Volume 58

Toward Sustainable Urban Development: An Integrated Energy–Economic–Carbon Optimization Framework for Vertical Farming Buildings Pingyi Li, Yixin Dong, Thomas Hamacher

Abstract

Vertical farming enables high-yield crop production with minimal land use in urban areas, supporting sustainable food systems, but its large energy demand presents a significant challenge. This study employs the vertical farming model developed by the German Aerospace Center to evaluate the impact of integrating passive building design, photovoltaic power systems, and energy storage systems on energy consumption, carbon emissions, and economic performance. By developing a parameter optimization model, the energy system of the vertical farming building can be systematically optimized. Using Shuangliu District in Chengdu, China as the case area, simulation results show that the annual energy consumption of the building is reduced by 84.7 million kWh, and carbon emissions decrease from 82.96 to 36.37 million kg COâ‚‚ per year. The return on investment of the photovoltaic and energy storage systems in vertical farming reaches 11.07, indicating high economic viability alongside significant environmental benefits. These findings confirm the technical and economic feasibility of integrating renewable energy systems and energy storage into vertical farming, advancing its potential as a scalable model for low-carbon, resilient, and sustainable urban agriculture.

Keywords Energy and economic analysis, Vertical farming buildings, Low carbon emission, Optimization framework, Sustainable urban development