Investigating the Relationship Between Digital Twins and Circular Economy in Indoor Vertical farming: A linguistic QFD Approach

This study investigates the alignment between the expected benefits of Digital Twins (DTs), as derived from existing literature, and the actual outcomes in achieving Circular Economy (CE) targets for defined Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in urban agriculture. Two research questions guide this inquiry: 1) To what extent do the benefits of Digital Twins (DTs) align with the targeted outcomes for achieving Circular Economy (CE) goals as defined by specific Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the context of Indoor Vertical Farming (IVF)? 2)What strategies can be implemented to optimize the use of DTs in IVF systems to maximize their contribution to CE principles? A methodology integrating the Quality Function Deployment’s (QFD) House of Quality (HoQ) framework with the 2-Tuple Linguistic (2TL) model is proposed to address these questions, offering a comprehensive analysis of the relationships between DT benefits and CE-related SDG targets. The study involves a case study approach with five experts, including academic researchers and modern urban farmers, who evaluate the relationships between DT benefits and CE-related SDG targets using linguistic sets tailored to their expertise. The results reveal strong relationships between DT benefits and CE-related SDG targets, particularly emphasizing the importance of optimization and automation for enhancing CE in IVF. The findings underscore the pivotal role of DT in driving sustainability and efficiency in agricultural practices, offering valuable insights for future research and practical applications aimed at advancing CE in the agri-food industry.