Iranian Company Develops Artificial Light Technology for Growing Plants Instead of Sunlight
Zamani, the managing director of the knowledge-based company considered producing hydroponic grow baskets, hydroponics grow beds, the plant factory manufacturer and an expert in the manufacture of artificial plant growth lights to be among the achievements of their company, a report by the Vice Presidency for Science and Technology and Knowledge-Based Economy said.
"Years ago we realized that there is great need in the agricultural sector in the country for a technology to use artificial lights instead of sunlight to grow plants. This technology was spreading all over the world at a high pace, but in our country, not much attention had been paid to it. Therefore, by bringing together experts and top students in physics, agricultural sciences, horticulture and electronics, we decided to form a research group and locally develop the technology in our country," the managing director went on to say.
"Plant growth lights and vertical farming using artificial lights are some of our important achievements. In artificial light technology, to meet the needs of plant photosynthesis, nanometers from the sun that have a positive and greater impact on the plant's photosynthesis are filtered from the sun's spectrum and placed next to each other by LED technology, depending on the type of plant variety to meet the needs of the plant," Zamani added.
The spectrum of light that plants use is known as Photosynthetically Active Radiation (PAR) and includes wavelengths from 400-700 nm. So, the light produced that doesn't fall within this range cannot be absorbed by the plants and utilized for growth.
"We can easily grow plants anywhere indoors without the need for sunlight, an example of which is also found in the NASA space station. Artificial light technology is used to produce food in space to provide food for the occupants of the spacecrafts," the managing director of the knowledge-based company said.
Stating that the biggest advantage of this grow light technology is a reduction in water consumption, which is a necessity in Iran, Zamani added, "In the field of producing additional greenhouse lights for traditional greenhouses, increasing the length of the day in the autumn and winter increases the productivity of these greenhouses by more than 40%, something that is fascinating for the production of agricultural products."
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