Advancing Sustainable Agriculture Through Aeroponics: A Critical Review of Integrated Water–Energy–Nutrient Management and Environmental Impact Mitigation

Aeroponics has emerged as a key technology for sustainable and resource-efficient food production, particularly under intensifying constraints on water availability, land use, and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. This review synthesizes recent advances in water–energy–nutrient integration, highlighting operational parameters—humidity (50–80%), temperature (18–25 °C), nutrient solution pH (5.5–6.5), and electrical conductivity (1.5–2.5 mS cm−1)—that critically influence system performance. Evidence indicates that closed-loop water recirculation and AI-assisted monitoring for environmental control and nutrient dosing can stabilize system dynamics and reduce water consumption by more than 90%. Reported yield improvements ranged from 45% to 75% compared with conventional soil-based cultivation. Moreover, systems powered by renewable energy demonstrated up to an 80% reduction in GHG emissions. Life-cycle assessment studies further suggest that aeroponics, coupled with low-carbon electricity in controlled-environment agriculture (CEA), can outperform traditional agricultural supply chains in climate and resource efficiency metrics. Additional technological innovations—including multi-tier vertical rack architectures, optimized misting intervals, and micronutrient-enriched fertigation formulations containing N, P, Ca, Mg, and K—were found to enhance spatial productivity and crop quality. Overall, aeroponics represents a promising pathway toward net-zero, high-performance agricultural systems.