CO2 Enrichment

Horse manure used for CO2 enrichment in a greenhouse. Picture taken by OSE contributor Rasmus Kiehl at Ecovillage Sieben Linden, Germany.

While the average ambient CO2 concentration in the atmosphere is now (2016) about 400 ppm, in a greenhouse it can be increased much further to improve plant growth. Concentrations of 1000-1200 ppm or even up to 1500ppm are used in commercial greenhouse operations. Above this level, dangerous toxic effects to the crops and workers are more likely to occur. This enrichment has dramatic positive effects on crop productivity (doubling or tripling) and potential advantages in water use (due to changes in plant transpiration with lower water losses). Various sources of CO2 for the greenhouse are available, such as burning biogas or compost which provide very clean sources of CO2. Some pyrolysis methods (for biochar production) are also very clean and could be considered as well.

Open Source Hardware Needs

• CO2 sensors
• pipes, fans

External links

• Wikipedia: (section in greenhouses page) CO2 enrichment in greenhouses
• Wikipedia: (section in CO2 page) Agricultural and biological applications