal significantly different kinetic saturation constants ( K s = 1.331 and K m = 17.887 mg L −1 ) and a corresponding cell yield strongly dependent on nutrient concentration, producing visually and compositionally distinct tissue between treatments receiving ≤ 26.2 and ≥ 41.7 m g N L −1 . The resulting Monod model overestimates dry mass predictions during low nutrient conditions, and the collective results support the development of a dynamic Monod curve that is temporally dependent during the plants’ lifecycle. Despite this shortcoming, these results support the feasibility of reclaiming nitrogen from wastewater in hydroponic agriculture, expecting to produce lesser biomass lettuce exhibiting healthy tissue. Furthermore, this study provides a mathematical foundation for agricultural simulations and nutrient management.

Keywords: hydroponics; vertical farming; controlled environment agriculture; biokinetics; sustainability; cell yield (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q1 Q10 Q11 Q12 Q13 Q14 Q15 Q16 Q17 Q18 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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