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3D-Thermal Modelling of a Bifacial Agrivoltaic System: A Photovoltaic Module Perspective
This study presents a 3D computational fluid dynamic model to evaluate the temperature distribution and energy performances of a vertical bifacial photovoltaic module for agrivoltaic applications. This last is compared to a conventionally tilted bifacial photovoltaic module for ground-mounted applications. The simulations are performed in SolidWorks Flow Simulation® and validated with measured data gathered from the first experimental agrivoltaic system in Sweden. Additionally, four more simulations scenarios were defined to compare the performances of vertically mounted and conventionally tilted bifacial photovoltaic modules under different operating conditions
The validation of the computational fluid dynamic model shows that the model tends to underestimate the readings performed with the thermal camera in the order of 3°C to 4°C for the vertical bifacial PV module. The comparison of the results obtained from the computational fluid dynamic model with existing models available in literature shows a good agreement. The comparison of the heat distribution from the computational fluid dynamic model and the thermal images also shows a good agreement. In all the scenarios investigated, the vertical bifacial photovoltaic module's overall efficiency was higher than that of the ground-mounted module due to lower average operating temperatures. The use of the computational fluid dynamic approach for studying the performance of a single photovoltaic module showed promising results that can be extended to study the system performance and microclimatic conditions.
F. Johansson, B.E. Gustafsson, B. Stridh, P.E. Campana. 03/2022. 3D-Thermal Modelling of a Bifacial Agrivoltaic System: A Photovoltaic Module Perspective. Energy Nexus. 5:1-14.
MicroclimatologyPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
A Case Study of Tomato (Solanum Lycopersicon Var. Legend) Production and Water Productivity in Agrivoltaic Systems
The challenge of meeting growing food and energy demand while also mitigating climate change drives the development and adoption of renewable technologies ad approaches. Agrivoltaic systems are an approach that allows for both agricultural and electrical production on the same land area. These systems have the potential to reduced water demand and increase the overall water productivity of certain crops. We observed the microclimate and growth characteristics of Tomato plants (Solanum lycopersicon var. Legend) grown within three locations on an Agrivoltaic field (control, interrow, and below panels) and with two different irrigation treatments (full and deficit). Total crop yield was highest in the control fully irrigated areas a, b (88.42 kg/row, 68.13 kg/row), and decreased as shading increased, row full irrigated areas a, b had 53.59 kg/row, 32.76 kg/row, panel full irrigated areas a, b had (33.61 kg/row, 21.64 kg/row). Water productivity in the interrow deficit treatments was 53.98 kg/m3 greater than the control deficit, and 24.21 kg/m3 greater than the panel deficit, respectively. These results indicate the potential of Agrivoltaic systems to improve water productivity even for crops that are traditionally considered shade-intolerant.
H. Al-Agele, K. Proctor, G. Murthy, C. Higgins. 2021. A Case Study of Tomato (Solanum Lycopersicon Var. Legend) Production and Water Productivity in Agrivoltaic Systems. Sustainability. 13(5):1-13.
HydrologyPlant ScienceMicroclimatologySoil
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
Oregon
A Combined Shading and Radiation Simulation Tool for Defining Agrivoltaic Systems
Agrivoltaic systems have the potential to resolve rapidly rising global food and energy challenges by co-locating agriculture and solar photovoltaics (PV). In the United States, Massachusetts created the Solar Massachusetts Renewable Target (SMART) Program to incentivize agrivoltaic development. The program relies on a shading-only simulation tool to differentiate agrivoltaic sites from traditional solar farms. In this paper, we demonstrate that radiation must be considered along with shading to identify land suitable for agricultural activity in agrivoltaic systems. To this end, we present a combined shading and radiation simulation tool and show that percent shade does not singularly determine land available for crop growth. Thus, we recommend the SMART Program update their current method for defining agrivoltaic systems to include radiation modeling.
H. Wang, H.J. Williams, X. Bu, K.M. Zhang. 08/2022. A Combined Shading and Radiation Simulation Tool for Defining Agrivoltaic Systems. 2022 IEEE 49th Photovoltaics Specialists Conference (PVSC). 1-3.
Microclimatology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
Arizona, Massachusetts
A Comprehensive Review of Solar Photovoltaic (PV) Technologies, Architecture, and Its Applications to Improved Efficiency
Since the discovery of Photovoltaic (PV) effect, numerous ways of utilizing the energy that can be generated by the free everlasting solar radiation using solar panels were put forward by many researchers. However, the major disadvantage of solar panel to date is its low efficiency, which is affected by the panel temperature, cell type, panel orientation, irradiance level, etc. Though there are certain multi-junction solar panels that offer higher efficiencies, their application is very minimal due to high manufacturing cost. With the growing demand for the reduction of carbon footprint, there is a need to use and manufacture these panels in the most effective way to harness the maximum power and increase their efficiency. Another major concern is the availability of land/space for the installation of these panels. Several authors have focused on discussing the different technologies that have evolved in the manufacturing of the PV cells along with their architectures. However, there exists a gap that needs to be addressed by combining the latest PV technologies and architectures with a focus on PV applications for increasing the efficiency. Due to the technical limitations on the efficiency of PV panels, applications are to be designed that can extract the maximum power from the PV systems by minimizing the technical difficulties. Considering all these factors, this paper presents an overview of the types of silicon based solar cell architectures with efficiencies of at least 25%, and different integration methods like Building integrated PVs (BIPV), floating PVs, which can increase the efficiency by harnessing more power from a limited space. An extensive bibliography on the PV cell structures and methods of maintaining the efficiencies in real world installations are presented. The challenges with the integration of solar panels and the future work are also discussed. This work benefits the readers and researchers and serves as a basis to understand the solar panel efficiency structure and ways to improve the efficiency and associated challenges to come over in the successful implementation of these systems.
S.N. Vodapally, M.H. Ali. 2023. A Comprehensive Review of Solar Photovoltaic (PV) Technologies, Architecture, and Its Applications to Improved Efficiency. Energies. 16(1):1-18.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
This paper presents a conceptual framework that looks at photovoltaic systems in synergy with ecosystem services. The focus is to connect business success with social and ecological progress based on the operative concept of multifunctional land use. Such an approach attempts to harmonise the needs of the industrial processes of photovoltaic systems and the ecological and social needs of the landscape context. Different from the usual design of ground photovoltaic systems in farmlands or brownfields, a new framework is proposed, combining photovoltaic panels and vegetation. A case study is considered, applying the framework to existing photovoltaic systems in the Apulia region (southern Italy). The analysis shows how the framework has, among others, the major functions of increasing solar energy production, recycling wastewater, creating raw material for biofuel, as well as providing animal habitat and mitigating air temperature. The latter is preliminarily evaluated by means of modelling simulations performed with a computational fluid dynamics and microclimate model, ENVI-met. This approach opens up a new vision of the infrastructure design of photovoltaic systems which can produce new social and economic income.
Teodoro Semeraro, Roberta Aretano, Amilcare Barca, Alessandro Pomes, Cecilia Del Giudice, Elisa Gatto, Marcello Lenucci, Riccardo Buccolieri, Rohinton Emmanuel, Zhi Gao, Alessandra Scognamiglio. 07/2020. A Conceptual Framework to Design Green Infrastructure: Ecosystem Services as an Opportunity for Creating Shared Value in Ground Photovoltaic Systems. Journal of Land. 238.
WildlifeMicroclimatology
Development Strategy
Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Italy
A Contingency Framework for Assessing the Commercial Potential of Utility-scale Agrivoltaics
In the pursuit of renewable energy sources, solar photovoltaic (PV) is predicted to become the single biggest global source of energy by the year of 2027, part of a trilemma involving climate change, biodiversity and food security. Agrivoltaic (AV) systems, the co-location and potential symbiosis between agricultural activities and solar PV, has thereby arisen as a potential solution for dual land-use. The research within this area is novel, and scholars agree that there is a need for the conceptualization of utility-scale AV in general, and the commercialization process of such systems in particular. Thereby, the purpose of this study is to unravel the key factors, activities and stakeholder involvement in order to assess the commercial potential of utility-scale AV. By addressing research questions: RQ1. What are the key factors for assessing the commercial potential of utility-scale AV?, RQ2. Which activities are essential to address these factors? and RQ3. Who are the key stakeholders that need to be involved in these activities?, a contingency framework for the assessment process has been developed.
Filippa Larson. 2023. A Contingency Framework for Assessing the Commercial Potential of Utility-scale Agrivoltaics [Thesis]. [DiVA]: Lulea University of Technology.
Social PerspectivesStandardization and Best Practices
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Thesis/Dissertation
Country
Sweden
A Cost–Benefit Analysis for Utility-Scale Agrivoltaic Implementation in Italy
Utility-scale photovoltaic plants can take up areas as wide as several tens of hectares, often occupying spaces normally used for other purposes. This “land competition” issue might become particularly relevant for agriculture since, similarly to the production of photovoltaic electricity, farming uses the sun as a primary energy source. Thus, there is increasing interest in investigating agrivoltaic plants that allow the coexistence of agricultural activity and the production of electricity from photovoltaics. Such solutions are more complex and expensive than standard ground-mounted photovoltaic plants, so it is questionable whether the economic revenues produced by the agrivoltaic choice and resulting from both the cropland activity and electricity production can compensate for the high costs involved. The problem is further complicated by the fact that both crop revenues and photoelectricity costs depend, in general, on the geographical location. In this study, a cost/benefit methodology was developed to investigate the conditions under which the installation of an agrivoltaic utility plant can be economically advantageous compared with a standard ground-mounted photovoltaic plant. The analysis relies on the evaluation of both the extra cost related to the agrivoltaic choice and the performance benefit related to the crop revenues. By fixing the capacity of PV utility plants to be installed in all Italian regions, results were validated, considering crops such as wheat, corn, soybean, potato, and sunflower that make use of wide areas. It was determined that the higher infrastructural costs of agrivoltaic plants seriously hamper their installation, even for high-revenue croplands, unless suitable supporting policies in the form of public subsidies are conceived. In this context, it would be useful to evaluate whether such financial aids conceived to support agrivoltaic implementation in productive agricultural areas could be better used to support agrivoltaic installations in croplands at risk of abandonment or even already abandoned croplands, recovering otherwise unproductive agricultural lands.
G. D. Francia. 03/2023. A Cost–Benefit Analysis for Utility-Scale Agrivoltaic Implementation in Italy. Energies. 16(7):1-19.
SoilPolicy and Regulatory IssuesEconomicsSiting
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Italy
A Criterion of Crop Selection Based on the Novel Concept of an Agrivoltaic Unit and M-matrix for Agrivoltaic Systems
Associating solar photovoltaic panels with crop cultivation on the same land area can be called as agrivoltaic systems (AVS). It will achieve a 60 to 70 percent increase of the overall land productivity in AVS, showing high production potential and a field of study with great research value. The aim of the present study is to solve the problem that how to determine appropriate crops for different areas under solar panels. First, for the convenience of analyzing an AVS, we suggest that a representative small part of the whole system, that is, an agrivoltaic unit (AVU), can be defined to describe the characteristic of the whole system, which is suitable for various types of AVS. Then, the novel concept of a multiparameter-matrix (M-matrix) is proposed and modeled as the description of the specific climate factors of an AVS. The application of the AVU and M-matrix is also essential for those mixed production systems combining agriculture and buildings, such as city viaduct greening, plant factory, etc. Finally, the suitability model of crops for AVS is established, and winter wheat is selected as an example for calculation. A criterion is given as the theoretical foundation of crop selection. This idea opens new areas of research in AVS.
(!) . 2018. A Criterion of Crop Selection Based on the Novel Concept of an Agrivoltaic Unit and M-matrix for Agrivoltaic Systems. In: 018 IEEE 7th World Conference on Photovoltaic Energy Conversion (WCPEC) (A Joint Conference of 45th IEEE PVSC, 28th PVSEC & 34th EU PVSEC); 2018/06/10; Waikoloa Village, HI. Waikoloa Village, HI: IEEE; p.
(!)
Microclimatology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
China
A First Investigation of Agriculture Sector Perspectives on the Opportunities and Barriers for Agrivoltaics
Agrivoltaic systems are a strategic and innovative approach to combine solar photovoltaic (PV)-based renewable energy generation with agricultural production. Recognizing the fundamental importance of farmer adoption in the successful diffusion of the agrivoltaic innovation, this study investigates agriculture sector experts’ perceptions on the opportunities and barriers to dual land-use systems. Using in-depth, semistructured interviews, this study conducts a first study to identify challenges to farmer adoption of agrivoltaics and address them by responding to societal concerns. Results indicate that participants see potential benefits for themselves in combined solar and agriculture technology. The identified barriers to adoption of agrivoltaics, however, include: (i) desired certainty of long-term land productivity, (ii) market potential, (iii) just compensation and (iv) a need for predesigned system flexibility to accommodate different scales, types of operations, and changing farming practices. The identified concerns in this study can be used to refine the technology to increase adoption among farmers and to translate the potential of agrivoltaics to address the competition for land between solar PV and agriculture into changes in solar siting, farming practice, and land-use decision-making.
A.S. Pascaris, C. Schelly, J.M. Pearce. 2020. A First Investigation of Agriculture Sector Perspectives on the Opportunities and Barriers for Agrivoltaics. Agronomy. 10(12):1-16.
Social Perspectives
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
A Mini-Review of Current Activities and Future Trends in Agrivoltaics
Agrivoltaics (Agri-PV, AV)—the joint use of land for the generation of agricultural products and energy—has recently been rapidly gaining popularity, as it can significantly increase income per unit of land area. In a broad sense, AV systems can include converters of solar energy, and also energy from any other local renewable source, including bioenergy. Current approaches to AV represent the evolutionary development of agroecology and integrated PV power supply to the grid, and can result in nearly doubled income per unit area. AV could provide a basis for a revolution in large-scale unmanned precision agriculture and smart farming which will be impossible without on-site power supply, reduction of chemical fertiliser and pesticides, and yield processing on site. These approaches could dramatically change the logistics and the added value production chain in agriculture, and so reduce its carbon footprint. Utilisation of decommissioned solar panels in AV could halve the cost of the technology and postpone the need for bulk PV recycling. Unlike the mainstream discourse on the topic, this review feature focuses on the possibilities for AV to become more strongly integrated into agriculture, which could also help in resolution of relevant legal disputes (considered as neither rather than both components).
A. V. Klokov, E. Y. Loktionov, Y. V. Loktionov, V. A. Panchenko, E. S. Shraborova. 03/2023. A Mini-Review of Current Activities and Future Trends in Agrivoltaics. Energies. 16(7):1-18.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
A Preliminary Investigation of the Effect of Solar Panels and Rotation Frequency on the Grazing Behavior of Sheep (Ovis Aries) Grazing Dormant Pasture
Vegetation management on solar farms can be accomplished through targeted grazing with sheep. To the authors’ knowledge, no research has been conducted to date on sheep grazing behavior on solar farms, yet such research is crucial to inform grazing management practices for contract grazers on solar farms. The objectives of this study were to investigate both the effects of solar panels on sheep grazing behavior and the grazing management strategy (intensive rotational grazing (1-day rotations (1d))) or rotational grazing (4-day rotations (4d))) best suited for vegetation management on a solar farm. Data were collected on Gold Tree Solar Farm in San Luis Obispo, CA, USA. Sheep with predominantly Dorper genetics (over 99%; n = 80) were stratified by body weight (BW) and age in a crossover design across treatment grazing locations, solar farm (S) or native rangeland (NR), and grazing managements, intensive rotational (1d) or rotational (4d). Grazing location treatments (S or NR) were randomly assigned a grazing management, 4d (paddock size = 0.405 ha, 4 days/paddock), or 1d (paddock size = 0.101 ha, 1 day/paddock, 4 paddocks), resulting in a 2 × 2 factorial design. All sheep were equipped with a HOBO Pendant G data logger (Onset Computer Corporation, Bourne, MA, USA) in a medial-dorsal position on their necks using vet wrap (Dura-Tech), to record ‘grazing’ behavior, defined as standing or walking slowly with the head down. The sensitivity, accuracy, and precision were > 90% for ‘grazing’ behavior with 2-minute intervals. ‘Grazing’ behavior exhibited a treatment × management (< 0.01) interaction. Both solar (S-4d and S-1d) groups spent more time (< 0.01) ‘grazing’ than both NR (NR-4d and NR-1d) groups. The presence of solar panels may have provided sheep relief from heat, wind, and rain, which could increase grazing activity. During the study, forage was senescent and low-quality in terms of nutritive value. Both forage digestibility and protein content were higher in the S than in the NR paddocks. Sheep spent less time ‘grazing’ under intensive rotational management (1d) when compared with rotational management (4d) (< 0.001). The use of sheep for vegetation management on solar farms has great potential. Sheep are effective grazers, easily able to maneuver between solar panels and can graze on steep slopes utilizing the panels to provide shade and protection from climatic conditions. In conclusion, utilizing a mix of intensive rotational and rotational grazing according to forage conditions – rotational 4d grazing management types being most effective for grazing behavior with senescent forage conditions – may be the most effective grazing management strategy on solar farms.
Emma W. Kampherbeek, Laura E. Webb, Beth J. Reynolds, Seeta A. Sistla, Marc R. Horney, Raimon Ripoll-Bosch, Jason P. Dubowsky, Zachary D. McFarlane. 01/2023. A Preliminary Investigation of the Effect of Solar Panels and Rotation Frequency on the Grazing Behavior of Sheep (Ovis Aries) Grazing Dormant Pasture. Applied Animal Behaviour Science. 258:1-12.
LivestockMicroclimatologyPlant Science
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
California
A Prototype Agrivoltaic Plant on the Area in the Experimental Farm at Tuscia University
Agrivoltaic systems are a strategic and innovative approach to combine solar photovoltaic (PV) with agricultural production and for the recovery of marginal areas. The synergy between agriculture 4.0 models and the installation of latest generation photovoltaic panels will guarantee a series of advantages starting from the optimization of the harvest and livestock production, both from a qualitative and quantitative point of view, with a consequent increase in profitability and employment. This study aims to support farmers in understanding the factors that act on the choice of crop and/or farming system according to the plant design of the photovoltaic system, as today the investment of an agrivoltaic system is very expensive if three main variables are not considered: i) type of panel to be inserted (height from the ground, characteristics, tracker, etc.); ii) type of crop to be used including sustainable mechanization and suitable for design and maintenance and phytosanitary treatments; iii) authorizations and environmental regulations to be respected in order to proceed correctly with the installation of the panels.
A. Colantoni, L. Bianchini, G. Colla, M. Cecchini, V. D. Stefano, F. Gallucci, A. Marucci, G. Egidi. 2021. A Prototype Agrivoltaic Plant on the Area in the Experimental Farm at Tuscia University. International Journal of Entrepreneurship. 25(4):1-9.
Reviews/Informational
A Review of Agri-Voltaic System in India: Opportunities and Constraints
The rising trend of solar PV generation from ground based installations has led to competition for land between agriculture and PV generation. The solution to this challenge lies in the agri voltaic system (AVS). However, many of them encounter difficulties as a result of their reliance on unreliable farming techniques. The difficulties can sometimes become so overwhelming that they commit suicide. Furthermore, India is densely populated, and its population is continually growing, necessitating the government's growth in GDP and energy supply to keep pace. This article examines Agrivoltaics, or the integration of solar farming with agriculture, as a Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA) option for Indian farmers. Similarly, the paper presents opportunities and constraints to agrivoltaics in India.
A. Shukla, M. Kumar, A. Shukla. 2022. A Review of Agri-Voltaic System in India: Opportunities and Constraints. International Journal of Environment and Climate Change. 12(10):1134-1142.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
India
A Review of Research on Agrivoltaic Systems
The expansion of large-scale photovoltaic (PV) power generation is essential to global efforts to mitigate climate change. A constraint to such PV development is its extensive space requirements, complicated by increasing competition for land driven by population growth and rising food demand. Agrivoltaic systems, which integrate crop production and PV power generation, offer a potential solution to the land economy problem. In this article, we present the results of a systematic review of agrivoltaic research backed with relevant analysis, discussion, and directions for future research. In total, 98 studies were appraised. Among them, 48 dealt with specific applications, while 50 were preoccupied with the scale of PV production. Fourteen of those 50 inquiries examined small-scale (<100 kW) PV systems. The remaining 36 addressed medium-to-large-scale facilities (over 100 kW), with 26 oriented to installations exceeding MW in capacity. Apart from originating mainly in the northern hemisphere, research characteristically focusses on engineering issues -- either configuration, or factors influencing power yield. Currently lacking is a comprehensive financial performance model for agrivoltaic systems. Further, very little investigation has been directed to large-scale (>1.0 MW) facilities which integrate livestock grazing. These later issues constitute important gaps in our knowledge because the regions around the world with the greatest potential for PV power generation are typically those where grazing is prominent.
M.A.A. Mamun, P. Dargusch, D. Wadley, N.A. Zulkarnain, A.A. Aziz. 06/2022. A Review of Research on Agrivoltaic Systems. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. 161:1-16.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
A Review on the Agri-voltaic and Fence PV System
ABSTRACT: Solar energy is rapidly being utilized to generate power in Europe and other countries, but the environmental effect of building and operating solar farms is not fully understood. The building of a solar park demands the removal of certain vegetation and the leveling of the land. Solar energy infrastructure may involve considerable landscape change, altering soil biological processes and influencing hydrologic, carbon and vegetative dynamics. To rebuild the solar PV facilities soils, inherent plant fields might require to be re-established. Within the scope of this research, we presented an analysis of the effects that were caused by the solar farm.
Hasnain Yousuf, Lee Koo, Young Hyun Cho. 12/2022. A Review on the Agri-voltaic and Fence PV System. Photovoltaic Research. 10(4):116-120.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
South Korea
A Standardized Classification and Performance Indicators of Agrivoltaic Systems
The rapid decrease of photovoltaic system costs enables the potential of agrivoltaic systems. These dual-land use systems mitigate land-use conflicts for places with limited open space and show the potential for added value in crop and livestock cultivation. However, many different names and interacting possibilities between agriculture and PV can be found. This makes it difficult and confusing for stakeholders to compare and benchmark existing installations as well as propose and set new (EU) legislation schemes. This work proposes a standardized classification of agrivoltaic systems, which is usable worldwide. The classification is based on the application, system, farming type, PV structure and flexibility and is able to categorize each existing agrivoltaic installation properly. Seven key performance indicators for agrivoltaic systems are suggested and discussed.
B. Willockx, B. Uytterhaegen, B. Ronsijn, B. Herteleer, J. Cappelle. 2020. A Standardized Classification and Performance Indicators of Agrivoltaic Systems. In: 37th European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference and Exhibition; 2020/09/07; Lisbon, Portugal. Online: WIP Wirtschaft und Infrastruktur GmbH & Co Planungs-KG; p. 1-4
Reviews/InformationalStandardization and Best Practices
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
A Surface Energy Balance Model for Agrivoltaic Applications in Arid Regions
The co-location of photovoltaics (PV) and agriculture - Agrivoltaic (APV) system - is an
economically viable solution to address the land competition between two distinct productions and simultaneously maximize energy harvesting and agricultural yield. APVs are expected to possess the greatest results in arid regions where the solar resource is potential and there is a need for marginal land regeneration and improvements in food production. Particularly, APV systems can modify surface heat fluxes by increasing latent heat flux and consequently reducing sensible heat flux, which is expected to enhance PV panels' performance and boost crop productivity. This thesis simulates dynamical Agrivoltaic Energy Balance (APV-EB) to assess the potential of conventional photovoltaic technology compared with its performance in the bare soil scenario. The model is parameterized for the UAE's characteristic climatic conditions. One of the significant limiting climatic factors that compromise photovoltaic performance in arid and desertic regions is extreme heat, which this project will focus on. The study concluded that the PV natural cooling from crops under the panels in an APV setup
could be a valuable addition to improve PV thermal behavior and, consequently, power yield.Isabela Lima. 2022. A Surface Energy Balance Model for Agrivoltaic Applications in Arid Regions [Thesis]. [Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates]: Khalifa University.
MicroclimatologyHydrologyPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Thesis/Dissertation
Country
United Arab Emirates
A Sustainable Development Pattern Integrating Data Centers and Pasture-Based Agrivoltaic Systems for Ecologically Fragile Areas
Advances in information technology facilitate the construction of data centers (DCs), bringing huge social and economic benefits. However, the rapid development of DCs poses a heavy burden on the environment. To promote economic growth while mitigating environmental impacts, this paper proposes a sustainable development pattern that incorporates DCs and pasture-based photovoltaic (PPV) power stations in cities with rich solar energy but fragile ecological environments. An integrated method framework is applied to show the feasibility and potential of the DC-PPV model. A power generation model based on the DC electricity demand and local climate is established to calculate the installation capacity and pasture area of PPV stations, and a cost-benefit analysis is conducted to find the feasible conditions of the DC-PPV model from financial, technical and environmental perspectives. Then, the environmental potential of the DC-PPV is reflected by the GHG emission reduction from three paths, and the socioeconomic contribution is assessed using input-output (IO) analysis. The results show that the model can facilitate the local economy and effectively reduce carbon emissions. Under the planning DC scale in the study area, the model reduces GHG emissions by more than 3 million tons per year. Moreover, it converts more than 1140 hectares of Gobi land to grassland, which increases the carbon stock by 150,262 tCO2e and saves 39 million yuan of desert management.
J. Zhang, T. Wang, Y. Chang, B. Liu. 01/2023. A Sustainable Development Pattern Integrating Data Centers and Pasture-Based Agrivoltaic Systems for Ecologically Fragile Areas. Resources, Conservation and Recycling. 188:-.
EconomicsImpact AssessmentsSiting
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China, Mongolia
A Validated Model, Scalability, and Plant Growth Results for an Agrivoltaic Greenhouse
We developed an agrivoltaic greenhouse (a ‘test cell’) that partially trapped waste heat from two photovoltaic (PV) panels. These panels served as parts of the roof of the enclosure to extend the growing season. Relative humidity, internal air temperature, incident solar radiation, wind speed, and wind direction were measured for one year. A locally 1-D transient heat and moisture transport model, as well as a shadowing model, was developed and validated with experimental data. The models were used to investigate the effects of altering various parameters of the greenhouse in a scalability study. The design kept test cell air temperatures generally above ambient throughout the year, with the test cell temperature below freezing for 36% less of the year than ambient. Plant growth experiments showed that kale, Brassica oleraceae, a shade-tolerant plant, can be grown within the test cell throughout the winter. The simulations showed that enlarging the greenhouse will increase cell air temperatures but that powering an electric load from the PV panels will reduce cell air temperatures.
M.E. Evans, J.A. Langley, F.R. Shapiro, G.F. Jones. 2022. A Validated Model, Scalability, and Plant Growth Results for an Agrivoltaic Greenhouse. Sustainability. 14(10):1-34.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
A combination of agricultural and energy purposes: Evaluation of a prototype of photovoltaic greenhouse tunnel
The recent increasing attention in energy production from renewable energy sources has led to photovoltaic (PV) elements, being located on greenhouse roofs. However, their assessment is almost underdeveloped in Italy. The present paper investigated the lack of a spatial database of PV greenhouses in Italy. The first aim is to detect the evolution of PV panels on the roof of greenhouses during several Energy counts (E.C.).
The succeeding goal instead aims to examine the shading of PV panels of a prototype greenhouse that enables an environmentally adapting to the intrinsic characteristics. The shading on crops is one of the major limits for the PV installation on the roofs of greenhouses because it causes problems regarding the usual sequence of agricultural activity. Until now many studies applied PV panels as covering material of greenhouses concentrated on flat structures. The present study investigates tunnel greenhouses which, due to their curved shape, do not lend themselves to accommodate easily PV panels on their coverage.
The shading variation was analysed inside our prototype greenhouse, by installing PV panels in a checkerboard arrangement. The transparent flexible PV panels, with dimensions of 1.116 m × 0.165 m, are manufactured using mono-crystalline silicon cells, with an efficiency of 18%, incorporated into polymers with high resistance. The difference and distribution of the shading percentage were examined regarding the surface area affected by the PV roof, the total area and the section of the greenhouse. Particularly, variations in the percentage of shading and the size of the shaded area have been observed on the twenty-first day of each month of the year.
Results exposed some consistency in the shading percentage, primarily because of the curvilinear shape of the section of the greenhouse. From mid-March to mid-September, the shading was practically and constantly inside the greenhouse during the daytime; while it was partly inside and partly outside the tunnel greenhouse during the remaining months. The percentage of shading with the PV arrangement adopted never exceeds 40% during the year.Alvaro Marucci, Ilaria Zambon, Andrea Colantoni, Danilo Monarca. 02/2018. A combination of agricultural and energy purposes: Evaluation of a prototype of photovoltaic greenhouse tunnel. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. 82:1178-1186.
MicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Italy
A coupling method using CFD, radiative models and a surface model to simulate the micro-climate
The increasing demand for energy, depletion of fossil fuels, rising global warming, and greenhouse gas emissions have stimulated the need for widespread development and adoption of renewable energy sources (RES) worldwide. Among these sources, solar energy has emerged as a major contender to meet the growing demand. It offers adaptable applications and provides an alternative to traditional energy sources. A brand-new application of solar panels is agrivoltaics. Agrivoltaics consists in installing solar panels above farming lands such as crops. The combination of solar energy production and farming on the same lands increases the overall yield of the land and brings several other opportunities. However, agrivoltaics is also very challenging. An improper installation of solar panels above crops may result in a dramatic drop of the farming yield. Thus, it is of major importance to understand how to maximize the solar energy production without harming the plants or decrease the farming yield. This master’s thesis focuses on the impact of agrivoltaic systems on the micro-climate close to the crop. The goal is to link the modified physical phenomena within an agrivoltaic system and their impact on the crops. The methodology is based on Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD). The idea is to realize high fidelity simulations of the different physical phenomena and their coupling, and compare them to experimental data. Flow simulations coupled with radiative models and a surface model are realized in this perspective. The master’s thesis is divided in three parts. 1. Based on experimental data collected during three years at the EDF lab les Renardières, determine which physical phenomena impact the most the crop and what are the key parameters to study the growth of the plants. 2. Validate with experimental data from the atmospheric laboratory the SIRTA (Site Instrumental de Recherche par Télédétection Atmosphérique) of the engineering school Polytechnique, the radiative models and the surface model of the CFD software. 3. Study the impact of an agrivoltaic system on the identified physical phenomena with a simple geometry composed of one pitch of solar panel. The data study shows clearly that the plant temperature, the groundwater, and the radiation play crucial roles in the growth of the plant. A lack of radiation or groundwater will limit the growth of the crops. In addition, extreme temperatures can harm the crops. Consequently, this research project will firstly focus on capturing the impact of the solar panels on these three key parameters. Simulations are using a coupling of a 1D radiative model which is computationally fast and that can therefore be applied on a very large domain to compute the absorption of the atmospheric layers and the clouds, and a 3D radiative model which is able to capture the impact of an obstacle such as a solar panel. This coupling is validated for the shortwave radiation and the longwave radiation. Finally, full U-RANS simulations with the radiative models, the surface model and the - turbulence model are realized. The impact of the panels on the radiation field, the soil temperature, the specific humidity and on other fields such as the wind speed is well captured.
Joseph Vernier. 2023. A coupling method using CFD, radiative models and a surface model to simulate the micro-climate [Thesis]. [Stockholm, Sweden]: KTH ROYAL INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY, DEPARTMENT OF ENGINEERING MECHANICS.
MicroclimatologySoilHydrology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Thesis/Dissertation
Country
France, Sweden
A dish-type high-concentration photovoltaic system with spectral beam-splitting for crop growth
Photovoltaic (PV) systems are playing a more and more important role as a renewable energy supplier. However, their large-scale applications is still limited by low conversion efficiency and high land-use requirement, especially for those areas where land and solar energy resources are more important for agriculture. In this paper, we suggest a dish-type high-concentration photovoltaic system, with which the competition between sunlight for crops' growth and PV application is solved by beam-splitting techniques. A purposely-designed beam filter acts as a solar spectrum splitter, and the most effective bands of solar spectrum for plant growth are transmitted down to plants while the other parts are all directed to the solar cell receiver. The spectral and spatial distribution of radiant intensity is investigated by ray tracing method, and the quantitative evaluation of the beam splitting effect on crop growth and PV power generation is provided in detail. The results show that, on one hand, the proposed system is superior to other natural and artificial light sources at driving the photosynthetic process (thus promoting crop growth); on the other hand, it generates PV power with high efficiency. Furthermore, the design can be optimized for certain kinds of plants and PV generation, both or independently. This spectral splitting scheme opens a promising future for PV applications in cooperation with precision farming.
Wenjuan Huang, Hui Lv, Jun Liao, Yiyuan Shang, Wen Liu, Qinghua Lv, Chunfu Cheng, Yuehong Su, Saffa Riffat. 11/2017. A dish-type high-concentration photovoltaic system with spectral beam-splitting for crop growth. Journal of Renewable and Sustainable Energy. 9(6):1.
PV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
A new predictive model for the design and evaluation of bifacial photovoltaic plants under the influence of vegetation soils
The rapid expansion of photovoltaics within the global energy market requires increasing use of land, a limited resource where different uses compete. In this respect, photovoltaic systems that combine electricity generation with land use for crops are becoming increasingly important. This article proposes an analytical model validated in an operating bifacial photovoltaic plant during the summer months. This analytical model considers view factors and heat transfer calculations, as well as an electrical model of the photovoltaic modules. A study was carried out on a commercial solar power plant (11.24 MWp) in Seville, southern Spain, where different vegetal species were planted in two strings, and string performance was monitored. Nine crop species with different irrigation and light requirements, offering different albedo parameters and thermal characteristics. The results show advantages from the point of view of module temperature and power gain. This paper provides regressions for the characterisation of the photovoltaic agricultural plant, with R2 higher than 85%, both for module temperature and energy exported in the string with crops.
D.A. Rodriguez-Pastor, A.F. Ildefonso-Sanchez, V.M. Soltero, M.E. Peralta, R. Chacartegui. 01/2023. A new predictive model for the design and evaluation of bifacial photovoltaic plants under the influence of vegetation soils. Journal of Cleaner Production. 385(1):1.
MicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesTools
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Spain
A non-traditional Agrophotovoltaic installation and its impact on cereal crops: A case of the BRRI-33 rice variety in Bangladesh
Traditional Agrophotovoltaic (APV) installation (i.e., basic row layout with minimum or no usage of the space underneath the solar PV panels) is responsible for a vast amount of agricultural land waste as no regular crops are grown under the shade of APV. Bangladesh is no exception to this trend. A primary in-person survey of about 50 solar irrigation pumps (SIPs), i.e., APVs, in Bangladesh, shows that on average, 13.77 decimal or 7,200 sq.ft. of land is used for each APV system installation. If 10,000 SIPs are installed by 2027 in Bangladesh, as targeted by the gov- ernment through Infrastructure Development Company Limited (IDCOL) by employing the same procedure, the land wastage would be 1,652 acres. Notably, this is a critical issue for a country like Bangladesh with a scarcity of agricultural lands. According to World Bank data, agricultural land in Bangladesh was about 80% in 1989 and reduced to 76% in 2020 due to population growth and urbanization. Therefore, to reduce agricultural land waste a non-traditional APV installation procedure, along with its shading impact on the BRRI-33 rice variety (a major crop in Bangladesh), has been investigated in this study. The results show that discontinuous sunlight has an insignificant impact on BRRI-33 rice production, and APV might be installed in the cultivating area for irrigation purposes. This non-traditional APV installation has a statistically insignificant impact on rice yield. For instance, the 100 grains’ yield variation was between 1.45 and 4.82%, which is insignificant. Additionally, the APV shade does not negatively impact soil pH level, and shadow helps keep the soil temperature low and ensures less irrigation. Hence, the proposed non- traditional APV installation could achieve sustainable agriculture and energy development through efficient land use at least in the case of the BRRI-33 rice variety.
Shourov Sarker Joya, Imran Khana, A.M. Swaraz. 2023. A non-traditional Agrophotovoltaic installation and its impact on cereal crops: A case of the BRRI-33 rice variety in Bangladesh. CellPress Helion. 9(1):1.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologySoil
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Bangladesh
A novel agricultural photovoltaic system based on solar spectrum separation
Agriculture photovoltaic (APV) is a promising and trend-setting technology which initiated an innovative industrial revolution. It is the combination of photovoltaic power generation and simultaneous agricultural activities on the same land. Existing approaches for agriculture photovoltaic install solar panels high above the farm field. The solar panels still block majority of sunlight and hinder efficient plant growth. In this paper a competitive edging development is present in the APV field that is unique and revolutionary. Combining concentration photovoltaic (CPV) and diffractive interference technology, a new system for agriculture photovoltaic has been successfully demonstrated. This system allows agricultural use and electricity generating on the same land in a very cost-effective way. The invention of semitransparent glass panels is discussed, which transmit only the light necessary for plant growth. A thorough mathematical analysis is performed to elaborate the theoretical background of the presented agriculture photovoltaic system. It allows optimizing the design layout and related CPV concepts. The test results of plants growing underneath the innovative agriculture photovoltaic system are shown and discussed. The average efficiency of the agriculture photovoltaic system has reached more than 8% and the average efficiency of the CPV system is 6.80%.
Wen Liu, Luqing Liu, Chenggang Guan, Fangxin Zhang, Ming Li, Hui Lv, Peijun Yao, Jan Ingenhoff. 03/2018. A novel agricultural photovoltaic system based on solar spectrum separation. Solar Energy. 162(1):84-94.
MicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesPlant ScienceEconomicsSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
A numerical simulation of the photovoltaic greenhouse microclimate
Accurately predicting the distributed microclimate inside greenhouse equipped with photovoltaic panels would be a prerequisite to developing a sustainable energy-saving greenhouse. Predicting the microclimate can contribute to enhanced performance in these kinds of greenhouses by improving the radiation transmission efficiency inside.
In this context, solar radiation distribution, thermal air, water vapor and the dynamics fields were simulated using the Computational Fluid Dynamic (CFD) model in two different prototypes of greenhouses (Asymmetric and Venlo) equipped with photovoltaic panels on their roof. Crop cover characteristics and the interactions between crops and airflow were taken into account. Two arrangements of photovoltaic panels array were tested straight-line and checkerboard.
A detailed description of the thermal, dynamic and radiation fields inside the greenhouses was obtained and the analysis of data collected during this study show that (i) solar radiation is more evenly distributed in the Venlo greenhouse than in the Asymmetric greenhouse. On average, the mean solar radiation transmission in the Asymmetric greenhouse is 41.6% whereas that of the Venlo greenhouse is 46%. (ii) Compared to the straight-line arrangement, the checkerboard photovoltaic panel setup improved the balance of the spatial distribution of sunlight received in the greenhouse.Hicham Fatnassi, Christine Poncet, Marie Madeleine Bazzano, Richard Brun, Nadia Bertin. 10/2015. A numerical simulation of the photovoltaic greenhouse microclimate. Solar Energy. 120(1):575-584.
MicroclimatologySystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
France
A photovoltaic greenhouse with variable shading for the optimization of agricultural and energy production
The cultivation of plants in greenhouses currently plays a role of primary importance in modern agriculture, both for the value obtained with the products made and because it favors the development of highly innovative technologies and production techniques. An intense research effort in the field of energy production from renewable sources has increasingly led to the development of greenhouses which are partially covered by photovoltaic elements. The purpose of this study is to present the potentiality of an innovative prototype photovoltaic greenhouse with variable shading to optimize energy production by photovoltaic panels and agricultural production. With this prototype, it is possible to vary the shading inside the greenhouse by panel rotation, in relation to the climatic conditions external to the greenhouse. An analysis was made for the solar radiation available during the year, for cases of completely clear sky and partial cloud, by considering the 15th day of each month. In this paper, the results show how the shading variation enabled regulation of the internal radiation, choosing the minimum value of necessary radiation, because the internal microclimatic parameters must be compatible with the needs of the plant species grown in the greenhouses.
Simona Moretti, Alvaro Marucci. 07/2019. A photovoltaic greenhouse with variable shading for the optimization of agricultural and energy production. Energies. 12(13):2589.
MicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Italy
A review of the attributes of successful agriphotovoltaic projects
Climate change is causing massive environmental disasters, which increasingly damage human civilization. To cope with climate risk, the world is progressively converting its energy dependence from the fossil fuel base to renewable energy such as photovoltaic solar farms. Successful photovoltaic (PV) projects have demonstrated various benefits and positive effects in all environmental, economic, and social aspects. However, conventional photovoltaic projects tend to have a serious land-use conflict issue with agricultural farmlands in that solar farms require huge land areas to install PV panels. Responsively, the concept of Agrivoltaic (APV), a mixed system that deploys photovoltaic panels over farmlands, emerged and have been implemented. Although numerous studies demonstrate the multiple benefits of APV, there is a lack of studies analyzing the influential attributes that may lead to the success or failure of the APV project. Thus, this paper aims to review and analyze the influential attributes of APV that may be relevant to its success or failure, based on the triple bottom lines- economic-environmental-social aspects. This paper also aim to review the opportunities and challenges that may arise when implementing APV into the urban environment.
Yeongseo Yua, Yekang Ko. 2020. A review of the attributes of successful agriphotovoltaic projects. In: Rethinking Sustainable Pacific Rim Territories. APRU 2020 Sustainable Cities and Landscapes; 2020/03/10; Auckland, New Zealand. Future Cities Research Hub, School of Architecture and Planning of the University of Auckland: Future Cities Research Hub, School of Architecture and Planning of the University of Auckland; p. 1
Standardization and Best PracticesReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
A review on opportunities for implementation of solar energy technologies in agricultural greenhouses
The greenhouse industry is an energy-intensive sector with a heavy reliance on fossil fuels, contributing to substantial greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Addressing this issue, the employment of energy-saving strategies along with the replacement of conventional energy sources with renewable energies are among the most feasible solutions. Over the last few years, solar energy has demonstrated great potential for integration with agricultural greenhouses. The present study reviews the progress of solar greenhouses by investigating their integration with solar energy technologies including photovoltaic (PV), photovoltaic-thermal (PVT), and solar thermal collectors. From the literature, PV modules mounted on roofs or walls of greenhouses cause shading which can adversely affect the growing trend of cultivated crops inside. This issue can be addressed by using bifacial PV modules or employing sun trackers to create dynamic shades. PVT modules are more efficient in producing both heat and electricity, and less shading occurs when concentrating modules are employed. In terms of using solar thermal collectors, higher performance values have been reported for greenhouses installed in moderate climate conditions. Further, in this review, the employment of thermal energy storage (TES) units as crucial components for secure energy supply in solar greenhouses is studied. The usage of TES systems can increase the thermal performance of solar greenhouses by 29%. Additionally, the most common mathematical models utilized to describe the thermal behavior of solar greenhouses are presented and discussed. From the literature, machine learning algorithms have shown a better capability to describe the complex environment of greenhouses, but their main drawback is less reliability. Notwithstanding the progress which has been made, further improvements in technology and more reductions in costs are required to make the solar greenhouse technology a solution to achieve sustainable development.
Shiva Gorjian, Francesco Calise, Karunesh Kant, Md Shamim Ahamed, Benedetta Copertaro, Gholamhassan Najafi, Xingxing Zhang, Mohammadreza Aghaei, Redmond R. Shamshiri. 02/2021. A review on opportunities for implementation of solar energy technologies in agricultural greenhouses. Journal of Cleaner Production. 285(1):1.
Standardization and Best PracticesReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
A review on semitransparent solar cells for agricultural application
Modern agriculture dramatically increases food production and continuously plays a critical role to remit the food crisis in the world. However, agricultural modernization also consumes more energy and land than the traditional small-scale peasant farming. The integration of photovoltaics into modern agriculture is a promising method to utilize the vast agricultural land efficiently and provide extra energy for crop production. Due to the tunable energy of the organic molecules, semitransparent organic solar cell serves as an ideal candidate. Rationally designed devices can allow sunlight with selected wavelengths to pass though and get absorbed by the plants for photosynthesis. Meanwhile, relatively high photovoltaic performances are also preferred for energy generation. In this article, important studies of semitransparent organic solar cells for agricultural applications are reviewed, and the design routes and strategies are summarized. The perspectives for the future research on agricultural photovoltaics are also presented.
Yepin Zhao, Yuan Zhu, Hao-Wen Cheng, Ran Zheng, Dong Meng, Yang Yang. 12/2021. A review on semitransparent solar cells for agricultural application. Materials Today Energy. 22(1):1.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
A review study on the design and control of optimised greenhouse environments
Greenhouses are inflated structures with transparent covering that are used to grow crops under controlled climatic conditions. Crops are protected from extreme climate-related events by being enclosed. Furthermore, the greenhouse design ratio impacts the temperature and humidity distribution profile uniformity as well as the greenhouse. As a result, by effectively designing the greenhouse structure, building materials, dimensions, and shapes, the cost of cooling management strategies can be reduced. Structures with changed arch shapes showed to be more effective at reducing greenhouse cooling demands in hot areas. To demonstrate the tropical region’s inherent capabilities for generating a proper atmosphere for plant development, the optimal temperature, humidity, light, and PH for greenhouse production of crops were supplied. Greenhouse cooling systems are dominated by local environmental characteristics that have an immediate impact on their indoor climatic conditions. Photovoltaic systems in greenhouses have proven technological capacity in real-world settings in this area. This could increase the energy efficiency of some agrivoltaic greenhouse design options.
Renuka Vinod Chimankare, Subhra Das , Karamjit Kaur, Dhiraj Magare. 06/2023. A review study on the design and control of optimised greenhouse environments. Journal of Tropical Ecology. 39(26):1.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
ASTRO: Facilitating Advancements in Low-Impact Solar Research, Deployment, and Dissemination
The U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) InSPIRE project evaluates opportunities for cost reductions and assesses the environmental compatibility of solar energy technologies through low environmental impact designs and approaches. To achieve the project's aim, DOE brings together researchers from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Argonne National Laboratory, universities, local governments, environmental groups, and solar industry partners to conduct field-based research complemented by foundational analytical studies. The Agriculture and Solar Together: Research Opportunities (ASTRO) advisory group members come from across the United States and represent leading solar industry partners, state agencies, vegetation management companies, and other organizations focused on research, food and agriculture, and the environment. The ASTRO group of engaged advisors is a complementary combination of organizations creating positive feedback loops that spark and solidify new connections, accelerate information dissemination, and magnify the impact of the InSPIRE project and associated low-impact solar research initiatives.
Rob Davis, Jordan Macknick (Connexus Energy, National Renewable Energy Laboratory,). 2022. ASTRO: Facilitating Advancements in Low-Impact Solar Research, Deployment, and Dissemination. Official of Scientific and Technical Information: Department of Energy. Report No.: NREL/TP-6A20-83442. Contract No.: AC36-08GO28308; EE00034165.
Standardization and Best Practices
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production, Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Report
Country
United States
Advanced Applications of Solar Energy in Agricultural Greenhouses
Energy is the largest overhead cost in the production of agricultural greenhouse crops in temperate climates. Moreover, the initial cost of fossil fuels and traditional energy are dramatically increasing. The negative environmental impacts, limited sources of fossil fuels and a high consumption of energy and food have caused the increase in demand for solar energy as a green and sustainable choice. Therefore, this paper reviews the solar energy application technologies in the environmental control systems of greenhouses (cooling, heating and lighting) mainly the generated energy of photovoltaic (PV) and solar collectors, as well as the PV water pumping for irrigation. Furthermore, this paper briefly discusses the economic analyses and the challenges for this technology.
R.H.E. Hassanien, M. Li, W.D. Lin. 2016. Advanced Applications of Solar Energy in Agricultural Greenhouses. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. 54:989-1001.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Advancement in Agriculture Approaches with Agrivoltaics Natural Cooling in Large Scale Solar PV Farms
The increasing concerns about the impact of large-scale solar photovoltaic farms on the environment and the energy crisis have raised many questions. This issue is mainly addressed by the integration of agriculture advancement in solar photovoltaic systems infrastructure facilities, commonly known as agrivoltaic. Through the use of these systems, the production of crops can be increased, and the efficiency of PV panels can be improved. Accordingly, adopting such synergistic paths forward can contribute toward building resilient energy-generation and food-production systems. The utilization of cooling techniques can provide a potential solution for the excessive heating of PV cells and lower cell temperatures. Effective cooling applied to PV cells significantly improves their electrical efficiency, as well as increasing their lifespan because of decreasing thermal stresses. This paper shares an overview of both active and passive cooling approaches in solar PV applications with an emphasis on newly developed agrivoltaic natural cooling systems. Actual data analysis at the 2 MWp Puchong agrivoltaic farm shows a significant value of 3% increase of the DC generation (on average) which is most beneficial to solar farm operators.
N. F. Othman, M. E. Ya'acob, L. Lu, A. H. Jamaluddin, A. S. M. Su, H. Hizam, R. Shamsudin, J. N. Jaafar. 04/2023. Advancement in Agriculture Approaches with Agrivoltaics Natural Cooling in Large Scale Solar PV Farms. Agriculture. 13(4):854.
MicroclimatologyPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Malaysia
Advances in Water Resources Management for Sustainable Use
Grid connected solar Photovoltaic (PV) plant needs land to the tune of 5 acre or 0.02024 Km2/MWp for multi crystalline silicon solar cell and 7 acre or 0.02833 Km2/MWp for thin film solar cell. This indicates that, the MWp level power plant consume large land area. As agriculture is the backbone of economy of the developing countries consumption of large land in putting solar power plant puts problem on food security. Thus, integration is needed for dual use of land both for power generation and at the same time it can be used for other economic activities. These two requirements were studied in MWp level power plants operating in Charanka Solar Park at West Gujarat. A typical MWp capacity power plant in this park is exporting about 1.68 million kWh of electricity per year to Gujarat Energy Transmission Corporation (GETCO) grid. Long term studies indicated that the salt marshy barren land of the park has been converted into a fertile land and developed ambience for growing plant and vegetables. The possible reasons behind the improvement of land fertility is due to increase in land humidity by decreasing evaporation rate. Maybe the shadow from PV modules initiated growth of bacteria and virus to implant Carbon and Nitrogen into the soil surface. Typical plant like tomato was cultivated under the shadow of the solar module strings. The production of tomato generated revenue which added 30% reduction in payback period.
Kunal Chowdhury, Ratan Mandal. 2021. Advances in Water Resources Management for Sustainable Use.
(!) : Springer, Singapore. 513–522p.
MicroclimatologyEconomicsPV TechnologiesImpact AssessmentsReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Book
Country
India
Advances on the Semi-transparent Modules Based on Micro Solar Cells: First Integration in a Greenhouse System
The spherical micro-cells are a semi-transparent photovoltaic (PV) technology which can contribute to improve the sustainability of greenhouse systems. Previous prototypes were tested in laboratory conditions, but the size was not suitable for the greenhouse roof application. In this work, a new prototype has been developed and tested on a real greenhouse roof. The semi-transparent PV module (STM) was composed by 4800 spherical silicon micro-cells (1.2mm diameter) sandwiched between glass plates and integrated on a greenhouse roof with 26.5° slope. The STM was 910mm long and 610mm wide to match the size of the greenhouse framework. The percentage of the STM area covered with micro-cells was 2.3%, reaching 9.7% considering the metallic conductors. The cell density was 2 cells cm−2 and the measured perpendicular light transmissivity of the semi-transparent area was 73%. The characteristics of the prototype were compared with those of a conventional planar multi-crystalline silicon module (CPM). The module conversion efficiency was steadily around 0.2% over wide incident sunlight angle. The micro-cells never completely eclipse the incident sunlight when observed from more than 1m distance from the roof, keeping the eclipsing level at 9.7%. The yield factor of the STM was slightly higher than the CPM because of the isotropic properties of the spherical cells, which are able to use both the sky-incident and the ground-reflected irradiation for energy production, irrespective of the module slope. The prototype STM is promising for greenhouse roof applications and its performance can be improved by increasing the conversion efficiency.
M. Cossu, A. Yano, Z. Li, M. Onoe, H. Nakamura, T. Matsumoto, J. Nakata. 2016. Advances on the Semi-transparent Modules Based on Micro Solar Cells: First Integration in a Greenhouse System. Applied Energy. 162:1042-1051.
MicroclimatologyPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Japan
Advancing agrivoltaics within the US legal framework: A multidimensional assessment of barriers & opportunities
To support the broader realization of agrivoltaics in the U.S., this research provides a multidimensional assessment of the socio-political barriers and opportunities for development. A synthesis of five empirical studies is presented: 1) an investigation of the impediments to farmer adoption; 2) an exploration of development challenges from the perspective of solar industry professionals; 3) a survey gauging public support and siting preferences for agrivoltaics; 4) a life cycle assessment of a pasture-based agrivoltaic system; and 5) the development of a comprehensive legal framework for agrivoltaics in the U.S. The assessment reveals the intersectionality among key stakeholders, communities, the environment, and legal frameworks, which can inform agrivoltaic decision making, stakeholder relations, and policy design globally. The primary socio-political barriers identified include: techno-economic challenges, community resistance, lack of financial incentive for both sectors, and restrictive local land use policy. The central socio-political opportunities include: income diversification, enhanced community relations and acceptance, energy demand and emissions reduction, and policy integration between key sectors. These findings demonstrate the need for multidimensional and interdisciplinary approaches to agrivoltaic development and an increased research focus on socio-political considerations.
Alexis S. Pascaris, Chelsea Schelly, Joshua M. Pearce. 2022. Advancing agrivoltaics within the US legal framework: A multidimensional assessment of barriers & opportunities. In: AgriVoltaics2021 Conference; 2021/06/16; Freiburg, Germany. AIP Conference Proceedings: AIP Publishing; p.
(!)
Social PerspectivesPolicy and Regulatory IssuesImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production, Habitat/Ecovoltaics, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
United States
State
Michigan, Texas
Advantage of Agrivoltaics Across the Food-Energy-Water Connection
Agricultural crop production, Food and energy security need not be competing objectives. In fact, taking a holistic, integrated approach to food-energy-water decision making can increase resiliency of both food, water harvesting and energy methods.
JM Makavana, SV Kalaiya, PM Chauhan, MS Dulawat (ACTA Scientific Agriculture). 08/2020. Advantage of Agrivoltaics Across the Food-Energy-Water Connection. ACTA Scientific Agriculture: ACTA Scientific Agriculture.
Plant Science
Agri-Voltaic System for Crop Production and Electricity Generation from a Single Land Unit
Renewable energy generation has gained much more importance in India than ever before. Photovoltaic (PV)-based electricity generation shares a major portion of renewable energy generation in India. PV-based electricity generation requires land of about 2 ha per MW of installation. Since both food and energy are required for human civilization to progress, here a concept of integrating PV-based electricity generation and crop production from a single land unit is designed and developed, which is known as agri-voltaic system. Such systems of 105 and 25 kW have been established at ICAR-Central Arid Zone Research Institute, Jodhpur, and its regional station at Bhuj, respectively, with a land requirement of 29 m2 per kW. Rainwater harvesting system from top surface of PV module has been designed and developed. The harvested water is expected to provide supplemental irrigation of 43 mm in 0.76 acre land on which 105 kW system has been established. Suitable crops for agri-voltaic system have been identified, which generally does not attain height not more than 50 cm during its crop growth period. Few of the selected crops are Vigna radiata (moong bean), Vigna aconitifolia (moth bean), Plantago ovata (isabgool), cuminum cyminum (cumin), etc.
P. Santra, R. K. Singh, H. M. Meena, R. N. Kumawat, D. Mishra, D. Machiwal, D. Dayal, D. Jain, O. P. Yadav . 2020. Agri-Voltaic System for Crop Production and Electricity Generation from a Single Land Unit. In: S. Singh, V. Ramadesigan, editors. Advances in Energy Research. International Conference on Advances in Environment Research; 2017/01/08; Malaysia. SpringerLink: Springer, Singapore; p. 45–56
Reviews/InformationalPlant Science
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
India
Agri-Voltaics or Solar Farming: The Concept of Integrating Solar PV Based Electricity Generation and Crop Production in a Single Land Use System
In view of future requirement of both energy and food, agri-voltaic system (AVS) has been proposed as a “mixed systems associating solar panels and crop at the same time on the same land area”. Considering the available land area between PV rows and wash out water from PV panels along with harvested rainwater from panel, few crops which can be grown in agri-voltaic system were screened based on their height, water requirement and shade tolerance characteristics. However, for future establishment of agri-voltaic system in India, performance of crops at different agro-climatic zones needs to be carried out through field experimentation.
P. Santra, P.C. Pande, S. Kumar, D. Mishra, R.K. Singh. 2017. Agri-Voltaics or Solar Farming: The Concept of Integrating Solar PV Based Electricity Generation and Crop Production in a Single Land Use System. International Journal of Renewable Energy Research. 7(2):694-699.
Reviews/Informational
Agri-voltaic System: A Sustainable Approach for Enhancing Farm Income in Arid Western Regions of India
The concept of integrating both food production and energy generation through agrivoltaic system (AVS) has been evolved in recent times considering the increasing demands for the land resources and energy, especially electricity. At ICAR-Central Arid Zone Research Institute, Jodhpur, India, an AVS of 105 kW capacity has been established with three experimental designs in three separate blocks. In all these three blocks, two different designs were followed: few arrays with gap in between PV modules and few arrays covered fully with PV module which allows receiving different amount of intercepted solar irradiation on ground surface, which is required for crop cultivation in between PV arrays and also below PV panel areas. For cultivation in areas below PV modules, aromatic grasses viz. Cymbopogon citratus (lemon grass) and Cymbopogon martini (palmarosa) were grown. Apart from different arable crops, medicinal plant, e.g. Aloe vera and vegetables Solanum melongena (brinjal), Spinacia oleracea (spinach) and snapmelon (Cucumis melo L.Momordica group) were grown.
S. Poonia, P. Santra, N.K. Jat, H.M. Meena, D. Jain. 2020. Agri-voltaic System: A Sustainable Approach for Enhancing Farm Income in Arid Western Regions of India. Popular Kheti. 8(3):128-133.
Reviews/Informational
Agri-voltaic System: Crop Production and Photovoltaic-Based Electricity Generation from a Single Land Unit
Generation of renewable energy has currently gained more importance in India than ever before. Photovoltaic (PV)-based electricity generation shares a major portion of renewable energy generation in India. PV-based electricity generation requires land at a rate of about 2 ha per megawatt (MW) of installation. Since both food and energy are required for human population, a concept of integrating PV-based electricity generation and crop production from a single land unit, commonly referred to as agri-voltaic system, has been designed and developed with a capacity of 105 kW at the Central Arid Zone Research Institute, Jodhpur. Rainwater harvesting system from top surface of PV-module has also been designed and developed with an estimated annual rainwater harvest of 1.5 lakh litres from 105 kW system. The harvested water is enough to provide supplemental irrigation of about 37.5 mm in 1 acre (0.404 ha) land. Suitable crops for agri-voltaic include mungbean (Vigna radiata), mothbean (Vigna aconitifolia), cluster bean (Cyamopsis tetragonoloba), isabgol (Plantago ovata), cumin (Cuminum cyminum), Aloe vera etc.
P. Santra, R.K. Singh, H.M. Meena, R.N. Kumawat, D. Mishra, D. Jain, O.P. Yadav. 2018. Agri-voltaic System: Crop Production and Photovoltaic-Based Electricity Generation from a Single Land Unit. Indian Farming. 68(01):20-23.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyMarket AssessmentsEconomics
Agri-voltaic System: PV Based Generation and Cultivation of Cash Crops
The Govt. of India has set an ambitious target of achieving 100,000 MW of solar photovoltaic (PV) based power generation capacity in the country and doubling the farmer’s income by the year 2022. Considering the plentiful availability of solar insolation both in terms of duration and intensity in India (5.3-7.0 kWh m-2day-1) and particularly in arid parts of India i.e. in Rajasthan, solar irradiations are available in abundance for almost 300 days clear sky. The average irradiance on horizontal surface in arid Rajasthan is 5.6 kWh m-2 day- 1, which can be harnessed to fulfill a part of energy needs of rural communities. Agri-voltaic system, which is an integration of PV generation and crop production, has the potential to achieve the above said two targets by 2022. Agri-voltaic system produces food and also generates renewable energy from a single land unit. The concept of integrating both food production and energy generation on a single land unit has been evolved in recent times due to ever increasing demands for the land resources. Production of food occurs by conversion of solar energy to food through photosynthetic process whereas PV based energy generation occurs through conversion of solar energy to electric energy through photovoltaic process. Both these processes require land as a basic natural resource. Therefore, competition for land may arise in future for agricultural use and PV based electricity generation. There is possibility that solar PV based electricity production will be preferred over agriculture because of its higher efficiency of converting solar energy. Agri-voltaic system provides opportunity to generate electricity from farmers’ field and thus can increase farmers’ income.
S. Poonia. 2021. Agri-voltaic System: PV Based Generation and Cultivation of Cash Crops. In: Renewable Energy for Sustainable Agriculture and Environmental Protection. Compendium of Lectures; 2021/03/08; India. India: National Agricultural Higher Education Project; p. 32-42
Reviews/InformationalMicroclimatology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
India
Agricultural Land Usage and Tourism Impact on Renewable Energy Consumption Among Coastline Mediterranean Countries
This empirical study aims to investigate the dynamic response of renewable energy consumption to long-run disequilibrium and short-run impact of tourism development and agricultural land usage for the period of 1995 to 2014 in 16 Coastline Mediterranean Countries. For this reason, a dynamic Autoregressive Distributed Lag approach is employed in a multivariate and two-model framework such that carbon emission and gross domestic product are being controlled for in the models. Significantly, there is evidence of a joint impact of tourism development and agricultural land usage on renewable energy consumption. With a speed of adjustment of 21.6% from short-run disequilibrium to long run, their respective panel elasticities are 0.33 and negative 1.60 in the long run. Significant evidence shows that nine of the Coastline Mediterranean Countries have tourism development as a short-run factor while Slovenia and Cyprus exhibit a short-run common factor. Also, Granger causality evidences from carbon emission, gross domestic product and tourism development to renewable energy are all with feedbacks. However, Granger causality from agricultural land usage to renewable energy is without feedback. In the region, effective policy implementations through the collaborative effort of stakeholders will ensure a sustainable renewable energy development amidst agricultural and tourism activities.
A.A. Alola, U.V. Alola. 2018. Agricultural Land Usage and Tourism Impact on Renewable Energy Consumption Among Coastline Mediterranean Countries. Energy & Environment. 29(8):1438-1454.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Agricultural Land: Crop Production or Photovoltaic Power Plants
Mitigation of climate change requires a decrease in greenhouse gas emissions. It motivates an increase in renewable electricity generation. Farmers can develop renewable energy and increase their profitability by allocating agricultural land to PV power plants. This transition from crop production to electricity generation needs ecological and economic assessment from alternative land utilization. The novelty of this study is an integrated assessment that links economic and environmental (carbon dioxide emissions) indicators. They were calculated for crop production and solar power generation in a semi-arid zone. The results showed that gross income (crop production) ranges from USD 508/ha to USD 1389/ha. PV plants can generate up to 794 MWh/ha. Their market cost is EUR 82,000, and their production costs are less than wholesale prices in Ukrainian. The profitability index of a PV project ranges from 1.26 (a discount range is 10%) to 3.24 (a discount rate is 0). The sensitivity analysis was carried out for six variables. For each chosen variable, we found its switching value. It was revealed that the most sensitive variable is a feed-in tariff. Operational expenses and investment costs are the most sensitive variables. Carbon dioxide footprints range from 500 to 3200 kgCO2/ha (depending on the crop). A 618 kW PV plant causes a release of carbon dioxide in the range of 5.2–11.4 gCO2/kWh. The calculated carbon dioxide payback period varies from 5 to 10 months.
V. Havrysh, A. Kalinichenko, E. Szafranek, V. Hruban. 2022. Agricultural Land: Crop Production or Photovoltaic Power Plants. Sustainability. 14(9):1-23.
Reviews/InformationalMicroclimatology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Ukraine
Agricultural sustainability estimation of the European photovoltaic greenhouses
The integration of the photovoltaic (PV) energy in the greenhouse farm has raised concerns on the agricultural sustainability of this specific agrosystem in terms of crop planning and management, due to the shading cast by the PV panels on the canopy. The PV greenhouse (PVG) can be classified on the basis of the PV cover ratio (PVR), that is the ratio of the projected area of PV panels to the ground and the total greenhouse area. In this paper, we estimated the yield of 14 greenhouse horticultural and floricultural crops inside four commercial PVG types spread in southern Europe, with PVR ranging from 25 to 100%. The aim of the work is to identify the PVG types suitable for the cultivation of the considered species, based on the best trade-off between PV shading and crop production. The daily light integral (DLI) was used to compare the light scenarios inside the PVGs to the crop light requirements, and estimate the potential yield. The structures with a PVR of 25% were compatible with the cultivation of all considered species, including the high light demanding ones (tomato, cucumber, sweet pepper), with an estimated negligible or limited yield reduction (below 25%). The medium light species (such as asparagus) with an optimal DLI lower than 17 mol m−2 d−1 and low light crops can be cultivated inside PVGs with a PVR up to 60%. Only low light demanding floricultural species with an optimal DLI lower than 10 mol m−2 d−1, such as poinsettia, kalanchoe and dracaena, were compatible inside PVGs with a PVR up to 100%. Innovative cropping systems should be considered to overcome the penalizing light scenarios of the PVGs with high PVR, also implementing LED supplementary lighting. This paper contributes to identify the sustainable PVG types for the chosen species and the alternative crop managements in terms of transplantation period and precision agriculture techniques, aimed at increasing the crop productivity and adaptability inside the PVG agrosystems.
Marco Cossu, Akira Yano, Stefania Solinas, Paola A. Deligios, Maria Teresa Tiloca, Andrea Cossu, Luigi Ledda. 08/2020. Agricultural sustainability estimation of the European photovoltaic greenhouses. European Journal of Agronomy. 118:
(!) .
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologySystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Italy
Agriphotovoltaic System to Improve Land Productivity and Revenue of Farmer
Aggressive growth of the world population influences land crisis, energy-food demand, climate change, and the income of developing countries like India. More than 50% of the Indian manpower hangs on agriculture for livelihood and provides around 20% of the country's GDP. In this context, a co-development system of the land area has been encouraged as a synergetic solution for these issues. We suggest calling this an “agriphotovoltaic” or “agrivoltaic” system, where sunlight is mutually shared between solar photovoltaic panels and crops. The system is good practice for those places where sun radiation is accessible adequately and land productivity is likely low. This paper summarizes the dual land-use technique to improve both land productivity and revenue of farmers. The important performance parameters of the system such as land equivalent ratio, revenue from solar, revenue from crops, and payback period have been found as 1.41, 52211 USD, 1535 USD, and 8 years respectively. Further, the government targets can be fulfilled by adopting new technology, efficient design, and installation of the system in the country.
(!) . 2022. Agriphotovoltaic System to Improve Land Productivity and Revenue of Farmer. In: 2022 IEEE Global Conference on Computing, Power and Communication Technologies (GlobConPT). 2022 IEEE Global Conference on Computing, Power and Communication Technologies (GlobConPT); 2022/09/23; New Delhi, India. IEEE Explore: IEEE; p.
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Impact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
India
Agriphotovoltaics Code of Ethics
Solar photovoltaic(PV)technologies are recognised globally as a means of supplying affordable renewable electricity, while mitigating global carbon emissions. However, the development of large PV farms requires large surface areas due to the disperse nature of solar energy. Academic literature has identified Agriphotovoltaics(AgriPV); the dual-use of cropland for agriculture and PV electricity production, as a potential solution to reduce conflict between the two sectors. This paperaddresses the social dimension of AgriPV systems, by suggesting a code of ethics for the technology. The suggested code of ethics ensures that the livelihoods of farmers and local communities are upheld; ensures farmers are well prepared to work at AgriPVsites;prioritises crop production in AgriPV systems; andensures the preservation of farmland and local values. A case study of a proposed AgriPV development in Helensville, Aotearoa –New Zealand, is then used to assess the effectiveness of the code of conduct.
(!) . 2022. Agriphotovoltaics Code of Ethics. In: PROCEEDINGS OF THE WELLINGTON FACULTY OF ENGINEERING ETHICS AND SUSTAINABILITY SYMPOSIUM. WELLINGTON FACULTY OF ENGINEERING ETHICS AND SUSTAINABILITY SYMPOSIUM; 2022/07/07; Wellington, New Zealand. Victoria University of Wellington - Te Herenga Waka Archives: Victoria University of Wellington - Te Herenga Waka; p.
(!)
Social PerspectivesSitingStandardization and Best Practices
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
New Zealand
[ Reference]
Agrivoltaic - Current Developments and a Case Study for Permanent Crops in Switzerland
Switzerland aims to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 and the use of renewable energies for electricity production is key. Solar photovoltaic (PV) will be the most important contributor to the future energy mix and capacities need to be increased by tenfold to 34 TWh in 2050. However, this might not be achieved by roof-top PV installations alone, as the total available capacity might be too low. Agrivoltaic, the combination of agriculture and photovoltaic on the same area of land, has seen a strong increase in research publications, but also in the implementation of pilot and full-scale installations. This special form of land-based PV system could be an important addition to achieve the desired PV capacity in Switzerland. It would not only resolve the land use conflict but could be beneficial for most farming applications.
Agrivoltaic systems can be classified into two categories, where the agricultural activity either takes place below the system (category I) or in between the system (category II). For both categories, semitransparent, mono- and bifacial PV modules are mostly used. New developments, such as concentrated PV using mikrotracking panels, are in the making but have not yet reached industrial production. Special mounting structures are required, which leads to a higher investment costs for both system categories compared to conventional, ground-mounted PV systems. Category I systems have the highest capital expenditure (CAPEX) followed by category II systems. The operational expenditure (OPEX) could be cheaper compared to conventional, ground-mounted PV, as the land management (e.g. mowing the grass and land security) is done by the farmer and leasing rates might be lower. The combination of category I agrivoltaic systems with permanent cultures, e.g. berries or apples, had the best overall score in a qualitative rating among the various systems. The agrivoltaic system would replace the already needed supporting structure for the fruit plant and serves additionally as weather protection, which could lead to increased fruit quality.
A case study for a cherry plantation at a farm in Forch, in the Canton of Zurich, showed that a yearly energy production of about 1’057 MWh per year could be achieved. This was based on the installation of customised PV panels with 33% transparency, a power output of 250 W per panel, and a total installed capacity of 1’090 kW for the almost one-hectare large field. The energy yield was calculated at 970 kWh/kW/a and 1’115 kW/ha. The system costs were estimated with 2’123 CHF/kW, which resulted in a CAPEX of about CHF 1.87 Million, including subsidies. OPEX were estimated with 21’147 CHF/a at a rate of 0.02 CHF/kWh, similar to integrated systems larger than 1000 kW. The revenue was calculated with 59’552 CHF/a, using an average electricity market price of 0.056 CHF/kWh. In a next step the Net Present Value (NPV) and the Levelized Cost of Electricity (LCOE) were calculated, using 4% discount rate and a 30-year economic lifetime. The resulting NPV was negative and the LCOE 0.12 CHF/kWh, which is almost double the used market rate, both indicating that the project is not viable and would be a loss for the farmer. The chances for viability could be increased, if the system costs are decreased below a level of 1020 CHF/kW or by increased market rates beyond the current LCOE. Also, subsidies could be introduced to make agrivoltaic systems viable. First results indicate that an increased CAPEX subsidy would be more economical then a new rate-based subsidy.
The potential of large-scale adoption and contribution of this category I agrivoltaic systems to the Swiss energy mix was estimated using four selected fruit crops (apples, apricot, pears, cherry). The results indicate a potential of 171 GWh/a in the Canton of Zurich, and 4.9 TWh/a in the whole of Switzerland. Thus, the proposed agrivoltaic system for the four selected permanent fruit cultures could contribute 15% to the total needed PV capacity of 34 TWh in 2050.
Although the high-level case study indicated that the agrivoltaic system was not viable, a Land Equivalent Ratio of 166% could be achieved, still showing the increase of land-use efficiency for this project. The involvement of energy service providers could lead to beneficial partnerships with farmers. The CAPEX intensive agrivoltaic systems could be financed by energy providers, unlocking the potential to increase the national PV capacity with larger-scale installations compared to costlier rooftop PV systems, and providing farmers with another economic lifeline through attractive leasing rates. The farmers can benefit from a system that provides similar, or even better, weather protection then currently used nettings or plastic covers, reducing the risk of lower crop quality or loss of produce during extreme weather (e.g. hail storms or heat waves), which are projected to intensify due to climate change. However, the Swiss government needs to remove the high hurdles for such projects and facilitate the permitting process to increase the speed of adoption and implementation. Only then can this special opportunity be harnessed and its needed contribution to the nationwide PV target be realised to achieve the desired goal of net zero emissions by 2050.M. Grau. 03/2022. Agrivoltaic - Current Developments and a Case Study for Permanent Crops in Switzerland [Thesis]. [Switzerland]: Zurich University of Applied Sciences.
Market AssessmentsEconomicsImpact AssessmentsReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Thesis/Dissertation
Country
Switzerland
Agrivoltaic Engineering and Layout Optimization Approaches in the Transition to Renewable Energy Technologies: A Review
As more nations move towards net-zero emission goals by 2050, research into the coupling of photovoltaics (PV) and agriculture has increased into a new sector of agrivoltaics (AV). Measurement of the Land Equivalent Ratio (LER) has allowed researchers to develop methods for optimizing the agrivoltaic system. Studies on innovative engineering technologies related to photovoltaic tracking along with new generation PV cells were reviewed to determine the factors that influence optimization. This review also considered AV farm layouts and how different spacing, height, and density impact the shading under the panels. As panels block the light from hitting the plants, the photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) changes and alters plant growth. The shading, however, also creates micro-climates that have beneficial qualities in terms of water usage and PV efficiency. The overall review investigated the research of the last five years into AV optimization and the implications for future AV developments.
M. Reasoner, A. Ghosh. 2022. Agrivoltaic Engineering and Layout Optimization Approaches in the Transition to Renewable Energy Technologies: A Review. Challenges. 13(2):1-14.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Agrivoltaic Farm Design: Vertical Bifacial vs. Tilted Monofacial Photovoltaic Panels
An unprecedented demand for Food, Energy, and Water (FEW) over coming decades require integrated FEW innovations with least environmental footprint. Collocating solar photovoltaic (PV) technology with agriculture is a promising approach towards dual land productivity that could locally fulfil growing food and energy demands. This 'agrivoltaic' (AV) solution can be highly suitable for hot and arid climates where an optimized solar panel coverage could prevent excessive thermal stress thereby increasing the crop yield and lowering the water budget. One of the concerns with using standard fixed tilt solar array structure that faces north/south (N/S) direction for AV farming is the spatial heterogeneity in the daily sunlight distribution for crops and soil water contents, both of which could affect crop yield. Dynamic tilt control through a tracking system can eliminate this problem but could increase the system cost and complexity. Here, we investigate east/west (E/W) faced vertical bifacial panel structure for AV farming and show that this could provide a much better spatial homogeneity for daily sunlight distribution relative to the fixed tilt N/S faced PV structure implying a better suitability for monoculture cropping. By modeling PV energy and crop yield under varying density (row to row pitch) for PV arrays and shade tolerances for crops, we show that E/W vertical bifacial panels can provide ~5% better land productivity as compared to N/S faced fixed tilt panels for Lahore (31.520N, 74.358E) when PV array density is slightly lower than that of a standard solar farm. In contrast, when PV arrays are denser than the standard, land productivity for E/W vertical bifacial panels degrades due to mutual shading. These results, together with high inherent resilience to soiling (dust accumulation) losses for E/W vertical bifacial panels, indicate their attractive prospects for AV applications.
Rehan Younasa, Hassan Imrana, Muhammad Hussnain Riaza, Nauman Zafar Butta (Lahore University). 2019. Agrivoltaic Farm Design: Vertical Bifacial vs. Tilted Monofacial Photovoltaic Panels. Lahore, Pakistan: arXiv.org. Report No.: 1910.01076.
MicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesImpact AssessmentsSystem Configuration
Agrivoltaic Implementation in Greenhouses: A Techno-Economic Analysis of Agrivoltaic Installations for Greenhouses in Sweden
Due to the growing population and climate change, the world will see an increase in demand for food, freshwater and renewable energy supply. Agrivoltaics has the possibility to address all these problems, by producing food and renewable energy but also by reducing water usage in agriculture. This thesis aims to study if agrivoltaics including storage has the potential to enable sustainable greenhouses in Stockholm, Sweden by trying to create a near net zero energy consumption for greenhouses with Agrivoltaics (AV) implemented. Furthermore a techno-economic assessment will be made for the AV-systems where Key Performance Indicator (KPI)’s are compared to economic parameters.
The selected KPI’s were a near net zero energy consumption and irradiance underneath the Photovoltaics (PV) technology. The selected PV-technology was standard PV-modules, Semi-Transparent Module (STM) and Organic Solar Cell (OSC) PV. These technologies were paired with li-ion batteries between 0-100 kWh and simulated in the software System Advisor Model (SAM) over a 25 year period. The AV system was applied to two load profiles, one for indoor plants and one for tomatoes. The economic parameters calculated was Net Present Value (NPV), Net Capital Cost (NCC), and Levelised Cost of Electricity (LCOE).
The results showed that the system is efficient in summertime where the PV reached maximum capacity in summer and the battery works as a complement. In wintertime, the AV-system is not very efficient and most of the electricity comes from the grid. It was not possible to create a near net zero energy consumption including storage in Stockholm Sweden. The irradiance beneath the panels were at a maximum for OSC, it was slightly reduced for the STM, and below 50% for the standard PV-module, depending on the size of the AV-system. Depending on the shade tolerance of the plant, the PV-technology should be selected.H. Gauffin. 2022. Agrivoltaic Implementation in Greenhouses: A Techno-Economic Analysis of Agrivoltaic Installations for Greenhouses in Sweden [Thesis]. [Sweden]: School of Industrial Engineering and Management (ITM).
EconomicsPV TechnologiesMicroclimatology
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Thesis/Dissertation
Country
Sweden
Agrivoltaic Modules Co-Designed for Electrical and Crop Productivity
Agrivoltaics provides benefits for both photovoltaic systems and agriculture, enabling dual "harvests" from the sun. An issue with agrivoltaic systems may be the competition between PV modules and crops, leading to agrivoltaic modules that have fewer solar cells and produce less electricity. We present an agrivoltaic PV module design that is angularly and wavelength selective, passing light to the crops in the morning when they are able to utilize it, and to the solar cells during periods of high insolation when they cannot. The agrivoltaic module embeds a holographic film into the PV module, and the cells operate at low concentration, allowing both low costs and high electricity production.
C. B. Honsberg, R. Sampson, R. Kostuk, G. B. Gafford, S. Bowden, S. Goodnick. 2021. Agrivoltaic Modules Co-Designed for Electrical and Crop Productivity. In: IEEE Conference on Photovoltaic Specialists; 2021/06/20; Fort Lauderdale, Florida. United States: IEEE; p. 2163-2166
Reviews/InformationalPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
United States
Agrivoltaic Potential of Abandoned Farmlands in the National Capital Region of Japan
This study is undertaken to analyze the photovoltaic generation potential of agricultural areas in the National Capital Region of Japan. This work demonstrates a method for assessing the photovoltaic generation potential of abandoned farmland using grid square statistics on higher-resolution. The technique enables researchers to incorporate topographic conditions. This paper comprises three simulation cases: Case 1 (abundance), Case 2 (introduction potential), and Case 3 (possible introduction). It investigated the use of overlay analysis to find south-facing slopes with a maximum inclination angle of less than 20 degrees. The photovoltaic generation potential amount was estimated by exclusion of natural park areas and natural conservation areas. Furthermore, grid square statistics were extracted using sensitivity analysis of the distances from transmission lines to the abandoned farmlands. The author presented estimates with three simulations annual yielding production potential of 39,234 GWh, 14,676 GWh, and 5,679 GWh, respectively. The annual possible introduction was found to be equivalent to 1.9% of the electric power consumption in these areas in the fiscal year 2015. The possible introduction surpassed the annual electric power consumption of the agriculture sector by a factor of 10.2.
Y. Shimazaki. 2021. Agrivoltaic Potential of Abandoned Farmlands in the National Capital Region of Japan. Japan Society of Energy and Resources. 42(2):93-97.
Reviews/InformationalMarket AssessmentsSiting
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Japan
Agrivoltaic Potential on Grape Farms in India
Aggressive growth of land-based solar photovoltaic (PV) farms can create a land use conflict with agricultural production. Fortunately, this issue can be resolved using the concept of agrivoltaics, which is co-development of land area for both solar PV and agriculture. To investigate and quantify PV generation potential, without significantly harming agriculture output, this study explores the viability of agrivoltaic farms deployment on existing grape farms in India. Considering the shade tolerance of grapes, an techno-economic analysis is run for the installation of PV systems in the area available between the trellises on a grape farm. The electrical energy generation potential is determined per unit area and economic benefits for the cultivators is quantified over a number of design options. The results show the economic value of the grape farms deploying the proposed agrivoltaic systems may increase more than 15 times as compared to conventional farming, while maintaining approximately the same grape production. If this dual use of land is implemented nationwide, it can make a significant impact by generating over 16,000GWh electricity, which has the potential of meeting the energy demands of more than 15 million people. In addition, grape-based agrivoltaics can be implemented in rural areas to enable village electrification.
P.R. Malu, U.S. Sharma, J.M. Pearce. 2017. Agrivoltaic Potential on Grape Farms in India. Sustainable Energy Technologies and Assessments. 23:104-110.
PV TechnologiesSystem ConfigurationMarket AssessmentsEconomics
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
India
Agrivoltaic Pretrial : Experiment Report
In the agrivoltaics pretrial in Wädenswil, lamb’s lettuce was grown in three cultivation rounds (winter, early and late spring) under and behind ground-based solar modules to study their effects on crop growth. Leaf chlorophyll content was measured indirectly by means of the SPAD-502Plus Konica Minolta® chlorophyll meter. At harvest, specific leaf area (SLA) was collected from leaf punches and leaf length and width of single leaves and fresh weight of individuals were measured.
The results include significant differences in plant traits (chlorophyll content, leaf length, width, SLA) and harvestable fresh weight. Chlorophyll contents of lamb’s lettuce leaves were significantly higher when grown under solar modules compared to the control and behind modules. Leaves were significantly longer and wider and had a higher SLA under solar modules (p < 0.05). Across all cultivation rounds, fresh weight under and behind modules increased by 17% and decreased by 8%, respectively, compared to the control. However, the influence of treatments strongly varied with season. Lamb’s lettuces grown under solar modules had the highest fresh weight in cultivation round 1 and 3. Lamb’s lettuces behind the solar modules had the lowest fresh weight in round 1 and 2. In cultivation round 2, fresh weight was identical for lamb’s lettuce under the modules and in the control and slightly smaller in the zone behind the modules (-17%). In cultivation round 3, fresh weight increased by 67% and 16% under and behind the modules, respectively, compared to the control.
Our findings suggest that beneficial effects of agrivoltaics on crop growth are possible and – among other factors of influence – depend on the season. In the case of lamb’s lettuce, a preferential microclimate under solar modules can be assumed during winter months while its growing season may be potentially prolonged in late spring. Adverse effects were only observed in the area behind the modules with the lowest fresh weights in the first and second cultivation round.C. Vaccaro, M. Jäger (Institute of Natural Resource Sciences (IUNR)). 2022. Agrivoltaic Pretrial : Experiment Report. ZHAW digitalcollection: Wädenswil : ZHAW Zürcher Hochschule für Angewandte Wissenschaften.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Report
Country
Switzerland
Agrivoltaic System Designing for Sustainability and Smart Farming: Agronomic Aspects and Design Criteria with Safety Assessment
An agrivoltaic system (AVS) offers a potential strategy for meeting global demands for renewable energy and sustainability by integrating photovoltaics and agriculture. Many empirical studies have installed facilities and cultivated actual crops, revealing that AVSs improve land use efficiency. However, it is rare for actual end-users and farmsteads to adopt AVSs owing to a lack of standardised models and design criteria. In this study, we conducted a comprehensive AVS design considering agronomic aspects and structural safety along with an analysis of design criteria to promote the dissemination of AVSs. Based on the photovoltaic module arrangement and adjusting installation conditions, various design types were considered to reflect on-site conditions and user preferences. In addition, safety standards for disaster resistance and trade-offs among shading ratio, power generation capacity, and quantity of structural members were analysed. The safety assessment results demonstrated that the column of the AVS structure was vulnerable to wind loads, and the safety standards varied according to the adjusted column spacing. The narrower the column design, the more advantageous the safety and power generation and the more disadvantageous the crop cultivation environment and installation cost. The sequentially mounted type allowed relatively less solar radiation to reach the crop and generated more solar energy. When the modules were mounted at a distance, the structural safety was slightly reduced; however, more solar radiation and economic feasibility were secured. These results will support decision-making regarding AVS designs, help in identifying the sensitivity of crops to shading, and be utilised for the establishment of a standardised AVS model to promote dissemination.
S. Lee, J. Lee, Y. Jeong, D. Kim, B. Seo, Y. Seo, T. Kim, W. Choi. 07/2023. Agrivoltaic System Designing for Sustainability and Smart Farming: Agronomic Aspects and Design Criteria with Safety Assessment. Applied Energy. 341:121130.
Human HealthSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Agrivoltaic System Impacts on Microclimate and Yield of Different Crops Within an Organic Crop Rotation in a Temperate Climate
Agrivoltaic (AV) systems integrate the production of agricultural crops and electric power on the same land area through the installation of solar panels several meters above the soil surface. It has been demonstrated that AV can increase land productivity and contribute to the expansion of renewable energy production. Its utilization is expected to affect crop production by altering microclimatic conditions but has so far hardly been investigated. The present study aimed to determine for the first time how changes in microclimatic conditions through AV affect selected agricultural crops within an organic crop rotation. For this purpose, an AV research plant was installed near Lake Constance in south-west Germany in 2016. A field experiment was established with four crops (celeriac, winter wheat, potato and grass-clover) cultivated both underneath the AV system and on an adjacent reference site without solar panels. Microclimatic parameters, crop development and harvestable yields were monitored in 2017 and 2018. Overall, an alteration in microclimatic conditions and crop production under AV was confirmed. Photosynthetic active radiation was on average reduced by about 30% under AV. During summertime, soil temperature was decreased under AV in both years. Furthermore, reduced soil moisture and air temperatures as well as an altered rain distribution have been found under AV. In both years, plant height of all crops was increased under AV. In 2017 and 2018, yield ranges of the crops cultivated under AV compared to the reference site were −19 to +3% for winter wheat, −20 to +11% for potato and −8 to −5% for grass-clover. In the hot, dry summer 2018, crop yields of winter wheat and potato were increased by AV by 2.7% and 11%, respectively. These findings show that yield reductions under AV are likely, but under hot and dry weather conditions, growing conditions can become favorable.
A. Weselek, A. Bauerle, J. Hartung, S. Zikeli, P. Högy, I. Lewandowski. 2021. Agrivoltaic System Impacts on Microclimate and Yield of Different Crops Within an Organic Crop Rotation in a Temperate Climate. Agronomy for Sustainable Development. 41:1-15.
HydrologySoilPlant ScienceMicroclimatology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Germany
Agrivoltaic System and Modelling Simulation: A Case Study of Soybean (Glycine max L.) in Italy
Agrivoltaic systems (AV) combine agricultural activities with the production of electricity from photovoltaic (PV) panels on the same land area. The concept of AV systems was introduced in 1982 by Goetzberger and Zastrow, but only more recently have the increased environmental concerns and the favorable economic and political frameworks stimulated a growing interest in this technology. A critical issue in the development of AV is the selection of crops that can grow profitably under the micrometeorological conditions generated by AV systems. This experiment studied the effect of four different shade depth treatments (AV1 = 27%, AV2 = 16%, AV3 = 9%, and AV4 = 18%) on the morphology, physiology, and yield of a soybean crop grown under a large-scale AV system. The field results were used to validate the output of a simulation platform that couples the crop model GECROS with a set of algorithms for the estimation and spatialisation of the shading, radiation, and crop-related outputs. Crop height, leaf area index (LAI), and specific leaf area (SLA) all increased under the most shaded AV areas compared to the full light (FL, control) conditions. On average, under an AV system, the grain yield and the number of pods per plant were reduced by 8% and 13%, and in only one area (AV2) was a slight increase in grain yield (+4.4%) observed in comparison to the FL. The normalised root mean square error (nRMSE) value of the predicted grain yield differed from the observed grain values of 12.9% for the FL conditions, 15.7% in AV1, 16.5% in AV2, 6.71% in AV3, and 2.82% in AV4. Although the model simulated the yield satisfactorily, the results of the RMSE revealed that the model tends to underestimate the yield with an increase in shade, particularly for the AV1 and AV2 conditions.
E. Potenza, M. Croci, M. Colauzzi, S. Amaducci. 2022. Agrivoltaic System and Modelling Simulation: A Case Study of Soybean (Glycine max L.) in Italy. Horticulturae. 8(12):1-15.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Italy
Agrivoltaic System: A Possible Synergy Between Agriculture and Solar Energy
The development of photovoltaic energy requires a lot of land. To maximize the land use,
agrivoltaic systems that combine an agricultural and an electrical production on the same land unit are developed. A demonstrator was built in Montpellier (France) with different experimental arrangements to study the impact of a fixed and a dynamic solutions on the crops below the panels. The effect of shade on lettuces appears to be positive with a Land Equivalent Ratio greater than 1. To extend the experiment to other crops, the crop species best adapted to the agrivoltaic system are identified. The shade tolerance and vulnerability to climate change are key parameters to select crops that will benefit the most from the installation of PV panels. The SWOT analysis brings out that agrivoltaic systems can be a solution to maximize the land use and to adapt crops to climate change. The technical constraints imposed by the PV structure must be overcome to deploy this technology on a large scale. The greatest threat lies in the non-acceptability of the projects by farmers and the chambers of agriculture. An agrivoltaic project was developed in the South of France as a first testing area but was finally abandoned because of too important reciprocal constraints
for the farmer and the operator.D. Santos, C.N. Lolita. 2020. Agrivoltaic System: A Possible Synergy Between Agriculture and Solar Energy [Thesis]. [Digitala Vetenskapliga Arkivet]: KTH, School of Industrial Engineering and Management (ITM).
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Thesis/Dissertation
Country
France
Agrivoltaic System: Estimation of Photosynthetic Photon Flux Density Under Solar Panels Based on Solar Irradiation Data Using All-Climate Solar Spectrum Model
Climate change and increasing food production due to population growth are global challenges that need immediate attention. The introduction of renewable energy to mitigate climate change and the requirement of adequate land to increase food production are generally mutually exclusive. However, an agrivoltaic system generates renewable electricity and produces agricultural products from a common piece of land, thus increasing the land productivity. In addition, this system contributes to local production, thus reducing the CO2 emissions from logistics. Photovoltaic arrays in previous studies were designed by calculating the irradiance in W/m2, even in recent studies. A careful design of the farmland's illumination must be developed for effective agriculture. The simulations must be scaled based on photosynthetic photon flux density rather than irradiance commonly applied in photovoltaic technology simulations.
This study focused on the photosynthetic photon flux density and employed an all-climate solar spectrum model to calculate the photosynthetic photon flux density accurately on farmland partially shaded by solar panels and supporting tubes. This study described an algorithm for estimating the photosynthetic photon flux density values under solar panels. The calculated data were validated using the photosynthetic photon flux density sensors. To calculate the photosynthetic photon flux density under the solar panels, it is essential to weigh the direct and diffused components shaded by the solar panels separately because they have different spectrums. A method to quantify the shading was explored here by solar panels and their supporting tubes for the direct and diffused component as the sun moves. The calculation formula was established by defining the sun's moves and the positions of solar panels and their supporting tubes in terms of elevation and azimuth angles from the observation point.
It was found that the waveform based on the calculation formula for the photosynthetic photon flux density under the solar panels reproduced the same tendency as the measured photosynthetic photon flux density. To evaluate this trend numerically, the measured and calculated photosynthetic photon flux densities were compared using the standard residuals. Generally, the similarity of the two values is confirmed by a standard residual value between −3 and 3. The result of this study showed that the standard residual values were negative in more frequencies except for the zero photosynthetic photon flux density at night. This indicates that the calculated photosynthetic photon flux density tends to be higher than the measured photosynthetic photon flux density. The peak frequency of the standard residuals was between −6 and −3. This difference probably occurred because the established calculation formula targets the shading provided by the solar panels and supporting tubes but does not cover the shading provided by the other system structures. The calculation formula enables farmers to evaluate the economic efficiency of the system before introducing it using measured solar irradiation data at the target farmlands by introducing published neighborhood solar irradiation data and considering, in advance, measures to avoid the effects of shading on agricultural production. The next study will be to improve the accuracy of the calculation formula by increasing the number of days and develop a method that leads to the best practices of agricultural production and solar power generation by introducing the system.D. Yajima, T. Toyoda, M. Kirimura, K. Araki, Y. Ota, K. Nishioka. 02/2023. Agrivoltaic System: Estimation of Photosynthetic Photon Flux Density Under Solar Panels Based on Solar Irradiation Data Using All-Climate Solar Spectrum Model. Cleaner Engineering and Technology. 12:1-19.
Microclimatology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Japan
Agrivoltaic System: Experimental Analysis for Enhancing Land Productivity and Revenue of Farmers
Energy and food security is alarmed by the influences of climate change, population, and world economic growth. In this perspective, the co-located agrivoltaic system, a nexus of photovoltaic and agriculture production, is more suitable to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals of a country like India. An experimental investigation has been conducted at CUTM, Odisha through a portable and adjustable agrivoltaic system of 0.675 kWp capacity in 11 m2 of land area to study the enhancement of land productivity and revenue of farmers or/and investors. This system provides an underneath farming of 1.5 kg turmeric as a shadow tolerant medicinal crop. Major performance indicators of the project such as land equivalent ratio, benefit-cost ratio, price-performance ratio, and payback period have been found as 1.73, 1.71, 0.79, and 9.49 years respectively. Further, the temperature level is decreased by 1–1.5 °C resulting in the improvement of the energy generation in the system and successfully tested in dual DC micro-grid solutions having two 12 V 75 Ah solar tubular batteries. This work can be extended to different scales of agrivoltaic systems with suitable crops in th farmers' land, as they are the end-users of this co-located system.
N.C. Giri, R.C. Mohanty. 2022. Agrivoltaic System: Experimental Analysis for Enhancing Land Productivity and Revenue of Farmers. Energy for Sustainable Development. 70:54-61.
MicroclimatologyEconomicsSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
India
Agrivoltaic System: a Case Study of PV Production and Olive Cultivation in Southern Italy
The double use of the land in the AgriVoltaic (AV) sites allows to “doubly harvest from the sun’, increasing the land use exploitation with lower environmental impact. This effect strongly depends on the system configuration for both the PV and agricultural sides. The choice is between a high-density PV module arrangement, with high PV production and low agricultural harvesting, or a highly spaced arrangement with lower PV production. The present work presents a case study in Southern Italy: the simulated PV plant can have two different layouts (rated power of 7.13 MW or 5. 6SMW), and each hectare can include the plantation of about 900 Arbequina olive trees.
A. Ciocia, D. Enescu, A. Amato, G. Malgaroli, R. Polacco, F. Amico, F. Spertino. 2022. Agrivoltaic System: a Case Study of PV Production and Olive Cultivation in Southern Italy. In: 2022 57th International Universities Power Engineering Conference; 2022/08/30; Istanbul, Turkey. Romania: IEEE; p. 1-6
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyEconomicsPV TechnologiesSystem ConfigurationImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Italy
Agrivoltaic Systems Design and Assessment: A Critical Review, and a Descriptive Model towards a Sustainable Landscape Vision (Three-Dimensional Agrivoltaic Patterns)
As an answer to the increasing demand for photovoltaics as a key element in the energy transition strategy of many countries—which entails land use issues, as well as concerns regarding landscape transformation, biodiversity, ecosystems and human well-being—new approaches and market segments have emerged that consider integrated perspectives. Among these, agrivoltaics is emerging as very promising for allowing benefits in the food–energy (and water) nexus. Demonstrative projects are developing worldwide, and experience with varied design solutions suitable for the scale up to commercial scale is being gathered based primarily on efficiency considerations; nevertheless, it is unquestionable that with the increase in the size, from the demonstration to the commercial scale, attention has to be paid to ecological impacts associated to specific design choices, and namely to those related to landscape transformation issues. This study reviews and analyzes the technological and spatial design options that have become available to date implementing a rigorous, comprehensive analysis based on the most updated knowledge in the field, and proposes a thorough methodology based on design and performance parameters that enable us to define the main attributes of the system from a trans-disciplinary perspective.
Carlos Toledo, Alessandra Scognamiglio. 06/2021. Agrivoltaic Systems Design and Assessment: A Critical Review, and a Descriptive Model towards a Sustainable Landscape Vision (Three-Dimensional Agrivoltaic Patterns). Sustainability. 13(12):6871.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production, Greenhouse, Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Agrivoltaic Systems Enhance Farmers’ Profits Through Broccoli Visual Quality and Electricity Production Without Dramatic Changes in Yield, Antioxidant Capacity, and Glucosinolates
The increase in world population by an average rate of 2% per year causes critical issues on energy and foods. By 2050, food demand will increase to 35~56% more than in 2010 due to the growing population. Agrivoltaic systems allow us to reach sustainable food and electricity-production goals with high land-use efficiency. In this study, the yield, antioxidant capacity, and secondary metabolite of broccoli and electricity production were analyzed under an agrivoltaic system over 3 cultivation periods. Based on energy production, an economic analysis of agrivoltaic was carried out. In addition, our study also reported that agrivoltaic with additional shading treatment produced greener broccoli with a higher level of consumer preference than open-field grown ones. The yield, antioxidant capacity, some glucosinolates and hydrolysis products of broccoli grown under an agrivoltaic system were not significantly different from those of broccoli grown in the open-field.
S.H. Chae, H.J. Kim, H.W. Moon, Y.H. Kim, K.M. Ku. 2022. Agrivoltaic Systems Enhance Farmers’ Profits Through Broccoli Visual Quality and Electricity Production Without Dramatic Changes in Yield, Antioxidant Capacity, and Glucosinolates. Agronomy. 12(6):1-15.
SoilPlant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
South Korea
Agrivoltaic Systems Have the Potential to Meet Energy Demands of Electric Vehicles in Rural Oregon, US
Electrification of the transportation industry is necessary; however, range anxiety has proven to be a major hindrance to individuals adopting electric vehicles (EVs). Agrivoltaic systems (AVS) can facilitate the transition to EVs by powering EV charging stations along major rural roadways, increasing their density and mitigating range anxiety. Here we conduct case study analyses of future EV power needs for Oregon, USA, and identify 174 kha of AVS viable agricultural land outside urban boundaries that is south facing and does not have prohibitive attributes (designated wetland, forested land, or otherwise protected lands). 86% highway access points have sufficient available land to supply EV charging stations with AVS. These AVS installations would occupy less than 3% (5 kha) of the identified available land area. Installing EV charging stations at these 86% highway access points would yield 231 EV charging stations with a median range of 5.9 km (3.6 mi), a distance comparable to driver expectations, suggesting that this approach would serve to mitigate range anxiety. AVS powered rural charging stations in Oregon could support the equivalent of 673,915 electric vehicles yr−1, reducing carbon emissions due to vehicle use in OR by 3.1 mil MTCO2 yr−1, or 21%.
C.L. Steadman, C.W. Higgins . 2022. Agrivoltaic Systems Have the Potential to Meet Energy Demands of Electric Vehicles in Rural Oregon, US. Scientific Reports. 12:1-8.
SitingPV TechnologiesSystem ConfigurationMarket Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
Oregon
Agrivoltaic Systems and Just Energy-Agriculture Transition in Southeast Asia
To tackle climate change and promote just energy transition, Southeast Asian policymakers should look for ways to promote the use of renewable energy in agriculture. This is because the sector consumes a significant amount of fossil fuels annually.
Since the expansion of renewable energy increases land-use competition with agrifood production, policymakers should support measures to reduce renewable energy’s land footprints, mitigate adverse effects on food security, and protect the livelihoods of vulnerable populations that might be affected by land-use changes. In Southeast Asia, there are now rural development projects that integrate renewable energy with agrifood systems. While they may have long-term environmental and economic benefits, renewable energy solutions in agriculture are more expensive compared to fossil fuel technologies. Therefore, governments should consider providing subsidies, grants, and low-interest loans to encourage agrifood actors to invest in such technologies. Alternatively, investments can be made through cooperatives, and farmers could be offered “pay-as-you-go” payment plans for renewable-powered services. Research from other regions suggests that agrivoltaic systems – where solar panels are integrated with farmlands – have the potential to increase land productivity in food- energy production, support rural electrification, generate employment opportunities, and diversify and increase the incomes of agrifood actors through the sale of electricity and ecotourism activities.
To promote just transition, agrivoltaic projects can be organised as cooperatives where profits are shared among members. The energy and food produced can also be used to strengthen the energy and food security of low-income households. Research on agrivoltaic systems in Southeast Asia should also be strongly encouraged.Prapimphan Chiengkul (Yusof Ishak Institute). 2023. Agrivoltaic Systems and Just Energy-Agriculture Transition in Southeast Asia. Singapore: ISEAS - YUSOF ISHAK INSTITUTE. Report No.: 29.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Report
Country
Singapore, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam
Agrivoltaic Systems and its Potential to Optimize Agricultural Land Use for Energy Production in Sri Lanka: A Review
The demand for food and energy is increasing at a fast rate and their security has become the prime issue in especially developing countries like Sri Lanka. Conventional fossil fuel-based electricity generation has become a challenging task for the economy as well as for the environment. Therefore, moving to renewable energy has currently grown in the world than ever before as a result of the Paris agreement launched in 2015 and in line with Sustainable Development Goal 7. Photovoltaic based electricity generation is one of the best options for the country as it blessed with an ample amount of solar radiation. Rooftops of houses, buildings, and other suitable infrastructures would be the best places to establish the PV panels. Nevertheless, it needs to expand up to a considerable area of land of photovoltaic panels to cater to the increasing demand for energy which is available to feed the ever-increasing population. Agri-voltaic system has been proposed as a mixed system, combining photovoltaic with agriculture at the same time on the same land to capture solar energy, for both energy generation and food production while maximizing the solar efficiency on the land. The main eco-physiological constraint for the crop production under the Photovoltaic is the light reduction. Since the inadequate information about most of the crops under the shade conditions, it is extremely difficult to recommend some crop species for their ability to shade tolerance. The use of shading (PV panels) requires more crop-specific research to determine the optimum percentage of panels and their arrangement that do not reduce agricultural production. Crop yield variation with panel shading and practicalities to maximize the system need to be studied extensively. This paper reviews the potential of the Agri-voltaic system and identifies the research gaps in selecting suitable crops under the PV panels.
R. Chamara, C. Beneragama. 2020. Agrivoltaic Systems and its Potential to Optimize Agricultural Land Use for Energy Production in Sri Lanka: A Review. Journal of Solar Energy Research. 5(2):417-431.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Sri Lanka
Agrivoltaic Systems to Optimise Land Use for Electric Energy Production
A system combining soil grown crops with photovoltaic panels (PV) installed several meters above the ground is referred to as agrivoltaic systems. In this work a patented agrivoltaic solar tracking system named Agrovoltaico®, was examined in combination with a maize crop in a simulation study. To this purpose a software platform was developed coupling a radiation and shading model to the generic crop growth simulator GECROS. The simulation was conducted using a 40-year climate dataset from a location in North Italy, rainfed maize and different Agrovoltaico configurations (that differ according to panel density and sun-tracking set up). Control simulations for an irrigated maize crop under full light were added to results. Reduction of global radiation under the Agrovoltaico system was more affected by panel density (29.5% and 13.4% respectively for double density and single density), than by panel management (23.2% and 20.0% for sun-track and static panels, respectively). Radiation reduction, under Agrovoltaico, affected mean soil temperature, evapotranspiration and soil water balance, on average providing more favorable conditions for plant growth than in full light. As a consequence, in rainfed conditions, average grain yield was higher and more stable under agrivoltaic than under full light. The advantage of growing maize in the shade of Agrovoltaico increased proportionally to drought stress, which indicates that agrivoltaic systems could increase crop resilience to climate change. The benefit of producing renewable energy with Agrovoltaico was assessed using the Land Equivalent Ratio, comparing the electric energy produced by Agrovoltaico cultivated with biogas maize to that produced by a combination of conventional ground mounted PV systems and biogas maize in monoculture. Land Equivalent Ratio was always above 1, it increased with panel density and it was higher with sun tracking than with static panels. The best Agrivoltaico scenario produced twice as much energy, per unit area, as the combination of ground mounted PV systems and biogas maize in monoculture. For this Agrivoltaico can be considered a valuable system to produce renewable energy on farm without negatively affecting land productivity.
S. Amaducci, X. Yin, M. Colauzzi. 2018. Agrivoltaic Systems to Optimise Land Use for Electric Energy Production. Applied Energy. 220:545-561.
HydrologySoilPlant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem ConfigurationToolsImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Italy
Agrivoltaic Systems: An Innovative Approach to Combine Agricultural Production and Solar Photovoltaic System
Agrivoltaic system (AVS) is a conceptual and innovative approach to combining agricultural production with renewable energy. During profound disruption and instability to the energy sectors globally caused by pandemic Covid-19, renewables, especially solar power, are forecast to continue to grow when the world starts to recover from this pandemic. Concurrently, food security issues have become worse and will continue to escalate due to a sig- nificant agricultural land decrease. Thus, this conceptual paper describes the core issues of challenges and opportunities for effective dissemination of dual land-use systems (AVS) as an innovative approach and a win-win solution for both productions. The definition and classification of AVS technology, the specification and modification of PV structure for AVS system, and agricultural experts’ concern are discussed in this paper as a suggestion for refinement of AVS technology to increase the rate of adoption by players in the industry. Building renewable energy and agriculture sustainable solutions would ulti- mately increase global land-use efficiency, minimize agriculture destruction, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuels. Informed and organized efforts to disseminate further this innovation strategy are required if increasing demands for renewables and food security are to be met simultaneously.
M.A.Z. Abidin, M.N. Mahyuddin, M.A.A.M. Zainuri . 2022. Agrivoltaic Systems: An Innovative Approach to Combine Agricultural Production and Solar Photovoltaic System. In: N.M. Mahyuddin, N.R. Mat Noor, H.A. Mat Sakim, editors. Proceedings of the 11th International Conference on Robotics, Vision, Signal Processing and Power Applications; 2021/04/05; Malaysia. Online: Springer, Singapore; p. 779–785
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Agrivoltaic Technology in India
Agrivoltaic systems are photovoltaic (PV) technologies in which PV
panels are positioned at a height that allows for regular farming practices to be carried out below. Agrivoltaic systems improve water use efficiency and lessen water stress, which helps crop yield while also preserving agricultural land. Due to these advantages, interest in Agrivoltaic systems is growing, but their adoption is constrained by the lack of a comprehensive environmental and economic analysis. The reduced impact on land occupation and the stabilization of crop production are relevant added values that should be properly valorized in a future energy system dominated by increasing human land appropriation and climate change. This chapter explains the Agrivoltaic
system its concepts, research and development in India.Gadhiya Gaurav Ashokkumar, Patel Urvashi Rameshbhai. 2023. Agrivoltaic Technology in India. Dr. M. Nemichandrappa, Dr. Rajkumar R Halidoddi, editors. Rohini, Delhi-110085, India: AkiNik Publications. 1-11p.
Market AssessmentsReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Book Section
Country
India
Agrivoltaic arrays can maintain semi-arid grassland productivity and extend the seasonality of forage quality
Highlights
•The development of agrivoltaic (AV) systems has primarily occurred in former grasslands. •Semi-arid grassland AV forage production and quality response to grazing is largely unknown. •No significant differences between ANPP in AV grassland and adjacent control grassland. •Response to grazing compensated or exceeded ANPP levels in the control grassland. •Grazing altered seasonality of forage, increasing forage protein content later in the season.
Abstract
The co-location of photovoltaic energy generation and agricultural land use (Agrivoltaics, AV) has become increasingly popular in recent years. Although the benefits of AV in croplands have great promise, the development of AV systems has primarily occurred in former grasslands and sites now managed as grasslands, because of their relatively flat topography and consistently high solar irradiation. Evidence is accumulating that grassland productivity can be maintained within solar arrays, but how grassland productivity responds to grazing within solar arrays is largely unknown, despite the prevalence of grazing as a vegetation management option. Here, we report the results of a study aimed at quantifying how a semi-arid C3 grassland growing beneath an AV system in Colorado (USA) responded to simulated grazing treatments (canopy removal in June or July). In the absence of simulated grazing, there were no differences between aboveground primary production in the AV grassland vs. an adjacent control grassland. However, simulated grazing in June and July had a compensatory effect and, in some cases, annual productivity exceeded that in the control grassland. Additionally, we found that simulated grazing increased forage protein content later into the growing season compared to un-grazed AV and control sites. Overall, our results indicate that grazing within a grassland AV array is unlikely to negatively impact forage production, and that forage quality in this semi-arid region may even be increased later into the growing season with grazing.Matthew A. Sturchio, Steven A. Kannenberg, Alan K. Knapp. 12/2023. Agrivoltaic arrays can maintain semi-arid grassland productivity and extend the seasonality of forage quality. Applied Energy. 356:
(!) .
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyHydrology
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
Colorado
Agrivoltaic in Chile – Integrative Solution to Use Efficiently Land for Food and Energy Production and Generating Potential Synergy Effects Shown by a Pilot Plant in Metropolitan Region
In Chile, one of the most vulnerable productive sectors, in the context of climate change, is agriculture. The country faces the risk of losing high-quality soil surface mainly by desertification, erosion, contamination and inappropriate agriculture practices. Risk of agricultural land losses constantly rises due to the increasing food and energy demand, as well as the use of land for human dwellings and industrial operations.
In addition, the rapid growth of the energy sector is highlighted, where Chile has ambitious goals on expanding non-conventional renewable energies. Here, solar photovoltaics (PV) present high potential due to the high irradiation levels especially in the northern region of Chile. This, added to decreasing PV system costs, allow solar PV installations going south closer to the energy consumption poles.
In the context of both trends, a system to combine agriculture with photovoltaics (APV) is presented as an inter- sectorial solution for food and energy production using the same land benefit from synergy effects like reduction of water evaporation and protection for crops, especially in arid/semi-arid zones. Additionally, first results of an APV pilot plant near Santiago of Chile are presented. Finally, conclusions are developed in addition to an outlook in order to provide a baseline of information for the usefulness of the concept in the country.P. Gese, F.M.M. Conde, G.R. Sagner, F. Dinter. 2019. Agrivoltaic in Chile – Integrative Solution to Use Efficiently Land for Food and Energy Production and Generating Potential Synergy Effects Shown by a Pilot Plant in Metropolitan Region. In: IEA SHC International Conference on Solar Heating and Cooling for Buildings and Industry; 2019/11/04; Santiago, Chile. Santiago, Chile: ISES Solar World Congress; p. 1-9
SoilMicroclimatology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Chile
Agrivoltaic system for energy-food production: A symbiotic approach on strategy, modelling, and optimization
Agrivoltaic system is a symbiotic approach to minimize land use conflicts for energy-food production. This production is dynamically affected by environmental parameters. Hence, an efficient system design is needed by adopting a suitable optimization model. The objective of this study is to discuss the application of artificial neural network and genetic algorithm to an experimental 0.675 kWp agrivoltaic system with turmeric crops for optimum production. Turmeric is a medicinal crop used primarily as spices and traditional medicine. The input parameters for the model are solar radiation, temperature, humidity, and rainfall, while the output parameters are energy and food. After training, validation, and testing of the model, the error has been found as 0.03711 and 0.00494 for energy and food systems respectively. For system performance, the established model generates a minimum mean squared error and maximum regression correlation coefficient indicating a favourable relationship between measured and predicted values. The predicted energy and food production has been obtained at optimal conditions as 104.9097 kWh and 9.0955 kg, respectively. The performance indicators such as land equivalent ratio and payback period have been found as 1.73 and 9.49 respectively. Thus, the system is techno-economically viable and feasible worldwide satisfying the targets of sustainable development goals.
Nimay Chandra Giri, Ramesh Chandra Mohanty, Rama Chandra Pradhan, S. Abdullah, Uttam Ghosh, Amrit Mukherjee. 12/2023. Agrivoltaic system for energy-food production: A symbiotic approach on strategy, modelling, and optimization. Sustainable Computing: Informatics and Systems. 40:
(!) .
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyEconomicsPV TechnologiesImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
India
Agrivoltaic system validation - implementation into a raspberry farm
The production of green energy is becoming increasingly important across various industries; however, it is still not sufficiently explored in the agriculture industry since farmers often do not have the time and financial possibilities to implement innovative techniques. AVC systems provide a dual usage of land through energy production, enabling farmers to use and monetize clean and green energy while not interfering with their daily business activities. Energreen demonstrates this business opportunity by implementing two pilot projects in farms, which serve as a base for future growth and provide a vision and outlook for the venture.
Maximilian Hauser. 2023. Agrivoltaic system validation - implementation into a raspberry farm [Thesis]. [Repositorio Universidade Nova]: Nova School of Business and Economics.
Economics
Agrivoltaic, a Synergistic Co-Location of Agricultural and Energy Production in Perpetual Mutation: A Comprehensive Review
Agrivoltaic systems, which consist of the combination of energy production by means of photovoltaic systems and agricultural production in the same area, have emerged as a promising solution to the constraints related to the reduction in cultivated areas due to solar panels used in agricultural production systems. They also enable optimization of land use and reduction in conflicts over land access, in order to meet the increasing demand for agricultural products and energy resulting from rapid population growth. However, the selected installation configurations, such as elevation, spacing, tilt, and choice of panel technology used, can have a negative impact on agricultural and/or energy production. Thus, this paper addresses the need for a review that provides a clear explanation of agrivoltaics, including the factors that impact agricultural and energy production in agrivoltaic systems, types of panel configurations and technologies to optimize these systems, and a synthesis of modelling studies which have already been conducted in this area. Several studies have been carried out in this field to find the appropriate mounting height and spacing of the solar panels that optimize crop yields, as this later can be reduced by the shade created with the solar panels on the plants. It was reported that yields have been reduced by 62% to 3% for more than 80% of the tested crops. To this end, an optimization model can be developed to determine the optimal elevation, spacing, and tilt angle of the solar panels. This model would take into account factors that influence crop growth and yield, as well as factors that affect the performance of the photovoltaic system, with the goal of maximizing both crop yield and energy production.
A. Sarr, Y. M. Soro, A. K. Tossa, L. Diop. 03/2023. Agrivoltaic, a Synergistic Co-Location of Agricultural and Energy Production in Perpetual Mutation: A Comprehensive Review. Processes. 11(3):1-27.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Agrivoltaic: A New Approach of Sustainable Development
Grid connected solar Photovoltaic (PV) plant needs land to the tune of 5 acre or 0.02024 Km2/MWp for multi crystalline silicon solar cell and 7 acre or 0.02833 Km2/MWp for thin film solar cell. This indicates that, the MWp level power plant consume large land area. As agriculture is the backbone of economy of the developing countries consumption of large land in putting solar power plant puts problem on food security. Thus, integration is needed for dual use of land both for power generation and at the same time it can be used for other economic activities. These two requirements were studied in MWp level power plants operating in Charanka Solar Park at West Gujarat. A typical MWp capacity power plant in this park is exporting about 1.68 million kWh of electricity per year to Gujarat Energy Transmission Corporation (GETCO) grid. Long term studies indicated that the salt marshy barren land of the park has been converted into a fertile land and developed ambience for growing plant and vegetables. The possible reasons behind the improvement of land fertility is due to increase in land humidity by decreasing evaporation rate. Maybe the shadow from PV modules initiated growth of bacteria and virus to implant Carbon and Nitrogen into the soil surface. Typical plant like tomato was cultivated under the shadow of the solar module strings. The production of tomato generated revenue which added 30% reduction in payback period.
K. Chowdhury, R. Mandal . 2021. Agrivoltaic: A New Approach of Sustainable Development. Online: Springer, Singapore. 513-522p.
HydrologySoilPlant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Book Section
Country
India
Agrivoltaic: A Strategic Assessment Using SWOT and TOWS Matrix
New strategies and market segments considering integrated approaches have emerged as critical components in the energy transition. Agrivoltaics is one approach that has shown a lot of promise for offering advantages in the food-energy-water nexus. The agrivoltaic system involves the installation of photovoltaic panels above agricultural lands to generate electricity while also allowing for crop production. The paper “SWOT and TOWS Matrix Analysis of Agrivoltaic System” comprehensively analyses the potential strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) associated with implementing an agrivoltaic system. This study utilizes a SWOT analysis framework to identify and evaluate the internal and external factors that could impact the implementation and success of the agrivoltaic system. A TOWS matrix analysis is also conducted to formulate strategic recommendations based on the identified SWOT factors. The analysis results reveal that the agrivoltaic system has numerous strengths, including its potential to generate renewable energy, increase crop yield, and provide economic benefits to farmers. However, the system also faces several weaknesses and threats, such as high initial investment costs, land use conflicts, and potential environmental impacts. Based on the TOWS matrix analysis, this study provides strategic recommendations to maximize the potential of the agrivoltaic system while mitigating its weaknesses and threats. These recommendations include adopting a flexible pricing strategy, researching the system’s environmental impact, promoting collaboration between various stakeholders like government agencies, farmers, and energy service companies. Overall, this study provides valuable insights into the potential of agrivoltaic systems and the factors that should be considered when implementing such a system. The findings can help stakeholders make informed decisions and take appropriate actions to ensure the integration of agrivoltaic systems into agricultural practices.
R. Naitym, K. Sudhakar, A. A. Razak, A. Karthick, D. Barbulescu. 04/2023. Agrivoltaic: A Strategic Assessment Using SWOT and TOWS Matrix. Energies. 16(8):3313.
Methodological ComparisonsReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Agrivoltaic: Challenge and Progress
According to the International Energy Agency (IEA) [1], deploying renewable energy technologies is crucial for achieving the net-zero emissions target by 2050. Moreover, using renewable energy is essential in order to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions and attain the target of limiting global warming to 2 to 4 degrees by 2100 [2]. Among these technologies, solar energy is the most promising renewable energy source. In recent years, photovoltaic (PV) technology has developed rapidly, continuously improving PV efficiency. The electricity generation efficiency of commercial PV modules has increased from about 15% in 2010 to about 23% today [3]. In addition, the production cost of PV modules has significantly decreased, with the price per watt dropping from 5 CNY/watt in 2012 to 1.8 CNY/watt in 2022 [4]. However, two significant bottlenecks hinder the large-scale deployment of PV solar energy in an attempt to replace traditional energy: energy storage and the availability of land for installing PV panels. Although countries such as China and the United States have vast, sparsely populated areas with abundant solar resources, there are technical difficulties and increased costs in transmitting PV electricity to densely populated and industrially developed areas through ultra-high voltage transmission systems. Therefore, using agricultural land for PV installation in densely populated areas is becoming increasingly common. In 2021, the global installed capacity of agricultural PV (APV) reached approximately 14 GWp [5]. APV can help to avoid drought stress and maintain higher soil moisture, thus improving plant growth [6].
W. Liu, A. A. A. Omer, M. Li. 07/2023. Agrivoltaic: Challenge and Progress. Agronomy. 13(7):1934.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Agrivoltaic: How Much Electricity Could Photovoltaic Greenhouses Supply?
In regions where the land available is scarce it is of special interest to deploy agrivoltaic systems. The combined use of greenhouses to produce food and energy at the same time increases farmers’ income, converting farming into a more attractive sector. The farming sector could benefit from agrivoltaic, since farmers could profit from a double source of incoming: vegetables and energy. The aim of this research is to establish how relevant agrivoltaic can be in terms of energy production at regional scale. For this purpose, a methodology is developed to: (i) identify greenhouses using cartographic information systems, (ii) estimate how much of these areas could be covered by solar photovoltaic panels without decreasing the crops production, thus, estimating the optimal photovoltaic cover ratio for different type of crops under different solar conditions by developing a novel set of equations and (iii) evaluate the corresponding photovoltaic power and production. This methodology has been applied to one regional practical case, the Canary Islands, and the results are surprising in terms of the potentiality of agrivoltaic, which could cover rates as high as 30% of the annual regional electricity demand depending on, among others, the transmittance value of the greenhouse material and the adequate determination of the cover ratio.
L. Schallenberg-Rodriguez, J. Rodrigo-Bello, B. D. Río-Gamero. 04/2023. Agrivoltaic: How Much Electricity Could Photovoltaic Greenhouses Supply?. Energy Reports. 9:5420-5431.
Plant SciencePV TechnologiesSystem ConfigurationStandardization and Best PracticesReviews/InformationalMarket Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Spain
Agrivoltaic: Solar Radiation for Clean Energy and Sustainable Agriculture with Positive Impact on Nature
Climate change and land use conflicts represent two of the greatest challenges worldwide. Climate change affects agricultural production by more frequent and more intense extreme weather events besides the continuing temperature and carbon dioxide increase. The most important climate mitigation measure is the abolishment of fossil fuels, and climate change adaptation is needed for sustainable crop production. The concept of agrivoltaics (AV) combines the installation of a photovoltaic (PV) system for clean energy generation with an agricultural use on the same area, increasing land use efficiency and creating synergy effects to adapt agriculture to climate change by protecting crops from extreme weather events. Recently, interest in AV systems is booming in many countries with an estimate 14 GW of electricity being produced by AV worldwide. Latest technical options of AV systems are described, and the advantage for crops is evaluated. Additionally, environmental effects are reviewed, in terms of influences on microclimate, biodiversity, soil conditions and water management. Optimal technical options for installation and management of AV and results of life cycle analyses are presented. Economic comparison showed that if electricity is directly consumed on-farm, an amortization could be achieved after 3.22 years, based on the present electricity costs in Germany.
Kerstin Wydra, Vera Vollmer, Christin Busch, Susann Prichta. 2023. Agrivoltaic: Solar Radiation for Clean Energy and Sustainable Agriculture with Positive Impact on Nature. Mohammadreza Aghaei, Amin Moazami, editors. Solar Radiation - Enabling Technologies, Recent Innovations, and Advancements for Energy Transition: IntechOpen.
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Standardization and Best PracticesReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Habitat/Ecovoltaics, Greenhouse, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Book Section
Country
Germany
Agrivoltaics Across the Water-energy-food-nexus in Africa: Opportunities and Challenges for Rural Communities in Mali
Small-scale, rain-fed subsistence agriculture and pastoralism represent the major activity for Africa. For Mali, this represents about 80% of the population employed by the agricultural sector and contributes to about 42% of the Gross domestic product (GDP). The overreliance on rainfall, competing for the most valuable lands, the increasing scarcity of water, the lack of innovative technologies and infrastructure has made the agriculture sector vulnerable to climatic and non-climatic risks including an increase in the number of land conflicts. In addition, inadequate access to affordable energy has also limited social opportunities for the poor communities, especially in rural areas of Mali. Water Energy and Food (WEF) Nexus solutions such as agrivoltaics are increasingly being deployed to improve access to water for agricultural uses, improve yields and incomes, reduce drudgery especially for women, enhancing resilience and microclimate, improve land use efficiency and food security. This innovative approach has opened new prospects to improve the quality of life for people as well as their environment as a whole. Agrivoltaics is rapidly gaining popularity in many countries but not yet in African countries. This paper presents a feasibility analysis, recommendations and future directions of agrivoltaics in Mali and in Africa as a whole. Furthermore, applications of agrivoltaic systems are discussed in terms of their socio-economic and environmental effects, emphasizing also the necessity of integrative thinking in the process of strategic planning for achieving security in water, energy and food.
A.E. Cheo, N. Adelhardt, T. Krieger, J. Berneiser, F.A.S. Santillano, B. Bingwa, N. Suleiman, P. Thiele, A. Royes, D. Gudopp, A. Sidibé, K. Fahmy, E. Tambo, Y. Diallo, B. Sogoba. 2020. Agrivoltaics Across the Water-energy-food-nexus in Africa: Opportunities and Challenges for Rural Communities in Mali. University of Freiburg. 1-23.
Reviews/InformationalImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Mali
Agrivoltaics Align With Green New Deal Goals While Supporting Investment in the US’ Rural Economy
Agrivoltaic systems combine solar photovoltaic energy production with agriculture to improve land-use efficiency. We provide an upper-bound reduced-order cost estimate for widespread implementation of Agrivoltaic systems in the United States. We find that 20% of the US’ total electricity generation can be met with Agrivoltaic systems if less than 1% of the annual US budget is invested into rural infrastructure. Simultaneously, Agrivoltaic systems align well with existing Green New Deal goals. Widescale installation of Agrivoltaic systems can lead to a carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions reduction equivalent to removing 71,000 cars from the road annually and the creation of over 100,000 jobs in rural communities. Agrivoltaics provide a rare chance for true synergy: more food, more energy, lower water demand, lower carbon emissions, and more prosperous rural communities.
G.S. Murthy. 2020. Agrivoltaics Align With Green New Deal Goals While Supporting Investment in the US’ Rural Economy. Sustainability. 13(1):1-11.
Agricultural YieldsEnergy ProductionEnvironmental ImpactsHydrologyOperations and MaintenancePolicies and RegulationsSocial Issues and PerspectivesCosts and EconomicsMicroclimatePlant PhysiologyCarbon Sequestration and Avoidance
Development Strategy
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
Agrivoltaics Analysis in a Techno-Economic Framework: Understanding Why Agrivoltaics on Rice Will Always be Profitable
Agrivoltaics (AV) promises sustainable food and energy production from shared lands. While various literature studies AVs for leafy crops, there are limited equivalent works on AVs with major crops (e.g., rice, corn, wheat, etc.). Here, we present an end-to-end modeling framework to analyze location-specific AVs over paddy rice. We consider the local ambient conditions to find the spatially distributed rice production under panel arrays, the panel yield, and the economic aspects (costs, revenue, and profit) of the AV system. On a given land, solar energy has a far larger absolute profit than rice cultivation due to the 100s of folds higher investment possible in panels compared to paddy rice. Policy-level constraints are required to set a permissible reduction in rice for more energy. We find that, while maintaining 90% (or 80%) of the conventional rice production, the overall profit can be 22–115 (or 30–132) times higher than rice cultivation.
M.S. Ahmed, M.R. Khan, A. Haque, M.R. Khan. 2022. Agrivoltaics Analysis in a Techno-Economic Framework: Understanding Why Agrivoltaics on Rice Will Always be Profitable. Applied Energy. 323:1-14.
HydrologyPlant ScienceMicroclimatologyEconomicsPV TechnologiesMarket AssessmentsImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Bangladesh, Brazil, China, Egypt, India, Vietnam
Agrivoltaics Help to Realize BLUE Plan
. The local consumption of electricity by agrivoltaics (APV) is the best way to relieve the pressure on the power grid and reduce the transmission cost, meanwhile the plant factory with artificial lighting (PFAL) faces the problem of high electricity costs and high vegetable costs. The article introduces two innovative agrivoltaics systems, both of which can achieve photovoltaic (PV) power generation without affecting growth of some crops. For example, the production of Ginger both increase under the two systems compared with the open air in 2020. The application of PV-powered container PFAL in plateau areas also has been introduced. At last, the team proposed the BLUE plan to coordinate APV and PFAL technologies to achieve on-site and efficient use of PV power, greatly reduce the cost of PFAL vegetables without affecting farmland cultivation, and at the same time greatly boost light using efficiency.
X. Zhang, X. Zhu, W. Liu. 2022. Agrivoltaics Help to Realize BLUE Plan. AIP Publishing. 2635(1):1-5.
Reviews/InformationalPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Agrivoltaics Implementation on a Kiwi Farm: A Case Study
Diogo Hargreaves Curval. 07/2022. Agrivoltaics Implementation on a Kiwi Farm: A Case Study [Thesis]. [Repositorio Aberto]: Universidade do Porto.
EconomicsReviews/Informational
Agrivoltaics Mitigate Drought Effects in Winter Wheat
Climate change is expected to decrease water availability in many agricultural production areas around the globe. At the same time renewable energy concepts such as agrivoltaics (AV) are necessary to manage the energy transition. Several studies showed that evapotranspiration can be reduced in AV systems, resulting in increased water availability for crops. However, effects on crop performance and productivity remain unclear to date. Carbon-13 isotopic composition (δ13C and discrimination against carbon-13) can be used as a proxy for the effects of water availability on plant performance, integrating crop responses over the entire growing season. The aim of this study was to assess these effects via carbon isotopic composition in grains, as well as grain yield of winter wheat in an AV system in southwest Germany. Crops were cultivated over four seasons from 2016–2020 in the AV system and on an unshaded adjacent reference (REF) site. Across all seasons, average grain yield did not significantly differ between AV and REF (4.7 vs 5.2 t ha−1), with higher interannual yield stability in the AV system. However, δ13C as well as carbon-13 isotope discrimination differed significantly across the seasons by 1‰ (AV: −29.0‰ vs REF: −28.0‰ and AV: 21.6‰ vs REF: 20.6‰) between the AV system and the REF site. These drought mitigation effects as indicated by the results of this study will become crucial for the resilience of agricultural production in the near future when drought events will become significantly more frequent and severe.
Lisa Pataczek, Axel Weselek, Andrea Bauerle, Petra Högy, Iris Lewandowski, Sabine Zikeli, Andreas Schweiger. 11/2023. Agrivoltaics Mitigate Drought Effects in Winter Wheat. Physiologia Plantarum. 175(6):
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Plant Science
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Germany
Agrivoltaics Potential in Romania - A Symbiosis Between Agriculture and Energy
The newest renewable energy targets set up by the latest EU Directives, correlated with the targets set by the National Energy Strategy generate the need for significant land surfaces to develop photovoltaic powerplant projects. Meanwhile, as the climate change and various geo- political factors generate additional stress on the food production world-wide, the need to maintain and even increase the available agricultural land becomes more stringent. The solution is to integrate both needs – renewable electricity and agricultural production – on the same land-surface. The concept of agricultural-photovoltaics (agrivoltaics) has been proven in a number of limited countries in Europe. The paper proposes a technical and economic potential analysis of developing an agrivoltaic project in Romania.
Cristian GHEORGHIU, Mircea SCRIPCARIU, Gabriela SAVA, Miruna GHEORGHIU, Alexandra-Lidia DINA. 2022. Agrivoltaics Potential in Romania - A Symbiosis Between Agriculture and Energy. EMERG. 8(3):128-136.
Market AssessmentsEconomics
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Romania
Agrivoltaics Provide Mutual Benefits Across the Food–Energy–Water Nexus in Drylands
The vulnerabilities of our food, energy and water systems to projected climatic change make building resilience in renewable energy and food production a fundamental challenge. We investigate a novel approach to solve this problem by creating a hybrid of colocated agriculture and solar photovoltaic (PV) infrastructure. We take an integrative approach—monitoring microclimatic conditions, PV panel temperature, soil moisture and irrigation water use, plant ecophysiological function and plant biomass production within this ‘agrivoltaics’ ecosystem and in traditional PV installations and agricultural settings to quantify trade-offs. We find that shading by the PV panels provides multiple additive and synergistic benefits, including reduced plant drought stress, greater food production and reduced PV panel heat stress. The results presented here provide a foundation and motivation for future explorations towards the resilience of food and energy systems under the future projected increased environmental stress involving heat and drought.
G.A. Barron-Gafford, M.A. Pavao-Zuckerman, R.L. Minor, L.F. Sutter, I. Barnett-Moreno, D.T. Blackett, M. Thompson, K. Dimond, A.K. Gerlak, G.P. Nabhan, J.E. Macknick. 2019. Agrivoltaics Provide Mutual Benefits Across the Food–Energy–Water Nexus in Drylands. Nature Sustainability. 2:848–855.
HydrologySoilPlant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
Arizona
Agrivoltaics Using Bi-Facial PVs for Permaculture in Utility-Scale Projects
As photovoltaic (PV) technology is rapidly becoming the most affordable, reliable, predictable and easily deployable electric generation technology of the modern world, we see continued growth in the scale and number of systems being deployed each year. The growth of market share in utility scale systems has rapidly eclipsed roof mounted over the past decade and is poised to become the most economic and environmentally friendly electric power source in the next few years. As this demand for utility scale system sites grows, developers turn increasingly to cleared lands and rich, agricultural lands to site their ever-larger solar farms. Recent press suggests that there is a growing resistance to PV systems, especially at these large, utility-scale project sizes when they take over farmland, creating a potential conflict with domestic food production. Our research attempts to demonstrate that there are multiple permaculture applications suitable under these large, utility-scale arrays which could potentially defuse this resistance by proving affordable permaculture production in these agrivoltaic settings. Based upon our spectroscopic analysis it is clear that certain crops will flourish better under bi-facial modules in utility-scale agrivoltaic applications when compared to standard PV modules. It is our hope that through more research with our student teams, we will demonstrate the success of plant growth and increased yields under these bi-facial arrays and identify a host of plant species that will thrive in agrivoltaic settings. Species that take advantage of the altered spectrum, will be favored, and while labor increases in the planting and harvesting beneath these agrivoltaic arrays, that the increases in organic product output may justify financially the use of rich farmland for both solar and plant farming.
P.M. Jansson, M.G. Newberry, S.M. Myers. 2022. Agrivoltaics Using Bi-Facial PVs for Permaculture in Utility-Scale Projects. In: 2022 IEEE 49th Photovoltaics Specialists Conference (PVSC); 2022/06/05; Philadelphia, PA. IEEE Explore: IEEE; p. 330-332
Microclimatology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
United States
State
Pennsylvania
Agrivoltaics and Aquavoltaics: Potential of Solar Energy Use in Agriculture and Freshwater Aquaculture in Croatia
Agrivoltaics and aquavoltaics combine renewable energy production with agriculture and aquaculture. Agrivoltaics involves placing solar panels on farmland, while aquavoltaics integrates photovoltaic systems with water bodies and aquaculture. This paper examines the benefits and challenges of agrivoltaics and aquavoltaics, focusing on their potential for Croatian agriculture and freshwater aquaculture. Benefits include dual land use, which allows farmers to produce clean energy while maintaining agricultural practices. They diversify renewable energy sources and reduce dependence on fossil fuels and greenhouse gas emissions. Solar panels in agrivoltaics provide shade, protect crops, reduce water needs, and increase yields. Challenges include high initial costs and limited accessibility, especially for small farmers. Integration with existing systems requires careful planning, considering irrigation, soil moisture, and crop or fish production. Maintenance and cleaning present additional challenges due to dust, debris, and algae. Policy and regulatory frameworks must support implementation, including incentives, grid integration, land use regulations, and conservation. The location, resources, and crops grown in Croatia present an opportunity for agrivoltaics and aquavoltaics, considering cultivation methods, species, and regulatory requirements.
D. Matulić, Ž. Andabaka, S. Radman, G. Fruk, J. Leto, J. Rošin, M. Rastija, I. Varga, T. Tomljanović, H. Čeprnja, M. Karoglan. 2023. Agrivoltaics and Aquavoltaics: Potential of Solar Energy Use in Agriculture and Freshwater Aquaculture in Croatia. Agriculture. 13(7):1447.
LivestockMicroclimatologyHydrologyStandardization and Best PracticesImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Croatia
Agrivoltaics and Their Effects on Crops: A Review
Agrivoltaic systems are combined systems of agriculture and photovoltaics. This systems generally reduce yields of crops but increase land equivalent ratio, sunlight share during biological and synthetic energy harvesting, PVs efficiency and yield by cooling the surrounding microclimate, humidify the environment by drops, reduce water consumption of plants, decrease gas exchange and short-term stomatal conductance by shadow. Agrivoltaics are very suitable for rainfed, hot and arid climatic conditions, deserts, temperate zone grasslands, fields crop production, production of pollinating insects, pasture-fed rabbit and sheep farming. Pasture establishment in deserts under solar panels may prevent mid-day solar shock on crops. Extremely infertile natural pastures under erosion in Turkey may be covered with these panels to decrease the impact of erosion by reducing the raindrop speed to reach the ground. System also may provide shelters to animals.
N. Turan. 2021. Agrivoltaics and Their Effects on Crops: A Review. Muş Alparslan University Agricultural Production and Technologies. 1(2):39-47.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Turkey
Agrivoltaics and Weather Risk: A Diversification Strategy for Landowners
Farms are facing increasing pressure from shrinking margins, extreme weather, and increased competition for land use, including from energy producers. There is evidence to suggest that co-locating solar power production and agriculture, known as agrivoltaic systems, may be a means to reduce concern over the latter. A model is developed to test whether co-location can reduce weather-related financial risk for a landowner, a largely unexplored question, while improving profitability. Stochastically generated weather variables and commodity prices are used to simulate net revenues for a solar only plot, a farm only plot, and an agrivoltaic plot. Application to four test cases (alfalfa/soybeans in Oregon and soybeans/strawberries in North Carolina) illustrate the potential impact of agrivoltaics.
Results from the scenarios evaluated indicate that co-location can increase annual net revenues relative to a farm-only scenario by 300–5000%. For crops subject to considerable risk via weather and market conditions, such as strawberries, co-location diversifies income streams, reducing revenue volatility and lifting worst case net revenues by 48–53%. In this sense, agrivoltaics may also be a partial substitute for federal crop insurance. While the locations and cases considered here were limited, this framework is applicable to any location or crop and results suggest that agrivoltaics have the potential to increase farmers’ revenues and improve financial stability during volatile weather and market conditions.
R.I. Cuppari, C.W. Higgins, G.W. Characklis. 2021. Agrivoltaics and Weather Risk: A Diversification Strategy for Landowners. Applied Energy. 291:1-16.
Market AssessmentsEconomicsMicroclimatologyPolicy and Regulatory Issues
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
North Carolina, Oregon
Agrivoltaics as a Promising Direction of Land Use for for Ensuring Global Energy and Food Security
The final paper is devoted to the study of the prospects of using agrovoltaic systems in order to solve the problems of global energy and food security. The preconditions of agrovoltaics development in the world, theoretical aspects of agrovoltaic systems are considered, the foreign experience of dual use of agricultural lands for food and energy purposes is analyzed. In order to assess the prospects for the development of agrovoltaics in Ukraine, the potential of agriculture and solar energy is studied, the state mechanisms of stimulating the development of solar energy are analyzed. The implementation of the agrovoltaic system project has been tested. The economic, social and environmental benefits from the implementation of agro-volt systems at the regional, national and global levels are assessed.
T.A. Perederii. 2021. Agrivoltaics as a Promising Direction of Land Use for for Ensuring Global Energy and Food Security [Thesis]. [Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine Sumy State University]: Sumy State University.
Reviews/InformationalEconomicsImpact Assessments
Agrivoltaics for Farmers With Shadow and Electricity Demand: Results of a Pre-feasibility Study Under Net Billing in Central Chile
Agrivoltaics has only limited commercial application, despite its potential to adapt agriculture to the effects of the climate crisis. Looking for an answer on how agrivoltaics can achieve commercial breakthrough, we assume that agrivoltaics provides synergetic value to agriculture depending on the context. We perform a Techno-Economic Assessment based on the case of a horticulture farm in central Chile, where high irradiation causes adverse effects to lettuce. This allows us to monetize agrivoltaics synergetic characteristics of maintaining cropland and providing shading. We present a low-cost agrivoltaics design adapted to Chilean horticulture and find that the consideration of the agricultural context leads to a higher Net Present Value and shorter payback period for an agrivoltaics plant compared to a ground-mounted photovoltaic plant. This implies that a decisive step towards commercial success is identifying the right agricultural context, where agrivoltaics can create economic synergies for agriculture by providing climatic protection.
David Jung, Alois Salmon, Patricia Gese. 2021. Agrivoltaics for Farmers With Shadow and Electricity Demand: Results of a Pre-feasibility Study Under Net Billing in Central Chile. In: C. Dupraz, editor. AGRIVOLTAICS2020 Conference: Launching Agrivoltaics World-Wide; 2020/10/14; Perpignan, France, Online. AIP Conference Proceedings: AIP Publishing; p.
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Market AssessmentsEconomicsPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Chile
Agrivoltaics in Austria: A Stakeholder Perspective on the Opportunities and Constraints of Synergetic Land Use
Renewable energy infrastructure has a major impact on the landscape and competes with other land uses. This influence will continue to increase if we want to achieve the urgent shift towards a renewable energy system in the next two decades. Photovoltaic is a key technology, but when deployed on open space, it conflicts with agricultural production and various other landscape-related uses. At the same time, agriculture is confronted with new demands on operational energy management and is looking for adaptation strategies concerning climate change. Therefore, approaches to promote synergetic land use to mitigate ecosystem impacts and land use competition are critical. Agrivoltaics (AV) is a promising approach to respond to these developments. While well established in some Asian countries, the role of AV in Europe is characterized by a lack of reliable data and knowledge on the potential contribution to the energy transformation. This article aims at exploring the constraints and opportunities of AV in Austria by exploring an AV greenhouse case study for vegetable production in Vienna, Austria. Greenhouse production seeks for solutions to lower the energy demand and maintaining competitiveness. By conducting guided interviews with stakeholders from agriculture, politics, photovoltaic engineering and academia, opportunities and challenges of AV are being explored. Qualitative content analysis shows that there seems to be a lack of information and communication among stakeholders. Missing incentives and regulations, a lack of knowledge and concerns about landscape impacts were identified. Positive effects such as plant shading, off-grid and local energy production, competitiveness and dual land use were emphasized. Based on the results we recommend to increase research activities in this field for providing reliable data, to strengthen stakeholder communication and to develop transparent legal regulations for AV implementation.
Kim Ressara, Andreas Muhar, Thomas Schauppenlehner. 2020. Agrivoltaics in Austria: A Stakeholder Perspective on the Opportunities and Constraints of Synergetic Land Use. In: C. Dupraz, editor. AGRIVOLTAICS2020 Conference: Launching Agrivoltaics World-Wide; 2020/10/14; Perpignan, France, Online. AIP Conference Proceedings: AIP Publishing; p.
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Social Perspectives
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Austria
Agrivoltaics in Color: Going From Light Spectra to Biomass
Agrivoltaics (AV), conceived in the early 1980s, promise to ameliorate competition between solar energy generation and crop production for arable land. The premise behind AV is that excess light not used in photosynthesis can be used for energy production. There are opportunities for maximizing photosynthesis by targeting particular wavelengths (e.g., red) to be transmitted through semi-transparent photovoltaic (PV) cells depending on crop type and environmental conditions. Camporese and Abou Najm (2022, https://doi.org/10.1029/2022EF002900) developed a numerical model that accommodates the various wavelengths of the incoming light spectrum to predict photosynthesis, stomatal conductance, and transpiration. This commentary seeks to place those and other recent findings about the modifications to the plant micro-environment by PV cells in the context of maximum attainable aboveground biomass.
G. G. Katul. 05/2023. Agrivoltaics in Color: Going From Light Spectra to Biomass. Earth's Future. 11(5):1-6.
Microclimatology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Agrivoltaics in East Africa: Opportunities and Challenges
Agrivoltaic systems concommitently tackle food and energy security challenges on the same area of land, while also improving farmer livelihoods. Designed correctly, they can increase crop yields by reducing water and heat stresses; yield improvements depend on a range of factors including the available photosynthetically active radiation and the shade tolerance of the crop varieties. Several agrivoltaic pilot studies have been developed over the past decade, predominantly in the Global North, but there is an evidence gap in East Africa where the environmental conditions and livelihood challenges faced by agricultural communities mean there are potentially far greater benefits from agrivoltaic technology. In this paper, we discuss how the environmental conditions, electricity supply and access, farming systems, and political scenarios present opportunities and challenges for using agrivoltaic systems to address sustainable development goals in East Africa. We end by summarising what is required to support development of this technology in the region and realise the potential benefits.
Richard J. Randle-Boggis, Eileen Lara, Joel Onyango, Emmanuel J. Temu, Sue E. Hartley. 2021. Agrivoltaics in East Africa: Opportunities and Challenges. In: AGRIVOLTAICS2020 CONFERENCE: Launching Agrivoltaics World-wide; 2020/10/14; Perpignan, France, Online. Online: AIP Publishing; p.
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Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda
Agrivoltaics in India: Fertile Ground? Multiple Social and Economic Benefits of Farmland Solar Are Possible – But Not Without New Policy Settings
The rapidly developing field of agrivoltaics – combining farming with solar power generation in ways that maintain agricultural productivity – holds special promise for India. A number of research and demonstration projects are already in progress and it has the potential to become an important new player in the country’s renewable energy sector.
This report reviews several features of agrivoltaics that make it especially relevant for India, as well as policy challenges that must be addressed if it is to reach its full potential. The factors that make the sector well suited to Indian conditions include: The outlook for energy needs and distributed renewable energy infrastructure Geographical characteristics of the solar resource, farmland coverage and land use patterns The capacity to address some of the socioeconomic challenges facing India’s rural sector The advantages of particular agrivoltaic panel configurations for local needs. In order for the agrivoltaics sector to move from the pilot project stage to more widespread adoption, several policy and regulatory obstacles must be removed. A benefit of having not been amongst the earliest adopter countries is that India can make good use of the policy and legislative responses these countries have already made to help resolve various legal, financial and regulatory challenges.
Lessons learned elsewhere and issues raised by Indian proponents of agrivoltaics form the basis for several recommendations about governance, research and knowledge dissemination, legal issues, incentives for adoption, and the protection of farmers’ interests, farmland and food production.Charles Worringham (Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis). 2021. Agrivoltaics in India: Fertile Ground? Multiple Social and Economic Benefits of Farmland Solar Are Possible – But Not Without New Policy Settings. IEEFA: IEEFA.
Social PerspectivesPolicy and Regulatory Issues
Agrivoltaics in Italy: Technical and Economic Evaluations in the Current Regulatory Context
Agrivoltaic systems could be one possible multi-target solution to energy transition, climate adaptation and farmers’ low incomes. In fact, they combine food and energy production on the same land in a synergistic way. The actual Italian legislation is evolving a lot in the past few years, following the D.L. 77/2021 on agrivoltaic, it is now possible to see who can install and benefits from it and how to access to possible PNRR funds. There are different types of agrivoltaic: on open or closed fields, simple or advanced, on single or multi axes etc… All these systems are still under studying and each could be applied on a specific situation. Now most of the experimentations come from the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems, situated in Germany. Agrivoltaics have multiple benefits beside the economic ones; they can help to create more resilient agricultural systems against climate change and helping to innovate the agricultural sector but there are also some drawbacks starting from the investment costs to the management of a complex system during its lifetime. An agronomic report is required at the beginning to explain the crop and landscape mitigation plan. An advance agronomic management is essential to justify this investment. Farmers need to apply precision farming with minimum tillage to avoid damages to the panels and advanced monitoring to see the benefits of partial shadows on the crops. Agricultural activity has to be maintained and demonstrated during the years to preserve the fundings. Economic investments are quite high but the revenues as well both for the investor which is usually an electric company but also for farmers who can get revenues both from crops and the lease of the building right. Moreover, some agricultural costs can be lowered for example irrigation. There are already multiple examples of these systems in Italy and it seems there will be an increased amount of them in the next years because they are more socially accepted and for this have a faster authorization process.
Fanciulli, Pietro. 2022. Agrivoltaics in Italy: Technical and Economic Evaluations in the Current Regulatory Context [Thesis]. [Italy]: University of Padua.
Policy and Regulatory IssuesReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production
Document type
Thesis/Dissertation
Country
Italy
Agrivoltaics to Shade Cows in a Pasture-Based Dairy System
Recently, the combined use of solar photovoltaics and agriculture has been increasing and may provide farmers with an alternative means of income while increasing the health of dairy cows. The objective of this study was to determine the effects of grazing cattle under shade from a solar photovoltaic system. The study was conducted at the University of Minnesota West Central Research and Outreach Center's, Morris, MN, organic dairy. Twenty-four crossbred cows were used for the study from June to September 2019. The treatment groups of 6 cows had shade from a 30 kilowatt photovoltaic system in a pasture or no shade on pasture. Behavioral observations and production were evaluated on cows during four periods of the summer months. Smaxtec boluses (smaXtec, Graz, Austria) and a sensor (CowManager SensOor, Agis Automatisering BV, Harmelen, the Netherlands) monitored internal body temperature and activity and rumination on all cows. No differences in fly prevalence, milk production, fat and protein production, body weight, body condition score, drinking bouts, hock lesions, or locomotion were found between the groups. Shade cows had dirtier bellies and dirtier lower legs (2.2 and 3.2, respectfully) than no shade cows (1.9 and 2.9, respectfully). During the afternoon, shade cows had lower respiration rates (66.4 breaths/min) than no shade cows (78.3 breaths/min). From 12:00 to 18:00 h and 18:00 to 00:00 h, shade cows had lower body temperatures (39.0 and 39.2 °C, respectfully) than no shade cows (39.3 and 39.4 °C, respectfully). Incorporating agrivoltaics into a pasture dairy system may increase the health of dairy cows, reduce heat stress, and increase the efficiency of the land.
Bradley J. Heins, Kirsten T. Sharpe, Eric S. Buchanan, Michael H. Reese. 12/2022. Agrivoltaics to Shade Cows in a Pasture-Based Dairy System. In: AgriVoltaics2021 Conference; 2021/06/12; Daegu, Korea (Republic). Morris, MN: AIP Publishing; p.
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Livestock
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
United States
State
Minnesota
Agrivoltaics: A Climate-Smart Agriculture Approach for Indian Farmers
India is a leader when it comes to agriculture. A significant part of the country’s population depends on agriculture for livelihood. However, many of them face challenges due to using unreliable farming techniques. Sometimes the challenges increase to the extent that they commit suicide. Besides, India is highly populated, and its population is steadily increasing, requiring its government to grow its GDP and increase its energy supply proportionately. This paper reviews integrating solar farming with agriculture, known as Agrivoltaics, as a Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA) option for Indian farmers. This study is further supported by the Strength, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats (SWOT) analysis of agrivoltaics. Using the SWOT analysis, this article presents how agrivoltaics can make agriculture sustainable and reliable. This paper identifies rural electrification, water conservation, yield improvement, sustainable income generation, and reduction in the usage of pesticides as the strengths of agrivoltaics. Similarly, the paper presents weaknesses, opportunities, and threats to agrivoltaics in India. The research concludes with the findings that agrivoltaics have the potential of meeting multiple objectives such as meeting global commitments, offering employment, providing economic stability, increasing clean energy production capacity, conserving natural resources, and succeeding in several others. The paper also includes a discussion about the findings, suggestions, and implications of adopting agrivoltaics on a large scale in India.
R. Mahto, D. Sharma, R. John, C. Putcha. 2021. Agrivoltaics: A Climate-Smart Agriculture Approach for Indian Farmers. Land. 10(11):1-28.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
India
Agrivoltaics: Integrating Solar Energy Generation with Livestock Farming in Canterbury
Agrivoltaics is the integration of agriculture and solar energy production and seeks to find synergies between the two to create a complementary system. Agrivoltaics relates to all agricultural activities. However, for the purpose of this report, solar integration with livestock farming is the focus.
With increased interest in energy generation of utility-scale solar photovoltaic (PV) systems in Aotearoa New Zealand, agrivoltaics provides the opportunity to increase the productivity of land, contribute to the generation of renewable energy without displacing food production, and potentially optimise farming and environmental outcomes. A significant area of Canterbury is classified as suitable for agrivoltaics and innovations in solar array designs and configurations are developing rapidly. In saying that, certain factors remain challenging, such as the increase in wind shear effects and financial expense when panels are elevated to reduce shading and prevent damage from larger grazing livestock, such as cattle. The trade-offs to consider when selecting the most appropriate design for agrivoltaic systems add additional complications. Some of the factors to balance include electricity generation, cost-effectiveness, degree of shading produced, ability to withstand the site environment, and ability to withstand livestock grazing underneath. Shade provision to mitigate heat stress risk, and sheltering from harsh weather, are perhaps the greatest potential benefits of agrivoltaics for livestock. However, given the condensed siting (eg, one paddock) of the panels, and limitations with cattle, the benefits are limited for the overall farming system. This may change as capital cost of PV investments decrease. Also, the impacts of agrivoltaics on crops and pasture in an Aotearoa New Zealand context are largely unknown. While much is known theoretically of the environmental impacts associated with the manufacture and end-of-life disposal and recycling of solar PV panels, there are relatively few mitigators and solutions at present in Aotearoa New Zealand. The end-of-life disposal and recycling is of particular consequence to this country, and will require rapid investment, development and likely legislation to create solutions and reduce future harm to the environment. In terms of environmental impacts on the farmland where agrivoltaic systems are located, there is, again, a lack of research to refer to, particularly in Aotearoa New Zealand. Case study analyses were carried out on a dairy farm and a sheep and beef farm, both located in Canterbury. These considered both technical design and financial analysis. The sheep and beef case study analysis indicated a significant opportunity for sheep and beef farmers to increase their profitability by incorporating agrivoltaics into their farming enterprise. This comes at a time of increased interest in complementary revenue streams due to reduced farmgate product prices, increased working expenses and increased compliance costs and associated administrative workload. The financial analysis of agrivoltaics in the dairy farm case study suggested it was significantly less lucrative and indicates that incorporation of solar generation on dairy farms might be best suited to non-productive areas and/or the installation of panels on shed roofs, rather than agrivoltaics.
A workshop was run that included both dairy and sheep and beef farmers. Attendees were initially presented with pertinent information regarding agrivoltaics, before being invited to participate in a design thinking inspired workshop to identify potential barriers and benefits of agrivoltaics and possible solutions to overcome the barriers to adoption. The participants’ feedback demonstrated that farmers were open to the idea of agrivoltaics, assuming it was financially viable and key concerns were addressed. The need for accessible and easily understood resources to inform decision making and provide confidence to engage in conversations and form partnerships with solar energy companies was identified as a key requirement going forward.
The study provides evidence that agrivoltaics is worthy of further consideration, particularly due to the way in which it offers solutions to some of the major challenges of standard utility-scale solar electricity generation. It is evident that the significant gaps in literature need to be addressed to further understand what the potential financial, environmental and social impacts are for the people of Aotearoa New Zealand.Anna Vaughan, Alan Brent, Megan Fitzgerald, Jasper Kueppers (INFRATEC, TAMBO New Zealand LTD., Victoria University of Wellington). 2023. Agrivoltaics: Integrating Solar Energy Generation with Livestock Farming in Canterbury. Our Land and Water: Our Land and Water Rural Professionals Fund 2023.
LivestockSocial PerspectivesMarket AssessmentsEconomicsSystem Configuration
Agrivoltaics: Modeling the Relative Importance of Longwave Radiation from Solar Panels
Agrivoltaics, which integrate photovoltaic power production with agriculture in the same plot of land, have the potential to reduce land competition, reduce crop irrigation, and increase solar panel efficiency. To optimize agrivoltaic systems for crop growth, energy pathways must be characterized. While the solar panels shade the crops, they also emit longwave radiation and partially block the ground from downwelling longwave radiation. A deeper understanding of the spatial variation in incoming energy would enable controlled allocation of energy in the design of agrivoltaic systems. The model also demonstrates that longwave energy should not be neglected when considering a full energy balance on the soil under solar panels.
L.A. Shepard, C.W. Higgins, K.W. Proctor. 10/2022. Agrivoltaics: Modeling the Relative Importance of Longwave Radiation from Solar Panels. Plos One. 1-23.
MicroclimatologyPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Agrivoltaics: Opportunity and Challenges for India
Solar farm is a field filled with hundreds or maybe thousands of solar panels oriented into the sun.
Instead of potatoes, beans or tomatoes planted in the soil, solar panels covers that land, while energy is being produced. It’s obvious that traditional farming is relatively risky business because one is very much dependent upon the weather conditions. If there is just the right amount of sun, rain and if there are no extreme storms, strong winds and etc. Thus, not to worry about all these environmental factors and still get income is really uplifting and a bit too good to be true. Therefore, next to power generation, solar farms found another niche – agrivoltaics (or in other words APV). It is an amazing idea for environmentally conscious world, both agribusiness and society. However, it might haven’t happened if traditional farming wouldn’t be failing. Since 2010, when the cost of installing solar systems has dropped more than a half, solar farming started to bloom. Karlee Weinmann, a researcher at the Institute For Local Self-Reliance (ILSR), explains to Digital Journal the situation on American farmers why they chose to replace crops with solar arrays: “The prevailing reasons farmers decide to replace crops with solar are because the farmers are getting
older or because it’s easier and more lucrative for India too.”K. Chopdar. 08/2022. Agrivoltaics: Opportunity and Challenges for India. International Journal of Innovative Research in Science, Engineering and Technology (IJIRSET). 11(8):10904-10913.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Agrivoltaics: Solar Power Generation and Food Production
The energy transition is one of the greatest challenges of our time. While photovoltaics (PVs) became the cheapest technology for generating electricity in many regions, the rising development of ground-mounted PV requires large areas and, hence, competes with other land use forms such as agriculture. Agrivoltaics enables dual use of land for both agriculture and PV power generation considerably increasing land-use efficiency, allowing for an expansion of PV capacity on agricultural land while maintaining farming activities. In recent years, agrivoltaics has experienced a dynamic development mainly driven by Japan, China, France, and Germany. In this chapter, we provide an overview of the current state of agrivoltaics starting with a definition and classification of typical systems. Section 5.2 sheds light on basic agricultural implications in agrivoltaic systems such as light availability, further microclimatic impacts, and crop selection. In Section 5.3, we address typical technical structures and agricultural applications distinguishing between interspace PV and overhead PV systems. Section 5.4 outlines relevant characteristics of PV modules used for agrivoltaics including standard crystalline silicon and thin-film cell technologies as well as emerging module technologies. Section 5.5 provides an economic analysis of agrivoltaic systems based on a location in southern Germany and Section 5.6 summarizes the most relevant facts about the preliminary German standard DIN SPEC 91434 published in April 2021. In Section 5.7, we present the results of a case study on societal implications conducted in southern Germany within the research project APV-RESOLA. Section 5.8 provides brief country profiles of the existing policies around the world while Section 5.9 concludes and outlines perspectives of agrivoltaics.
M. Trommsdorff, I.S. Dhal, Ö.E. Özdemir, D. Ketzer, N. Weinberger, C. Rösch. 2022. Agrivoltaics: Solar Power Generation and Food Production. S. Gorjian and P.E. Campana, editor. ScienceDirect: Solar Energy Advancements in Agriculture and Food Production Systems. 159-210p.
Policy and Regulatory IssuesMarket AssessmentsEconomicsReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Book Section
Agrivoltaics: The Environmental Impacts of Combining Food Crop Cultivation and Solar Energy Generation
The demand for food and renewable energy is increasing significantly, whereas the availability of land for agricultural use is declining. Agrivoltaic systems (AVS), which combine agricultural production with solar energy generation on the same area, are a promising opportunity with the potential to satisfy this demand while avoiding land-use conflicts. In the current study, a Consequential Life-Cycle Assessment (CLCA) was conducted to holistically assess the environmental consequences arising from a shift from single-use agriculture to AVS in Germany. The results of the study show that the environmental consequences of the installation of overhead AVS on agricultural land are positive and reduce the impacts in 15 of the 16 analysed impact categories especially for climate change, eutrophication and fossil resource use, as well as in the single score assessment, mainly due to the substitution of the marginal energy mix. It was demonstrated that, under certain conditions, AVS can contribute to the extension of renewable energy production resources without reducing food production resources. These include maintaining the agricultural yields underneath the photovoltaic (PV) modules, seeking synergies between solar energy generation and crop production and minimising the loss of good agricultural land.
M. Wagner, J. Lask, A. Kiesel, I. Lewandowski, A. Weselek, P. Högy, M. Trommsdorff, M.A. Schnaiker, A. Bauerle. 2023. Agrivoltaics: The Environmental Impacts of Combining Food Crop Cultivation and Solar Energy Generation. Agronomy. 13(2):1-15.
EconomicsPlant ScienceMicroclimatologyMarket Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Germany
Agrivoltaics—The Perfect Fit for the Future of Organic Photovoltaics
This Essay presents a possible pathway for the advancement of organic photovoltaics toward broader commercial success and enlarged market size. This vision aims at broad scale applications in photovoltaic greenhouses and polytunnels, which harvest those portions of the solar spectrum that are not used or required by plants. Based on the assumptions of the Shockley–Queisser–Limit, respectively detailed balance, and the additional postulation of using no absorption in the visible part of the AM 1.5G solar spectrum a power conversion efficiency of ≈17% is theoretically predicted. The suggestion is supported by the existence of a number of organic compounds, which already exhibit a good spectral compatibility with the typical photosynthetic action spectrum of chloroplasts. It is hoped that more suitable materials development shall be triggered and fertilized as a result of this Essay.
R. Meitzner, U.S. Schubert, H. Hoppe. 11/2020. Agrivoltaics—The Perfect Fit for the Future of Organic Photovoltaics. Advanced Energy Materials. 11(1):1-7.
Reviews/InformationalPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
AgroPV's Potential Opportunities and Challenges in a Mediterranean Developing Country Setting: A Farmer's Perspective
Adopting agrophotovoltaic (AgroPV) systems involves many challenges, not only technical issues but also social and
institutional challenges underlying insufficient social acceptance and institutional support. Using semi-structured interviews with the pioneer farmers, we explore the social and institutional challenges that may arise in implementing AgroPV systems in a developing country context—Turkiye—where there is currently no legislation on AgroPV. Still, the synergistic impact of AgroPV is highly probably due to climatic conditions in the Mediterranean setting. The pioneer farmers exhibit a highly positive attitude towards AgroPV systems reflecting that they recognize and highly value this synergistic potential. In particular, they are perceptive about how they may use AgroPV techniques to solve local problems, including those exacerbated by input dependency and climate change, beyond an abstract (economic or financial) opportunity dimension. In other words, there is a strong motivational drive for AgroPV given the challenges in Turkish agriculture; however, the weak institutional setting may channel farmers away from its adoption. Our interviews reveal that the institutional setting undermines predictability, which is vital in farmers’ willingness and ability to participate in long-term, capital-intensive projects such as Agrivoltaics. Bureaucracy’s distrust of potential investors, probably caused by low procedural capacity, seems to have bred a negative official attitude towards ‘dualuse’ innovations. This problem, in return, explains farmers’ negative experiences, such as red tape in receiving licenses and permits, contributing to their doubts about sustained government support. Understanding this institutional setting is crucial for overcoming the bias towards developed countries in the literature and providing a more informed
perspective before further legislative changes.S. Ağır, P. D. Güre, B. Şentürk. 01/2023. AgroPV's Potential Opportunities and Challenges in a Mediterranean Developing Country Setting: A Farmer's Perspective. Econmic Research Ceneter. 1:1-25.
Social PerspectivesSiting
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Turkey
Agrophotovoltaic Systems: Applications, Challenges, and Opportunities. A Review
The expansion of renewable energies aims at meeting the global energy demand while replacing fossil fuels. However, it requires large areas of land. At the same time, food security is threatened by the impacts of climate change and a growing world population. This has led to increasing competition for limited land resources. In this context, the combination of photovoltaics and plant production — often referred to as agrophotovoltaic (APV) or agrivoltaic systems — has been suggested as an opportunity for the synergistic combination of renewable energy and food production. Although this technology has already been applied in various commercial projects, its practicability and impact on crop production have hardly been investigated. In this review, we give a short summary of the current state of the art and prospective opportunities for the application of APV systems. In addition, we discuss microclimatic alterations and the resulting impacts of APV on crop production. Our main findings are that (1) crop cultivation underneath APV can lead to declining crop yields as solar radiation is expected to be reduced by about one third underneath the panels. However, microclimatic heterogeneities and their impact on crop yields are missing reference and thus, remain uncertain. (2) Through combined energy and crop production, APV can increase land productivity by up to 70%. (3) Given the impacts of climate change and conditions in arid climates, potential benefits are likely for crop production through additional shading and observed improvements of water productivity. (4) In addition, APV enhances the economic value of farming and can contribute to decentralized, off-grid electrification in developing and rural areas, thus further improving agricultural productivity. As such, APV can be a valuable technical approach for more sustainable agriculture, helping to meet current and prospective needs of energy and food production and simultaneously sparing land resources.
A. Weselek, A. Ehmann, S. Zikeli, I. Lewandowski, S. Schindele, P. Högy. 2019. Agrophotovoltaic Systems: Applications, Challenges, and Opportunities. A Review. Agronomy for Sustainable Development volume. 39:35.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Agrovoltaic: A Novel Technology for Doubling the Income of Farmers
The Prime Minister of India has set an ambitious target of achieving 1,00,000 MW of Solar Power Generation capacity in the country and doubling the farmers income by year 2022. Looking to very good availability of solar light/radiation both in terms of duration and intensity in India and particularly in Gujarat state, the Agrivoltaic has good scope to achieve both the above goals in given time frame. Solar Power Plants are land intensive and require approximately 2 hectares per MW. The diffuse nature of solar energy incident on earth requires that the solar photovoltaic systems that convert it directly to electricity have to be installed and operated on large surface areas in order to meet the energy demand and to be cost effective. Apart from land requirements, solar power plants also face challenge of high costs at two fronts: (i) due to low plant utilization factor, per unit cost of generation is relatively high, (ii) due to this same factor, the cost of transmission per unit of power from solar is also comparatively high. In other words, the requirement for capital investment in power transmission system for solar power project in terms of per unit of electricity generated is about four times that of conventional coal/ gas based power plants. So, this energy demand can be met by either installing rooftop PV systems or by installing land-based PV farms. Land-based PV farms require large tracts of land but can lead to competition for land resources as a tract of land occupied for solar PV generation cannot then be utilized for food production, whose demand is also increasing as world population increases. The challenge of food and energy production can be tackled jointly by employing the concept of Agro-voltaic systems (AVS) which has been gaining popularity in recent years. Agro-voltaic system involves cultivation of crops under the shade of solar panels on the same land. This gives an added advantage of food and energy production being done and managed on the same piece of land. Crops grown between or under the panels are generally shade-tolerant and whatever decrease occurs in crop production can be compensated by the generation of electricity from the solar panels which can prove to be an added source of income for the farmer. These types of systems have seen rapid expansion in recent years. Distributed solar power generation would be facilitated if agriculture lands could be used for generation of solar power without adversely affecting agriculture production. This paper will attempt to outline the different work so far done under AVS and will also briefly explain a similar work being carried out at Dept. of REE of CAET, JAU, Junagadh.
P.M. Chauhan. 2018. Agrovoltaic: A Novel Technology for Doubling the Income of Farmers. S. Kumar, N.B. Patel, S.N. Saravaiya, B.N. Patel, editors. 0000 Edition. India: Navasari Agricultural University Navsari. 215-230p.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Book Section
Country
India
[ Reference]
Agrovoltaico: 10 years design and operation experience
Agrovoltaico® is a particular type of agrivoltaic system based on a concept “Food & Energy” developed by REM Tec in Italy since 2009. The system first worldwide first large plants were installed in Italy in 2011 for a total capacity of 6.7 MWp and have been since then improved in order to optimize costs and performance. Different parameters come in place during the design process, such as location, main axis orientation, distance between the rows and crop species. Great attention is given to the compatibility with agriculture and preservation of agricultural land. Several studies have been conducted, both theoretical and on site, to investigate the response of different crops to different configuration of Agrovoltaico® trackers. Finally, Agrovoltaico® can be considered a valuable system to produce renewable energy on farm without negatively affecting land productivity.
(!) . 2021. Agrovoltaico: 10 years design and operation experience. In: AGRIVOLTAICS2020 CONFERENCE: Launching Agrivoltaics World-wide. AGRIVOLTAICS2020 CONFERENCE; 2020/10/14; Perpignan, France, Online. AIP: AIP; p.
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Plant SciencePV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Italy
Agrovoltaics: Step Towards Sustainable Energy-Food Combination
The global growth of renewable energy has been given importance targeting global energy needs while replacing fossil fuels. Large areas of land have been a major hurdle to this global target. Keeping in view the concern of the growing population and threats to food security, APV, which is a synergistic combination of photovoltaics and crop cultivation is being advocated. APV can lead to decentralized off-grid electrification of rural agricultural areas along with providing economic benefit to farming activities. However, the incorporation of APV in conjunction with its practicability as well as the impact on crop production needs to be thoroughly investigated. This paper is designed to focus on an elaborate overview of APV, with a comprehensive detailing of the design aspects and performance indicators of APV. APV can be a beneficial alternative to achieve more sustainable energy-food as well as at the same time a step towards conserving land resources.
P. Jain, G. Raina, S. Sinha, P. Malik, S. Mathur. 2021. Agrovoltaics: Step Towards Sustainable Energy-Food Combination. Bioresource Technology Reports. 15:100766.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
India
Albedo Effect in APV (Agrivoltaics): Finding and Implementing an Albedo Model for the APV Site in Kärrbo
Ample land for agriculture is a valuable resource and combining agriculture and photovoltaic
powerplant can give more effective usage of the available area. The vertical double-sided panels used in this study are more dependent on the albedo compared to standard-mounted panels. This study searched for and implemented available albedo models and used research data gathered from the agrivoltaic site in Kärrbo Prästgård over two periods of different seasons. In-situ measurements were studied concerning the albedo's impact on power output with the focus on comparing albedo with power output during ground conditions Ley, Winter wheat, and snow. Two models were found and tested with the available in-situ data to validate if the models could predict the albedo, both daily and hourly during the different seasons. Most of the work on the models was coded in MATLAB. The impact of albedo was shown to differ between the two photovoltaic systems and the different ground conditions. The hourly albedo model produced a decent prediction, both on the summer set and winter set with input of site-dependent measurements of irradiance. The daily albedo model with the input of satellite data produced a good albedo prediction for both seasons. Both models
can be used to predict a more refined albedo value.Joel Johansson. 10/2023. Albedo Effect in APV (Agrivoltaics): Finding and Implementing an Albedo Model for the APV Site in Kärrbo [Thesis]. [Västerås, Sweden]: Mälardalen University.
MicroclimatologyPV Technologies
An Algorithm for the Calculation of the Light Distribution in Photovoltaic Greenhouses
This study introduces a novel algorithm to estimate the cumulated global radiation inside photovoltaic (PV) greenhouses at the desired time interval. The direct and diffuse radiation were calculated on several observations points (OPs) inside the PV greenhouse. The PV panels were assimilated to polygons that can overlap the sun path seen from a specific OP. The algorithm was tested in a greenhouse with 50% PV cover ratio on the roof. The results were showed as the percentage ratio of the cumulated yearly global radiation with and without PV array on the roof (GGR), and used to draw maps of light distribution on different canopy heights (from 0.0 to 2.0m). The maps displayed the variability of the light distribution and the most adversely affected zones inside the PV greenhouse. The yearly GGR increased with the canopy height on the zones under the plastic cover (GGR from 59% at 0.0m to 73% at 2.0m), and decreased under the PV cover (GGR from 57% at 0.0m to 40% at 2.0m). Most zones close to the side walls and the gable walls were the least affected by shading on all canopy heights. The different light distribution on the canopy heights showed that the incident solar energy on the crop changes consistently, according to the growth stage of the plants. The algorithm can be applied to several PV greenhouse types and may provide a decision support tool for the identification of the most suitable plant species, based on their light requirements.
M. Cossu, L. Ledda, G. Urracci, A. Sirigu, A. Cossu, L. Murgia, A. Pazzona, A. Yano. 2017. An Algorithm for the Calculation of the Light Distribution in Photovoltaic Greenhouses. Solar Energy. 141:38-48.
MicroclimatologySystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Italy
An Innovative Approach to Combine Solar Photovoltaic Gardens With Agricultural Production and Ecosystem Services
Biodiversity and crop productivity are compromised by the ongoing worldwide decline of pollinator insects primarily driven by the narrow specialization of modern agricultural industry, dominated by monocultures and characterized by intensive herbicide and pesticide inputs. This approach has the double drawback of indiscriminately killing both invasive and beneficial insects while pauperizing the landscape limiting the areas of natural vegetation that normally provide habitat for pollinators. Here, an approach to develop green infrastructures (GI) is proposed (Ground Photovoltaic farms, GPv) to synergistically address ecological emergencies and socio-economic needs. Mainly, we focused on Nature-based Solutions (NbS) to foster pollination as a priority ecosystem service and medicinal herb production as a co-benefit, creating a shared value in the landscape. The results suggest that the replacement of ruderal herbaceous vegetation with selected autochthonous cultivated species in the area of GPv farms could increase land revenues by simultaneously improving the pollination ecological network and agricultural activities. The economic analysis of the proposed solutions indicates that the annual return rate of the initial investment for GPv farms-to-GI conversion is between 9 and 43%, with potential payback in three years. Hence, GI could become an ecological business model, capable of improving ecosystem services in the landscape, both private and public benefits. However, a transdisciplinary approach is important to share knowledge across the different stakeholders and bridge the information gaps typical of a sectoral perspective, creating a holistic vision of the involved professional skills and experiences. Its proper implementation requires the joint effort of all economic stakeholders together with technical and scientific experts to promote multifunctional land-use in GPv farms.
T. Semeraro, A. Scarano, A. Santino, R. Emmanuel, M. Lenucci. 2022. An Innovative Approach to Combine Solar Photovoltaic Gardens With Agricultural Production and Ecosystem Services. Ecosystem Services. 56:1-14.
Social PerspectivesMarket AssessmentsEconomicsReviews/InformationalEntomology
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Italy
An Intelligent Greenhouse Monitoring and Controlling System with Agri-Voltaics Optimization
“An Intelligent Greenhouse Monitoring and Controlling System with Agri-Voltaics Optimization" project revolves around the powerful combination of agri voltaics and image processing to create a sustainable and efficient solution for greenhouse management, powered by Raspberry Pi. Agrivoltaics, which integrates crop
cultivation with solar energy generation, optimises plant growth while reducing energy consumption. Real-time data collection through sensors, along with image processing techniques using PiCam, enables monitoring of plant health and early disease detection. The system also includes solar tracking technology to maximise solar energy generation. Actuators such as fans, heaters, LEDs, and a pump for drip irrigation are controlled based on sensor data, ensuring precise environmental control for optimal crop growth. The remote monitoring and control capabilities through a user-friendly Blynk dashboard enable farmers to conveniently access and manage the greenhouse conditions from anywhere. This comprehensive approach to greenhouse farming promotes sustainable practices, reduces energy usage, and increases crop yields.
R.B. Waghmare, R.V. Chimankare, N.M. Jha, A.D. Kar, T.S. Patil, K.M. Mahadik. 04/2023. An Intelligent Greenhouse Monitoring and Controlling System with Agri-Voltaics Optimization. International Research Journal of Modernization in Engineering Technology and Science. 5(4):2397-2408.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyToolsHydrologySystem ConfigurationStandardization and Best Practices
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
India
An Optimization Method for Local Consumption of Photovoltaic Power in a Facility Agriculture Micro Energy Network
In order to solve the problem of optimal dispatching of photovoltaic power for local consumption to the greatest degree in a photovoltaic greenhouse, this paper proposes a multiform energy optimal dispatching model and a solution algorithm. First, an input-output power model is established for energy storages which are reservoir, biogas digester, and block wall with phase-change thermal storage. Based on it, multiform energy storages play a bridging role of energy transfer in optimal energy dispatching. Subsequently, an optimal energy dispatching model is proposed with the objective of minimizing the sum of the squares of the difference between the loads and the photovoltaic generation in dispatching periods. Control variables are working state quantities of the time-shiftable loads and input-output state quantities of energy storages in dispatching periods. Finally, a genetic algorithm with matrix binary coding is used to solve the energy optimal dispatching model. Simulation results of a practical photovoltaic greenhouse facility agricultural micro energy network system in three typical weather conditions showed that the method could fully utilize the energy transfer function of the multiform energy storage and the time-shiftable characteristics of the agricultural load to achieve the maximum effect of increasing the local consumption of the photovoltaic power.
Yuzhu Wang, Huanna Niu, Lu Yang, Weizhou Wang, Fuchao Liu. 2018. An Optimization Method for Local Consumption of Photovoltaic Power in a Facility Agriculture Micro Energy Network. Energies. 11(6):
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System Configuration
Development Strategy
Greenhouse, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
An agrivoltaic park enhancing ecological, economic and social benefits on degraded land in Jiangshan, China
Agrivoltaics has a great potential to solve the dilemma of land competition and renewable-energy development. However, it is still being discussed whether the co-location of agriculture and solar photovoltaic (PV) can balance the bi-directional goals of clean energy development and agricultural production. This study demonstrated a practical model of agrivoltaic park operation that had improved the land productivity in terms of economy, ecology, and society. The Jiangshan 200MW on-grid solar park integrated with agriculture is located on barren land, which was degrading due to soil erosion. This agrivoltaic park aims to achieve the triple win of combating land degradation, increasing agricultural profitability, and developing the PV industry. The Jiangshan agrivoltaic park has developed the business model of Integration of Three Industries and the multilayer planting technology approach of the Trinity to improve the efficiency of land utilization and has achieved a triple win in terms of economic, social, and ecological benefits. Eventually, through regulated operation and management of agrivoltaic park, the unproductive land has been transformed into high-yield land. The operational model adopted in Jiangshan agrivoltaic park has provided an example for other regions to emulate.
Yuanyuan Xiao, Huiwen Zhang, Shuyi Pan, Quan Wang, Jijiang He, Xiaoxia Jia. 2022. An agrivoltaic park enhancing ecological, economic and social benefits on degraded land in Jiangshan, China. In: AGRIVOLTAICS2021 CONFERENCE: Connecting Agrivoltaics Worldwide. AGRIVOLTAICS2021 CONFERENCE: Connecting Agrivoltaics Worldwide; 2021/06/14; Freiburg, Germany. AIP Conference Proceedings: AIP Publishing; p.
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Plant ScienceSoilSocial PerspectivesMarket AssessmentsEconomics
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
China
An analytical framework to estimate the economics and adoption potential of dual land-use systems: The case of agrivoltaics
CONTEXT
Dual land-use systems allow for a high land-use efficiency and are becoming increasingly relevant amid the rising scarcity of land. Agrivoltaics is a prominent example, yet there are farming system-specific trade-offs when simultaneously producing agricultural output and photovoltaic power.
OBJECTIVE Our objective is to report a novel analytical Framework to assess the Economic benefits and the ADoption Potential of dual Land-Use Systems (FEADPLUS). The framework is developed with the goal of enabling a straightforward application in large farm-level datasets.
METHODS FEADPLUS is grounded in neoclassical economic theory and applied to the case of agrivoltaics. An annualized profitability condition is derived and decomposed to identify the main components determining the agrivoltaic systems' economic viability, allowing for a comprehensive analysis of farm-specific synergies and trade-offs. Modifications enable calculation of the break-even electricity tariff and the relative change in agricultural contribution margin below the agrivoltaic system. The framework's functionality is demonstrated using data for cereal and vegetable farming systems on the Filder Plain, Southern Germany.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS We show that farm-specific characteristics explain differences in the adoption potential under equal solar radiations. Cereal and vegetable farms could adopt agrivoltaics at a tariff of 8.63 and 9.00 EUR-cents kWh−1, respectively. Yet, the agricultural contribution margins from land cultivated below the agrivoltaics system decline by 40.3% and 73.9%, respectively. The decline is due to shading effects on crop yields, higher machinery and labor costs, and the foregone agricultural contribution margins from area lost due to the agrivoltaics mounting structure. In the presence of such trade-offs, the adoption of agrivoltaics is more profitable for farms growing low-value crops, such as cereals, than high-value crops like vegetables. Our sensitivity analyses show that this may change if there are synergies, e.g., positive shading effects on yield. Moreover, they indicate that agricultural contribution margins in some scenarios, which could incentivize farmers to abandon farming below the agrivoltaics system. This highlights the need for policymakers to put adequate safeguards in place.
SIGNIFICANCE
Dual land-use systems are still understudied, but their high land-use efficiency becomes increasingly relevant in light of the mounting pressures on land. FEADPLUS is the first framework that allows estimation of economic benefits and adoption potential across farming systems and specific technology setups under different policy designs. To this end, it meets researchers' demands for a simple tool and allows for many extensions, e.g., incorporation of stochastics or aspects of (dynamic) optimization and economies of scale.Arndt Feuerbacher, Moritz Laub, Petra Högy, Christian Lippert, Lisa Pataczek, Stephan Schindele, Christine Wieck, Sabine Zikeli. 08/2021. An analytical framework to estimate the economics and adoption potential of dual land-use systems: The case of agrivoltaics. Agricultural Systems. 192:
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Market AssessmentsEconomics
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Germany
An improved photovoltaic agriculture system with groove glass plate
Light is essential for plant growth, affecting plant morphology and physiology. Photovoltaic agriculture (APV) was proposed in the early 80s, but generating electricity on the farm field without influencing the growth of crops has been a challenge for researchers. In this paper, we proposed a newly designed improved photovoltaic agriculture system which can solve this problem optically. Using refraction from groove glass plates, the improved APV system provides crops appropriate light intensity and uniform illumination. We designed the groove glass plate by calculation and simulation. To investigate how different crop grows under different light environments, we examined yield and quality (nutrition) of lettuce under different light conditions. Four different treatments were applied including conventional field environment as the control, conventional APV facility, improved APV system and improved APV system with LED plant fill light lamps. The results indicate that lettuces under the improved APV system had similar yield to the control, and has more than twice the yield of lettuces under the conventional APV facility. In addition, lettuces grown under the improved APV system had a higher nutritional value. These results show that the improved APV system has advantages for wide spread application.
(!) . 2019. An improved photovoltaic agriculture system with groove glass plate. In: Proceedings Volume 11185, Optical Design and Testing IX. SPIE / COS Photonics Asia; 2019/11/19; Hangzhou, China. SPIE Digital Library: SPIE; p.
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Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
China
An integrated multi-modeling framework to estimate potential rice and energy production under an agrivoltaic system
With the growth of renewable energy use, solar energy is becoming the most popular renewable energy source worldwide. Nevertheless, the construction of a solar power plant can be a burden to a small country with a land shortage problem, because it requires extensive land. To avoid the potential food security issue caused by solar energy production, an agrivoltaic system producing both crop and solar energy is devised. This study aims to develop an integrated multi-modeling framework for an agrivoltaic system used for rice production. The proposed framework consists of four modules: (1) An environmental database module involving soil, climate, and climate change scenarios; (2) a solar energy generation estimation module predicting electricity production quantity via polynomial regression technique; (3) a crop production estimation module simulating rice yield and its impact underneath Photovoltaic (PV) panels via the Agricultural Policy/Environmental eXtender (APEX) model; and (4) a What-if analysis module analyzing the economic and environmental feasibility of an Agrivoltaic system under a climate change scenario. For validation and calibration of the proposed framework, rice production field study data underneath an Agrivoltaic system with a capacity of 107 kW at the Jeollanamdo Agricultural Research and Extension Center in Naju-si (35.0272° N, 126.8247° E), Jeollanam-do, South Korea, is collected. The prediction accuracy of the proposed framework is approximately 88 % in terms of the coefficient of determination. The experimental results show that the bi-facial agrivoltaic system with shading ratio of 32 % tends to have the highest total profit of USD 3.65 $/m2/day.
Sumin Kim, Sojung Kim, Kyunam An. 10/2023. An integrated multi-modeling framework to estimate potential rice and energy production under an agrivoltaic system. Computers and Electronics in Agriculture. 213:
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Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyEconomics
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
South Korea
Analysis of Photovoltaic Agriculture Model Based on the Single Axis Tracking System
Due to the shading of PV panels, the normal growth of high-illumination-loving plants can not be met, only low-illumination-loving plants are planted in the greenhouse. Aiming at improving this phenomenon, this paper analyzes the characteristics of light demand of the plants, and reveals the principle of agricultural photovoltaic complementary by using the characteristics of light saturation. On this basis, the paper combines with the technical characteristics of the single axis tracking photovoltaic system, according to the light conditions to optimize the photovoltaic angle, to change the light characteristics of the greenhouse, so as to solve the coupling problem between agriculture and photovoltaic. Finally, this paper gives an optimization analysis by taking a 50kW photovoltaic greenhouse as an application scenario. The result shows that 31% improvement of the comprehensive benefits are achieved, which proves that the method in this paper is feasible.
Rui Zhang, Mingxin Wang, Yaojie Sun, Lei Ma. 2020. Analysis of Photovoltaic Agriculture Model Based on the Single Axis Tracking System. In: 2020 IEEE 3rd International Conference on Electronics Technology (ICET); 2020/05/08; Chengdu, China. IEEE Xplore: IEEE; p.
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MicroclimatologySystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
China
Analysis of Shadow by HCPV Panels for Agriculture Applications
This paper discusses optical impact to the cultivation area with comparison of flat-plate PV and tracking PV - typically HCPV. Sometimes the PV area is covered by concrete, asphalt or graves for suppression of weeds. In this case, the atmosphere may be better but the PV owner will have to pay additional land cost preparation. Another aspect is the land utilization. This complies that massive unused land space is required. In this situation, it is reasonable to think of utilizing PV-uncovered area for agriculture. This paper discusses the space factor of the PV field by comparison of measured and calculated results as well as possibility of utilizing the land underneath PV array by agriculture. The farmland equipped with high-pole CPV has about 2 times more cultivated land, and the minimum illumination level of the cultivated land is around 2 times, the total sunlight energy to the farming land is almost 3 times. The PV output per lost cultivated land is about 2 times.
K. Araki, A. Akisawa, I. Kumagai, H. Nagai. 2010. Analysis of Shadow by HCPV Panels for Agriculture Applications. In: 2010 35th IEEE Photovoltaic Specialists Conference; 2010/06/20; Honolulu, HI, USA. Honolulu, HI, USA: IEEE; p. 002994-002997
MicroclimatologyMarket AssessmentsPV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Japan
Analysis of Weed Communities in Solar Farms Located in Tropical Areas‚ The Case of Malaysia
Weed management in large-scale solar photovoltaic (LSS-PV) farms has become a great concern to the solar industry due to scarcity of labour and the ever-increasing price of pesticides, which opens up possibilities for integrated farming, also known as agrivoltaics. Improper weed control may have multiple negative impacts such as permanent shading of the module surface, pest housing which damages communication cables, and even bush fires. The shaded PV modules can be heated up to extreme temperatures, causing costly burn-out damage. Critical information on the types of weeds on solar farms, especially in Malaysia, has not been established to support the concept of weed management. Thus, with this study, detailed composition of the weed community was obtained via quadrat sampling between solar PV modules, near ground equipment, near perimeter fencing, and directly underneath the PV modules. Weed-control measures via high-quality weedmat installation under solar PV arrays have been implemented where this approach can be considered effective on solar farms based on the existing PV structure height and equipment constraints plus the increasing cost for labour and agricultural inputs. This work underlines the proposed Agrivoltaic for Large Scale Solar (Agrivoltaic4LSS) program to complement the solar industry in Malaysia towards an agrivoltaic, eco-friendly approach to weed management.
Ya’acob, Mohammad Effendy, Li Lu, Frisco Nobilly, Nik Norasma Che’Ya, Ammar Abdul Aziz, Christian Dupraz, Muhammad Syafiq Yahya, Sharifah Nur Atikah, and Mohammad Abdullah Al. Mamun. 2022. Analysis of Weed Communities in Solar Farms Located in Tropical Areas‚ The Case of Malaysia. Journal of Agronomy.
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Plant ScienceStandardization and Best Practices
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Malaysia
Analysis of internal shading degree to a prototype of dynamics photovoltaic greenhouse through simulation software
In recent years the use of photovoltaic panels as cover materials for greenhouses developed a great interest due to the state’s incentives obtainable by such applications. Shading caused by these elements inside the structure appears to be often too much for the normal development of agricultural activity. In this study it was analyzed the behaviour of shading caused by the photovoltaic panels inside a prototype of dynamic photovoltaic greenhouse whose particularity lies in the possibility of rotation of the panels along the longitudinal axis. The panels’ rotation allows varying shading degree in function of some parameters such as latitude and the different solar angles. In order to avoid any reflection losses due to imperfect inclination of the photovoltaic panels, 24 highly reflective aluminium mirrors were prepared with the objective of recovering the portion of solar radiation otherwise lost by reflection. For the study it was used the simulation software Autodesk® Ecotect® Analysis which allows to analyse the path of the shadows during the day and throughout the year for any latitude considered. For this study it was analyzed shading with the panels in a horizontal position. It was also analyzed the evolution of the percentage of shading simulating different latitudes. The results obtained show a great variation of the shading degree inside the structure during a single day and during the year. We can conclude that integrating this analysis with the energy balance it is possible to study the behaviour of photovoltaic greenhouses in order to integrate the energy production from renewable energy sources and agricultural production.
Alvaro Marucci, Danilo Monarca, Massimo Cecchini, Andrea Colantoni, Andrea Cappuccini. 2015. Analysis of internal shading degree to a prototype of dynamics photovoltaic greenhouse through simulation software. Journal of Agricultural Engineering.
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MicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Italy
Analysis of the Microclimate Under Agrivoltaics
This master's thesis focuses on the concept of agrivoltaics, which combines agriculture and
solar electricity production in the same surface area. The aim of the thesis is to study the effects of agrivoltaics on the microclimate and determine if there are differences in temperature under agrivoltaics compared to a control plot. The study takes place in Bierbeek, Belgium, where a pear orchard has been modified to accommodate the installation of agrivoltaics. The thesis is part of the wider HyPErFarm project, which aims to decrease reliance on fossil fuels in agriculture. We learn that temperatures and temperature variance play a big role in the development of plants and fruits. Ground and air temperature are reduced under agrivoltaics systems and they also impact the PAR. Multiple vertical strings of sensors capture and log the temperature gradient. By calibrating these sensors with frozen glycol, resolution is improved. Arduino unos in tandem with a raspberry Pi sample air and ground temperatures on different heights and locations in the field. Why 3D printed weather shields were essential in reducing cost and effectiveness. We are offered an insight in the data through visualizing air and ground temperatures trends and differences. The data is compared on 5 different heights and 2 different locations both under the agrivoltaics and compared to a control plot. Through statistical analysis we delve into the significances and their origins. Violin plots, box plots and QQ plots are used to visualize the different aspects of the gathered data. We discover a buffering effect created under the agrivoltaics and try to solidify these claims. This clear buffering effect might protect plants and budding fruits from frost and potentially heat during high temperatures. In conclusion, this thesis contributes to the growing body of research on agrivoltaics by studying the effects of agrivoltaics on the microclimate. The findings provide insights into the potential benefits and caveats of agrivoltaics for crops and farmers. Overall, this research adds to our understanding of agrivoltaics and its potential role in meeting the challenges of climate
change and energy availability.Dean DE SUTTER. 2023. Analysis of the Microclimate Under Agrivoltaics [Thesis]. [Leuven, Belgium]: KU Leuven.
Microclimatology
Analysis of the Rice Yield Under an Agrivoltaic System: A Case Study in Japan
Agrivoltaic systems, comprising photovoltaic panels placed over agricultural crops, have recently gained increasing attention. Emerging interest in these systems led us to investigate their influence on rice crops. Various factors affecting rice crop yield, including fertilizer application, temperature, and solar radiation, were directly observed, and measured to evaluate changes associated with the shading rates of photovoltaic systems installed above rice crops. The results suggest that the allowable upper limit of the shading rate for agrivoltaic installations ranges from 27 to 39%, which sustains at least 80% of the rice yield, a condition set by the Japanese Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries for these systems. If such systems are applied to rice paddies in Japan at 28% density, they could generate 284 million MWh/yr. This is equivalent to approximately 29% of the total Japanese electricity demand, based on 2018 calculations. This projection indicates the potential of agrivoltaic systems for efficient land use and sustainable energy generation.
R.A. Gonocruz, R. Nakamura, K. Yoshino, M. Homma, T. Doi, Y. Yoshida, A. Tani. 2021. Analysis of the Rice Yield Under an Agrivoltaic System: A Case Study in Japan. Environments. 8(7):1-18.
SoilPlant ScienceMicroclimatologySystem ConfigurationImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Japan
Analysis of the Viability of a Photovoltaic Greenhouse with Semi-Transparent Amorphous Silicon (a-Si) Glass
For decades, society has been changing towards an energy mix that enhances the use of renewable sources and a more distributed generation of energy. The agricultural sector is included in this trend, which is why several studies are currently being carried out focused on the use of solar energy in greenhouses. This article aims to demonstrate the viability of a greenhouse that integrates, as a novelty, semi-transparent amorphous silicon photovoltaic (PV) glass (a-Si), covering the entire roof surface and the main sides of the greenhouse. The designed prototype is formed by a simple rectangular structure 12 m long and 2.5 m wide, with a monopitch roof, oriented to the southwest, and with a 35° inclination. The greenhouse is divided into two contiguous equal sections, each with an area of 15 m2, and physically separated by an interior partition transparent wall. The surface enclosure of one of the sections is made of conventional glass, and the one of the other, of PV glass. How the presence of semitransparent PV glass influences the growth of horticultural crops has been studied, finding that it slightly reduces the production of vegetal mass and accelerates the apical growth mechanism of heliophilic plants. However, from a statistical point of view, this influence is negligible, so it is concluded that the studied technology is viable for horticultural production. The energy balance carried out indicates that the energy produced by the PV system is greater than the energy consumed by the greenhouse, which shows that the greenhouse is completely viable and self-sufficient for sites with the adequate solar resource.
José-Ramón Aira, Sara Gallardo-Saavedra, Marcia Eugenio-Gozalbo, Víctor Alonso-Gómez, Miguel-Ángel Muñoz-García, and Luis Hernández-Callejo. 2021. Analysis of the Viability of a Photovoltaic Greenhouse with Semi-Transparent Amorphous Silicon (a-Si) Glass. Journal of Agronomy. 11(6):
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Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Spain
Analysis of the agrivoltaic power plants and practical evaluations
The intercontinental agreements of the conference of parties, and European policies such as the Green Deal require countries like Italy to respect stringent limits on the production of electricity from traditional sources. Italy's response to this line of action has been the development of the PNIEC and the PNRR, two plans aimed at the development and recovery of the country in every area, with the utmost attention to the energy sector. In this intricate political scenario, agrivoltaic represents an interesting technological alternative for the installation of massive photovoltaic systems in territories where the availability of land is limited. The double use of the land in the Agrivoltaic (AV) sites allows to "doubly harvest from the sun", increasing the land use exploitation with lower environmental impact. This effect strongly depends on the system configuration for both the PV and agricultural sides. In this work it is illustrated a PV plant designed in Southern Italy, in which each hectare can be used for a PV plant with rated power of 0.7 MWp and about 900 Arbequina olive trees. It is analysed the effect of different module layouts on the photovoltaic and crop production, with particular focus on the shadowing effect. This study highlights that there is a trade-off between a high-density PV module arrangement, with high PV production and low agricultural harvesting, and a highly spaced arrangement with lower PV production. Using mathematical model to perform analysis on both the energetic and agronomical sides, this work combines its result into a financial analysis to shape the best investment features. Finally, the “land use saving” analysis is performed to compare the agrivoltaic with the traditional photovoltaic and agricultural plants. The final purpose of this work is to clearly define the value of the agrivoltaic technology in the development of a sustainable energetic horizon.
Raffaele Polacco. 2022. Analysis of the agrivoltaic power plants and practical evaluations [Thesis]. [POLITECNICO DI TORINO]: POLITECNICO DI TORINO.
Plant SciencePolicy and Regulatory IssuesMarket AssessmentsPV TechnologiesImpact AssessmentsReviews/Informational
Analysis of the internal shading in a photovoltaic greenhouse tunnel
In recent years, the increasing interest in energy production from renewable energy sources has led to photovoltaic elements being placed on greenhouse coverings. The shading of crops by these elements can, however, cause problems regarding the normal course of agricultural activity. All studies thus far on the application of photovoltaic (PV) panels as a greenhouse covering material have focused on flat roof structures. Tunnel greenhouses, due to their curved shape, do not lend themselves easily to accommodating PV panels on even part of the cover. In this study, we analysed the shading variation inside a tunnel greenhouse that was produced by applying flexible and transparent PV panels in a checkerboard arrangement. The transparent flexible PV panels are manufactured using monocrystalline silicon cells, with an efficiency of 18%, incorporated into polymers with high resistance. The PV panel dimensions are 1.116—0.165 m. The simulation software Autodesk® Autocad2010® was used for this study. The variation and distribution of the shading percentage of PV panels were analysed in relation to the surface area affected by the photovoltaic roof, the total area of the greenhouse and the section of the greenhouse. In particular, we studied the variations in the percentage of shading and the size of the shaded area on the twenty-first day of each month of the year. The results show some regularity in the shading percentage, mainly due to the curvilinear shape of the section of the greenhouse. From mid-March to mid- September, the shading in the middle of the day is almost always inside the greenhouse. In the other months of the year, it is partly inside and partly outside the tunnel greenhouse. With the photovoltaic arrangement adopted, the percentage of shading during the year never exceeds 40%.
Alvaro Marucci, Danilo Monarca, Andrea Colantoni, Enio Campiglia, Andrea Cappuccini. 2017. Analysis of the internal shading in a photovoltaic greenhouse tunnel. Journal of Agricultural Engineering.
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MicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Italy
Application of Photovoltaic Systems for Agriculture: A Study on the Relationship between Power Generation and Farming for the Improvement of Photovoltaic Applications in Agriculture
Agrivoltaic (agriculture–photovoltaic) or solar sharing has gained growing recognition as a promising means of integrating agriculture and solar-energy harvesting. Although this field offers great potential, data on the impact on crop growth and development are insufficient. As such, this study examines the impact of agriculture–photovoltaic farming on crops using energy information and communications technology (ICT). The researched crops were grapes, cultivated land was divided into six sections, photovoltaic panels were installed in three test areas, and not installed in the other three. A 1300 × 520 mm photovoltaic module was installed on a screen that was designed with a shading rate of 30%. In addition, to collect farming-cultivation-environment data and to analyze power generation, sensors for growing environments and wireless-communication devices were used. As a result, normal modules generated 25.2 MWh, bifacial modules generated 21.6 MWh, and transparent modules generated 25.7 MWh over a five-month period. We could not find a difference in grape growth according to the difference of each module. However, a slight slowing of grape growth was found in the experiment group compared to the control group. Nevertheless, the sugar content of the test area of the grape fruit in the harvest season was 17.6 Brix on average, and the sugar content of the control area was measured at 17.2 Brix. Grape sugar-content level was shown to be at almost the same level as that in the control group by delaying the harvest time by about 10 days. In conclusion, this study shows that it is possible to produce renewable energy without any meaningful negative impact on normal grape farming.
Jaiyoung Cho, Sung Min Park, A Reum Park, On Chan Lee, Geemoon Nam, In-Ho Ra. 09/15/2020. Application of Photovoltaic Systems for Agriculture: A Study on the Relationship between Power Generation and Farming for the Improvement of Photovoltaic Applications in Agriculture. Energies. 13(18):
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Plant ScienceMicroclimatologySoilPV TechnologiesSystem ConfigurationEconomics
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
South Korea
Application of organic photovoltaic materials (OPV) as greenhouse roof structures: A review
Organic Photovoltaic (OPV), as a third-generation PV technology, is becoming an appropriate substance used for greenhouse roofing structures. Semi-transparent OPV has a variety of merits such as low weight, flexibility, low environment impact and short energy payback time. Besides, it can harness larger amounts of sunlight as means of a very strong light absorbent material. This study shares some of the latest research which examines the feasibility of using semi-transparent, flexible organic photovoltaic (OPV) modules as greenhouse shading material. By using such modules, it may be possible to utilize the existing greenhouse-based agricultural areas for electricity production. The concept projects OPV modules to shade greenhouses and reduces excess solar energy which may result in reducing internal surrounding heat thus helps to mitigate the control environment. This will furthermore control plant heat stress which is one of the most important factors for plant growth. Some conclusion on the quality and quantity of plants with respect to the energy consumption in the greenhouse are also discussed.
Li Lu, Mohammad Effendy Ya’acob. 2020. Application of organic photovoltaic materials (OPV) as greenhouse roof structures: A review. Journal of Agricultural and Food Engineering. 3(19):
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PV TechnologiesReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Malaysia
Applying a Relationally and Socially Embedded Decision Framework to Solar Photovoltaic Adoption: A Conceptual Exploration
Solar photovoltaic (PV) energy technology can play a key role in decreasing the amount of carbon emissions associated with electrical energy production, while also providing an economically justifiable alternative to fossil fuel production. Solar energy technology is also extremely flexible in terms of the size and siting of technological development. Large scale PV farms, however, require access to large tracts of land, which can create community-scale conflict over siting solar energy development projects. While previous scholarship offers frameworks for understanding the mechanisms at play in socio-technological system transitions, including the renewable energy transition, those frameworks fail to center community priorities, values, and concerns, and therefore often do not provide an effective means of addressing community conflict over solar siting. This paper provides a conceptual exploration of how a proposed framework can guide decision making for solar development across multiple scales and settings, while also illuminating the potential barriers and bottlenecks that may limit the potential of solar energy development to occur in scales and forms that receive community acceptance and at the pace necessary to address the greenhouse gas emissions currently contributing to the rapidly changing global climate.
C. Schelly, D. Lee, E. Matz, J.M. Pearce. 2021. Applying a Relationally and Socially Embedded Decision Framework to Solar Photovoltaic Adoption: A Conceptual Exploration. Sustainability. 13(2):1-18.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Aquavoltaics: Synergies for dual use of water area for solar photovoltaic electricity generation and aquaculture
Bodies of water provide essentials for both human society as well as natural ecosystems. To expand the services this water provides, hybrid food-energy-water systems can be designed. This paper reviews the fields of floatovoltaic (FV) technology (water deployed solar photovoltaic systems) and aquaculture (farming of aquatic organisms) to investigate the potential of hybrid floatovoltaic-aquaculture synergistic applications for improving food-energy-water nexus sustainability. The primary motivation for combining electrical energy generation with aquaculture is to promote the dual use of water, which has historically high unused potential. Recent advances in FV technology using both pontoon and thin film structures provides significant flexibility in deployment in a range of water systems. Solar generated electricity provides off-grid aquaculture potential. In addition, several other symbiotic relationships are considered including an increase in power conversion efficiency due to the cooling and cleaning of module surfaces, a reduction in water surface evaporation rates, ecosystem redevelopment, and improved fish growth rates through integrated designs using FV-powered pumps to control oxygenation levels as well as LED lighting. The potential for a solar photovoltaic-aquaculture or aquavoltaic ecology was found to be promising. If a U.S. national average value of solar flux is used then current aquaculture surface areas in use, if incorporated with appropriate solar technology could account for 10.3% of total U.S. energy consumption as of 2016.
Adam M. Pringle, R.M. Handler, J.M. Pearce. 12/2017. Aquavoltaics: Synergies for dual use of water area for solar photovoltaic electricity generation and aquaculture. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. 80:
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System ConfigurationReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Assessing Agrivoltaics: Crops Under Solar Panels, or Solar Panels Over Crops?
As we strive to sustain the growing population and economies of the nations, we observe a possible competing land requirement for food and renewable energy productions. A possible path forward is adopting and developing agrivoltaics (AV) technology, a system where solar panels and crops share the same land. At first glance, the relative gain from AV depends on the reference system: (i) do we start from a solar farm and add crop underneath? Or (ii) do we start from a cropland and append an appropriately designed panel array over it? In this paper, we compare these two approaches to evaluate the profit gain from AV. We show that, approach-(i) has low relative economic gain. The performance indicator in this case would need to be set by the stakeholders' requirements. While approach-(ii) seemingly has high economic gain, the crop-loss in a cultivable land should be constrained by national policies. Finally, both the approaches are practically valid, and the design constraints would be set through separate set of economic and policy requirements.
M. Sojib Ahmed, M. Ryyan Khan. 2023. Assessing Agrivoltaics: Crops Under Solar Panels, or Solar Panels Over Crops?. In: IEEE Xplore. 2023 IEEE Region 10 Symposium (TENSYMP); 2023/09/06; Canberra, Australia. Online: IEEE; p.
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MicroclimatologyMarket AssessmentsEconomics
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Assessing Potential of Dual Use Solar Development in New Jersey Preserved Farmlands
The dual use of farmland and the incorporation of solar energy has the potential to maximize the net returns per acre and utilization capabilities. Land is one of the most vital and nonrenewable resources that is often solely used for one purpose. This study focuses on analyzing three objectives: 1) To explore the potential of Agrivoltaic Farming (dual use) on preserved farmland in New Jersey. 2) To estimate the Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE) of New Jersey’s dual use potential. 3) To generate sensitivity analyses of dual use solar and farm production in New Jersey. This study analyzed New Jersey’s current energy demands, potential energy yields on preserved farmland, and the available land to establish solar projects. It also calculated the analysis of various discount rates, fluctuation on the cost of energy, and effects on solar panel efficiency due to evapotranspiration. These objectives yielded great potential for New Jersey in numerous areas such as: 1) Energy production of up to 0.11 TWh of clean energy generated from only 21 target farms. 2) A reduction of water required for irrigation by up to 29% annually. 3) A positive Net Present Value (NPV) with discount rates as high as 12%. This study demonstrates the potential dual use has for the stakeholders and the state of New Jersey. This study shows that even when a high discount rate is applied to a solar project, its NPV and return on initial capital investments remains positive throughout its lifespan. This study supports numerous strategies outlined in the New Jersey Energy Master Plan (EMP), which is expected to reach carbon neutrality and clean energy production for the state by 2050.
Gary Ryan Chapman. 05/2022. Assessing Potential of Dual Use Solar Development in New Jersey Preserved Farmlands [Thesis]. [Montclair State University Digital Commons]: Montclair State University.
Social PerspectivesPolicy and Regulatory IssuesMarket AssessmentsEconomicsPV TechnologiesReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Thesis/Dissertation
Country
United States
State
New Jersey
Assessment and comparison of the solar radiation distribution inside the main commercial photovoltaic greenhouse types in Europe
The application of the photovoltaic (PV) energy to the European greenhouse industry has led to installations designed to maximise the energy production but detrimental for the greenhouse crops, due to the effect of shading of the PV panels on the roof. To assess these issues, the first step is to characterize the PV greenhouse microclimate, especially in terms of solar radiation at canopy level. After a comprehensive review of the current state-of-art of the PV greenhouse sector, four representative commercial PV greenhouse types are compared, with a percentage of the area covered with PV panels (PV cover ratio) ranging from 25% to 100%. The aim is to define the general relations between the main design parameters (PV cover ratio, greenhouse height and orientation, checkerboard pattern) and the available solar radiation, to provide original information on the design of next-generation PV greenhouses with improved agronomic sustainability. The yearly global radiation decreased averagely by 0.8% for each additional 1.0% PV cover ratio and increased by 3.8% for each further meter of gutter height. The N-S orientation increased the average cumulated global radiation on the greenhouse area by 24%, compared to the E-W orientation. Both the checkerboard pattern and the N-S orientation improved the uniformity of light distribution. All PV greenhouse types are provided with light distribution maps to evaluate the light variability on the greenhouse area. The light distribution is crucial to support adequate agronomic plans for both preexisting and new PV greenhouses, aiming to sustainable mixed systems for both energy and crop production.
Highlights •The solar light distribution was calculated on the main PV greenhouse types. •The effect of design criteria on the sustainability of PV greenhouses is estimated. •The available global radiation decreases by 0.8% for each additional 1.0% PV area. •Each additional meter of gutter height increases the global radiation of 3.8%.
•The N-S orientation allows averagely 24% more global radiation than E-W orientation.Marco Cossu, Andrea Cossu, Paola A. Deligios, Luigi Ledda, Zhi Li, Hicham Fatnassi, Christine Poncet, Akira Yano. 10/2018. Assessment and comparison of the solar radiation distribution inside the main commercial photovoltaic greenhouse types in Europe. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. 94:
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MicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem ConfigurationTools
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Assessment of Italian energy policy through the study of a photovoltaic investment on greenhouse
The production of energy from renewable sources is a form of energy production that has less impact on the environment than the traditional one. For the farmer this new form of production represents an opportunity, especially for the economic benefits that can produce, both in terms of the incentives provided by the public operator and for higher revenues, deriving from the energy sale and/or the saving generated by self-consumed energy, that help to integrate the farmer’s income. In this paper, we analyzed a case study of a farm that has realized a grid-connected photovoltaic (PV) system on greenhouse. In particular, firstly the farm profitability and subsequently was estimated in order to assess the efficiency of the energy policy adopted by the Second Conto Energia in Italy; it the minimum feed-in tariff starting from which the entrepreneur has an economic advantage to realize the PV system was determined. Results show that PV system relegates to a marginal role, the cultivation of agricultural products compared to energy production and that government PV remuneration policies far outweigh the minimum threshold that makes advantageous the investment.
Salvatore Tudisca, Anna Maria Di Trapani, Filippo Sgroi, Riccardo Testa, Riccardo Squatrito. 06/2013. Assessment of Italian energy policy through the study of a photovoltaic investment on greenhouse. African Journal of Agricultural Research. 8(24):3089-3096.
Policy and Regulatory IssuesEconomics
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Italy
Assessment of New Functional Units for Agrivoltaic Systems
In agrivoltaic systems, photovoltaic (PV) modules are ground-mounted between crops replacing a part of greenhouse or are set below or above the cover film of greenhouse; these can provide solutions with respect to land competition and climate change mitigation. These systems have certain additional functions, namely, sunlight sharing, land sharing and power generation, as compared to the conventional agricultural production systems. These new functions are not adequately performed by traditionally used functional units (FUs), such as the mass- or the area-based FU, in agricultural life cycle assessment (LCA). Therefore, this study proposed new FUs for agrivoltaic systems, namely the modified area-based FU and the monetary-based FU. The modified area-based FU was derived by adding area covered by PV modules to the cultivated area addressing the function of land sharing. The monetary-based FU was derived by adding the prices of crops and electricity addressing the function of the system as a producer of differently valued market goods. The traditional area-based FU is based on the function of solar sharing because crop cultivation and power generation share the same sunlight falling on the same land. These new and traditional FUs were applied to a tomato greenhouse, with and without organic photovoltaics, as a case study of Japan. A combination of traditional and new FUs helps to maintain focus on crop production as the primary function of agricultural land and to better understand the environmental impacts of agrivoltaic systems. Finally, as the sharing of sunlight and land happen simultaneously, a method that addresses both these functions while reporting LCA results was considered.
A. Leon, K.N. Ishihara. 2018. Assessment of New Functional Units for Agrivoltaic Systems. Journal of Environmental Management. 226:493-498.
Plant ScienceEconomicsImpact AssessmentsPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Japan
Assessment of a vertical Agrivoltaics installation in the area of Chanco, Maule Region in Chile
This paper presents a cross-sector analysis of a 100 kWp vertical agrivoltaic (AV) case study in Chanco, Maule, Chile. Maule is an agricultural region facing recurring droughts, which put pressure on irrigated lands. The study investigates the potential of vertical AV in two ways: comparing the energy yield prediction of the photovoltaic component with a typical north-tilted PV plant and comparing the water demand of a reference crop in vertical AV with open field conditions. A PVLib and PVFactors python tools were used to evaluate energy production, while spatial evapotranspiration prediction incorporates wind speed and solar irradiation heterogeneities. Results for the climatic year 2021 indicate that a north-tilted power plant produced more energy than a bi-facial vertical AV plant, but the latter represents a significantly less impact on agricultural activities. The analyzed vertical AV presents a lower impact to the grid due to the two peaks in daily power production that spread the generation over the day and does not contribute to the overproduction in the midday that is currently being curtailed when high solar irradiance is present in Chile. Water savings of up to 1410 cubic meters/ha were found in the study with the vertical AV installation mainly due to the reduced irradiation combined with windbreak effects.
Highlights
•Maule region experiences drought, conflicts over water use and PV curtailments.
•Vertical AV could increase water use efficiency of irrigated agriculture in Chile.
•Vertical AV generates microclimate and therefore water need heterogeneities.
•Production profile of vertical AV could reduce the PV curtailment issues.
Roxane Bruhwyler, Hugo Sánchez, Carlos Meza, Frédéric Lebeau, Pascal Brunet, Gabriel Dabadie , Sebastian Dittmann, Ralph Gottschalg, Juan Jose Negroni. 12/2023. Assessment of a vertical Agrivoltaics installation in the area of Chanco, Maule Region in Chile. Sustainable Energy Technologies and Assessments. 60:
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MicroclimatologyHydrologyPV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Chile
Assessment of the Ground Coverage Ratio of AgriVoltaic systems as a proxy for potential crop productivity
The yield of crops in both agrivoltaic (AV) and agroforestry (AF) systems is difficult to predict. The shade pattern of an AV system is not typical and is quite different from the one of AF systems. Most countries allow AV systems on croplands only if the crop productivity is maintained (e.g., in France) or slightly reduced, as in Japan and Germany, with 80% and 66% minimum relative yield (RY) required, respectively. I suggest using the Ground Coverage Ratio (GCR: ratio of area of photovoltaic panels to area of land) as an indicator of the crop potential productivity in AV systems. The GCR can easily be computed and controlled for all kinds of AV systems with panels that are either fixed (horizontal, tilted, or vertical) or mobile (on 1- or 2-axis trackers). Here, I provide a synthesis of published data for crop productivity under AV systems. Only publications that provided both the GCR of the system and the crop RYs were included. Measuring RYs requires a reliable non-AV control plot. Several publications were excluded because of doubts regarding the measurements’ validity (e.g., systems that are too small, resulting in strong edge effects, or unreliable control plots). Despite the scattering of results, a clear pattern is evidenced: RYs decrease rapidly when GCRs increase. It appears that a GCR < 25% is required to ensure that most crop RYs stay > 80%. These results are consistent with a recent meta-analysis examining the impact of shade on crops. The use of the GCR criterion to validate AV projects is a simple and cost-effective alternative to the tricky control of crop yields in the fields.
Christian Dupraz. 09/2023. Assessment of the Ground Coverage Ratio of AgriVoltaic systems as a proxy for potential crop productivity. Agroforestry Systems.
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MicroclimatologyStandardization and Best PracticesToolsMethodological ComparisonsReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Assessment of the Impact of the Combination of Crops With Solar Concentrators on Their Productivity
The main factors determining the need for the widespread development of the green economy and the growing need for the use of renewable energy sources are identified. The article highlights the possibility of using green energy devices in agricultural complexes and proposes a model for assessing the impact of using solar concentrators together with the agricultural crops on the productivity of the latter. The comparison is made for two countries – Azerbaijan and Mexico, in which economy the oil industry is leading. It is shown that the relief and climate of both countries have many common features, particularly expressed in the abundance of solar radiation, the predominance of mountainous regions with remote and hard-to-reach settlements that need to create autonomous life support systems. The problem of combining solar energy and agriculture is analyzed, examples of successful experiments in this area are given, objective functions and models are proposed to establish the relationship between the parameters of agricultural fields and the characteristics of concentrators.
T. Baydyk, M.H. Mammadova, E. Kussul, G.V. Herrera, A. Curtidor5. 2022. Assessment of the Impact of the Combination of Crops With Solar Concentrators on Their Productivity. Problems of Information Society. 13(1):11-18.
Reviews/InformationalSiting
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Azerbaijan, Mexico
Assessment of the ecological niche of photovoltaic agriculture in China
To evaluate the ecological niche of photovoltaic agriculture in China, an evaluation index system was constructed. Based on the presentation form of interval numbers, we used the interval entropy weight method and interval cloud model to measure the niche state value and niche role value of photovoltaic agriculture. In this way, we determined the development trend of the ecological niche of photovoltaic agriculture. The results show that Chinese photovoltaic agriculture is in a good state and plays a good, but weak, role. The ecological niche of China’s photovoltaic agriculture will undergo a four-stage evolution process: positioning, integration, leap, and symbiosis. China has completed the positioning stage and entered the integration stage. Hence, it is important to constantly improve the level of industrial integration technology and to form a new photovoltaic agriculture recycling economic ecosystem.
Lingjun Wang, Yuing Wang, Jian Chen. 2019. Assessment of the ecological niche of photovoltaic agriculture in China. Journal of Sustainability. 11(8):
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Market AssessmentsEconomicsStandardization and Best Practices
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
Association between Dynamic Agrivoltaic System and Cultivation: Viability, Yields and Qualitative Assessment of Medical Plants
This study investigated the comparative cultivation of six medicinal plant species (sage, oregano, rosemary, lavender, thyme, and mint) in a dynamic agrivoltaic (AV) system and a neighboring control plot exposed to full sun (referred to as “T”). Specifically, within the dynamic AV system, two distinct plot areas on the ground were identified due to the rotation of the panels: one consistently in the shade of the solar panels (UP), and another alternately in shade and sunlight (BP). The study involved the measurement of solar radiation, air temperature, and infrared leaf temperature during crop growth in these designated plots. Additionally, a weed survey was conducted at harvest time. The findings revealed that solar radiation, air temperature, infrared leaf temperature, and weed coverage were notably lower in the UP plot compared to both the BP and T plots. Furthermore, the yield of essential oils in sage, thyme, mint, and rosemary plants was higher in both the UP and BP plots than in the T plot. Hence, these factors seemingly positively impacted the performance of specific medicinal crops within the dynamic AV system. This information holds significance for producers and processors concerning crop quality.
Grazia Disciglio, Laura Frabboni, Annalisa Tarantino, Antonio Stasi. 2023. Association between Dynamic Agrivoltaic System and Cultivation: Viability, Yields and Qualitative Assessment of Medical Plants. MDPI Sustainability. 15(23):
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Plant ScienceMicroclimatology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Italy
Balancing Crop Production and Energy Harvesting in Organic Solar-Powered Greenhouses
Adding semitransparent organic solar cells (ST-OSCs) to a greenhouse structure enables simultaneous plant cultivation and electricity generation, thereby reducing the greenhouse energy demand. However, there is a need to establish the impact of such systems on plant growth and indoor climate and to optimize system tradeoffs. In this work, we consider plant growth under OSCs and system-relevant design. We evaluate the growth of red leaf lettuce under ST-OSC filters and compare the impact of three different OSC active layers that have unique transmittance. We find no significant differences in the fresh weight and chlorophyll content of the lettuce grown under these OSC filters. In addition, OSCs provide an opportunity for further light and thermal management of the greenhouse through device design and optical coatings. The OSCs can thus affect plant growth, power generation, and thermal load of the greenhouse, and this design trade space is reviewed and exemplified.
E. Ravishankar, M. Charles, Y. Xiong, R. Henry, J. Swift, J.R.J. Calero, S. Cho, R.E. Booth, T. Kim, A.H. Balzer, Y. Qin, C.H.Y. Ho, F. So, N. Stingelin, A. Amassian, C. Saravitz, W. You, H. Ade, H. Sederoff, B.T. O’Connor. 2021. Balancing Crop Production and Energy Harvesting in Organic Solar-Powered Greenhouses. Cell Reports Physical Science. 2(3):
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HydrologyPlant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Beyond Energy Balance in Agrivoltaic Food Production: Emergent Crop Traits From Color Selective Solar Cells
Semi-transparent organic solar cells (ST-OSCs) offer new agrivoltaic opportunities to meet the growing demands for sustainable food production. The tailored absorption/transmission spectrum of ST-OSCs not only impacts the power generated, but also aspects of crop growth, development and responses to the biotic and abiotic environments. The general relationships between these variables are unknown. Here, we grow red oak leaf lettuce (Lactuca sativa), a traditional greenhouse crop, under three different ST-OSC filters and observe little overall differences on productivity in response to the altered light exposure. In contrast, several key traits involving nutrient content and nitrogen utilization as well as plant defense against herbivory and pathogens are modified over the controls under select OSCs. Overall, our genomic analysis reveals that lettuce production exhibits beneficial traits under exposure from select ST-OSCs. ST-OSCs integrated into greenhouses are, therefore, not only a promising technology for energy-neutral crop production as previously shown but can deliver benefits beyond those based on energy-balance considerations.
M. Charles, B. Edwards, E. Ravishankar, J. Calero, R. Henry, J. Rech, C. Savitz, W. You, H. Ade, B. O’Connor, H. Sederoff. 2022. Beyond Energy Balance in Agrivoltaic Food Production: Emergent Crop Traits From Color Selective Solar Cells. bioRxiv. 1-22.
HydrologyPlant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Bifacial Vertical Photovoltaic System Design for Farming Irrigation System
The increase in population leads to an upsurge in food demands which also expend the agriculture activities. A wide range of electrically powered machines is essential for the success of modern agriculture setup. Farming required electrical power for numerous activities such as irrigations and electric tractors. A large number of farms are located in remote areas where access to electricity could be costly. Also, farms that are located within the electrical grid suffer from the cost of electricity bills. In line with the United Nations' recommendations to deploy renewable energy sources for electrical power generations, photovoltaic systems are installed for farming activities across countries. A photovoltaic system converts solar radiation into electrical power and with the use of advanced power electronics devices, PV technologies become very attractive to farmers. The work in this paper capture the PV system operation for farming purposes. The contents cover standard PV panels and their current deployment layout for farms. The paper introduces the bifacial panel's concept and its novel layout. Furthermore, the paper proposed a novel installation layout for bifacial panels to support the farm electrical demands. The case study, which is based on three-phase irrigation pumps, explains and verifies the advanced role that the proposed layout of bifacial panels over the standard one. The advantages of the proposed installation layout are also included.
Ghalia Nasserddine, Mohammad Nassereddine. 06/2022. Bifacial Vertical Photovoltaic System Design for Farming Irrigation System. Indonesian Journal of Electrical Engineering and Informatics. 10(2):489-497.
System Configuration
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Lebanon, United Arab Emirates
Bilayer luminescent solar concentrators with enhanced absorption and efficiency for agrivoltaic applications
Luminescent solar concentrators are a promising route to environmentally integrated photovoltaics, acting as multifunctional systems that simultaneously generate electricity and transmit sunlight. For agrivoltaic applications, the ability to tune the transmission spectrum of the LSC to optimize crop growth while generating electricity is essential. Here we study a bilayer luminescent solar concentrator composed of a film of Si nanocrystals embedded in poly(methyl methacrylate) and a film of CdSe/CdS nanocrystals embedded in poly(cyclohexylethylene) for potential application in agrivoltaics. Position-dependent photoluminescence measurements demonstrate exceptionally high waveguide efficiency for the Si NC layer, and the films have relatively low diffuse transmission and reflection, indicating low levels of scattering. Using Monte Carlo ray-tracing simulations and experimental characterization, we show that the CdSe/CdS NC layer primarily increases the absorption efficiency of the Si NC-based LSC through a combination of direct absorption enhancement and sensitization. This bilayer system offers significant transmission spectrum tunability across the absorption bands of chlorophyll, which may be useful for agrivoltaic studies of different crop species.
John Keil, Yaling Liu, Uwe Kortshagen*, and Vivian E. Ferry. 11/2021. Bilayer luminescent solar concentrators with enhanced absorption and efficiency for agrivoltaic applications. ACS Applied Energy Materials. 4(12):14102-14110.
MicroclimatologyPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Biodiversity and Solar – Tackling the Twin Crises
The urgent need to reduce our dependence on greenhouse gas (GHG) emission intensive sources of energy is widely recognised. Usually, this is related to climate change mitigation, yet the climate emergency is closely tied to the equally looming biodiversity crisis. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) together with the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) published a joint report highlighting that biodiversity loss, together with climate change, is one of the biggest threats of the Anthropocene1. The twin crises of climate change and biodiversity loss are inextricably linked in a two-way process: Climate change is one of the main drivers of the biodiversity crisis, but the loss of ecosystems weakens our planet’s capacity to regulate GHG emissions and defend against extreme weather. As a consequence, climate change is further exacerbated. Nature increasingly lacks the capacity to absorb more negative impacts from our future developments.
Fabiola Schneider (Elgin Energy). 2022. Biodiversity and Solar – Tackling the Twin Crises. Elgin Energy: Elgin Energy.
Reviews/Informational
Biomass Production of a Sub-Tropical Grass Under Different Photovoltaic Installations Using Different Grazing Strategies
CONTEXT: With increasing population growth and land-use competition, pasture production under photovoltaic installations offers an alternative paradigm for crop-livestock integration. The levels of pasture biomass production and potential for livestock grazing under photovoltaic installations depend considerably on the mode of the photovoltaic system.
OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to model pasture production for sub-tropical grass under different photovoltaic installations and assess the effects of different grazing methods on sub-tropical pasture productivity in Australia. METHODS: Pasture biomass production under a fixed-tilt array, single-axis tracking array, and dual-axis tracking array were measured for the calibration and validation of Agricultural Production Systems sIMulator (APSIM) to simulate four different grazing strategies: (1) without grazing; (2) 21 days grazing interval; (3) 45 days grazing interval; and (4) continuous stocking. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: The APSIM model showed satisfactory performance in simulating sub-tropical pasture production under different photovoltaic installations, with the best correspondence under the fixed-tilt array (observed value 6073 kg ha−1 and simulated value 6292 kg ha−1). As compared to full sun condition, biomass production was found to be 15.82, 13.53, and 8.03% higher with the fixed-tilt, single-axis tracking, and dual-axis tracking array, respectively. The model was then used in scenario analysis to evaluate pasture biomass production under different grazing strategies. Simulation results depict the grazing effect on pastures under the photovoltaic systems. Without grazing, maximum biomass production occurred under the fixed-tilt array (7798 kg ha−1) compared to under the single-axis tracking array (7671 kg ha−1), dual-axis tracking array (7186 kg ha−1), and full sun (6766 kg ha−1). In the case of 21 days and 45 days of grazing, the 25-year biomass production under the full sun was lower than all other systems. Compared to other treatments, the fixed titled array offers better performing pasture-grazing integration under a photovoltaic system. We found that models predicted that an increase in grazing pressure via continuous grazing had comparatively similar impacts on sub-tropical pasture biomass production irrespective of photovoltaic installations. Therefore, the potential exists to maximise land use efficiency where options are available to grow and graze pasture under photovoltaic installations
SIGNIFICANCE: This study confirms that the APSIM-Growth model, calibrated for Bambatsi Panic, can simulate pasture growth in different shading phenomena under the agrivoltaic system. Additionally, this simulation of the grazing systems is essential to identify crucial modelling and direct investigations that could expand knowledge of the procedures and relationships required for model development of pasture production under photovoltaic farms.M. A. A. Mamun, I. I. Garba, S. Campbell, P. Daragusch, A. A. Aziz. 05/2023. Biomass Production of a Sub-Tropical Grass Under Different Photovoltaic Installations Using Different Grazing Strategies. Agricultural Systems. 208:N/A.
LivestockPlant ScienceSoilSystem ConfigurationMicroclimatologyReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Australia
CFD Study of Climate Conditions Under Greenhouses Equipped with Photovoltaic Panels
Predicting accurately the microclimate distributed inside greenhouse equipped with
photovoltaic panels is a prerequisite for sustainable energy-saving greenhouse management. It can also help to improve designers in improving the design of these kinds of greenhouse while enhancing the radiation transmission inside. This study is an essential prerequisite for research on crop namely those adapted to specific conditions in greenhouses equipped with photovoltaic panels. With this mind, the solar radiation distribution, thermal air, water vapour and dynamics fields were simulated using the CFD model in two types of greenhouses (Asymmetric and Venlo) equipped with photovoltaic panels on their roof, as well as crop cover characteristics and the interactions between crops and airflow. A detailed description of the thermal, dynamic and radiation fields inside the greenhouse were obtained and the analysis of data collected during this study show that (i) the solar radiation is more evenly distributed in the Venlo greenhouse than in the Asymmetric greenhouse. On an average, the solar radiation transmission in the Asymmetric greenhouse is 41.6% whereas that of the Venlo greenhouse is 46%. These luminosity values are not well adapted to plant requirements. (ii) For the same boundary conditions, the Venlo greenhouse has a cooler climate than the Asymmetrical greenhouse (-3°C in summer and -3°C in winter). This effect is beneficial in summer, but not interesting in winter. The various different openings in the Venlo greenhouse help to maintain temperature control and a homogeneous climate
(temperature variation of 5°C in summer and 3.3°C in winter).H. Fatnassi, C. Poncet, R. Brun, M.M. Muller, N. Bertin. 2014. CFD Study of Climate Conditions Under Greenhouses Equipped with Photovoltaic Panels. In: Y.A. Al-Mulla, M. Ahmed, H. Jayasuriya, editors. ISHS Acta Horticulturae 1054. International Conference on Agricultural Engineering: New Technologies for Sustainable Agricultural Production and Food Security; 2013/02/24; Muscat, Oman. Acta Horticulturae: International Society for Horticultural Science; p.
(!)
MicroclimatologySystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Conference Paper
COMPARISON OF DIFFERENT AGRIPV LAYOUTS IN TERMS OF PHOTOVOLTAIC ENERGY YIELD OUTPUT
Agrivoltaics (AV) presents an economical solution to address both food security and the decarbonization of our energy systems. This synergy between agricultural crops and photovoltaic (PV) systems holds the potential to increase land productivity significantly, drawing considerable interest from academia and the industrial sector. However, despite the promise of this dual-use approach, numerous questions remain unanswered regarding the optimization of light harvesting systems. The multitude of possible configurations necessitates thorough analysis to identify the most productive system layouts. This study presents a case study involving computational simulations that utilize measured meteorological data to optimize energy yield for various system topologies based on the DIN SPC 91434 regulation. These topologies include elevated fixed systems (CAT.1 and CAT.2), vertical bifacial systems with east-west orientation (14m and 24m spacing), and single-axis tracking systems, all assessed in the context of a field located in Bernburg, Germany. The study establishes a comparative framework for evaluating different system integration layouts and assesses the remaining ground irradiance for each configuration. Our design optimization approach prioritizes energy yield for these systems while considering its impact on the light profile for crop cultivation. This analysis is pivotal for comprehending the real-world productivity of innovative AV schemes and providing guidance for future AV plant installations. We specifically focus on comparing energy yield estimates, employing high-quality measured data, and considering field constraints related to land utilization, such as the operability of machinery for crop farming. The ensuing discussion aims to offer insights into current and future regulations and inform stakeholders involved in the decision-making process for AV system design. Ultimately, our goal is to provide precise tools that promote the adoption of agrivoltaics across various stakeholders, contributing valuable solutions to the challenges of energy transition and food security.
Hugo Sánchez, Sebastian Dittmann, Carlos Meza, Ralph Gottschalg. 2023. COMPARISON OF DIFFERENT AGRIPV LAYOUTS IN TERMS OF PHOTOVOLTAIC ENERGY YIELD OUTPUT. In: 40th European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference and Exhibition; 2023/09/18; Lisbon, Portugal. 40th European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference and Exhibition: Researchgate; p.
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PV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Germany
COVID-19 Technical Assistance Program: Agrivoltaic for Rural Economic Development and Electric Grids Resilience.
Over the past 50 years, the Renewable Energy Program at Sandia has advanced research in the field with a focus on three key goals; 1) reduce the cost, 2) improve resilience and reliability and, 3) decrease the regulatory burden of renewable energy. Sandia’s expertise, coupled with the Village of Questa’s expanding renewable energy portfolio, presents the opportunity to deploy the Labs’ deep science and engineering capabilities towards the energy goals of KCEC and the Village of Questa.
Preliminary research efforts by Sandia technical staff has broadly identified early opportunities for further research, development, and demonstration in the emerging renewable energy segment of agrivoltaics. Agrivoltaics is an emerging and promising area of photovoltaics which entails land use considerations as well as concerns regarding landscape transformation, biodiversity, and ecosystem well-being. In recent years, agrivoltaics systems have been the subject of numerous studies due to their potential in the food-energy (and water) nexus. This document is a preliminary evaluation of the projects performance opportunities of agrivoltaics as a renewable energy technology strategy in the region of Questa, NM.
CB. Jones, M. Ropp, M. Martinez (Sandia National Laboratories). 2022. COVID-19 Technical Assistance Program: Agrivoltaic for Rural Economic Development and Electric Grids Resilience.. Albuquerque, New Mexico: Sandia National Laboratories. Report No.: SAND2022-6289R 706072. Contract No.: NA0003525.
Reviews/InformationalMarket AssessmentsEconomicsSiting
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Report
Country
United States
State
New Mexico
Can Solar Energy Fuel Pollinator Conservation?
As the expansion of solar power spreads through much of the United States, members of the solar industry are working to change how solar energy facilities are designed and presented to the public. This includes the addition of habitat to conserve pollinators. We highlight and discuss ongoing efforts to couple solar energy production with pollinator conservation, noting recent legal definitions of these practices. We summarize key studies from the field of ecology, bee conservation, and our experience working with members of the solar industry (e.g., contribution to legislation defining solar pollinator habitat). Several recently published studies that employed similar practices to those proposed for solar developments reveal features that should be replicated and encouraged by the industry. These results suggest the addition of native, perennial flowering vegetation will promote wild bee conservation and more sustainable honey beekeeping. Going forward, there is a need for oversight and future research to avoid the misapplication of this promising but as of yet untested practice of coupling solar energy production with pollinatorfriendly habitat. We conclude with best practices for the implementation of these additions to realize conservation and agricultural benefits.
A.G. Dolezal, J. Torres, M.E. O’Neal. 2021. Can Solar Energy Fuel Pollinator Conservation?. Environmental Entomology. 50(4):757-761.
Reviews/InformationalEntomology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
Can We Have Clean Energy and Grow Our Crops Too? Solar Siting on Agricultural Land in the United States
A record amount of large-scale solar development is proposed and under construction in the US Midwest, much of it on agricultural land. This article contributes to the social science literature on renewable energy and public acceptance by addressing stakeholder perspectives on developing utility-scale solar power on agricultural land and complex institutional dynamics that shape these siting decisions. How do stakeholders' interactions coproduce solar siting decisions? How are the existing complex contexts of energy and agricultural systems affecting solar siting? Whom are the stakeholders involved in agricultural solar siting, and how do their epistemic paradigms about using agricultural land differ? To answer these questions, interviews were conducted and analyzed across energy, agriculture, government, and expert stakeholder groups, focusing on Michigan and comparison to stakeholder interviews conducted in 23 states for generalizability. The results provide a conceptual map of the actors and institutions shaping solar siting on agricultural land and characterize the main epistemic paradigms affecting stakeholder conflict. Agricultural community perceptions identified in this study relate to identity and farmland, the decisions of local farmland renters and non-operating landlords, prime versus lower quality farmland, farm financial viability, and farmland as private property or public good. Some scientists and engineers seek to alleviate conflicts and drawbacks of agricultural land conversion by combining farming and solar energy generation: a practice called agrivoltaics. We argue that agrivoltaics are currently treated as a technological fix by disregarding stakeholder interaction within complex institutions. We conclude by identifying interdisciplinary research priorities to develop socially robust designs.
S. Moore, H. Graff, C. Ouellet, S. Leslie, D. Olweean. 09/2022. Can We Have Clean Energy and Grow Our Crops Too? Solar Siting on Agricultural Land in the United States. ENergy Research and Social Science. 91:1-16.
Social PerspectivesEconomicsPolicy and Regulatory Issues
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Animal Grazing
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
Can synergies in agriculture through an integration of solar energy reduce the cost of agrivoltaics? An economic analysis in apple farming
Agrivoltaics is a relatively new concept of agriculture and photovoltaic power generation on the same area. While an increased land use efficiency and potential synergies between agriculture and power generation speak in favor of agrivoltaics, higher investment cost compared to ground-mounted photovoltaics represents a challenge for a broader market launch in most countries.
This work analyses the economic performance of agrivoltaics in apple farming focusing on potential synergies and adverse effects regarding investment requirements and operational cost of the farming system. The analysis is based on literature, expert interviews, and data of three pilot projects in Germany. The results show that average investment cost from the farming system could be reduced by 26% mainly due to partially replacing the hail protection structure. Annual operating costs of the farming system reduce by up to 9% through lower cost for land and maintenance works. However, annual revenues also decrease by about 9% due to an expected reduction in high quality apple yield. Overall, the cost of apple production decreases by about 5%. Regarding the total cost of agrivoltaics, though, the potential contribution from cost savings in the farming sector to reduce the cost of electricity only amounts to <1%. The expected Land Equivalent Ratio of the analyzed agrivoltaic system amounts to 1.54.
The results indicate that agrivoltaics in orcharding is only economically feasible if the regulatory framework provides sufficiently high feed-in tariffs or comparable support payments. The work also shows that the theoretical potential of agrivoltaics in apple farming in Germany amounts to 23.8 GWp which could contribute to 13% of the PV development required to meet Germany's climate goals by 2030.Max Trommsdorff, Michaela Hopf, Oliver Hörnle, Matthew Berwind, Stephan Schindele, Kerstin Wydra. 11/2023. Can synergies in agriculture through an integration of solar energy reduce the cost of agrivoltaics? An economic analysis in apple farming. Applied Energy. 350:
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Economics
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Germany
Capital Costs for Dual-Use Photovoltaic Installations: 2020 Benchmark for Ground-Mounted PV Systems with Pollinator-Friendly Vegetation, Grazing, and Crops
This report analyzes the installed system cost of various multi-land use PV system configurations. We used PV system bottom-up cost model accounting for all system and project-development costs incurred during the installation to model the costs for conventional PV systems, PV systems co-located with sheep grazing, PV systems co-located with pollinator friendly fields and PV systems co-located with crops. We also conducted extensive sensitivity analysis around different PV system design parameters given the nascent stage of this industry.
Kelsey Horowitz, Vignesh Ramasamy, Jordan Macknick, Robert Margolis (National Renewable Energy Laboratory,). 2020. Capital Costs for Dual-Use Photovoltaic Installations: 2020 Benchmark for Ground-Mounted PV Systems with Pollinator-Friendly Vegetation, Grazing, and Crops. US Office of Scientific and Technical Information: NREL.
EconomicsSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production, Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Report
Country
United States
Case Study on Power Generation from Agrivoltaic System in India
This study evaluates the performance of a 7.2 kWp SPV power plant that was installed in the field
of the REE department of the College of Agriculture Engineering and Technology, JAU, Junagadh (21.5 N, 70.1 E). According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), the SPV power plant's performance was evaluated. The power plant was properly observed for whole year. Average system efficiency, capacity factor, and overall performance ratio were found to be 80.83%, 16.03%, and 12.07% respectively during the experiment. Total 10104.77 kWh were produced during the experimental period. The performance of this Agrivoltaic system is produce equivalent
solar power as it is from PV systems installed.U.R. Patel, G.A. Gadhiya, P.M. Chauhan. 07/2023. Case Study on Power Generation from Agrivoltaic System in India. International Journal of Environment and Climate Change. 13(9):1447-1454.
PV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
India
Central Java Natural Condition for Agrivoltaic System Development
With population growth which increases every year, it will also be
accompanied by a reduction in natural resources and energy. These natural resources are in the form of food needs. With the increasing demand for food and energy needs, there must also be the development of technology in the field of electricity generation. One of them is the development of the agrivoltaic system. Agrivoltaic is a concept that combines land use with the generation of electri- cal energy needs. The purpose of this study is to find out with data on natural conditions in Central Java whether it can be used for the development of an agri- voltaic system. Researchers have conducted research with plants that are suitable for the agrivoltaic system and based on the available data, these plants are widely planted in Central Java, including: peanuts, tomatoes, and green beans. Data on the amount of land with plants suitable for agrivoltaic development of 4,800 hectares is expected to produce 2,400 MWp of energy. This study concludes that it can provide an overview of the natural conditions of Central Java so that it can be used
as a reference for the development of the agrivoltaic system in the future.Danang Hendrawan, Iwan Setiawan, Susatyo Handoko. 2023. Central Java Natural Condition for Agrivoltaic System Development. In: Proceedings of the 4th International Seminar on Science and Technology (ISST 2022). 4th International Seminar on Science and Technology (ISST 2022); 2022/11/02; Palu, Indonesia. Advances in Physics Research: Atlantis Press; p.
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Market AssessmentsSitingReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Indonesia
Challenges for Agrivoltaics in the International Context
Agrivoltaics is an approach to co-locate photovoltaics (PV) and agriculture on the same piece of land. The concept of dual use has received considerable attention around the world. Several factors such as an increased scientific publication activity and stakeholder interest as well as growth in number of pilot facilities point towards mainstreaming of agrivoltaics as an established application of PV. Despite this however, in most regions of the world, deployment is still in its infant stages. Studies concerning barriers of agrivoltaics sector development are rare, this study is the first research that comprehensively and systematically identifies agrivoltaic literature and deducts major challenges and conducted a weighting score assessment using the analytical hierarchy process (AHP) method.A thorough and systematic literature review has been performed, including most research papers available. The year 2021 has seen a steep increase of publication and indicates the advent of agrivoltaics as a larger research field. Based on this review challenges of legal/political, agronomical, financial, cultural/value-based, technological, and industrial/infrastructural categories have been elaborated and 18 sub-aspects were identified. In a second step these aspects were included in an online survey conducted among agrivoltaics related professional participants of the AgriVoltaics2021 conference. In additions nine expert interviews were conducted for a more detailed view on narratives. The results were then analyzed by the respondent’s region and professional background. By providing these insights the study aims to inform the future development of the sector and give orientation to further research to address these challenges.
M. Vorast. 2022. Challenges for Agrivoltaics in the International Context [Thesis]. [University of Graz]: University of Graz.
Social PerspectivesReviews/InformationalPolicy and Regulatory Issues
Characterisation of Bioactive Compounds in Berries from Plants Grown under Innovative Photovoltaic Greenhouses
BACKGROUND: Bioactive compounds, mainly polyphenols, present in berries, are thought to be responsible for the health
benefits of these fruit. Therefore, it is worthwhile to define the optimal environmental conditions to maximise their polyphenol content. OBJECTIVE: With the aim to define the optimal conditions for berry cultivation in an innovative environment, red rasp- berry, wild strawberry and blackberry plants were grown in a traditional greenhouse in comparison with two photovoltaic greenhouses with different shading area. METHODS: Hydroalcoholic extracts of ripe berries were evaluated by HPLC analysis, for their anthocyanins, organic acids and sugar contents. Moreover, phenolic content (by the Folin-Ciocalteu assay) and antioxidant activity (by the Trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity-TEAC assay) were assayed on the same berry extracts. RESULTS: Total anthocyanins, phenols content and antioxidant capacity tended to increase in berries grown under shading. The sugars content was, mostly, not negatively influenced by the shading. Conversely, the organic acids content, in some instances, increased along with the shading percentage. CONCLUSIONS: It can be concluded that it is possible to combine the greenhouse production of high-quality berries (with a particular focus on polyphenols, bioactive compounds valuable for human health) with the production of renewable energy,
in the context of sustainable agriculture.Federica Blando, Carmela Gerardi, Massimiliano Renna, Sergio Castellano, Francesco Serio. 2018. Characterisation of Bioactive Compounds in Berries from Plants Grown under Innovative Photovoltaic Greenhouses. Journal of Berry Research. 8(1):55-69.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologySystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Italy
Characterization of Agrivoltaic Crop Environment Conditions Using Opaque and Thin-Film Semi-Transparent Modules
Agrivoltaics (APV), the co-location of agriculture and photovoltaics (PV), addresses an inherent competition for land usage. Taking the same dual-use concept to the urban landscape, rooftop APV can provide locally grown food in areas of need while providing distributed energy generation. In this multi-year investigation, different APV plots in northern Colorado, USA, were studied for crop metrics, light transmission, air temperature, soil/substrate temperature and moisture. Crops were grown under different solar panel types including opaque silicon and opaque and semi-transparent (ST) thin-film CdTe technologies. Growth conditions were characterized showing generally improved conditions and moderated temperatures under the panels. The ST-CdTe panels had increased photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) compared to both opaque panel types without a significant corresponding increase in temperature.
M. Uchanski, T. Hickey, J. Bousselot, K. L. Barth. 03/2023. Characterization of Agrivoltaic Crop Environment Conditions Using Opaque and Thin-Film Semi-Transparent Modules. Energies. 16(7):1-11.
SoilPlant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Crosscutting PV, Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
Colorado
Characterization of an Experimental Agrivoltaic Installation Located in a Educational Centre for Farmers in Cordoba (Spain)
The continuous growth of the world population is causing an increase in the demands for food and energy of the population. Given these circumstances and the negative consequences derived from climate change, it is necessary to evolve towards a more efficient and sustainable agricultural system. In this sense, the agrivoltaic proposes to combine agricultural production and photovoltaic energy production in the same piece of land. Several studies have analysed the behaviour of the agrivoltaic facilities from a theoretical point of view. However, it is necessary to test the viability of this new system in experimental plants. In this work an experimental agrivoltaic plant developed in Córdoba (Spain) is described. The preliminary results of this study show that agrivoltaics can and should play a fundamental role in the energy model of the countries since it promotes the development of renewable energies while improving the economic performance of agricultural land.
M.V. Martínez, L.M.F. Ahumada, M.F. García, P.F. García, F.C. Torre, R.L. Luque. 2022. Characterization of an Experimental Agrivoltaic Installation Located in a Educational Centre for Farmers in Cordoba (Spain). Renewable Energy and Power Quality Journal. 20:111-115.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatology
Circularity and Landscape Experience of Agrivoltaics: A Systematic Review of Literature and Built Systems
Reducing greenhouse gas emissions is a global challenge. Innovative agrivoltaic systems that combine agriculture and solar energy production is one set of the solutions to reduce these emissions. While circularity is a pressing issue in agriculture and landscape experience in solar energy production, these issues have received little attention in relationship to agrivoltaics. This study examines aspects of circularity and landscape experience in built agrivoltaic projects reported in scientific literature and recently constructed agrivoltaic projects in the Netherlands. Understanding circularity and landscape experience in agrivoltaics contributes to enabling agri-
culture transitions and increasing public acceptance.
Peer-reviewed literature was used to examine which aspects of circularity and landscape experience were addressed in 16 international agrivoltaics cases. Critical performance indicators were used for circularity and spatial properties for landscape experience. Furthermore, a systematic analysis of ten Dutch agrivoltaic cases was conducted by examining their visibility, accessibility, patch configuration and agricultural land-use beneath the agrivoltaic system.
The results show that contribution to regional economy and vitality of the rural area is the most frequently mentioned circularity indicator, which is found in 82% of the international cases and 60% of the Dutch cases. Low visibility and low accessibility of agrivoltaic systems were found in the majority of Dutch agrivoltaic cases. Limited attention to landscape experience was found in the studied literature. This study provides valuable recommendations for research, farmers and policy makers for advancing transitions towards circular agrivoltaic
power plants that pay more attention to landscape experience.I. Sirnik, J. Sluijsmans, D. Oudes, S. Stremke. 05/2023. Circularity and Landscape Experience of Agrivoltaics: A Systematic Review of Literature and Built Systems. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. 178:1-12.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Netherlands
Clean Energy Consumption of Power Systems Towards Smart Agriculture: Roadmap, Bottlenecks and Technologies
Over the past decades, both agriculture and power
systems have faced serious problems, such as the power supply shortage in agriculture, and difficulties of clean energy consump- tion in the power system. To address and overcome these issues, this paper proposes an idea to combine smart agriculture and clean energy consumption, use surplus clean energy to supply agriculture production, and utilize smart agriculture to support power system with clean energy penetration. A comprehensive review has been conducted to first depict the roadmap of coupling a agriculture-clean energy system, analyze their feasibilities and advantages. The recent technologies and bottlenecks are summa- rized and evaluated for the development of a combined system consisting of smart agriculture production and clean energy consumption. Several case studies are introduced to explore the mutual benefits of agriculture-clean energy systems in both the
energy and food industries.Junyong Liu, Yanxin Chai, Yue Xiang, Xin Zhang, Si Gou, Youbo Liu. 09/2018. Clean Energy Consumption of Power Systems Towards Smart Agriculture: Roadmap, Bottlenecks and Technologies. CSEE JOURNAL OF POWER AND ENERGY SYSTEMS. 4(3):273-282.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
Climate Assessment of Greenhouse Equipped with South-Oriented PV Roofs: An Experimental and Computational Fluid Dynamics Study
The present study was undertaken to better understand the effect of the shading induced by south oriented photovoltaic panels on the distributed climate and plant activities in a mono-span greenhouse using CFD tool. The climate behavior during summer and winter days inside a greenhouse integrated with PV panels on the roof and a reference was assessed. Solar radiation distribution, wind velocity, relative humidity, and ambient temperature from the two greenhouses were presented and energy production and plant activity parameters were evaluated. The greenhouse equipped with photovoltaic panels provides more favorable climatic conditions during summer season. Therefore, results of the paper can be useful for farmers in the Mediterranean area to contain the ability level of this innovative photovoltaic greenhouse crop and to perceive if it can perform a balance between yield crop and PV electricity production. Results showed that PV panels can produce around 55 W/m2 for the cultivation period of January. During a summer day, the solar radiation of the PV greenhouse was lower than that of the reference greenhouse and exceeded 115 W/m2, and the difference between the inside and the outside reached 220 W/m2. The annual solar energy of the photovoltaic panel was around 5054.4 kWh. Accordingly, the shading plays a positive effect on plants in decreasing temperature due to the reduced thermal load of the sun inside the greenhouse. In addition, the payback period of PV system was found to be less than 6 years.
Hela Ben Amara, Salwa Bouadila, Hicham Fatnassi, Müslüm Arici, Amen Allah Guizani. 2021. Climate Assessment of Greenhouse Equipped with South-Oriented PV Roofs: An Experimental and Computational Fluid Dynamics Study. Sustainable Energy Technologies and Assessments. 45:
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MicroclimatologyEconomicsSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
France
Co-generation of Solar Electricity and Agriculture Produce by Photovoltaic and Photosynthesis—Dual Model by Abellon, India
Sustainable use of land and water is crucial in the era of climate change. Abellon Clean Energy has established 3 MW solar plant for practicing agricultural under the solar panels to address food and energy security involving a rural community. This innovation is first of its kind named as “solar-agri-electric model.” The water used for washing the solar panels to maintain efficiency by dust removal irrigates agriculture produce under the panels. This gives 24–34 tones/hectare/yr agriculture produced by reusing 78 lakhs liters of water per year and capturing 250 tons of CO2 in vegetables as food. The 3 MW solar project is registered under clean development mechanism (CDM) under United National Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) that reduces 0.1 million tonnes CO2 emissions over 25 years vis-a-vis fossil fuels. Around 52 MT/yr post-harvested residues are used for organic fertilizer, composting, and fodder. Compound wall to safeguard the project site allowed creeper vegetables to grow and reduces dust deposition on the panels through wind breaking filtration. This initiative enhanced degree of sustainability along with local employment of 215 people from four villages including 156 women. In India, 1059.64 MW installed solar plants have potential to sequester 1,600,000 tons CO2/year with abilities of 10,000 tons of agricultural produce that could employ 2000 people. Worldwide solar farms have potential to sequester 143,000 MTCO2 through vegetation producing 100,000 MT of agriculture produce annually. Efficient use of natural resources requires facilitation of local/regional policies with reference to climatic condition, agricultural potential, and availability of natural resources.
B. Patel, B. Gami, V. Baria, A. Patel, P. Patel. 2018. Co-generation of Solar Electricity and Agriculture Produce by Photovoltaic and Photosynthesis—Dual Model by Abellon, India. Journal of Solar Energy Engineering. 141(3):SOL-18-1189.
Plant ScienceEconomicsImpact AssessmentsMarket Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
India
Co-locating Food and Energy
Co-locating solar panels and crops reduces competition for land between energy and food production. In addition, these agrivoltaic systems create positive synergistic relationships between crops and solar panels.
H. Marrou. 2019. Co-locating Food and Energy. Nature Sustainability. 2:793–794.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Collaborative Optimization of PV Greenhouses and Clean Energy Systems in Rural Areas
As an important infrastructure supporting rural development, an integrated energy system plays an irreplaceable role in China's rural revitalization strategy. The deployment of rural energy projects is an effective way for rural areas to achieve double carbon goals and accelerate agricultural modernization. Based on the actual rural energy systems in northern China, this paper takes the rural energy system with photovoltaic greenhouses as the research object. Both the agrometeorological and energy meteorological models are established considering the meteorological sensitivity of agricultural production and photovoltaic generation. We propose a novel method for optimizing the collaboration between photovoltaic greenhouse load control and rural energy systems. The combined coordination model of agriculture and energy networks is established, and the combined model involves carbon, electrical energy, and thermal energy. Supplemental greenhouse lighting and greenhouse heating consume most of the energy and are finely modeled with focused attention on photosynthesis. Finally, a real-world 47-bus distribution network and three photovoltaic greenhouses in northern China are simulated as an analytical example. The simulation results showed that by using the proposed optimization method, a 3996 m 2 greenhouse with a 25% photovoltaic coverage ratio can save 15% on energy costs.
Xueqian Fu, Yazhong Zhou. 2023. Collaborative Optimization of PV Greenhouses and Clean Energy Systems in Rural Areas. IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON SUSTAINABLE ENERGY. 14(1):642-656.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyEconomicsSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
Colocation Opportunities for Large Solar Infrastructures and Agriculture in Drylands
Solar energy installations in arid and semi-arid regions are rapidly increasing due to technological advances and policy support. Although solar energy provides several benefits such as reduction of greenhouse gases, reclamation of degraded land, and improved quality of life in developing countries, the deployment of large-scale renewable energy infrastructure may negatively impact land and water resources. Meeting the ever-expanding energy demand with limited land and water resources in the context of increasing demand for alternative uses such as agricultural and domestic consumption is a major challenge. The goal of this study was to explore opportunities to colocate solar infrastructures and agricultural crops to maximize the efficiency of land and water use. We investigated the energy inputs/outputs, water use, greenhouse gas emissions, and economics of solar installations in northwestern India in comparison to aloe vera cultivation, another widely promoted and economically important land use in these systems. The life cycle analyses show that the colocated systems are economically viable in some rural areas and may provide opportunities for rural electrification and stimulate economic growth. The water inputs for cleaning solar panels are similar to amounts required for annual aloe productivity, suggesting the possibility of integrating the two systems to maximize land and water use efficiency. A life cycle analysis of a hypothetical colocation indicated higher returns per m3 of water used than either system alone. The northwestern region of India has experienced high population growth in the past decade, creating additional demand for land and water resources. In these water-limited areas, coupled solar infrastructure and agriculture could be established in marginal lands with low water use, thus minimizing the socioeconomic and environmental issues resulting from cultivation of economically important non-food crops (e.g., aloe) in prime agricultural lands.
S. Ravi, J. Macknick, D. Lobell, C. Field, K. Ganesan, R. Jain, M. Elchinger, B. Stoltenberg. 2016. Colocation Opportunities for Large Solar Infrastructures and Agriculture in Drylands. Applied Energy. 165:383-392.
EconomicsImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
India
Combined Land Use of Solar Infrastructure and Agriculture for Socioeconomic and Environmental Co-Benefits in the Tropics
Solar photovoltaics (PV) are on the rise even in areas of low solar insolation. However, in developing countries with limited capital, land scarcity, or with geographically isolated agrarian communities, large solar infrastructures are often impractical. In these cases, implementation of low-density PV over existing crops may be required to integrate renewable energy services into rural communities. Here, using Indonesia as a model system, we investigated the land use, energy, greenhouse gas emissions, economic feasibility, and the environmental co-benefits associated with off-grid solar PV when combined with high value crop cultivation. The life cycle analyses indicate that small-scale dual land-use systems are economically viable in certain configurations and have the potential to provide several co-benefits including rural electrification, retrofitting diesel electricity generation, and electricity for processing agricultural products locally. A hypothetical full-density off-grid solar PV for a model village in Indonesia shows that electricity output (1907.5 GJ yr−1) is much higher than the total residential consumption (678 GJ yr−1), highlighting the opportunity to downscale the PV infrastructure by half to lower capital cost, to co-locate crops, and to support secondary income generating activities. Economic analysis shows that the 30-year net present cost of electricity from the half-density co-located PV system (12,257 million IDR) is significantly lower than that of the flat cost of diesel required to generate equivalent electricity (14,702 million IDR). Our analysis provides insights for smarter energy planning by optimizing the efficiency of land use and limiting conversion of agricultural and forested areas for energy production.
C.S. Choi, S. Ravi, I.Z. Siregar, F.G. Dwiyanti, J. Macknick, M. Elchinger, N.C.Davatzes. 2021. Combined Land Use of Solar Infrastructure and Agriculture for Socioeconomic and Environmental Co-Benefits in the Tropics. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. 151:1-8.
EconomicsPV TechnologiesImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Indonesia
Combining Food and Energy Production: Design of an Agrivoltaic System Applied in Arable and Vegetable Farming in Germany
Combining agriculture and photovoltaics on the same land area gains in attention and political support in a growing number of countries accompanied by notable research activities in France, USA and Korea, amongst others. This study assesses the technical feasibility of agrivoltaic (APV), while it gives insights on how to design an APV system. Furthermore, it analyses the electrical yield and the behavior and productivity of four crops grown in Germany's largest agrivoltaic research facility installed in 2016 near Lake Constance within the research project APV-RESOLA by Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE. The German design differs from most other agrivoltaic approaches by allowing for a wide range of machine employment, facilitated by a vertical clearance of 5 m and a width clearance of up to 19 m. Crops cultivated under the APV system and on the reference field under a crop rotation scheme include potato, celeriac, clover grass and winter wheat.
The land use efficiency measured by the Land Equivalent Ratio (LER) indicated a rise between 56% and 70% in 2017 while the dry and hot summer in 2018 demonstrated that the agrivoltaic system could increase land productivity by nearly 90%. Radiation simulations showed that deviating from full south by around 30° resulted in equal distribution of radiation on ground level, representing the basis for the agrivoltaic design. Considering climate change and increasing land scarcity, our overall results suggest a high potential of agrivoltaics as a viable and efficient technology to address major challenges of the 21rst century.
M. Trommsdorff, J. Kang, C. Reise, S. Schindele, G. Bopp, A. Ehmann, A. Weselek, P. Högy, T. Obergfell. 2021. Combining Food and Energy Production: Design of an Agrivoltaic System Applied in Arable and Vegetable Farming in Germany. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. 140:110694.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesImpact AssessmentsSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Germany
Combining PV and Food Crops to Agrophotovoltaic – Optimization of Orientation and Harvest
Presently ground mounted PV plants and food production are perceived to conflict with each other.
This conflict can be resolved by the concept of Agrophotovoltaics (APV), the combination of PV and agriculture at the same plot. This concept has received little attention although it was proposed long ago. We started by investigating plant growth under existing PV installations and found that many species of natural plants grow quite well under these conditions. From those studies conclusions can be drawn which crops can be cultivated together with PV. Three categories could be identified: Crops that benefit from some shading, crops that are not much influenced and crops that depend on maximum irradiation and are not suitable for APV. We also developed a simulation program that calculates global radiation at ground level inside rows of modules. A major result was that the conventional installation towards south leads to persistent shade and uneven ripening of crops. A solution is to orient the arrays towards south east or south west. A preliminary experiment with salad was carried out confirming these results. The realizable potential for Germany in a conservative estimate was found to be 53 GW which is equal
to the official goal for 2020. Much more potential can be expected for arid and semiarid regions.M. Beck, Georg Bopp, Adolf Goetzberger, Tabea Obergfell, Christian Reise, Stephan Schindele. 2012. Combining PV and Food Crops to Agrophotovoltaic – Optimization of Orientation and Harvest. In: EU PVSEC 2012 27TH EUROPEAN PHOTOVOLTAIC SOLAR ENERGY CONFERENCE AND EXHIBITION; 2012/09/27; Germany. Freising, Germany: NA; p.
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Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem ConfigurationMarket AssessmentsEconomicsImpact Assessments
Combining Photovoltaic Modules and Food Crops: First Agrovoltaic Prototype in Belgium
Agrovoltaic systems (combination of biomass production and electricity production by photovoltaics (PV)) are typically installed in locations with high insolation and/or arid climates in order to protect the crops against drought and sunburn. However, even in Belgium with a temperate maritime climate, summers are getting warmer and dryer, with reduced crop yields as result. This paper describes the first agrovoltaic prototype in Belgium. By use of a coupled simulation program developed in Python, a checkerboard panel arrangement was selected as an initial validation, in order to have a homogeneous ground radiation and crop growth. Potatoes were grown below the PV modules and the microclimate was measured. Results show lower temperatures below the PV modules and less transpiration and evaporation from crop and soil. The leaf area of the potatoes was larger below the PV modules which indicates an adapted light harvesting capability. Night-time temperatures were not seen to be improved under the agrovoltaic checkerboard structure, which indicates that this arrangement may not provide much protection against frost.
B. Willockx, B. Herteleer, J. Cappelle. 2020. Combining Photovoltaic Modules and Food Crops: First Agrovoltaic Prototype in Belgium. Renewable Energy and Power Quality Journal. 18:1-6.
HydrologyPlant ScienceMicroclimatologySystem ConfigurationMethodological Comparisons
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Belgium
Combining Solar Photovoltaic Panels and Food Crops for Optimising Land Use: Towards New Agrivoltaic Schemes
The need for new sources of renewable energies and the rising price of fossil fuels have induced the hope that agricultural crops may be a source of renewable energy for the future. We question in this paper the best strategies to convert solar radiation into both energy and food. The intrinsic efficiency of the photosynthetic process is quite low (around 3%) while commercially available monocristalline solar photovoltaic (PV) panels have an average yield of 15%. Therefore huge arrays of solar panels are now envisaged. Solar plants using PV panels will therefore compete with agriculture for land. In this paper, we suggest that a combination of solar panels and food crops on the same land unit may maximise the land use. We suggest to call this an agrivoltaic system. We used Land Equivalent Ratios to compare conventional options (separation of agriculture and energy harvesting) and two agrivoltaic systems with different densities of PV panels. We modelled the light transmission at the crop level by an array of solar panels and used a crop model to predict the productivity of the partially shaded crops. These preliminary results indicate that agrivoltaic systems may be very efficient: a 35–73% increase of global land productivity was predicted for the two densities of PV panels. Facilitation mechanisms similar to those evidenced in agroforestry systems may explain the advantage of such mixed systems. New solar plants may therefore combine electricity production with food production, especially in countries where cropping land is scarce. There is a need to validate the hypotheses included in our models and provide a proof of the concept by monitoring prototypes of agrivoltaic systems.
C. Dupraz, H. Marrou, G. Talbot, L. Dufour, A. Nogier, Y. Ferard. 2011. Combining Solar Photovoltaic Panels and Food Crops for Optimising Land Use: Towards New Agrivoltaic Schemes. Renewable Energy. 36(10):2725-2732.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologySystem ConfigurationImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
France
Comparative Analysis of PV Configurations for Agrivoltaic Systems in Europe
Agrivoltaics (APV) is the dual use of land by combining agricultural crop production and photovoltaic (PV) systems. In this work, we have analyzed three different APV configurations: static with optimal tilt, vertically-mounted bifacial, and single-axis horizontal tracking. A model is developed to calculate the shadowing losses on the PV panels along with the reduced solar irradiation reaching the area under them for different PV capacity densities. First, we investigate the trade-offs using a location in Denmark as a case study and second, we extrapolate the analysis to the rest of Europe. We find that the vertical and single-axis tracking produce more uniform irradiance on the ground, and a capacity density of around 30 W/m2 is suitable for APV systems. Based on our model and a 100 m-resolution land cover database, we calculate the potential for APV in every NUTS-2 region within the European Union (EU). The potential for APV is enormous as the electricity generated by APV systems could produce 28 times the current electricity demand in Europe. Overall, the potential capacity for APV in Europe is 51 TW, which would result in an electricity yield of 71500 TWh/year.
K.A.K. Niazia, M. Victoria. 11/2022. Comparative Analysis of PV Configurations for Agrivoltaic Systems in Europe. Arxiv. 1-11.
SitingMicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Denmark
Comparative Analysis of Photovoltaic Configurations for Agrivoltaic Systems in Europe
Agrivoltaics is the dual use of land by combining agricultural crop production and photovoltaic (PV) systems. In this work, we have analyzed three different agrivoltaic configurations: static with optimal tilt, vertically mounted bifacial, and single-axis horizontal tracking. A model is developed to calculate the shadowing losses on the PV panels along with the reduced solar irradiation reaching the area under them for different PV capacity densities. First, we investigate the trade-offs using a location in Denmark as a case study and second, we extrapolate the analysis to the rest of Europe. We find that the vertical and single-axis tracking produce more uniform irradiance on the ground, and a capacity density of around 30 W/m2 is suitable for agrivoltaic systems. Based on our model and a 100-m-resolution land cover database, we calculate the potential for agrivoltaic in every region within the European Union. The potential for agrivoltaic is enormous as the electricity generated by agrivoltaic systems could produce 25 times the current electricity demand in Europe. Overall, the potential capacity for agrivoltaic in Europe is 51 TW, which would result in an electricity yield of 71,500 TWh/year.
K. A. K. Niazi, M. Victoria. 2023. Comparative Analysis of Photovoltaic Configurations for Agrivoltaic Systems in Europe. Progress in Photovoltaics. 31(11):
(!) .
MicroclimatologySystem ConfigurationStandardization and Best PracticesReviews/InformationalMarket AssessmentsSiting
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Denmark
Comparative Analysis of Two Agrivoltaic Systems for Nighttime Irrigation of Plain Vegetable Plots
Increase in photovoltaic (PV) installed capacity can lead to conflict of interest between electrical utilities and farmers. The latter can be reluctant to accept the expropriation deal offered by solar PV developers. The dual land use [1] known as agrivoltaics offers a potential solution to this. On the other hand, irrigation of vegetable crops is mandatory in semi-arid climates, to achieve acceptable crop yields and of marketable quality. In these climates, nighttime automated irrigation is generally traditionally demanded for most crops.
Nighttime irrigation from solar electricity implies some kind of energy storage, due to the time offset between solar electricity generation and irrigation. If the croplands are plain, the possibilities of PV water pumping to an elevated reservoir vanish. In this work, we outline a techno-economic comparison between two agrivoltaic setups for nighttime irrigation in semi-arid plains.
Guillermo P. Moreda, M.A. Muñoz, Raúl Sánchez Calv, M.B. Nieto-Morone, M.C. Alonso-García. 2023. Comparative Analysis of Two Agrivoltaic Systems for Nighttime Irrigation of Plain Vegetable Plots. In: 40 EU PVSEC European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference; 2023/09/18; Lisbon, Portugal. Lisbon, Portugal: EU PVSEC; p.
(!)
Plant ScienceEconomics
Comparative Study on the Land-Use Policy Reforms to Promote Agrivoltaics
An increasing number of governments worldwide recognize the potential of agrivoltaics. However, the current legal frameworks and land-use policies are still a limiting factor for a broader expansion of agrivoltaics. This preliminary study compares the legal and policy frameworks in Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Germany, and Massachusetts in the United States to identify common barriers and learning opportunities. The comparative study revealed positive changes for agrivoltaics in most countries in recent years, but many obstacles remain. To unleash the full potential of agrivoltaics, we suggest (1) advancing the institutionalization of agrivoltaics, (2) improve the social acceptance of agrivoltaics, and (3) provide financial incentives specifically for agrivoltaics. Many promising good practice examples to advance these three objectives already exist in the analyzed countries, showing the importance of knowledge sharing in the relatively new field of agrivoltaics to facilitate a fast expansion and avoid costly mistakes.
Makoto Tajima, Christian Doedt, Tetsunari Iida. 2022. Comparative Study on the Land-Use Policy Reforms to Promote Agrivoltaics. In: AGRIVOLTAICS2021 CONFERENCE: Connecting Agrivoltaics Worldwide. AgriVoltaics 2021 Conference; 2021/06/14; Freiburg, Germany. Freiburg, Germany: AIP Publishing; p.
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Policy and Regulatory IssuesReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Germany, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, United States
State
Massachusetts
Comparison of Yield and Yield Components of Several Crops Grown under Agro-Photovoltaic System in Korea
Renewable energy generation has attracted growing interest globally. The agro-photovoltaic (APV) system is a new alternative to conventional photovoltaic power plants, which can simultaneously generate renewable energy and increase agricultural productivity by the use of solar panels on the same farmland. The optimization of crop yields and assessment of their environmental sensitivity under the solar panels have not yet been evaluated with various crop species. This study aimed to evaluate the agronomic performances and crop yields under the APV system and the open field with crop species such as rice, onion, garlic, rye, soybean, adzuki bean, monocropping corn, and mixed planting of corn with soybean in South Korea. The results indicated that there was statistically no negative impact of the APV system on the forage yield of rye and corn over two years, suggesting that forage crops under the APV system were suitable to producing forage yield for livestock. In addition, the measured forage quality of rye was not significantly different between the open field and the APV system. However, rice yield was statistically reduced under the APV system. The yield of legume crops and vegetables in this study did not show consistent statistical results in two years. For further study, crop yield trials will still be required for rice, soybean, adzuki bean, onion, and garlic for multiple years under the APV system.
H. Jo, S. Asekova, M.A. Bayat, L. Ali, J.T. Song, Y.S. Ha, D.H. Hong, J.D. Lee. 2022. Comparison of Yield and Yield Components of Several Crops Grown under Agro-Photovoltaic System in Korea. Agriculture. 12(5):1-13.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
South Korea
Compatibility between Crops and Solar Panels: An Overview from Shading Systems
The use of alternative energy in agricultural production is desired by many researchers, especially for protected crops that are grown in greenhouses with photovoltaic panels on the roofs. These panels allow for the passage of varying levels of sunlight according to the needs of each type of crop. In this way, sustainable and more economic energy can be generated than that offered by fossil fuels. The objective of this work is to review the literature regarding the applications of selective shading systems with crops, highlighting the use of photovoltaic panels. In this work, shading systems have been classified as bleaching, mesh, screens, and photovoltaic modules. The search was conducted using Web of Science Core Collection and Scopus until February 2018. In total, 113 articles from scientific journals and related conferences were selected. The most important authors of this topic are “Yano A” and “Abdel-Ghany AM”, and regarding the number of documents cited, the most important journal is Biosystems Engineering. The year 2017 had the most publications, with a total of 20, followed by 2015 with 14. The use of shading systems, especially of photovoltaic panels, requires more crop-specific research to determine the optimum percentage of panels that does not reduce agricultural production.
R.A. Delgado, J.P. Alonso, Á.J.C. Ferre, B.V. Martí. 2018. Compatibility between Crops and Solar Panels: An Overview from Shading Systems. Sustainability. 10(3):1-19.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Complementarity of Variable Renewable Energy Sources
The water–food–energy nexus approach was identified by the 2008 World Economic Forum as a key concept and methodology for studying and optimizing the important links among energy, water, and food. Energy, water, and food are basic human needs and are threatened by megatrends such as climate change and population growth. Renewable energies play an important role in the energy–water nexus because their water footprint, except for hydropower and bioenergy, is extremely low as compared to conventional fossil-based energy systems, especially for solar power and wind power conversion systems. Solar power and wind power systems reduce pressure on water resources by allowing for better water management, especially when it comes to conflicts between water for energy versus water for food. Renewable energies also represent a key pathway for combating climate change. This chapter introduces the concept of the water–food–energy nexus and its complex interrelationships and gives particular attention to renewable energies. Subsequently, several water–food–energy nexus aspects related to applications of renewable energies are investigated more deeply, with reference to practical examples. Particular attention will be given to floating photovoltaic systems, photovoltaic water-pumping systems, and agrivoltaics. The chapter concludes with the competition of land for energy versus land for food and on the role of the nexus in renewable-based wastewater systems.
Pietro Elia Campana, Richard Lawford. 2022. Complementarity of Variable Renewable Energy Sources. Jakub Jurasz, Alexandre Beluco, editors. United States: Academic Press. 571-614p.
Impact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Book Section
Comprehensive Evaluation of Integrated Applications of Photovoltaics: Case Study of Three Projects in Tianjin, China
Solar energy has gradually become one of the priorities to sustainable energy supply, driven by the urgent need for energy security and the imminent threats of climate change. Diverse photovoltaic (PV) technologies can be applied and integrated with various industries to significantly increase the usage and output value of different assets, such as land appreciation within limited space. In order to quantitatively evaluate the overall performance of various integrated applications of PV, a comprehensive benefit evaluation index system, involving economy, environment, society, and land use, was proposed and applied to three selected PV projects, PV-JWZ, PV-NHPZ, and PV-DPBD, namely, in Tianjin, China. The results indicated that these projects all have great development potential due to their remarkable benefits of energy saving and emission reduction. Therein, the total income of PV-JWZ within 25 years is equal to 1441.9 million CNY, which is dominated by extra income from industrial convergence; PV-NHPZ can offset 231.8 t/(a·hm2) CO2, attributed to its larger installed capacity; while PV-DPBD would acquire strong policy support for distributed PV to further promote the zero-carbon buildings, owing to lower land consumption of 1.4 hm2/MW. By revealing the effectiveness and feasibility of various PV projects, this study could provide a theoretical reference for the promoting and planning various integrated applications of PV in different areas, according to local conditions.
Shijia Chong, I-Shin Chang, Jing Wu. 05/2023. Comprehensive Evaluation of Integrated Applications of Photovoltaics: Case Study of Three Projects in Tianjin, China. Environmental Science and Pollution Research. 30:74111–74126.
Market AssessmentsEconomicsImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Greenhouse, Crop Production, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
Comprehensive Review on the Application of Inorganic and Organic Photovoltaics as Greenhouse Shading Materials
Agrivoltaic greenhouse is a win–win concept which is a creative integration between agriculture and Photovoltaic infrastructures to address the land use competition between solar PV and agriculture especially for anti-seasonal plants. PV shading on the greenhouse roof has attracted more attention in recent years especially in high insolation regions. Heat stress is an inevitable issue that almost exclusively contributed by near-infrared radiation (NIR) and thus affects the microclimate and plant growth of greenhouse. As the emerging PV technology, the absorption spectrum in the active layer of semi-transparent organic PV (OPV) is tunable and extends to NIR range through material selection thus, reduce excess solar heat stress on the plant. Herein, this paper reviews the major studies about different PV materials used in greenhouse roofing at various countries around the world for the last ten years (2010–2020). The development trend of different PV materials on the application of greenhouse could be observed. Active layer materials of OPV with strong NIR absorption and strong visible light transmittance are preferred owing to boosting times of usage and various benefits e.g., non-toxic, flexibility, lowest both on carbon footprint and energy payback time, thus becoming an ideal candidate as greenhouse shading material.
Li Lu, Mohammad Effendy Ya’acob, Mohd Shamsul Anuar, Mohd Nazim Mohtar. 08/2022. Comprehensive Review on the Application of Inorganic and Organic Photovoltaics as Greenhouse Shading Materials. Sustainable Energy Technologies and Assessments. 52(A):
(!) .
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Malaysia
Computational Fluid Dynamics Modelling of Microclimate for a Vertical Agrivoltaic System
The increasing worldwide population leads to a constant increase in energy and food demand. These increasing demands have led to fierce land-use conflicts as we need agricultural land for food production while striving towards renewable energy systems such as large-scale solar photovoltaic (PV) systems, which also require in most of the cases agricultural flat land for implementation. It is therefore essential to identify the interrelationships between the food, and energy sectors and develop intelligent solutions to achieve global goals such as food and energy security. A technology that has shown promising potential in supporting food, and energy security, as well as support water security, is agrivoltaic (AV) systems. This technology combines conventional farm activities with PV systems on the same land. Understanding the microclimatic conditions in an AV system is essential for an accurate assessment of crop yield potential as well as for the energy performance of the PV systems. Nevertheless, the complex mechanisms governing the microclimatic conditions under agrivoltaic systems represent an underdeveloped research area. In this study, a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model for a vertical AV system is developed and validated. The CFD model showed PV module temperature estimation errors in the order of 0-2 °C and ground temperature errors in the order of 0-1 °C. The shadings that occurred due to the vertical module had a reduction of the solar intensity of 38%. CFD modelling can be seen as a robust approach to analysing microclimatic parameters and assessing AV systems performances.
Sebastian Zainali, Omar Qadir, Sertac Cem Parlak, Silvia Ma Lu, Anders Avelin, Bengt Stridh, Pietro Elia Campana. 2023. Computational Fluid Dynamics Modelling of Microclimate for a Vertical Agrivoltaic System. Energy Nexus. 9:
(!) .
SoilMicroclimatologyPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Sweden
Conceptual Design and Rationale for a New Agrivoltaics Concept: Pasture-Raised Rabbits and Solar Farming
Land-use conflicts created by the growth of solar photovoltaics (PV) can be mitigated by applying the concept of agrivoltaics, that is, the co-development of land for both PV and agricultural purposes, to commercial-scale solar installations. In this study, we present a conceptual design for a novel agrivoltaic system based on pasture-fed rabbit farming and provide the technical, environmental and economic analyses to demonstrate the viability of the concept. Included in our analysis are the economic advantages to the PV operator of grazing rabbits at a density sufficient to control vegetative growth, thus reducing the economic and environmental costs of mowing; the dual-revenue stream from the sale of both rabbits and electricity, contrasted with estimates of the capital-investment costs for rabbits co-located with, and also independent of, PV; and the economic value to the rabbit farmer of higher colony-growth rates (made possible by the shading and predator protection provided by the PV arrays and of reduced fencing costs, which are the largest capital cost, by being able to leverage the PV systems for rabbit fencing. We also provide an environmental analysis that suggests that rabbit-PV farming is a pathway to a measurable reduction in agriculturally-generated greenhouse-gas emissions. Our calculations indicate that the co-location of solar and rabbit farms is a viable form of agrivoltaics, increasing overall site revenue by 2.5%–24.0% above projected electricity revenue depending on location and rental/ownership of rabbits, while providing a high-value agricultural product that, on a per weight basis, has significantly less environmental impact than cattle.
W. Lytle, T.K. Meyer, N.G. Tanikella, L. Burnham, J. Engel, J.M. Pearce. 2020. Conceptual Design and Rationale for a New Agrivoltaics Concept: Pasture-Raised Rabbits and Solar Farming. Journal of Cleaner Production. 282:
(!) .
LivestockSystem ConfigurationReviews/InformationalMarket AssessmentsEconomicsImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
Pennsylvania, Wisconsin
Conceptual Design of Hybrid Photovoltaic-Thermoelectric Generator (PV/TEG) for Automated Greenhouse System
Electrical energy is the highest set-up and operation cost in the agricultural greenhouse crop production in most of moderate or extreme temperature climate country. The energy consumes mostly for cooling, heating, ventilation, lighting, irrigation pumps, and the automation system. This paper proposed a theoretical approach and a conceptual design of a hybrid photovoltaic (PV) system by coupling PV panel and thermoelectric generator (TEG) modules which is to be applied in an Automated Greenhouse system project. The improved efficiency is to be compared between conventional PV generation system and by using various PV and TE module type configuration. Presented system is a conceptual design and further improvement will be considered such as combining with automated semi-transparent thin film solar panel to absorb excess radiation of sunlight during hot season. Simulation is also to be developed to validate the experimental approach.
(!) . 2017. Conceptual Design of Hybrid Photovoltaic-Thermoelectric Generator (PV/TEG) for Automated Greenhouse System. In: 2017 IEEE 15th Student Conference on Research and Development (SCOReD). 2017 IEEE 15th Student Conference on Research and Development (SCOReD); 2017/12/13; Wilayah Persekutuan Putrajaya, Malaysia. Wilayah Persekutuan Putrajaya, Malaysia: IEEE Xplore; p.
(!)
PV Technologies
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Conference Paper
Conceptual Design of a Medium-Sized Combined Smart Photovoltaic - Agriculture System - Case Study in Malaysia
With the backdrop of sustainable environment, Photo-Voltaic Power System linked
to Climate-Smart Agriculture may offer solutions for Sustainable Energy, Climate Change mitigation and Sustainable Agriculture. An overview of the scope, extent and options of such combined - Co-Located PV Agricultural System appropriate for South East Asian setting, in particular, Malaysia and Indonesia is elaborated, for preliminary insight on steps and choices that have to be taken in undertaking such venture. Possible photovoltaic (PV) system installation and estimate the cost, performance, and site impacts of different PV options are discussed. Technical, financing and procedural aspects that could assist in the implementation of a Co-located PV system at the site should then be studied for decision options. A brief
Framework for Conceptual Design of Co-Located PV-Agricultural System Plant is outlined.Harijono Djojodihardjo. 2016. Conceptual Design of a Medium-Sized Combined Smart Photovoltaic - Agriculture System - Case Study in Malaysia. In: MATEC Web of Conferences. 2016 Asia Conference on Power and Electrical Engineering; 2016/03/20; Bangkok, Thailand.
(!) : MATEC Web of Conferences; p.
(!)Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Malaysia
Consumer Study of Agrivoltaics Food Products Including Tomato, Basil, Potato, Bean, and Squash
The focus of agrivoltaic systems (AVS) research have been on microclimatic impacts and the associated agricultural production. More recently, AVS research has begun to focus on social acceptability regarding the solar industry and solar implementation, but few studies have assessed the effects of the AVS microclimate on the sensory and consumer acceptability on crops. We used the lens of the three pillars of sustainability (economic, social, environmental) to assess the broader sustainability of AVS. More specifically, to understand how AVS products will be viewed in the market, we studied five species of produce (Solanum lycopersicum (‘Perfect Cocktail Snack’ cherry tomatoes), Ocimum basilicum (‘Sweet’ basil), Solanum tuberosum (‘Caribe’ potatoes), Phaseolus vulgaris (‘Anasazi’ red beans), and Cucurbita moschata (butternut squash)) grown under solar panels and grown in traditional, full-sun (control) conditions. AVS and control grown crops were compared using untrained panelists recruited at both the University of Arizona Main Campus and Biosphere 2. Participants were asked to distinguish any perceptible differences between AVS and open field conditions and if there were preferences in taste between AVS and open field conditions. Binomial logistic regressions were used to assess the maximum likelihood estimation to evaluate the probability of future consumers’ ability to discriminate between AVS and control conditions. Multinomial logistic regressions were used to determine the maximum likelihood estimation to evaluate future consumers’ preferences and willingness to pay for AVS and control grown products. The sensory evaluation results revealed that there were significant differences between growth conditions (p<0.05) for tomatoes, beans, and squash samples (Table 3), however there was only a significant difference in preference (p<0.05) for bean samples (Figures 2 - 4). Participants were also willing to pay the same or more for their favorite samples after they were told that their favorite samples were grown under solar panels (Figure 5). With this information, stakeholders can understand that preference and differences between growth conditions were not perceived by tasters. As a result, this thesis can be used to determine potential outcomes of AVS products in the marketplace and fills a major gap regarding sensorial perceptions and social acceptance of AVS grown crops.
M. Rogers. 2022. Consumer Study of Agrivoltaics Food Products Including Tomato, Basil, Potato, Bean, and Squash [Thesis]. [The University of Arizona]: The University of Arizona.
HydrologySoilPlant ScienceMicroclimatologySocial Perspectives
Contrasting Yield Responses at Varying Levels of Shade Suggest Different Suitability of Crops for Dual Land-Use Systems: A Meta-Analysis
Despite the large body of research surrounding crop growth parameters, there is still a lack of systematic assessments on how harvestable yields of different crop types respond to varying levels of shading. However, with the advent of agrivoltaic systems, a technology that combines energy and food production, shade tolerance of cropping systems is becoming increasingly important. To address this research gap, a meta-analysis with data from two experimental approaches (intercropping and artificial shading with cloths, nets or solar panels) was performed. The aim was to quantitatively assess the susceptibility of different temperate crop types to increasing levels of shading. Crop type specific yield response curves were developed as a function of reduction in solar radiation, estimating relative crop yields compared to the unshaded controls. Only studies that reported reduction in solar radiation and crop yield per area in temperate and subtropical areas were included. The results suggested a nonlinear relationship between achieved crop yields and reduction in solar radiation for all crop types. Most crops tolerate reduced solar radiation up to 15%, showing a less than proportional yield decline. However, significant differences between the response curves of the following crop types existed: Berries, fruits and fruity vegetables benefited from reduction in solar radiation up to 30%. Forages, leafy vegetables, tubers/root crops, and C3 cereals initially showed less than proportional crop yield loss. In contrast, maize and grain legumes experienced strong crop yield losses even at low shade levels. The results provide a set of initial indicators that may be used in assessing the suitability of crop types for shade systems, and thus for agrivoltaic or other dual land-use systems. Detailed yield response curves, as provided by this study, are valuable tools in optimizing the output of annual crop components in these systems.
Moritz Laub, Lisa Pataczek, Arndt Feuerbacher, Sabine Zikeli, Petra Högy. 06/2022. Contrasting Yield Responses at Varying Levels of Shade Suggest Different Suitability of Crops for Dual Land-Use Systems: A Meta-Analysis. Agronomy for Sustainable Development. 42(51):
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Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Coproduction of Solar Energy on Maize Farms — Experimental Validation of Recent Experiments
Developing methods for the sustainable coproduction of food, energy and water resources has recently been recognized as a potentially attractive solution to meeting the needs of a growing population. However, many studies have used models, but have not performed an actual experiment to directly validate all their predictions. Here, we report a recently-constructed test site on the ACRE farm in West Lafayette, Indiana, consisting of single-axis trackers in a novel configuration atop a maize test plot. We present a methodology to measure irradiance therein with 10-minute temporal resolution, which allows us to validate prior PV aglectric farm irradiance models.
Elizabeth K. Grubbs, Hassan Imran, Rakesh Agrawal, Peter A. Bermel. 2021. Coproduction of Solar Energy on Maize Farms — Experimental Validation of Recent Experiments. In: 2020 47th IEEE Photovoltaic Specialists Conference (PVSC). 2020 47th IEEE Photovoltaic Specialists Conference (PVSC); 2020/06/15; Virtual. Online: IEEE; p.
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MicroclimatologySystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
United States
State
Indiana
Cost–Benefit Analysis of Kaposvár Solar Photovoltaic Park Considering Agrivoltaic Systems
For the fast-growing demand for electricity, food, and resources in the world’s economy, the optimization of land use considering environmental, social, and economic effects towards systems that integrate diverse land uses while increasing the total yield of production is desirable. Agrivoltaic systems provide many advantages, such as great development potential, and being clean and recyclable. Countries are paying increasing attention to the research and development of agrivoltaic technology, constantly improving related laws and regulations, and improving the policy environment. There is a huge gap between the energy-saving potential of agrivoltaics with electricity generation and agricultural production and the actual energy utilization. In the actual utilization process, there is a waste of resources, as the conversion of sunlight into electricity by solar panels cannot be fully utilized in rural areas. How efficient is the use of resources in real life? In the absence of government financial support, do agrivoltaic systems provide economic benefits? What are their environmental benefits? These problems affect the use, development, and promotion of agrivoltaic systems in rural areas. This paper takes “agrivoltaic” as an example using a structured sensitivity analysis, evaluates the actual efficiency of the utilization of electricity production, quantitatively analyzes the economic and environmental benefits of agrivoltaic systems for farmers, and presents suggestions for their development. Figure 1 gives a schematic comparison of photovoltaic (PV) and agrivoltaic (APV) systems.
Compared to other studies, the novelty of this article is reflected in two aspects: (1) the use of a significant body of literature focused on the existing literature. This paper synthesizes the literature on agrivoltaics not only from international researchers, but also from less published Hungarian researchers. The basis of 48 previous research works clearly proposes that the concept of agrivoltaics should be understood from the essence, connotation, development mode, and other aspects. (2) This paper performs an economic analysis to provide good advice for investing into agrivoltaic technology and to demonstrate the effects on the competitiveness of APV compared to PV and agriculture. This paper shows that without government subsidies or fundamental changes in the economic and technological context, the future development of agrivoltaics is uncertain in the short run.
A. Chalgynbayeva, T. Mizik, A. Bai. 10/2022. Cost–Benefit Analysis of Kaposvár Solar Photovoltaic Park Considering Agrivoltaic Systems. MDPI: Clean Technologies. 4(4):1-17.
EconomicsPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Hungary
Could Windbreak Effect Significantly Decrease Evapotranspiration in Vertical Agrivoltaics?
Bifacial vertical panels have been successful in agrivoltaics since the beginning of this system expansion worldwide. While the question of irradiation reduction effect on evapo-transpiration has been largely addressed during last years, the question of wind modification and its impact on evapotranspiration has not been the object of a thorough attention yet. Wind modification is expected to be of greater importance in vertical agrivoltaics, panels acting like windbreaks. This preliminary research aims to assess the potential reduction of evapotranspiration in different climates and to highlight the importance of going further on aerodynamics and water demand topics. It shows that non negligeable amounts of water could be saved if those wind abatement rates are created by the rows of vertical panels compared with the evapotranspiration reduction expected induced by the irradiation reduction. Actually, modification in wind direction and speed will depend on geometrical parameters and wind direction. More measurement campaigns and comprehensive models of aerodynamics (CDF) and evapotranspiration are required to assess the relevance of vertical panels to tackle aridity in constrained climates.
R. Bruhwyler, P. Brunet, G. Dabadie, E. Drahi, P. Souquet, J. Chapon, A. Boukouya, B. Delahaye, C. Jennet, F. Lebeau. 2022. Could Windbreak Effect Significantly Decrease Evapotranspiration in Vertical Agrivoltaics?. In: AIP Publishing. Agrivoltaics 2022 Conference; 2022/06/15; Piacenza, Italy. Piacenza, Italy: Could Windbreak Effect Significantly Decrease Evapotranspiration in Vertical Agrivoltaics?; p.
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MicroclimatologyHydrology
Crop Cultivation Underneath Agro-Photovoltaic Systems and Its Effects on Crop Growth, Yield, and Photosynthetic Efficiency
Agro-photovoltaics (APV) could be the optimal means of sustainable development in agricultural areas once a few challenges are overcome, perhaps the greatest of which is the constant shading from AVP structures. This study examined how the growth and yield of rice, potato, sesame, and soybean crops could be optimized when grown underneath different APV systems. The solar radiation, shading levels, and temperatures during crop cultivation were measured. In addition, the photosynthetic efficiency was measured at different growth stages. Adjacent to the APV systems were the control plots with full sun. In these studies with potato crops grown under APV systems, most growth and yield parameters were similar to those grown in the control plot except for the plant height. On the other hand, sesame crops grown underneath the APV systems had a lower stem length, effective branching number, 1000 seed weight, and a reduced yield of 19% compared to the crops from the control plot. In two distant locations (Paju and Youngkwang), soybean crops grown underneath APV systems at both sites showed increased ungrained ratios per pod and a reduced yield of 18–20% compared to the control plot. Finally, rice crops cultivated underneath the APV systems had a lower panicle number per hill, spikelet number per panicle, 1000 seed weight, and yield reduction of 13–30% compared to the control plot. Overall, crops grown underneath the APV systems had a greater plant height and stem length. Moreover, the solar radiation and PAR underneath the APV systems were also lower than in the control plots. The photosynthetic efficacy in rice plants grown underneath the APV systems was lower than in the control plots. The photosynthetic efficacy may help lower the crop yield when cultivation is underneath an APV system.
Hyo Jin Lee, Hyun Hwa Park, Young Ok Kim, Yong In Kuk. 08/2022. Crop Cultivation Underneath Agro-Photovoltaic Systems and Its Effects on Crop Growth, Yield, and Photosynthetic Efficiency. Agronomy. 12(8):
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Plant ScienceMicroclimatologySoil
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
South Korea
Crop Production in Partial Shade of Solar Photovoltaic Panels on Trackers
Kale, chard, broccoli, peppers, tomatoes, and spinach were grown at various positions within partial shade of a solar photovoltaic array during the growing seasons from late March through August 2017 and 2018. The rows of panels were oriented north-south and tracked east to west during the daylight hours, creating three levels of shade for the plants: 7% of full sun, 55-65% of full sun, and 85% of full sun, as well as a full sun control outside the array. Average daily air temperature at canopy height was within ± 0.5°C across the shade conditions. Over two field seasons, biomass accumulated in correlation with the quantity of photosynthetically active radiation (PAR). Kale produced the same amount of harvestable biomass in all PAR levels between 55% and 85% of full sun. Chard yield was similar in PAR levels 85% and greater. Tomatoes produced the same amount of harvestable biomass in all PAR levels greater than 55% of full sun. Broccoli produced significantly more harvestable head biomass at 85% than at full sun irradiance but required at least 85% of full PAR to produce appreciable harvestable material. Peppers generated harvestable fruit biomass at PAR of 55% of full sun or less, but yielded best at 85% of full sun or more. Spinach was sensitive to shade, yielding poorly under low PAR, but increased in biomass production as PAR increased. Microclimate variations under PV arrays influence plant yields depending on location within a solar array. Adequate PAR and moderated temperature extremes can couple to produce crop yields in reduced PAR environments similar to and in some cases better than those in full sun. Results from our study showed that careful attention must be made when developing PV arrays over the crops and when choosing which crops to plant among the arrays.
Timothy Hudelson, Johann Heinrich Lieth. 2021. Crop Production in Partial Shade of Solar Photovoltaic Panels on Trackers. In: AIP Conference Proceedings. AGRIVOLTAICS2020 CONFERENCE: Launching Agrivoltaics World-wide; 2020/10/14; Perpignan, France, Online. Online: AIP Publishing; p.
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Plant ScienceMicroclimatology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
United States
State
California
Crop-Specific Optimization of Bifacial PV Arrays for Agrivoltaic Food-Energy Production: The Light-Productivity-Factor Approach
Agrivoltaics (AV) is an emerging technology having symbiotic benefits for food-energy-water needs of the growing world population and an inherent resilience against climate vulnerabilities. An agrivoltaic system must optimize sunlight-sharing between the solar panels and crops to maximize the food-energy yields, subject to appropriate constraints. Given the emerging diversity of monofacial and bifacial farms, the lack of a standardized crop-specific metric (to evaluate the efficacy of the irradiance sharing) has made it difficult to optimize and assess the performance of agrivoltaic systems. Here we introduce a new metric, light productivity factor (LPF), that evaluates the effectiveness of irradiance sharing for a given crop type and PV array design. The metric allows us to identify optimal design parameters including the spatial PV array density, panel orientation, and single axis tracking schemes specific to the PAR needs of the crop. By definition, LPF equals 1 for PV-only or crop-only systems. The AV systems enhances LPF between 1 and 2 depending on the shade sensitivity of the crop, PV array configuration, and the season. While traditional fixed-tilt systems increase LPF significantly above 1, we find LPF is maximized at 2 for shade-tolerant crops with a solar farm based on single axis sun tracking scheme. Among the fixed tilt systems, East-West faced bifacial vertical solar farms is particularly promising because it produces smallest variability in the seasonal yield for shade sensitive crops, while providing LPF comparable to the standard North-South faced solar farms. Additional benefits include reduced soiling and ease of movement of large-scale combine-harvester and other farming equipment.
M.H. Riaz, H. Imran, H. Alam, M.A. Alam, N.Z. Butt. 2022. Crop-Specific Optimization of Bifacial PV Arrays for Agrivoltaic Food-Energy Production: The Light-Productivity-Factor Approach. IEEE Journal of Photovoltaics. 12(2):
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MicroclimatologySystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Crop-driven Optimization of Agrivoltaics Using a Digital-replica Framework
Agrivoltaics are a novel form of agricultural production where photovoltaic panels are blended with crops in order to optimize land use, particularly with respect to crop production and power generation. Given agrivoltaics are complicated systems where crop production, water use efficiency, land use efficiency, solar energy production, and the economics of the entire system are all dependent and competing for solar energy, there is opportunity to develop models incorporating these objectives into an optimizable framework. This work contributes to agrivoltaic design methodology through a digital replica and genomic optimization framework which simulates light rays in a procedurally generated agrivoltaic system at an hourly timestep for a defined crop, location and growing season to model light absorption by the photovoltaic panels and the crop below. Hourly radiation values are then summed into daily radiation values and fed into a crop model to simulate performance of an agrivoltaic and a reference crop at a daily timestep. The results of photovoltaic and crop performance metrics for a given design are then used in a genomic optimization algorithm to conduct a multi-objective optimization across various designs to find an optimal, crop-driven solution for a defined crop, season and location. A numerical example is demonstrated using this framework with a SunnySD tomato crop grown in Davis, California, resulting in 28.9% optimization of combined crop and energy production using a genomic optimization scheme over 50 generations.
Emre Mengi, Omar A. Samara, Tarek I. Zohdi. 2023. Crop-driven Optimization of Agrivoltaics Using a Digital-replica Framework. Smart Agricultural Technology. 4:
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Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyEconomicsSystem ConfigurationToolsHydrology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Cropland and Rooftops: The Global Undertapped Potential for Solar Photovoltaics
The utilization of cropland and rooftops for solar photovoltaics (PVs) installation holds significant potential for enhancing global renewable energy capacity with the advantage of dual land-use. This study focuses on estimating the global area suitable for agrivoltaics (PV over crops) and rooftop PVs by employing open-access data, existing literature and simple numerical methods in a high spatial resolution of 10 km × 10 km. For agrivoltaics, the suitability is assessed with a systematic literature review on crop-dependent feasibility and profitability, especially for 18 major crops of the world. For rooftop PV, a non-linear curve-fitting method is developed, using the urban land cover to calculate the PV-suitable built-up areas. This method is then verified by comparing the results with open-access building footprints. The spatially resolved suitability assessment unveils 4.64 million km2 of global PV-usable cropland corresponding to a geographic potential of about 217 Terawatts (TW) in an optimistic scenario and 0.21 million km2 of rooftop-PV suitable area accounting for about 30.5 TW maximum installable power capacity. The estimated suitable area offers a vast playground for energy system analysts to undertake techno-economic assessments, and for technology modelers and policy makers to promote PV implementation globally with the vision of net-zero emissions in the future.
M. Yeligeti, W. Hu, Y. Scholz, R. Stegen, K. von Krbek. 05/2023. Cropland and Rooftops: The Global Undertapped Potential for Solar Photovoltaics. Environmental Research Letters. 18(5):1-15.
Market AssessmentsSitingReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Germany
Current Status of Agrivoltaic Systems and Their Benefits to Energy, Food, Environment, Economy, and Society
The rate of solar power generation is increasing globally at a significant increase in the net electricity demand, leading to competition for agricultural lands and forest invasion. Agrivoltaic systems, which integrate photovoltaic (PV) systems with crop production, are potential solutions to this situation. Currently, there are two types of agrivoltaic systems:
1) systems involving agricultural activities on available land in pre-existing PV facilities, and 2) systems intentionally designed and installed for the co-production of agricultural crops and PV power. Agrivoltaic systems can boost electricity generation efficiency and capacity, as well as the land equivalent ratio. They also generate revenue for farmers and entrepreneurs through the sale of electricity and crops. Therefore, these systems have the potential to sustain energy, food, the environment, the economy, and society. Despite the numerous advantages of both types of agrivoltaic systems, few studies on utilizing the available land area under existing ground-mounted PV systems for agricultural crop production have been conducted. Moreover, with several conventional solar power plant projects currently underway around the world, an expanding trend is anticipated. As a result, this article offers practical advice for agrivoltaic systems on how to implement an agricultural area under ground-mounted PV power systems without agricultural pre-plans. These systems are useful for policymaking and optimizing land use efficiency in terms of energy production, food supply, environmental impact, local economy, and sustainable societies.
M. Kumpanalaisatit, W. Setthapun, H. Sintuya, A. Pattiya, S.N. Jansri. 2022. Current Status of Agrivoltaic Systems and Their Benefits to Energy, Food, Environment, Economy, and Society. Sustainable Production and Consumption. 33(2022):952-963.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Daylight Analysis inside Photovoltaic Greenhouses
During the last years, European government remuneration polices promoted
the realisation of photovoltaic systems integrated with the structures instead of on ground PV plants. In this context, in rural areas, greenhouses covered with PV modules have been developed. In order to interdict the building of greenhouses with an amount of opaque panels on covering not coherent with the plant production, local laws assigned a threshold value- usually between 25% and 50%- of the projection on the soil of the roof. These ranges seem not to be based on scientific evaluation about the agricultural performances required to the building but only on empirical assessments. Purpose of this paper is to contribute to better understand the effect of different configurations of PV panels on the covering of a monospan duo-pitched roof greenhouse in terms of shading effect and energy efficiency during different periods of the year. At this aim, day lighting analysis was performed by means of the software Autodesk® Ecotect® Analysis on greenhouse model with different covering ratio of polycrystalline photovoltaic panels on the roof. Daylight refers to the level of diffuse natural light coming from the whole sky dome or reflected off nearby surfaces to provide illumination for internal spaces within a building. Daylight Factor (DF) is defined as the ratio of the illuminance at a particular point within an enclosure to the simultaneous unobstructed outdoor illuminance under the same sky conditions, expressed as a percentage. The covering ratio (CR) is defined as the ratio, expressed in percent, between the projection on the ground of the surface of the PV panels installed on the roof and the surface of the projection on the ground of the whole roof. Daylight factor was calculated on an horizontal plane at 50cm and 150cm and 250cm from the ground in three PV greenhouses with
CR=0%, CR=30% and CR=50%.Sergio Castellano, Ioannis L. Tsirogiannis. 2015. Daylight Analysis inside Photovoltaic Greenhouses. In: Report on the 43rd International Symposium: Actual Tasks on Agricultural Engineering. 43rd International Symposium: Actual Tasks on Agricultural Engineering; 2015/02/24; Opatija, Croatia. Opatija, Croatia: Journal of Agricultural Engineering; p.
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Microclimatology
Delayed Grape Ripening by Intermittent Shading to Counter Global Warming Depends on Carry-Over Effects and Water Deficit Conditions
Grapevine phenology is continuously advancing due to global warming, exposing berry ripening to increasingly drier and hotter episodes that can dramatically affect yield and berry quality. This study aimed to analyse whether intermittent shading produced by panels placed over the plants can delay berry ripening to counter the impact of global warning on phenology. A two-year outdoor trial repeated on two batches of young potted grapevine (cv. Syrah) was conducted in Montpellier (South of France). Shading was created in a row using 2 m-wide horizontal panels placed 2.4 m above the ground. A moderate water deficit was also applied at the start of veraison to half the plants in both full sun (without panels) and shaded conditions to mimic usual field conditions. Variables related to budburst, flowering, veraison and sugar at harvest were analysed in all treatments. Although intermittent shading did not significantly modify air temperature within the canopy when cumulated over the growing season, the panels substantially delayed veraison by up to more than 30 days under well-watered conditions. The most marked phenological shifts were noted in the second year of treatment between flowering and veraison when carbon demand sharply increased during berry formation, suggesting there was a carry-over effect likely due to limited carbon assimilation. This was accompanied by sharp decreases in berry diameter and sugar content per berry at harvest. Higher berry growth and sugar loading were maintained when shading was combined with water deficit. However, the trigger effect of water deficit on veraison almost halved the phenological delay caused by the panels. Overall, a cooler period for ripening could be achieved with panels over the vines but at the expense of berry size and sugar amount in berries. It can be concluded that shading intensity and duration should be adapted to evaporative and soil water conditions to benefit from the phenological delay caused by panels, without altering production in the long term.
B. Tiffon-Terrade, T. Simonneau, A. Caffarra, R. Boulord, P. Pechier, N. Saurin, C. Romieu, D. Fumey, A. Christophe. 01/2023. Delayed Grape Ripening by Intermittent Shading to Counter Global Warming Depends on Carry-Over Effects and Water Deficit Conditions. OENO One, Vine and Wine Open Access Journal. 57(1):
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HydrologyPlant ScienceMicroclimatology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
France
Demand Side Management of Energy Consumption in a Photovoltaic Integrated Greenhouse
With the continuous expansion of the development scale, photovoltaic integrated greenhouses are becoming an important type of smart grid prosumer. The demand side management (DSM) of energy is becoming increasingly important in terms of satisfying the energy consumption requirements of production and increasing the economic benefits of the same piece of land. By analyzing greenhouse production activities and the operation of electrical equipment, a particle swarm optimization (PSO) scheme is proposed in this paper, which selects the starting time of time-shifting powers as optimization factors and maximizes the income of power generation as the objective function. In addition, this paper analyzes the problem of energy consumption scheduling in greenhouse production. The results show that this scheme helps to optimally schedule the greenhouse energy consumption and achieves maximum profit by ensuring the reasonable operation of the system. The optimization scheme is beneficial to guide the production activities in greenhouses and the construction of photovoltaic integrated greenhouse systems.
Kai Zhang, Jihua Yu, Yan Ren. 2021. Demand Side Management of Energy Consumption in a Photovoltaic Integrated Greenhouse. International Journal of Electrical Power and Energy Systems. 134:
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Economics
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
Design Considerations for Agrophotovoltaic Systems: Maintaining PV Area with Increased Crop Yield
Land use constraints have motivated investigation into the spatial coexistence of photovoltaics and agriculture. Existing experimental work has emphasized fixed south-facing configurations with traditional commercial panel shapes, and modeling work is sparse. Previous work also concludes that agriculture-photovoltaic (agrophotovoltaic) systems either decrease crop yield or are limited to shade-tolerant crops. In this work, we explore the effects of different PV array configurations and panel designs on field insolation. We find that east-west tracking configurations outperform fixed south-facing configurations due to shadow migration paths. Additionally, we show through optical modeling that utilization of mini-modules in patterned panel designs may create more optimal conditions for plant growth while using the same area of PV, thus improving the land-use efficiency of the agrophotovoltaic system.
A. Perna, E. K. Grubbs, R. Agrawal, P. Bermel,. 2019. Design Considerations for Agrophotovoltaic Systems: Maintaining PV Area with Increased Crop Yield. In: 2019 IEEE 46th Photovoltaic Specialists Conference (PVSC); 2019/06/19; Chicago. Chicago, IL: IEEE; p. 0668-0672
MicroclimatologySystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
United States
State
California, Texas
Design Considerations for Vertical Bifacial Agrivoltaic Installations
The expected annual energy output of vertical bifacial solar panel arrays was modeled with an eye on how array design attributes affect the output. We considered module height, cell density (single- or double-high racking), inter-row spacing, and inverter connection (rows of modules wired together or separately), and the inclusion of bypass diodes. We observed that these design choices have a substantial impact on the annual energy yield on a per-module basis and per-acre basis. We modeled the instantaneous brightness and shading based on the position of the sun and adjacent rows of modules, which caused nonuniform irradiance due to inter-row shading effects. Based on the irradiance, we calculated current, voltage, and power values throughout a year for different design strategies. Double-high racking, which uses two landscape-oriented modules stacked vertically, offers noteworthy power gains per acre with only a modest increase of inter-row shading. When bypass diodes are included in the module design and improved inverter wiring is used, much of the loss due to inter-row shading is mitigated, and the total power output per acre is nearly doubled, with modules seeing an 80% power increase per acre for 20 ft row spacing, and over 90% power increase per acre for 40 ft spacing.
W. R. Rucker, D. P. Birnie III. 05/2023. Design Considerations for Vertical Bifacial Agrivoltaic Installations. Solar Energy Engineering. 145(6):061007.
PV TechnologiesSystem ConfigurationStandardization and Best Practices
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
New Jersey
Design and Analysis of a Tracking Backtracking Strategy for PV Plants With Horizontal Trackers After Their Conversion to Agrivoltaic Plants
World population growth is leading to an increased demand for energy and food. This is creating a conflict over land use as terrain for large renewable energy facilities is not available for agricultural. As a solution, agrivoltaics combines the use of the land for agricultural and photovoltaic exploitation. In this work, the conversion of photovoltaic installations with N–S horizontal trackers into agrivoltaic installations by cultivating tree crops in hedgerows between the rows of collectors is analysed. Specifically, the shading of the crop on the photovoltaic panels is studied. It has been proved that there is an area between the collectors in which the crop would not shade the photovoltaic panels. Likewise, a new tracking/backtracking strategy is proposed to avoid shading in cases where the crop exceeds this region of no influence. Finally, it has been found that the Land Equivalent Ratio for an agrivoltaic plant in Córdoba (Spain) with N–S horizontal trackers and olive groves in hedges up to 3.0 m high and 1.5 m wide can increase between 28.9% and 47.2%. Thus, these PV installations are potentially adaptable to agrivoltaic installations making renewable energy facilities compatible with a more efficient and sustainable agricultural model.
F.J. Casares de la Torrea, M. Varob, R. López-Luqueb, J. Ramírez-Faza, L.M. Fernández-Ahumada. 2022. Design and Analysis of a Tracking Backtracking Strategy for PV Plants With Horizontal Trackers After Their Conversion to Agrivoltaic Plants. Renewable Energy. 187:537-550.
MicroclimatologyImpact AssessmentsSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Spain
Design and Assessment of Agrivoltaics Systems for Energy Cane Farms in Texas
Due to climate change, natural disasters, and other unexpected events, such as the COVID-
19 pandemic, farmers in Texas are facing the difficult task of maintaining a profit from their agriculture business. The concept of agrivoltaics creates a system that integrates renewable energy generation and agriculture with one another. This allows farmers to continue receiving income through their agricultural business while providing energy resilience through an environmentally friendly approach. This project evaluates the potential of implementing an agrivoltaic system using solar panels in an energy cane farm located in Weslaco, Texas. The biomass crop is of interest for an agrivoltaic system as it is low input and is drought resistant. Various databases and industry standards are implemented to optimize and design the agrivoltaics system. Data collected from the energy cane farm in Weslaco, Texas is used throughout the project and aid in creating a maintenance schedule for the agrivoltaics system. Additionally, software such as HomerPro, SolidWorks, and MATLAB are used throughout the process to aid the optimization efforts of the system. The final conceptual design increased the vertical mobility of the structure by integrating a pulley system. The sensitivity analysis of the agrivoltaics system in an energy cane farm showed that increasing shading density decreased the dry biomass yield, but the optimal shading density for maximizing energy production depended on the potential for selling surplus energy to the grid
and the local cost of electricity.ERICK MARTINEZ GOMEZ. 05/2023. Design and Assessment of Agrivoltaics Systems for Energy Cane Farms in Texas [Thesis]. [Texas]: Texas A&M University-Kingsville.
Plant ScienceEconomicsPV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Thesis/Dissertation
Country
United States
State
Texas
Design and Concept of an Energy System Based on Renewable Sources for Greenhouse Sustainable Agriculture
Bio-organic greenhouses that are based on alternative resources for producing heat and electricity stand out as an efficient option for the sustainable development of agriculture, thus ensuring good growth and development of plants in all seasons, especially during the cold season. Greenhouses can be used with maximum efficiency in various agricultural lands, providing ideal conditions of temperature and humidity for short-term plant growing, thereby increasing the local production of fruit and vegetables. This paper presents the development of a durable greenhouse concept that is based on complex energy system integrating fuel cells and solar panels. Approaching this innovative concept encountered a major problem in terms of local implementation of this type of greenhouses because of the difficulty in providing electrical and thermal energy from conventional sources to ensure an optimal climate for plant growing. The project result consists in the design and implementation of a sustainable greenhouse energy system that is based on fuel cells and solar panels.
I. Aschilean, G. Rasoi, M.S. Raboaca, C. Filote, M. Culcer. 2018. Design and Concept of an Energy System Based on Renewable Sources for Greenhouse Sustainable Agriculture. Energies. 11(5):1-12.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Romania
Design and Development of a Symbiotic Agrivoltaic System for the Coexistence of Sustainable Solar Electricity Generation and Agricullture
The symbiotic photovoltaic (PV) electrofarming system introduced in this study is developed for the PV setup in an agriculture farming land. The study discusses the effect of different PV system design conditions influenced by annual sunhours on agricultural farm land. The aim is to increase the sunhours on the PV panel for optimized electricity generation. Therefore, this study combines the Taguchi method with Grey Relational Analysis (GRA) to optimize the two quality characteristics of the symbiotic electrofarming PV system with the best design parameter combination. The selected multiple quality characteristics are PV power generation and sunhours on farm land. The control factors include location, upright column height, module tilt angle, and PV panel width. First, the Taguchi method is used to populate a L9(34) orthogonal array with the settings of the experimental plan. After the experimental results are obtained, signal-to-noise ratios are calculated, factor response tables and response graphs are drawn up, and analysis of variance is performed to obtain those significant factors which have great impact on the quality characteristics. The experiments show that the parameters which effects power generation are: location, upright column height, module tilt angle, and PV panel width. The ranking of the degree of influence of the control factors on the quality characteristics is location > PV panel width > module tilt angle > upright column height. By controlling these factors, the quality characteristics of the system can be effectively estimated. The results for PV power generation and sunhours on farm land both fall within the 95% CI (confidence interval), which shows that they are reliable and reproducible. The optimal design parameter realized in this research obtains a power generation of 26,497 kWh and a sunshine time of 1963 h. The finding showed that it can help to build a sustainable PV system combined with agriculture cultivation.
C. J. Kuo, T. Su, C. Huang, H. Liu, J. Barman, I. Kar. 04/2023. Design and Development of a Symbiotic Agrivoltaic System for the Coexistence of Sustainable Solar Electricity Generation and Agricullture. Sustainability. 15(7):6011.
Plant SciencePV TechnologiesSystem ConfigurationMethodological ComparisonsReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Taiwan
Design and Development of a Symbiotic Agrivoltaic System for the Coexistence of Sustainable Solar Electricity Generation and Agriculture
The symbiotic photovoltaic (PV) electrofarming system introduced in this study is developed for the PV setup in an agriculture farming land. The study discusses the effect of different PV system design conditions influenced by annual sunhours on agricultural farm land. The aim is to increase the sunhours on the PV panel for optimized electricity generation. Therefore, this study combines the Taguchi method with Grey Relational Analysis (GRA) to optimize the two quality characteristics of the symbiotic electrofarming PV system with the best design parameter combination. The selected multiple quality characteristics are PV power generation and sunhours on farm land. The control factors include location, upright column height, module tilt angle, and PV panel width. First, the Taguchi method is used to populate a L9(34) orthogonal array with the settings of the experimental plan. After the experimental results are obtained, signal-to-noise ratios are calculated, factor response tables and response graphs are drawn up, and analysis of variance is performed to obtain those significant factors which have great impact on the quality characteristics. The experiments show that the parameters which effects power generation are: location, upright column height, module tilt angle, and PV panel width. The ranking of the degree of influence of the control factors on the quality characteristics is location > PV panel width > module tilt angle > upright column height. By controlling these factors, the quality characteristics of the system can be effectively estimated. The results for PV power generation and sunhours on farm land both fall within the 95% CI (confidence interval), which shows that they are reliable and reproducible. The optimal design parameter realized in this research obtains a power generation of 26,497 kWh and a sunshine time of 1963 h. The finding showed that it can help to build a sustainable PV system combined with agriculture cultivation.
C. J. Kuo, T. Su, C. Huang, H. Liu, J. Barman, I. Kar. 2023. Design and Development of a Symbiotic Agrivoltaic System for the Coexistence of Sustainable Solar Electricity Generation and Agriculture. Sustainability. 15(7):
(!) .
MicroclimatologySystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Taiwan
Design and Evaluation of an Agrivoltaic System for a Pear Orchard
Agrivoltaic systems are mostly deployed on arable farm land. An interesting application of agrivoltaics for permanent farming such as pear orchards, is in replacing the protective function of hail nets by semi-transparent PV modules. In this study, a theoretical framework is used to design the optimal agrivoltaic lay-out regarding the levelized cost of electricity, electricity generation and incident irradiance. This incident irradiance is modelled using a 3D light simulation tool, capable of including the light distribution within the canopy walls. Given the practical constraints (orientation, planting distance, maximum wind load, protection function), present in an existing pear orchard, a double-inclined PV structure with a PV module transparency level of 40% was used. This system was constructed in Bierbeek, Belgium. Results of the first year of operation are presented and the models used are validated. It is concluded that this application is promising, with positive effects of the climatological conditions, robust energy generation and a minimum loss of 16% on pear yield. Nevertheless, at this moment, the system is financially unviable and a long-term analysis of the shading effect on crop yield and quality is needed before the large-scale deployment of this technology.
Brecht Willockx, Thomas Reher, Cas Lavaert, Bert Herteleer, Bram Van de Poel, Jan Cappelle. 01/2024. Design and Evaluation of an Agrivoltaic System for a Pear Orchard. Applied Energy. 353(122166):
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Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyEconomicsSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Belgium
Design and Experiment of an Integrated Agro-Voltaic Solar PV System
This research project investigates the effect of dust accumulation on megawatt scale solar PV plants of Bangladesh and tries to find out a sustainable solution to this problem. In this regard, an automated cleaning robot has been modelled to minimize human effort. Another issue is that commercial PV plants use a lot of underground water to clean solar PV panels. When cleaning is done, this water is not reutilized for any other purpose which hampers project’s sustainability. In this research project, different qualities of water that is wasted for cleaning purpose have been analyzed to find out sustainable reutilization technique. Based upon experimental findings, an agro-voltaic arrangement integrated with algae based carbon capturing and desulfurization system has been proposed. The proposed agro-voltaic system combines photovoltaic, agriculture and fish farming to ensure optimum land and water utilization for PV projects in Bangladesh.
F.H. Khan, K.H. Suvo. 2020. Design and Experiment of an Integrated Agro-Voltaic Solar PV System [Thesis]. [ResearchGate]: University of Dhaka.
System ConfigurationToolsLivestockPlant ScienceSocial PerspectivesEconomics
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Animal Grazing
Document type
Thesis/Dissertation
Country
Bangladesh
Design and Optimization of Solar Photovoltaic Power Plant in Case of Agrivoltaics
Agrivoltaics is the dual use of farming land, by combining solar PV electricity generation and crop growing, simultaneously. Nowadays, farmers are mostly facing the problems due to heavy rains, floods, hailstorms, drought, etc., by which all their efforts and investments go in vain, and farmers faces the extreme difficult conditions. Therefore, concept of Agrivoltaics came to maximize the use of the agricultural land by combining solar energy harvesting and crop growing. With this system, farmers can earn extra money by selling generated PV electricity along with crop, without affecting their crop’s yield. In addition, they can utilize some part of generated electricity for their house, as they generally live nearby their farmland and can improve their livelihood. The most important factor here is the effect of the shadow of solar panel on the growth of the crops. Hence, this paper presents the most important findings of the effect of shadow under the dynamic conditions, as the shadow moves with the motion of the sun. To study the effect of the shadow, the height of solar panels on the agricultural land, is a crucial factor and optimization of the same is important. The optimum height of the solar panels on agricultural land is required to have minimum effect of its shadow on the crops, to provide farmers with flexibility in moving their vehicles easily for farming and it should not increase the effective cost of the solar power plant. A simulation and analysis was carried out at 4 different heights of solar panels, 4, 8, 12 and 16 ft. These heights were individually analysed with two different parameters, change in Shadow Area (SA) of the panel per hour and shadow Displacement Length (SDL) per hour. The movement of shadow was traced from morning 6.00 AM to evening 7.00 PM, at every 1 h of time interval. Through simulation studies, it was observed that as with the increase in height of the solar panel, the rate of shadow displacement increases on the land. However, the percent change in average Shadow Displacement Length Rate (SDLR) from 4 to 8, 8 to 12 and 12 to 16 ft (6.00 AM to 7.00 PM) was found to be ~75%, ~55% and ~39%, respectively. Further extension of solar panel’s height above 16 ft, SDLR kept dropping and didn’t show any significant benefits neither in Shadow Area nor in Shadow Displacement rate. Therefore, on the basis of analysis it may be concluded that the optimum height of solar panels should be kept around 15 ft, which will project minimum shadow on crops with high SDL rate, allow farmers to do faming conveniently with their vehicle and keep the financial burden at the lower side.
Mohd. Adil Faizi, Vyas Maharshi Sandipkumar, Abhishek Verma, Suman, V. K. Jain. 2020. Design and Optimization of Solar Photovoltaic Power Plant in Case of Agrivoltaics. In: V.K. Jain, S. Rattan, A. Verma, editors. Recent Trends in Materials and Devices. ICRTMD 2019; 2019/12/18; India. Online: Springer, Singapore; p.
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MicroclimatologySystem ConfigurationStandardization and Best Practices
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
India
Design and Optimization of an Agrivoltaics System
Agrivoltaics system is focused on dual land usage by crop harvesting along with energy generation, which can improve the income of the famers. To maintain the crop growth and solar photovoltaic (PV) system performance, the structure of solar PV power plant design should be such that the overall land utilization can be increased. Simulation-based experiment shows that the average shadow coverage area between two models is about 30.22 m2 in Agrivoltaics Model 1 and about 30.09 m2 in Agrivoltaics Model 2. Result concludes that the maximum shadow area is 14.14% more in Agrivoltaics Model 1 as compared with Agrivoltaics Model 2, as per movement of shadow at every 1 h. of time interval, from 8.00 AM to 5.00 PM. Hence, shadow density is less in Agrivoltaics Model 2 configuration compared to Agrivoltaics Model 1 configurations, and both models will be beneficial for crops with additional generation of income.
M.A. Faizi, A. Verma, V. K. Jain. 2022. Design and Optimization of an Agrivoltaics System. In: Renewable Energy and Storage Devices for Sustainable Development; 2022/04/02; Springer, Singapore. Springer, Singapore: Springer Proceedings in Energy; p. 31–36
MicroclimatologySystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Design and Simulation of Smart Greenhouse for Agrivoltaics Microclimates Optimization
This research aims to design a smart greenhouse that can monitor and optimize the microclimates inside by utilizing the agriculture photovoltaics (agrivoltaics) system as a standalone power source while still meeting the minimum supply of solar sun radiation for plant growth. The smart greenhouse utilize Internet of Things (IoT) technology so the results of microclimates greenhouse monitoring can be seen by users through smartphones. The research stages began with the formulation of the problem along with a literature study regarding the effect of using the agrivoltaics system in a greenhouse. Next steps were design of greenhouse construction, microclimates optimization mechanism design and its devices, and agrivoltaics system configuration. Finally, simulation of the fluid dynamics and temperature, and the functional design and system behavior. It was found that combination of the use of ventilation, horizontal air flow (HAF) fan, and exhaust fan can be utilized to maintain temperature and humidity in the greenhouse in a range of optimum values. With the dimensions of PV panels of 1.48 x 0.68 m in arrangement of chessboard pattern and maximized roof area, the percentage of PV shade in the greenhouse was 51% with 24 panels.
M.A. Minanda, I. Idris, D. Sumardi. 2021. Design and Simulation of Smart Greenhouse for Agrivoltaics Microclimates Optimization. In: IEEE Xplore. International Symposium on Electronics and Smart Devices (ISESD); 2021/06/29; Bandung, Indonesia. Online: IEEE; p. 1-6
MicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Indonesia
Design and Test of Agri-Voltaic System
Agri-voltaic system is the combination between solar photovoltaic power generation and plant cultivation. A 480 Wp
ground-mounted solar panel system was designed and constructed. After that, a plant plot sizing 1 x 7 m under this solar panel was design as well as 175 vegetations of bok choy were then grown. The potential of agri-voltaic system consisting of efficiency of solar power generation, the bok choy yield and the land equivalent ratio of system were monitored and evaluated. The system could generate power at around 1.05 kW/day (31.00 kW/month). In addition, 8.00 kg/plot of bok choy yield was obtained. The total value of both systems could make up to $6.34 a month ($3.73 and $2.61 from solar power generation and plant production,
respectively). The land equivalent ratio (LER) of system was 1.80 which was indicated that the agri-voltaic system could increase the land value up to 80%.M. Kumpanalaisatit, W. Setthapunb, H. Sintuyac, S.N. Jansri. 2021. Design and Test of Agri-Voltaic System. Turkish Journal of Computer and Mathematics Education. 12(8):2395-2404.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesMarket AssessmentsImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Thailand
Design and Testing of Highly Transparent Concentrator Photovoltaic Modules for Efficient Dual-Land-Use Applications
Two types of highly transparent concentrator photovoltaic (CPV) modules that sepa-rately utilize direct sunlight and diffuse sunlight for efficient dual-land-use appli-cations were designed and tested. The type A module, comprising a typical-scale CPV lens and solar cells, has a completely direct-diffuse-separated design for power generation and other solar applications. On the other hand, the type B module, con-sisting of a microscale CPV lens and solar cells, was designed to increase the amount of direct sunlight transmitted based on an intentional reduction in the ratio of the lens aperture area to the module aperture area. In experiments, both modules exhibit higher electricity yields and module-transmitted irradiances (MTIs) than those of a conventional partially transparent flat photovoltaic module with 17% efficiency Si solar cells. Furthermore, the modules show direct normal irradiance-based efficien-cies of 26.7% (type A) and 18.5% (type B) while simultaneously showing MTI-to-global normal irradiance ratios of 15.3%-63.7% (type A) and 38.0%-63.8% (type B) under various irradiance conditions. Thus, an irradiance of at least 160 W/m2 under the modules can be achieved even when they are arrayed without gaps (at a ground coverage ratio = 1).
Daisuke Sato, Noboru Yamada. 12/2019. Design and Testing of Highly Transparent Concentrator Photovoltaic Modules for Efficient Dual-Land-Use Applications. Energy Science & Engineering. 8:779-788.
MicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Japan
Design of Agri-Voltaic System Based on Concentrator Photovoltaic With Spectral Splitting
This research presents a concentrator photovoltaic (CPV) system with spectral splitting for agri-voltaic applications. This system provides light for agriculture and electricity generation at the same time on the same land with very high efficiency.
(!) . 2022. Design of Agri-Voltaic System Based on Concentrator Photovoltaic With Spectral Splitting. In: Integrated Photonics Research, Silicon and Nanophotonics 2022. Optica Advanced Photonics Congress 2022; 2022/07/24; Maastricht, Limburg Netherlands. Maastricht, Limburg Netherlands: Optica Publishing Group; p.
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PV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Design of Agrivoltaic System to Optimize Land Use for Clean Energy-Food Production: A Socio-Economic and Environmental Assessment
Accessing solar photovoltaic energy is a key point to develop sustainable energy and the economy of a developing country like India. The country has set a target of 100 GW of power production from solar photovoltaics to double the farmer's income by 2022, out of which 50 GW has been achieved by 2021. As an evolving economy, demand for energy and foods has improved by almost 40% and 25%, respectively. This transition will add to the global competition in land use issues. In this perspective, a dual land use approach, ‘agrivoltaic system’ is essential to secure land tenure as well as enhance energy-food security, socio-economic feasibility, and livelihoods of the country. In the present study, three different types of design techniques have been demonstrated to obtain an efficient system. A double row array design capacity of a 6 kWp agrivoltaic system is found as the best system in terms of average annual revenue, land equivalent ratio, and payback period resulting in 2308.9 USD, 1.42, and up to 7.6 years, respectively. Further, the socio-economic parameters such as revenue, benefit–cost ratio, and price–performance ratio of turmeric are found to be 187.3 USD, 1.86, and 0.75, respectively, in the same land use. This work can be extended to a different technology of panels, more seasonal crops, and photosynthesis responses in medium and large-scale AVS.
N.C. Giri, R.C. Mohanty. 2022. Design of Agrivoltaic System to Optimize Land Use for Clean Energy-Food Production: A Socio-Economic and Environmental Assessment. Clean Technologies and Environmental Policy. 24:2595–2606.
EconomicsPV TechnologiesImpact AssessmentsMarket Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
India
Design of Multi-Passband Polymer Multilayer Film and Its Application in Photovoltaic Agriculture
To solve the issue of the contradiction between photovoltaic power generation and plant photosynthesis for sunlight demand, we propose a design method of multi-passband polymer multilayer optical structure. Using polycarbonate (PC) and polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), two polymer materials with different refractive indices, the passband position and passband bandwidth are calculated and adjusted by the transmission matrix method and TFCalc software. A 450 nm, 660 nm, and 730 nm three-passband filter was realized by superimposing stacks of different band positions. The feasibility of the photovoltaic agriculture was confirmed by the power generation efficiency and the actual plant growth.
Ming Li, Yang Liu, Fangxin Zhang, Xinyu Zhang, Zhisen Zhang, Altyeb Ali Abaker Omer, Shutao Zhao, Wen Liu. 2021. Design of Multi-Passband Polymer Multilayer Film and Its Application in Photovoltaic Agriculture. Chinese Optical Letters. 19(11):
(!) .
Plant ScienceEconomicsPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
Design of a Smart Agri-Voltaic System for Irrigation Purposes Considering Major Crops
Products and farming equipment’s are continually being upgraded. In Bangladesh, physical labor is used primarily in farming. Here, automated farming has not yet been implemented. Our initiative aims to implement a fundamental strategy to combine solar power and smart IoT systems for farming in our nation. It is an automated farming system created as an Android application that is used to select the best crop before the cultivation process begins based on the area of the producing land. According to studies, PV systems in agriculture are the greatest ways to meet the agricultural needs of rural places. The use of solar energy offers the potential to offer emissions-free energy services. It has a plentiful supply because it is a renewable energy source. The solar power pumping system can be employed in Bangladesh's distant or rural areas where there isn't much access to energy. A solar-powered pumping system can transport water or be used for irrigation. Dieselpowered pumping systems have a low initial cost, but their upkeep and operation are expensive and challenging. The solar-powered pumping system, however, operates almost entirely in the other way. Although it costs a lot up front, operating it is significantly less expensive. An effective, straightforward, and dependable solar pumping system will be created. This method can meet the need for water in agriculture and will be economically viable.
Shoheb Abul Hossain, Kasshaf Ahmad, Md. Tamzid Hossain, Afia Raidah Ariya. 2022. Design of a Smart Agri-Voltaic System for Irrigation Purposes Considering Major Crops [Thesis]. [Bangladesh]: Brac University.
EconomicsImpact Assessments
Design of an Agrivoltaic System Using 4.0 Technologies for Agricultural Farms on The Colombian Caribbean Coast
The generation of energy through renewable sources, including photovoltaics, has allowed
Colombia to increase the indicators of clean generation, thanks to the fact that it is inexhaustible and increasingly competitive. The installation of solar farms occupies large areas of land, which are no longer useful for agricultural production or maintenance of the environment. This article proposes an agrivoltaic system that will allow to carry out technological, agricultural and environmental studies based on industry technologies 4.0, as well as the coexistence of electricity generation and agricultural activity in agricultural
farms on the Colombian Caribbean coast.Javier E. Sierra, Alejandro Guerrero, Jose A. Araque. 2021. Design of an Agrivoltaic System Using 4.0 Technologies for Agricultural Farms on The Colombian Caribbean Coast. Webology. 18(6):82 - 93.
System Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Colombia
Design of an Agrivoltaic System With Building Integrated Photovoltaics
Building integrated photovoltaics (BIPVs) are becoming popular as building elements such as windows, roofs, and outer walls. Because BIPVs have both a construction material function and an electricity generation function, they are a promising alternative to sustainable buildings. This study aims to propose a novel agrivoltaic system design that produces crops underneath photovoltaic (PV) modules. Regarding the fact that crop growth is significantly influenced by shading from PV modules, roof BIPVs with different shading ratios can lead to increased crop productivity. Thus, BIPV design should be investigated based on the performance estimation and feasibility evaluation of different shading ratios in an agrivoltaic system. To this end, electricity generation and crop production models are devised by polynomial regression (PR) based on field experiment data collected from the agrivoltaic system at the Agricultural Research Service Center in Naju-si, South Korea. The experiment shows that a shading ratio of 30% allows for the maximization of the profitability of electricity and soybean production in an agrivoltaic system equipped with BIPVs. As a result, this research will contribute to implementing an agrivoltaic system with various BIPVs.
Sojung Kim, Sumin Kim. 08/2023. Design of an Agrivoltaic System With Building Integrated Photovoltaics. Agronomy. 13:
(!) .
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyEconomicsPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
South Korea
Designing Farming Systems Combining Food and Electricity Production
(!) . 2013. Designing Farming Systems Combining Food and Electricity Production. In: Fu Chen, Wangsheng Gao, editors. Sustainable Intensification of Agriculture: Systems Research Helping to Meet the Needs and Managing the Trade-offs of A Changing World. 4th International Symposium for Farming Systems Design; 2013/08/19; Lanzhou, China. Lanzhou, China: Gansu Science and Technology Press; p.
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Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyEconomics
Designing Plant–Transparent Agrivoltaics
Covering greenhouses and agricultural fields with photovoltaics has the potential to create multipurpose agricultural systems that generate revenue through conventional crop production as well as sustainable electrical energy. In this work, we evaluate the effects of wavelength-selective cutoffs of visible and near-infrared (biologically active) radiation using transparent photovoltaic (TPV) absorbers on the growth of three diverse, representative, and economically important crops: petunia, basil, and tomato. Despite the differences in TPV harvester absorption spectra, photon transmission of photosynthetically active radiation (PAR; 400–700 nm) is the most dominant predictor of crop yield and quality. This indicates that different wavebands of blue, red, and green are essentially equally important to these plants. When the average photosynthetic daily light integral is > 12 mol m–2 d–1, basil and petunia yield and quality is acceptable for commercial production. However, even modest decreases in TPV transmission of PAR reduces tomato growth and fruit yield. These results identify crop-specific design requirements that exist for TPV harvester transmission and the necessity to maximize transmission of PAR to create the most broadly applicable TPV greenhouse harvesters for diverse crops and geographic locations. We determine that the deployment of 10% power conversion efficiency (PCE) plant-optimized TPVs over approximately 10% of total agricultural and pasture land in the U.S. would generate 7 TW, nearly double the entire energy demand of the U.S.
E. J. Stallknecht, C. K. Herrera, C. Yang, I. King, T. D. Sharkey, R. R. Lunt, E. S. Runkle. 02/2023. Designing Plant–Transparent Agrivoltaics. Scientific Reports. 13:1-14.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Designing Solar Farms for Synergistic Commercial and Conservation Outcomes
Competition among land uses is making it increasingly difficult to set aside adequate space for wildlife and nature conservation, so it is imperative that opportunities that simultaneously achieve commercial and conservation outcomes be identified and seized. Such opportunities exist in the renewable energy industry. It is widely recognized that renewable energy generation benefits the ecosphere through reduced carbon emissions, but currently, further opportunities for realising direct and indirect conservation benefits through the design of solar farms are less well known. Among other opportunities, solar farm designs that deliver environmental credits through carbon sequestration and biodiversity improvements can deliver higher financial returns. Other opportunities to improve local hydrology, pollination, and pest-control services could be available depending on site-specific characteristics where solar farms are built, and the other land use practices that exist, or are possible, in the immediate vicinity. Here, we explore opportunities among renewable energy generation, agriculture, and conservation, through the co-location and innovative design of PV solar energy farms on grazing and croplands. These forms of land sharing can achieve higher land-equivalent ratios (LERs), a quantitative metric of the reduction in land use. We identify opportunities whereby solar farms can be designed to improve biodiversity, land condition, and conservation outcomes, while maintaining or increasing commercial returns. Much work remains, however, to understand the suite of opportunities available for achieving simultaneously the best commercial and conservation outcomes through solar farm designs in agricultural landscapes.
Eric J. Nordberg, M. Julian Caley, Lin Schwarzkopf. 11/2021. Designing Solar Farms for Synergistic Commercial and Conservation Outcomes. Solar Energy. 228:586-593.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production, Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Australia
Designing, Simulating and Technical Analysis of a 2 MW On-grid Photovoltaic System for Agricultural Applications
The aim of this paper was to analyze technical analysis of agrivoltaic system in Kerman using PVsyst. A 2 MW photovoltaic system was developed for the grid-connected system. Meteonorm 7 software was used to get the meteorological data for the city of Kerman. PV loss resulting from variations of irradiance intensity and temperature and the inverter losses due to the operation were determined. The energy that can be generated throughout the year was calculated for each month considering the PV-array collection loss and system loss, i.e., inverter loss. The corresponding performance ratio was also determined for the energy output per month. Incident irradiation distribution, system output power distribution, array voltage distribution, and array temperature distribution were reported. Finally, parameter optimization tool was used to study the effect of tilt and azimuth. The tilt angle and the azimuth angle were 30o and 0o, respectively. The amount of annual energy injected into the grid was found to be 3766.321 MWh. The maximum energy injected into the grid was in August with 359.713 MWh, and the lowest energy was is in February with 264.412 MWh. As a result, an average annual performance ratio of 80.80% was achieved.
Zeinab Rezvani, Fariba Rezvani, Selçuk Arslan. 2022. Designing, Simulating and Technical Analysis of a 2 MW On-grid Photovoltaic System for Agricultural Applications. Biomechanism and Bioenergy Research. 1(2):1-6.
Market Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Iran
Developing Conservoltaic Systems to Support Biodiversity on Solar Farms
Eric J. Nordberg, Lin Schwarzkopf. 2023. Developing Conservoltaic Systems to Support Biodiversity on Solar Farms. Austral Ecology. 48:643–649.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Development and Assessment of a New Agrivoltaic-Biogas Energy System for Sustainable Communities
In this study, a unique energy system integrated with an agrivoltaic plant, a biogas production and utilization facility, and a community-based energy system is analyzed in order to fully cover the needs of electricity, biogas, heat, and cooling for a community. The bifacial photovoltaic modules with a high structure are considered in this design, where they cover the sugarcane field as the agrivoltaic system. Both sugarcane and cow manure are considered and used to generate biogas. An integrated energy system is proposed to meet the electricity, heating, and cooling requirements of a community in a case study. The capacities of the components are determined according to a community load selected for a case study with more than 34 000 people living in Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand. A biogas-based combined cycle with two stages of the Rankine cycle, as well as a bifacial photovoltaic-based system, are used to generate electricity. The excess heat is recovered and used to cover the heating loads of the community for greenhouse and food dryer, as well as in a lithium bromide absorption refrigeration cycle to provide cooling. The first and second laws of thermodynamics are used with the mass, energy, entropy, and exergy balance equations to analyze and evaluate the system. A time-dependent analysis is carried out to provide more insightful details about the system for each hour throughout the whole year. The experimental data for the biogas production system and actual meteorological data are considered with commercially available component and unit specifications to provide more realistic results. An 8 MWp of PV plant with 415 MWp of a biogas power plant as well as 105 MWp of high- and low-pressure steam turbines can meet 100% of 92 GWh nonthermal electricity, 63 GWh cooling, and 13 GWh heating loads in a year. The overall energy and exergy efficiencies of the overall system are found to be 33.64% and 22.96% under average ambient conditions and average load requirements.
M. Temiz, N. Sinbuathong, I. Dincer. 08/2022. Development and Assessment of a New Agrivoltaic-Biogas Energy System for Sustainable Communities. International Journal of Energy Research. 46(13):18663-18675.
Market Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Thailand
Development of Photovoltaic Agriculture in China Based on SWOT Analysis
As the coupling of photovoltaic (PV) and agriculture, PV agriculture
can effectively promote the development of the PV industry and modern agriculture. PV agriculture has attracted numerous countries, prompting the emergence of a growing number of PV farms. As the largest polysilicon producer with large agricultural production area and abundant solar energy resources, China is selected as a case study. This paper identifies indicate that the weakness-threat (WT) strategy should be adopted to promote the development of PV agriculture in China by establishing a unified support policy, encouraging the participation of market capital, and promoting the development of related technology. Similarly, the Chinese scenario might provide a useful reference for other developing
countries.(!) . 2021. Development of Photovoltaic Agriculture in China Based on SWOT Analysis. In: Dobrotă, D., Cheng, C., editors. Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on Green Energy, Environment and Sustainable Development (GEESD2021). 2nd International Conference on Green Energy, Environment and Sustainable Development (GEESD2021); 2021/06/26; Shanghai, China. Shanghai, China: IOS Press; p.
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Policy and Regulatory IssuesReviews/Informational
Development of a Decision Support System to Evaluate Crop Performance Under Dynamic Solar Panels
Achieving optimal yield and quality at harvest depends on the grower’s ability to avoid abiotic stresses (water, light, and temperature). This task has usually been satisfied through the implementation of adequate horticultural practices. In the context of clean energy transition and global climate change, growers nowadays have the possibility to grow their crops under solar panels, which modify the micro-environment of the crops. Being able to anticipate the behavior of plants under these new micro-environmental conditions would help growers adapt their horticultural practices. For electricity producers, in the context of dynamic agrivoltaic systems, anticipating the crop status is useful to choose a solar panels steering policy that maximizes electricity production while ensuring favorable environmental conditions for the crop to grow. To help electricity producers and growers estimate a crop status under panels, we developed a decision support system (DSS) called crop_sim. As of now, it can be used to monitor two types of perennial crops: grapevines and apple trees. crop_sim produces three indicators of the crop status: predawn water potential, canopy temperature and carbon production. Besides providing information on the crop status, the DSS incorporates an expert system which indicates the best time and the amount of irrigation to maintain a desired water status under the new micro-environmental conditions.
This paper first focuses on the description of crop_sim and the usefulness of the three indicators. Then, a case study is presented. Our results show that, in a mature vineyard, with a typical panel steering policy conservative on crop yield, growers could save 13% of water compared to an open-field reference.
Experimental data pertaining to apple trees, grapevines, tomatoes, and maize are being collected. They will be used to adapt the model to tomato and maize, evaluate it and make it robust enough to bring to market. Further improvements of the crop_sim model may be required to finely reproduce observations in the field. A full validation of the model is expected when all data from the experiments will be available. The DSS will evolve depending on the requirements of the agrivoltaics community and may incorporate additional plant indicators and new expert system rules.J. Chopard, A. Bisson, G. Lopez, S. Persello, C. Richert and D. Fumey. 2021. Development of a Decision Support System to Evaluate Crop Performance Under Dynamic Solar Panels. In: AGRIVOLTAICS2020 CONFERENCE: Launching Agrivoltaics World-wide; 2020/10/14; Perpignan, France, Online. AIP Conference Proceedings: AIP Publishing; p.
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HydrologyPlant ScienceTools
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Development of a Model of Combination of Solar Concentrators and Agricultural Fields
We have developed several prototypes of solar concentrators that are compact, light, and inexpensive. As an example of solar concentrators, we selected parabolic solar concentrators with plane mirrors that approximate the parabolic surface. The green energy is very important in modern world because of global climate change, which has caused disproportion in the ecological balance, population growth rates, an increase in demand for food and electricity against the backdrop of a decrease in arable land. They are now the main challenges to the development of agriculture and ensuring sustainable food security of many countries. In this paper, as one of the ways to address these challenges, the problems of combining crops with agrivoltaics are studied using the example of two countries – Mexico and Azerbaijan. The economy of both countries is based on oil production, relief and climate have many common features, which are expressed particularly in the abundance of solar radiation, the predominance of mountainous regions with remote and hard-to-reach settlements that need to create autonomous life support systems. A methodology is proposed for the evaluation of the impact of combinations of solar concentrators together with certain agricultural crops. The proposed mathematical model is simple and applicable for different cases of combination of solar concentrators and agricultural fields. The main problem for proposed solar concentrators is the automatization of the assembly process of these solar concentrators. We proposed two methods of assembly that is, using a parabolic rule and using a robotic arm with a stereoscopic vision system. Both methods are described in this article. The simulation of these processes was made with using software of SolidWorks.
Ernst Kussul, Tetyana Baydyk, Masuma Mammadova, Jorge Luis Rodriguez. 2022. Development of a Model of Combination of Solar Concentrators and Agricultural Fields. Eastern-European Journal of Enterprise Technologies. 120(8):16-25.
PV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Azerbaijan, Mexico
Development of a Quick-Scan Webtool to Facilitate Agrivoltaic System Design
Interest in agrivoltaic systems (the combination of agriculture and photovoltaics (PV)) is growing. Many small-scale installations show the possible benefits for both the agricultural and energy sector. However, this multidisciplinary technology also results in a complex design process for the various stakeholders (farmers, PV installers, policy makers). This work proposes the first, easy to use, “quick-scan” webtool incorporating several performance indicators on crop and energy level. The webtool provides insights in the relationship of the performance indicators and important cost-determining design parameters, and therefore seriously reduce the design phase. It is concluded that crop impact information is still the missing key in the further development of the tool and this technology.
(!) . 2022. Development of a Quick-Scan Webtool to Facilitate Agrivoltaic System Design. In: 2022 International Conference on Renewable Energies and Smart Technologies (REST). 2022 International Conference on Renewable Energies and Smart Technologies (REST); 2022/07/28; Tirana, Albania. Tirana, Albania: IEEE; p.
(!)
Tools
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Development of an Agro-Photovoltaic Transparent Solar Panel and DOCR for Agriculture and Grid System Usage
Providing space for both power plants and agriculture can be a significant difficulty for densely populated nations with limited land. In this paper, transparent photovoltaic (PV) panels are utilized to construct a solar power plant that can simultaneously produce electricity to the national grid and serve as land for agriculture, as sunlight can penetrate through transparent PV panels. This will allow the system to generate electricity in frames land without harming the agriculture. In addition to enhancing agricultural output, agro-photovoltaic adds to the provision of off-grid power in developing and rural regions. For enhancing the protection of the system Directional Over current relay (DOCR) is used for analyzing the faults. To connect the power plant in the load, the hardware specifications of transparent PV panels, boost converters, inverters, and transformers is reviewed in depth.
(!) . 2023. Development of an Agro-Photovoltaic Transparent Solar Panel and DOCR for Agriculture and Grid System Usage. In: 2023 Second International Conference on Electronics and Renewable Systems (ICEARS). 2023 Second International Conference on Electronics and Renewable Systems (ICEARS); 2023/03/02; Tuticorin, India. Tuticorin, India: IEEE; p.
(!)
PV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
India
Direct and Diffuse Shading Factors Modelling for the Most Representative Agrivoltaic System Layouts
Agrivoltaic systems are becoming more popular as a critical technology for attaining several sustainable development goals such as affordable and clean energy, zero hunger, clean water and sanitation, and climate action. However, understanding the shading effects on crops is fundamental to choosing an optimal agrivoltaic system as a wrong choice could lead to severe crop reductions. In this study, fixed vertical, one-axis tracking, and two-axis tracking photovoltaic arrays for agrivoltaic applications are developed to analyse the shading conditions on the ground used for crop production. The models have shown remarkably similar accuracy compared to commercial software such as PVsyst and SketchUp. The developed models will help reduce the crop yield uncertainty under agrivoltaic systems by providing accurate photosynthetically active radiation distribution at the crop level. The distribution was further analysed using a light homogeneity index and calculating the yearly photosynthetically active radiation reduction. The homogeneity and photosynthetically active radiation reduction varied significantly depending on the agrivoltaic system design, from 91% to 95% and 11% to 34%, respectively. To identify the most suitable agrivoltaic system layout dependent on crop and geographical location, it is of fundamental importance to study the effect of shadings with distribution analysis.
S. Zainali, S.M. Lu, B. Stridh, A. Avelin, S. Amaducci, M. Colauzzi, P.E. Campana. 2023. Direct and Diffuse Shading Factors Modelling for the Most Representative Agrivoltaic System Layouts. Applied Energy. 339:1-25.
MicroclimatologySystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
France, Germany, Sweden
Discussion: Avoid severe (future) soil erosion from agrivoltaics
Recent research has highlighted potential synergies between energy and food production, i.e. solar photovoltaic infrastructure and agricultural functioning, so-called agrivoltaics (Dinesh and Pearce, 2016; Barron-Gafford et al., 2019; Gomez-Casanovas et al., 2021), which are increasingly considered for policy development (Feuerbacher et al., 2022). We discuss the associated global risk of soil degradation by accelerated erosion (Verheijen et al., 2009; Scholes et al., 2018) and the need for biochar-based regenerative farming solutions.
F. G. A. Verheijen, A. C. Bastos. 02/2023. Discussion: Avoid severe (future) soil erosion from agrivoltaics. Science of the Total Environment. 883:1-2.
SoilHydrologyReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Do Agrivoltaics Improve Public Support for Solar? A Survey on Perceptions, Preferences, and Priorities
Agrivoltaic systems integrate agricultural production with solar photovoltaic electricity generation. Given the proven technical, economic, and environmental co-benefits provided by agrivoltaic systems, increased proliferation is anticipated, which necessitates accounting for the nuances of community resistance to solar development on farmland and identifying pathways for mitigation. Minimizing siting conflict and addressing agricultural communities’ concerns will be key in continued deployment of agrivoltaics, as localized acceptance of solar is a critical determinant of project success. This survey study assessed if public support for solar development increases when energy and agricultural production are combined in an agrivoltaic system. Results show that 81.8% of respondents would be more likely to support solar development in their community if it integrated agricultural production. This increase in support for solar given the agrivoltaic approach highlights a development strategy that can improve local social acceptance and the deployment rate of solar. Survey respondents prefer agrivoltaic projects that a) are designed to provide economic opportunities for farmers and the local community b) are not located on public property c) do not threaten local interests and d) ensure fair distribution of economic benefits. Proactively identifying what the public perceives as opportunities and concerns related to agrivoltaic development can help improve the design, business model, and siting of systems in the U.S.
Alexis S. Pascaris, Chelsea Schelly, Mark Rouleau, Joshua M. Pearce. 2022. Do Agrivoltaics Improve Public Support for Solar? A Survey on Perceptions, Preferences, and Priorities. Green Technology, Resilience, and Sustainability. 2(8):1-17.
Social Perspectives
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
Michigan, Texas
Does Agrivoltaism Reconcile Energy and Agriculture? Lessons from a French Case Study
Agrivoltaism is presented as an innovative production system that may combine agricultural activity and energy production on the same parcel of land. The deployment of this innovation has already begun in France as part of the energy transition initiatives, and many actors consider that its deployment only depends on social acceptance issues. However, given that agrivoltaism cuts across the agricultural and energy sectors, social, technical, and political concerns have arisen. While these concerns are primarily reflected in conflict and opposition, the problem goes far beyond the simple question of social acceptance. Indeed, it relates to the dynamics of innovation and governance, structured in different arenas at different scales that shape how this innovation is deployed.
R. Carrausse, Z. A. de Sartre. 03/2023. Does Agrivoltaism Reconcile Energy and Agriculture? Lessons from a French Case Study. Energy, Sustainability and Society. 13(8):
(!) .
Social Perspectives
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
France
Drawing Transformation Pathways for Making Use of Joint Effects of Food and Energy Production with Biodiversity Agriphotovoltaics and Electrified Agricultural Machinery
The achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals is being pursued worldwide. While energy production and consumption are to be oriented towards renewable energies, ecologically and socially sustainable agriculture is also a target for science and society. Due to the expansion of renewable energies, agricultural land in particular is the focus of various interest groups, from food production to energy production. In this interdisciplinary study, we show the opportunities and limits of joint synergies from the nexus of food production, energy production, energy consumption, biodiversity protection and social acceptance of renewable energies in a scenario. Biodiversity agriphotovoltaics, i.e. agriphotovoltaics in combination with biodiversity protection measures, such as flower strips, can make a valuable contribution to promoting biotope connectivity in addition to significant energy production. We show this in a GIS-based regional assessment for Lower Saxony in northern Germany. This rough spatial assessment is followed by a modelling of energy production and consumption during the cultivation of a characteristic agricultural field in the loess region of Lower Saxony. Our focus here is on the possibilities of using cable electricity or battery storage for carrying out the cultivation. In an accompanying survey of farmers regarding the use of agriphotovoltaics, we collected and evaluated their prior knowledge, experiences, and attitudes towards this technology. Finally, we show which advantages agriphotovoltaics and electrified agricultural machinery can also have for the sustainable transformation of agriculture and which challenges exist for a truly sustainable use of these technologies.
Anne-Kathrin Schneider, Felix Klabunde, Lennart Buck, Maren Ohlhoff, Larissa Reis, Madita Olvermann, Simone Kauffeld, Bernd Engel, Gerhard Glatzel, Boris Schröder, Ludger Frerichs. 06/2023. Drawing Transformation Pathways for Making Use of Joint Effects of Food and Energy Production with Biodiversity Agriphotovoltaics and Electrified Agricultural Machinery. Journal of Environmental Management. 335:1-20.
WildlifeSocial PerspectivesSystem ConfigurationSiting
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Germany
Driving and Restraining Forces for the Implementation of the Agrophotovoltaics System Technology – A System Dynamics Analysis
The innovative Agrophotovoltaics (APV) system technology combines agricultural biomass and solar power production on the same site and aims at reducing the conflict between food and power production. Unrelated to this benefit, this technology may impact the landscape negatively and could thus be subject to public opposition and/or restraining frameworks. The presented study offers a System Dynamics (SD) approach, through Causal Loop Diagrams (CLDs) models, based on the results of citizen workshops, literature research, and expert discussions on the technology. A comprehensive analysis of the driving and restraining forces for the implementation of APV-technology and expected or potential impacts reveals influential factors. Hence, this SD approach identifies bottlenecks and conflicting objectives in the technology implementation that need to be further addressed. A key finding is that successful APV-projects would require stakeholder involvement to achieve greater local acceptance. When it comes to production on agricultural land, APV-systems may drive the land use efficiency to up to 186 percent when the PV-panels serve for protection against heat stress. On the other hand, altered precipitation patterns and impacts on agricultural cultivation and, especially, the landscape caused by the technical system, may restrain the application of APV. Finally, system design factors and operator modes are amongst the criteria that may influence the local acceptance in society, farmers’ motivation for APV and economic factors for the market launch of APV.
Daniel Ketzer, Peter Schlyter, Nora Weinberger, Christine Rösch. 2020. Driving and Restraining Forces for the Implementation of the Agrophotovoltaics System Technology – A System Dynamics Analysis. Journal of Environmental Management. 270:
(!) .
Social Perspectives
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Germany
Dual Production of Solar Energy and Important Plant-Derived Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients: Artemisinin, a Pilot Study
Agrophotovoltaics is a relatively new field of research where land is used for the production of both solar energy and various suitable (food) crops. Due to persistent rolling blackouts in South Africa, and a dire need to invest in renewable energy, a pilot study was conducted to test the feasibility to produce high value active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) yielding plants in combination with solar energy. In this study, solar panels were simulated by removing direct sunlight from Artemisia annua plants, and the concentration of the API, artemisinin, was determined and compared to control plants exposed to full sunlight. The impact of a low light regime on the biosynthesis of artemisinin was therefore investigated. Samples were collected from the shaded plants as well as from the control plants and artemisinin content quantified with liquid chromatography mass spectrometry. In addition, scanning electron microscopy analysis was conducted to determine the influence on the number and morphology of glandular trichomes which are believed to be the site of artemisinin production and/or storage. The shaded plants were found to contain roughly 20% more artemisinin as compared to the control plants. Scanning electron microscopy analysis could not establish a clear indication of the impact on the glandular trichomes due to a dense layer of filamentous trichomes obscuring the glandular trichomes in the sun exposed leave material. This pilot study indicates in principle that low maintenance solar panels may be used for energy generation and in practical enhancement of artemisinin content.
Barend Jacobus Lee, Suzanne Elaine Van Niekerk, Anine Jordaan, Lesetja Jan Legoabe, Richard Kingston Haynesa, Frank van der Kooy. 11/2022. Dual Production of Solar Energy and Important Plant-Derived Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients: Artemisinin, a Pilot Study. South African Journal of Botany. 150:473-477.
Plant Science
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
South Africa
Dual Use of Agricultural Land: Introducing ‘agrivoltaics’ in Phoenix Metropolitan Statistical Area, USA
This paper proposes ‘agrivoltaic’ system development within Phoenix Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) with the objective to generate clean energy in the agricultural lands using solar PV (Photovoltaics) systems thus reducing land commitment and also preserving the agricultural land in the process. Phoenix MSA comprises of two of the fastest growing counties in United States. The study finds that with half density panel distribution, private agricultural lands in the APS (Arizona Public Service) service territory can generate about 8 times the current residential energy demand and 3.4 times the current total energy requirements of the residential, commercial and industrial sectors in the MSA. The Indian Reservation land in the SRP (Salt River Project) service territory has the capacity to generate all of the current residential energy requirement. Most of the agricultural land lies within 1 mile of the 230 and 500kV transmission lines and is capable of producing 137.5 and 77.5 million MWh of energy. However, with half density panel distribution, an agricultural land received about 60% of direct sunlight compared to a land with no panels. Farmlands have the capacity to generate energy which is significantly more than that required for crop production. Analysis shows that about 50% of the agricultural land sales would have made up for the price of the sale within 2 years with agrivoltaic systems. The effect of preserving the agricultural land and creating a natural growth boundary on urban growth patterns in the rapidly sprawling Phoenix MSA is left as scope for future studies.
D. Majumdar, M.J. Pasqualetti. 2018. Dual Use of Agricultural Land: Introducing ‘agrivoltaics’ in Phoenix Metropolitan Statistical Area, USA. Landscape and Urban Planning. 170:150-168.
MicroclimatologyMarket AssessmentsPV TechnologiesSystem ConfigurationImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
Arizona
Ductile, Model-Based Feasibility Assessment for Non-irrigated Agrivoltaic Systems
Climate change is already affecting every region across the globe, increasing the risk of conflicts for natural resources. Energy and food systems are striving to meet their rising demands without exceeding planetary boundaries. Ex-ploring the interconnections between these sectors in a Water, Energy, Food (WEF) Nexus framework, can help in relaxing land use constraints and mitigating water scarcity issues, enhancing sustainability in a holistic approach. This work analyses the role of agrivoltaic in non-irrigated areas, to promote an effective coexistence of crops and photovoltaic systems. To this end, a geo-spatial analysis is performed to investigate the current ground-mounted PV power plant land use. After that, a crop- and site-specific modelling is developed to study agriculture potentiality in a context with reduced solar irradiation availability. Results show a high potentiality for agrivoltaic implementation in non-irrigated areas, with a reduction in evapotranspiration water needs. Several crops present satisfying yields under agrivoltaic configuration, sometimes with productions even higher than traditional farming. This work delivers pilot examples of feasible rainfed agrivoltaic implementations, with the aim of supporting decision-making processes to promote sustainable development.
M. Curioni, N. Galli, M. C. Rulli, S. Leva, G. Manzolini. 2022. Ductile, Model-Based Feasibility Assessment for Non-irrigated Agrivoltaic Systems. In: 2022 IEEE International Conference on Environment and Electrical Engineering and 2022 IEEE Industrial and Commercial Power Systems Europe (EEEIC / I&CPS Europe); 2022/06/28; Prague, Czech Republic. IEEE: IEEE; p. 1-6
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyEconomicsHydrology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
India, Italy
Dye Sensitized Solar Cell (Dssc) Greenhouse Shading: New Insights for Solar Radiation Manipulation
Energy crisis is the worldwide main concern since fossil fuels are facing rapid depletion and its consumption contributes to the rise in the average global temperature. Among the challenges to be embedded lately with agricultural activities is to explore clean and renewable energy resources. Electrical energy generation via solar technology, or known also as photovoltaic (PV) technology, has been the most economical viable green resource, especially in tropical-based countries. The most notable problem revealed by conventional PV in greenhouses, however, is due to the antagonistic factor lying in both photovoltaic roofs and plants. As such, the divergence subsequently decreases the growth and productivity of the cultivated crops. The Dye Sensitized Solar Cell (DSSC) is thus of great importance to human as it possesses several attractive features. For instance, the fabrication of DSSC is cheap. It is also flexible, transparent, and sensitive to low light levels. Besides its easiness to be used in larger applications, makes DSSC an ideal candidate that could function greatly as energy buildings. This review article aims to explore the DSSC technology's potential and its effectiveness as a shading greenhouse. Further, in-depth understanding on the uniqueness and advantages of this technology is thoroughly assessed. In comparison to conventional PV, the DSSC technology especially on solar radiation manipulation through the optimum choice of photosensitizer is well described. This paper also consolidates all the materials employed for DSSC fabrication for greenhouse shading. Detailing photosensitizer and light harvesting within PAR wavelength for sustenance growth have been provided. This technology has the potential to improve farming productivity while contribute to a significant reduction of CO2 emission.
N. Roslan, M.E. Ya'acob, M.A.M. Radzi, Y. Hashimoto, D. Jamaludin, G. Chen. 09/2018. Dye Sensitized Solar Cell (Dssc) Greenhouse Shading: New Insights for Solar Radiation Manipulation. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. 92:171-186.
PV TechnologiesReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Dynamic Photovoltaic Greenhouse: Energy Efficiency in Clear Sky Conditions
This paper assesses the energy efficiency of a prototype of a dynamic photovoltaic (PV) greenhouse that has an asymmetric cross section and allows the rotation of the PV modules around their longitudinal axis throughout the day to select the degree of shading inside the structure. The goal of this research is to study the production of energy and the microclimate inside the structure with different tilt angles of the PV panels to improve the information available to support the farmers and to create a PV greenhouse capable of producing income from electrical and agricultural activity. The average values of the internal air temperature and relative humidity, measured during the hottest period and on days with clear skies, are within the optimal ranges for major vegetable species (17–27 °C and 60–90%, respectively). The values of the solar radiation available for the plants were always sufficient for normal agricultural operations, except for the last two days of the experiment (values lower than 5 MJ m−2) in which the shading percentage analyzed was too high for normal production. When the shading percentage was highest (78%), the maximum value of PV power (102 W m−2) was recorded and when the shading percentage was equal to 0%, the minimum value of PV power (20 W m−2) was recorded. The results show that it is possible to balance the electricity production using photovoltaic panels and the agricultural production as a function of the type of crop grown, latitude, operating season, and characteristics of the greenhouse.
Alvaro Marucci, Andrea Cappuccini. 05/2016. Dynamic Photovoltaic Greenhouse: Energy Efficiency in Clear Sky Conditions. Applied Energy. 170:362-376.
MicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Italy
Dynamic Photovoltaic Greenhouse: Energy Balance in Completely Clear Sky Condition During the Hot Period
In this study, the energy balance for a prototype dynamic photovoltaic greenhouse was determined for days with completely clear skies during the summer. The rotation of photovoltaic panels along the longitudinal axis was the unique feature of the prototype. Inside the greenhouse, the degree of shading most suitable for the requirements of the crop, the cultivation period, the latitude of the site and the climatic conditions was selected by the rotation of the panels. To avoid energy losses from the reflection caused by unfavourably positioned photovoltaic panels, the panels were provided with highly reflective aluminium mirrors. To evaluate the possibility of using the dynamic photovoltaic greenhouse prototype as a passive cooling system, the energy balance was determined. Based on the results, the use of photovoltaic elements offers an alternative perspective for both the shading of greenhouses and the production of electricity in periods of heat and in areas with a warm climate. With planning that considers the type of crop, geographic coordinates, length of the cultivation period and local weather conditions, the use of this structure can reconcile agricultural production with the production of energy from renewable sources.
A. Marucci, A. Cappuccini. 2016. Dynamic Photovoltaic Greenhouse: Energy Balance in Completely Clear Sky Condition During the Hot Period. Energy. 102:302-312.
MicroclimatologySystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Italy
Dynamics of Grassland Vegetation in Two Sheep-Grazed Agrivoltaic Systems in Plain and Upland Areas
Agrivoltaic systems emerged to deal with the dual challenges of ensuring renewable energy production
and agricultural production at the same site; however, their ability to deliver grassland ecosystem services is questioned. During one year, we studied direct effects of various shade conditions induced by solar panels on abiotic factors (light, soil water and temperature) and vegetation (growth height, greenness: NDVI, quantity of forage) at one plain and one upland sheep-grazed site. Under exclosure of grazing, three treatments per site were set up: control (without solar-panel influence), inter-rows (variable influence) and panel (full influence). The results showed significant modifications of plant microclimate under solar panels. Soil temperature was cooler in spring and summer, and the soil moisture response differed at each site. Unexpectedly, vegetation growth under the solar panels was taller in spring and summer than that in the control, and biomass was larger during summer drought, but the latter declined during spring of the following year. The results emphasised that, forage quantity and canopy greenness
(NDVI) could be much wider in sheep-grazed agrivoltaic systems than in open grasslands(!) . 2022. Dynamics of Grassland Vegetation in Two Sheep-Grazed Agrivoltaic Systems in Plain and Upland Areas. In: Grassland at The Heart of Circular and Sustainable Food Systems. 29th General Meeting of the European Grassland Federation; 2022/06/26; Caen, France. Paris, France: The Organising Committee of the 29th General Meeting of the European Grassland Federation, INRAE; p.
(!)
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologySoilHydrology
Eclipse: A New Photovoltaic Panel Designed for Greenhouses and Croplands
Most agricultural land is perfectly suited for photovoltaic production, resulting in an increased competition between agriculture and photovoltaic plants for land. Therefore, it is highly important to find solutions that allow the compatibility of agriculture and electricity production. A specific PV panel called Eclipse has been developed and tested since 2005 in order to reach these goals. This panel is designed to increase light transmission to the crops in winter when irradiation is low, and to favor electricity production in summer when irradiation is high. Fresnel lenses are used to achieve this without any moving parts in the panels. The Eclipse panels were tested in two sites in Italy and Spain with successful results on various crops. A new version is now designed using bifacial PV panels and replacing the Fresnel lenses with metallic reflectors, achieving more effective and lower costs.
(!) . 2021. Eclipse: A New Photovoltaic Panel Designed for Greenhouses and Croplands. In: Christian Dupraz, editor. AGRIVOLTAICS2020 CONFERENCE: Launching Agrivoltaics World-wide. AGRIVOLTAICS2020 CONFERENCE: Launching Agrivoltaics World-wide; 2020/10/14; Perpignan, France. Perpignan, France: AIP Publishing; p.
(!)
MicroclimatologyPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Italy, Spain
Ecohydrological Effects of Photovoltaic Solar Farms on Soil Microclimates and Moisture Regimes in Arid Northwest China: A Modeling Study
Photovoltaic technology plays an important role in the sustainable development of clean energy, and arid areas are particularly ideal locations to build large-scale solar farms, all over the world. Modifications to the energy balance and water availability through the installation of large-scale solar farms, however, fundamentally affect the energy budget, water, and biogeochemical cycles. In-situ field observations, though, fail to draw definitive conclusions on how photovoltaic panels (PVs) affect the ambient environment, or how microclimates and soil moisture evolve under the long-term, continuous, cumulative influence of PVs. Here, we designed a synthetic model, integrating processes of energy budget and water cycle, to quantify the ecohydrological effects of PVs on soil microclimate and moisture regimes at different locations (zones) near individual PVs. Simulations run with a stochastically generated 100-year climate time series were examined to capture the evolutionary trends of soil microclimate and soil moisture. The results indicate that soil moisture content was increased by 59.8% to 113.6% in the Middle and Front zones, and soil temperature was decreased by 1.47 to 1.66 °C in all the sheltered zones, mainly because there was 5– 7 times more available water and ~27% less available radiation there, compared with the control zone. On the other hand, if the ground clearance of the PVs is too low, turbulence beneath hot PVs will have a significant influence on not only soil temperature but also soil moisture content. The innovative contribution of this study lies in reinforcing existing theoretical patterns for the development of soil microclimate and moisture dynamics influenced by PVs, and can be used to provide reliable insights into the hydrological and biogeochemical processes on Earth and the sustainable management of large-scale solar farms in arid ecosystems.
Chuandong Wu, Hu Liu, Yang Yu, Wenzhi Zhao, Jintao Liu, Hailong Yu, Omer Yetemen. 01/2022. Ecohydrological Effects of Photovoltaic Solar Farms on Soil Microclimates and Moisture Regimes in Arid Northwest China: A Modeling Study. Science of the Total Environment. 802:
(!) .
MicroclimatologySoilHydrology
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
Ecological Effects of Preferential Vegetation Composition Developed on Sites with Photovoltaic Power Plants
Efficient ecological evaluation is essential to understand fully the dynamics and development of photovoltaic power plants (PVPP) and to provide important support to the national development of clean energy and sustainable land use planning. There are still very few studies quantifying the direct and indirect impacts of photovoltaics (PV) on the biological diversity. The goal of the study was to assess the vegetation of PVPP and to determine the potential significance for the surrounding ecosystem. The vegetation was evaluated using the method of phytocoenological relevés. Two different sites were recorded: between PV panels and under them. Plant species were classified into groups according to their ecological effects. Sites with PVPP create conditions for species-rich plant communities. The vegetation creates preconditions for relationships and interactions with the surrounding ecosystems. From the perspective of PVPP operation, low growing plant species appear to have an ideal erosion control effect. They are plant species with no relation to agriculture, with limited spreading of seeds, native species, entomophilous species, and species with the limited production of allergenic pollen. Species recommended for the site between the PV panels include perennial grasses and perennial herbs while species recommended for the site under the PV panels are particularly perennial herbs. The vegetation has to be regularly maintained by mowing and even chemical control measures should be adopted. The site of PVPP has a potential to host native plant species that constitute a base for the functional ecosystem and provide a sufficient space for natural ecosystems, by which they can contribute to their stabilization.
Dan Uldrijan, Markéta Kováčiková, Aleksandra Jakimiuk, Magdalena Daria Vaverková, Jan Winkler. 10/2021. Ecological Effects of Preferential Vegetation Composition Developed on Sites with Photovoltaic Power Plants. Ecological Engineering. 168:
(!) .
Plant ScienceSoil
Development Strategy
Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Czech Republic
Economic Assessment of Photovoltaic Greenhouses in China
Photovoltaic energy has shown a drastic increase in recent years, and photovoltaic greenhouses, as new modes of distributed photovoltaic power generation combined with agricultural greenhouses, can yield a profit from photovoltaic power generation besides agricultural planting income, while easing the pressure on the supply of land resources for the photovoltaic power station and promoting the application of photovoltaic products in agriculture, compared to traditional agricultural greenhouses. Research on economic benefits are not enough in a global manner to promote the application of photovoltaic greenhouses. Therefore, the models of costs and income of photovoltaic greenhouses were established, and an economic assessment was conducted in light of three indicators such as payback period, net present value, and internal rate of return. Then, the effects of photovoltaic installed capacity, proportion of bank loans, unit investment cost of photovoltaic systems, annual time of full power generation of photovoltaic systems, electricity price of photovoltaic power generation, and planting income on the indicators were analyzed to provide a reference for the investment of photovoltaic greenhouses. The results show that photovoltaic greenhouses with large photovoltaic installed capacity occupying a large area of land create great investment costs, which is not available for farmers, even huge enterprises. The installed capacity of photovoltaic greenhouses is not beyond 15 MW preferably in light of the investment costs and land use. It is not cost-effective to invest high-grade glass greenhouses with large photovoltaic capacity. The economic benefit of photovoltaic greenhouses decreases significantly with a big proportion of bank loans. It is crucial to reduce the market price of photovoltaic panels, and it is not economical for the investment of photovoltaic greenhouses with large photovoltaic capacity in an area with a low annual time of full power generation or electricity price. It is a good choice to plant crops with high economic income in photovoltaic greenhouses. It is necessary for a project of photovoltaic greenhouses to take into overall consideration the investment ability, investment scale, investment region, subsidy policy of photovoltaic power generation, and a planting scheme including a planting pattern and planting crops. With a suitable planting pattern and planting species in the area of adequate sunlight, the appropriate scale investment in photovoltaic greenhouses can achieve double wins of crop economy and electricity generation benefits.
Jinlin Xue. 05/2017. Economic Assessment of Photovoltaic Greenhouses in China. Journal of Renewable and Sustainable Energy. 9(3):
(!) .
Economics
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
Economic Efficiency of Climate Smart Agriculture Technology: Case of Agrophotovoltaics
Climate change must be the most serious environmental crisis of the present human generation. While corresponding climate-smart agriculture (CSA) practices are emerging, the extent to which CSA is profitable to farmers is unclear. In this paper, we focus on agrophotovoltaics (APV), one of the CSA policies intensively pursued by the Korean government, to analyze the profitability of APV and its implications for rural sustainability. First, we consider the total profit of farms before and after APV installation by a region through generalized least squares (GLS) to verify that APV has overall profitability through the region. Additionally, we estimate farms’ productivity by region with a generalized method of moments (GMM) to compare with the results of the profitability. We predict that APV installation will be more profitable than not installing, and the regions with lower productivity will show higher profitability than other regions. The results are in line with the prediction. The profitability of APV is verified in all regions, and the order of profitability by region and productivity by region are opposite to each other. It suggests that regions with lower productivity may have a higher preference for installing APV, implying the installation of APV provides a new incentive to continue farming even in regions with low agricultural productivity. These results have an important policy implication on rural sustainability since the implementation of CSA could generate a sound and sustainable farming environment by addressing the challenges of climate change.
T. Mo, H. Lee, S. Oh, H. Lee, B.H.S. Kim. 2023. Economic Efficiency of Climate Smart Agriculture Technology: Case of Agrophotovoltaics. Land. 12(1):1-20.
EconomicsSocial PerspectivesMarket Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
South Korea
Economic Feasibility of Agrivoltaic Systems in Food-Energy Nexus Context: Modelling and a Case Study in Niger
In the literature, many studies outline the advantages of agrivoltaic (APV) systems from different viewpoints: optimized land use, productivity gain in both the energy and water sector, economic benefits, etc. A holistic analysis of an APV system is needed to understand its full advantages. For this purpose, a case study farm size of 0.15 ha has been chosen as a reference farm at a village in Niger, West Africa. Altogether four farming cases are considered. They are traditional rain-fed, irrigated with diesel-powered pumps, irrigated with solar pumps, and the APV system. The APV system is further analyzed under two scenarios: benefits to investors and combined benefits to investors and farmers. An economic feasibility analysis model is developed. Different economic indicators are used to present the results: gross margin, farm profit, benefit-cost ratio, and net present value (NPV). All the economic indicators obtained for the solar-powered irrigation system were positive, whereas all those for the diesel-powered system were negative. Additionally, the diesel system will emit annually about 4005 kg CO2 to irrigate the chosen reference farm. The land equivalent ratio (LER) was obtained at 1.33 and 1.13 for two cases of shading-induced yield loss excluded and included, respectively.
S.N. Bhandari, S. Schlüter, W. Kuckshinrichs, H. Schlör, R. Adamou and R. Bhandari. 2021. Economic Feasibility of Agrivoltaic Systems in Food-Energy Nexus Context: Modelling and a Case Study in Niger. Agronomy. 11(10):1-22.
Agricultural YieldsEnergy ProductionEnvironmental ImpactsHydrologyOperations and MaintenanceSitingCosts and EconomicsMicroclimatePlant PhysiologyShading and Light Patterns
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Niger
Economic Potential for Rainfed Agrivoltaics in Groundwater-Stressed Regions
Agrivoltaics co-locate crops with solar photovoltaics (PV) to provide sustainability benefits across land, energy, and water systems. Policies supporting a switch from irrigated farming to rainfed, grid-connected agrivoltaics in regions experiencing groundwater stress can mitigate both groundwater depletion and CO2 from electricity generation. Here, hydrology, crop, PV, and financial models are integrated to assess the economic potential for rainfed agrivoltaics in groundwater-stressed regions. The analysis reveals 11.2–37.6 PWh/yr of power generation potential, equivalent to 40%–135% of the global electricity supply in 2018. Almost 90% of groundwater depletion in 2010 (∼150 km3) occurred where the levelized cost for grid-connected rainfed agrivoltaic generation is 50–100 USD/MWh. Potential revenue losses following the switch from irrigated to rainfed crops represent 0%–34% of the levelized generation cost. Future cost–benefit analysis must value the avoided groundwater stress from the perspective of long-term freshwater availability.
S. Parkinson, J. Hunt. 2020. Economic Potential for Rainfed Agrivoltaics in Groundwater-Stressed Regions. Environmental Science & Technology Letters. 7(7):525-531.
EconomicsImpact AssessmentsMarket Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Economic and Agronomic Impacts of Agrivoltaics on Arable Land Use at the Example of the Stuttgart Region
Photovoltaics and wind energy must be considerably expanded to achieve the targeted climate neutrality in Germany in 2045 which may cause new conflicts. Especially ground-mounted photovoltaic systems, which are often associated with a high land consumption rate, conflict with other land uses such as agriculture. Due to the simultaneous electricity generation and agricultural use, agrivoltaics (AV) systems can increase land use efficiency which is why they are in the political focus. In this study, we go beyond the limited point-wise analyses of previous studies which have focused mainly on the technology itself and potential yield changes of individual crops and provide a spatially explicit analysis of the AV potential. This is done by an in-depth analysis on the example of arable land in the Stuttgart Region, one of the most important conurbations in Germany and Europe. The study focusses on the resulting agronomic effects in the region and the associated agro-economic effects. The analysis is carried out with an integrated land use model that optimises arable land use by maximising gross margins at the farm level. Legal framework conditions such as the regional plan are considered constraints, and existing studies on yield effects under AV are used. The results show that there are synergies through increases in the agricultural gross margins. These synergies could be realized on about 3% of arable land in the study region subject to the underlying assumptions made. With more than 10% of the arable land in the study region used for AV, the average gross margins in arable farming decrease by about 280 € per ha of AV. Farms or areas with a high share of special crops, such as strawberries, demonstrate the highest profitability. On the other hand, regions with a high share of root crops in the crop rotation seem to be less favourable to establish AV. This demonstrates that, the agricultural land use structure must be considered in the holistic assessment of the land use efficiency of AV installations. Our results help policymakers better assess the effects of AV on land use and are useful for identifying priority implementation areas, for instance, in regional or land use plans.
C. Sponagel, A. Feuerbacher, D. Bendel, T. Karl, D. Weber, E. Bahrs. 05/2023. Economic and Agronomic Impacts of Agrivoltaics on Arable Land Use at the Example of the Stuttgart Region. German Journal of Agricultural Economics. 72(2):101-116.
Market AssessmentsEconomics
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Germany
Ecovoltaic Principles for a More Sustainable, Ecologically Informed Solar Energy Future
The majority of power generated by photovoltaic energy infrastructure is derived from ground-mounted solar arrays that prioritize energy production, minimize operating costs and, at best, accommodate limited ecosystem services. We argue that co-prioritizing ecosystem services and energy generation using an ecologically informed,‘ecovoltaics’ approach to solar array design and operation will have multiple benefits for climate, biodiversity and the restoration of degraded lands.
Matthew A. Sturchio, Alan K. Knapp. 08/2023. Ecovoltaic Principles for a More Sustainable, Ecologically Informed Solar Energy Future. Nature Ecology & Evolution. 7:1746–1749.
Standardization and Best PracticesReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Ecovoltaics: Maintaining Native Plants and Wash Connectivity inside a Mojave Desert Solar Facility Leads to Favorable Growing Conditions
The installation of solar facilities is increasing rapidly in the Mojave Desert USA, with the largest facility in North America (3227 ha) currently being built 30 km north of Las Vegas, NV. At the state level, Nevada (USA) has developed an energy plan to diversify its energy portfolio by 2030 with green energy representing 50% of the energy produced. Although solar is considered a clean energy, it does require significant amounts of land and as such may have negative consequences at the habitat and ecosystem levels. A multi-year study was conducted to assess the impact a photovoltaic facility in the Mojave Desert had on the growth and physiological response of two native shrubs (Ambrosia dumosa and Larrea tridentata) growing inside and outside the facility. These species were selected because they were the dominant species at the site and are representative of desert scrub communities throughout the Mojave Desert. At the time of construction, native plants and washes were left intact inside the solar facility. The solar panel arrays were separated at either 8 m or 10 m. Plants were selected for monitoring on the basis of location: at the panel drip line, below the panels, or midway between panel rows. Abiotic factors, including PAR, reference evapotranspiration, precipitation, soil water in storage, and infiltration, were monitored bi-monthly. The growth and physiological status of the plants were assessed by monitoring leaf water potential, chlorophyll index, canopy temperatures, non-structural carbohydrates in the roots and stems, leaf tissue ion concentrations, stem elongation, and seed production. Plants at the bottom edges of the panels received more precipitation due to runoff from the panels, which led to increased soil moisture in the long spacing but not the short spacing. The lower soil water in storage in the short spacing was related to greater growth and higher soil water extraction. Although the area under the panels provided shade in the summer and warmer temperatures in the winter, the incoming PAR was reduced by as much as 85%, causing plants growing under the panels to be spindly with lower canopy volume (L. tridentata, p = 0.03) and seed yield (A. dumosa, p = 0.05). Ambrosia plants remained green in color year-round (not going into winter dormancy) inside the facility and had elevated levels of starch in their roots and stems compared with plants growing at the outside control sites (p < 0.001). Larrea growing outside the facility had lower xylem water potentials compared with those inside the facility (p < 0.001), lower chlorophyll index (p < 0.001, Ambrosia as well), and lower stem elongation (p < 0.001), supporting the conclusion that both Larrea and Ambrosia performed better inside the facility. Shifts in δ13 C suggested greater water-use efficiency at the locations with the least amount of soil water in storage. Our results support the installation of solar facilities that minimize the impact on native plants and wash connectivity (ecovoltaics), which should translate into a reduced negative impact at the habitat and ecosystem levels. Basedon our results, energy companies that embrace ecovoltaic systems that take an engineering and biological approach should provide acceptable environments for desert fauna. However, corridors (buffers) will need to be maintained between solar facilities, and fences will need to have openings that allow for the continuous flow of animals and resources.
Tamara Wynne-Sison, Dale A. Devitt, Stanley D. Smith. 10/2023. Ecovoltaics: Maintaining Native Plants and Wash Connectivity inside a Mojave Desert Solar Facility Leads to Favorable Growing Conditions. Land. 12(10):
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Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyHydrology
Development Strategy
Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
Nevada
Effect Of Photovoltaic Panel Shading on The Growth of Ginger and Kale
This study explores the concept of agrivoltaics, which combines agricultural practices
with photovoltaic (PV) systems, with the goal of increasing economic value for farmers while mitigating land use competition. The study specifically focuses on assessing the crop performance and microclimate impacts of ginger and kale under PV arrays. An experiment was conducted at the Ecohouse on the campus of Ohio University, where a solar array was previously installed, to examine the influence of solar panels on the growth and development of ginger and kale crops. Relationships were resolved between crop growth and various environmental factors, including light availability, soil moisture, humidity, precipitation, temperature, and soil nitrogen and soil carbon content. The findings revealed that while the solar panel treatment led to lower light availability, it did not significantly affect photosynthetic rates or yield in kale plants. The shading from the solar panels positively impacted soil moisture, providing a more favorable growing environment for both ginger and kale. Temperature variations were minimal under the solar panels, indicating that agrivoltaic systems can be implemented without adverse effects on temperature conditions. The results also indicated that shading affected the growth and morphological features of ginger and kale, including leaf numbers, plant height, and the number of senesced and healthy leaves. Shading generally resulted in a reduction in leaf numbers, plant height, and root mass in ginger, while kale showed 4 contrasting effects depending on the specific row. However, shading consistently led to a decrease in senesced leaves and an increase in healthy leaves for both crops. These findings suggest that, for some crop species, shading by solar panels can create a favorable microclimate, mitigating the negative impacts of excessive sunlight and
promoting crop health.Paul Kwame Quarshie. 2023. Effect Of Photovoltaic Panel Shading on The Growth of Ginger and Kale [Thesis]. [Online]: Ohio University.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologySoilHydrology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Thesis/Dissertation
Country
United States
State
Ohio
Effect of Shading Determined by Photovoltaic Panels Installed Above the Vines on the Performance of cv. Corvina (Vitis Vinifera L.)
Agrivoltaic (AV) is a new concept integrating both the production of agricultural crops and electric power on the same land area through the installation of photovoltaic panels some meters above the soil surface and the crop canopy. In the present situation of energy demand from renewable sources, agrivoltaic systems with vines and/or fruit trees under the photovoltaic panels has still received poor attention. On the basis of this lack, the present 3-year study (2017–2019) aimed to investigate the effects of photovoltaic panels on grapevines of variety Corvina (Vitis vinifera L.). In particular, the experiment was carried out in a vineyard located in Northern Italy, Veneto region, with the Corvina (Vitis vinifera L.) grape variety and the effects of shading by the panels on both physiological activities and vine performances were analyzed. Photovoltaic panels reduced both air and soil maximum temperature by 1–2 °C. Vine transpiration on early morning was 0.83–0.90 in AV vs. 1.03–1.21 mmol H2O m−2 s−1 in full sun (FS) vines, whereas at midday values were significantly higher in AV vines (0.56–0.65) with respect to FS vines (0.38–0.44 mmol H2O m−2 s−1). Photosynthesis followed the same pattern with values significantly higher in the FS vines at morning (9.34–11.03 μmol CO2 m−2 s−1) with respect to AV vines (5.24–6–84 CO2 m−2 s−1), and the opposite was detected at midday, with 1.57–3.05 μmol CO2 m−2 s−1 in AV vines and 0.58–2.05 μmol CO2 m−2 s−1 in FS vines. The stem water potential was significantly reduced (less negative) by shading of the panels both at morning and at midday of values around 1–6 MPa thus indicating less stressful conditions for AV vines. The photovoltaic panels affected the microclimate of the vineyard (lower air and soil temperature, higher soil matric potential) in the three seasons. Vine productivity parameters (yield, cluster number and weight) were influenced to a limited extent; anthocyanins, TSS and polyphenols were reduced in grape must from AV vines. These findings show that the panels affect the vines microclimate and physiology and that yield reductions under AV are observed, but under hot and dry weather conditions results could be very interesting either for energy or fruit production. Further experiments need to be conducted in such environmental conditions also in the perspectives of the climate change.
G. Ferrara, M. Boselli, M. Palasciano, A. Mazzeo. 01/2023. Effect of Shading Determined by Photovoltaic Panels Installed Above the Vines on the Performance of cv. Corvina (Vitis Vinifera L.). Scientia Horticulturae. 308:1-13.
HydrologySoilPlant ScienceMicroclimatology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Italy
Effects of Agrivoltaic Systems on the Surrounding Rooftop Microclimate
Agrivoltaic systems have the potential to maximize the usefulness of spaces in building rooftops. Urban farming systems improve the microclimatic conditions, which are beneficial to solar photovoltaic (PV) systems, as they lower the operating temperatures, resulting in a higher operating efficiency. Microclimate simulations by means of ENVI-met simulation showed that between 0800 h and 1800 h, PV temperatures in the plot that has crops below the PV system were on average lower by 2.83 °C and 0.71 °C as compared without crops on a typical sunny and cloudy day, respectively. Hence, we may see PV efficiency performance improvement of 1.13–1.42% and 0.28–0.35% on a sunny day and cloudy day, respectively. Data collected from a physical prototype of an agrivoltaic system suggested that evaporative cooling was responsible for the reduction in ambient temperatures. The presence of crops growing underneath the PV canopy resulted in the agrivoltaic prototype generating between 3.05 and 3.2% more energy over the day as compared to a control system with no crops underneath.
J.W.C. Teng, C.B. Soh, S.C. Devihosur, R.H.S. Tay, S.K. Jusuf. 2022. Effects of Agrivoltaic Systems on the Surrounding Rooftop Microclimate. Sustainability. 14(12):1-13.
HydrologyMicroclimatologyPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Singapore
Effects of Agrivoltaics (Photovoltaic Power Generation Facilities on Farmland) on Growing Condition and Yield of Komatsuna, Mizuna, Kabu, and Spinach
In a sustainable society, it is necessary to develop systems that produce enough food and energy while also preserving the environment. Both agricultural production for food generation and photovoltaics for renewable energy production require large, open fields. In this research study, we investigate the feasibility of combining food and energy production into a single field by examining the effects of installing photovoltaic equipment above land used for farming. We grew komatsuna, kabu, mizuna, and spinach underneath photovoltaic equipment, and investigated the influence of shading from the photovoltaic equipment on plant growth and yields during winter cultivation. As expected, both the amount of solar radiation and the air and soil temperature were lower under the photovoltaics than those under the open field. The growth rate of komatsuna, kabu, and mizuna were slower. However, yields and qualities sufficient to meet market demands remained possible with extension of the cultivation periods. Therefore, although temperature and solar radiation are reduced under the photovoltaic equipment in winter, it is nevertheless possible to produce vegetables in the farmland, providing a novel opportunity to realize an integrated agricultural system with parallel production of food and energy.
M. Kirimura, S. Takeshita, M. Matsuo, K. Zushi, Y. Gejima, C. Honsho, A. Nagaoka, K. Nishioka. 2022. Effects of Agrivoltaics (Photovoltaic Power Generation Facilities on Farmland) on Growing Condition and Yield of Komatsuna, Mizuna, Kabu, and Spinach. Environmental Control in Biology. 60(2):117-127.
SoilPlant ScienceMicroclimatologyEconomicsPV TechnologiesPolicy and Regulatory IssuesMarket Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Japan
Effects of Different Photovoltaic Shading Levels on Kiwifruit Growth, Yield and Water Productivity Under “Agrivoltaic” System in Southwest China
Agrivoltaic systems (AVS) are emerging mixed production systems where crops are cultivated below the photovoltaic (PV) panels. This study investigated the effects of different PV shading levels on kiwifruit growth, yield and water productivity (WPc), with three densities of 19.0% (T1), 30.4% (T2) and 38.0% (T3) of translucent PV panels installed on the South-oriented AVS roof. The AVS perimeter was left open with the full sun treatment outside the AVS as the control treatment (CKL). Results showed that the solar radiation in T1, T2 and T3 was reduced by 43.8 ± 0.6%, 50.5 ± 0.6% and 55.0 ± 0.5%, respectively, compared with CKL, whereas the air temperature was uniform and the relative humidity increased with increased PV shading. The leaf area index and leaf light use efficiency improved, while the leaf transpiration rate, photosynthetic rate and water use efficiency decreased with increased shading. The accumulated transpiration (T) was higher in CKL (419.9 ± 9.9 mm) than shading treatments (380.8 ± 26.7, 319.2 ± 15.1 and 308.8 ± 12.9 mm in T1, T2 and T3, respectively), and shading also reduced soil evaporation (E) (63.4 ± 1.0, 51.9 ± 3.1 and 47.4 ± 3.8 mm in T1, T2 and T3, respectively, compared to 79.4 ± 1.1 mm in CKL) and thus decreased the total evapotranspiration (ETc act=E + T) requirement. The kiwifruit volume and yield were slightly reduced (−7.3 to 5.5% and −6.5 to −2.6%) in T1 relative to CKL (101.4–106.8 cm3 and 17.6–18.9 t/ha), while the negative effects of shading on the volume and yield were significant (p < 0.05) in T2 and T3. The water productivity (WPc) was improved in T1 (8.2 ± 5.7%) and T2 (5.8 ± 1.9%) relative to CKL, however, it was significantly reduced in T3 (−9.8 ± 1.4%). It was concluded that 19% (T1) PV coverage was a suitable shading treatment management in the AVS, as kiwifruit growth and yield were less affected, and WPc was increased with reduced water consumption. The total potential profit can be largely promoted from electricity production, especially for dry rainfed and no electricity remote areas, where they can benefit from using produced electricity locally for irrigation.
S. Jiang, D. Tang, L. Zhao, C. Liang, N. Cui, D. Gong, Y. Wang, Y. Fengd, X. Hu, Y. Peng. 2022. Effects of Different Photovoltaic Shading Levels on Kiwifruit Growth, Yield and Water Productivity Under “Agrivoltaic” System in Southwest China. Agricultural Water Management. 269:107675.
HydrologyPlant ScienceMicroclimatology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
Effects of Greenhouse Photovoltaic Array Shading on Welsh Onion Growth
The use of renewable energy for greenhouse environment control to replace or reduce the consumption of fuel and power-line electricity is an important objective for sustainable greenhouse crop production. This study was undertaken to apply a solar photovoltaic (PV) array to supply electricity for greenhouse environment control. The PV array was mounted inside the south roof of an east–west oriented single-span greenhouse, in which Welsh onion (Allium fistulosum L.) was cultivated hydroponically. Effects of PV-array shading on the Welsh onion growth were assessed. Two PV-array formations were tested: straight-line and checkerboard. For each arrangement, the PV array covered 12.9% of the greenhouse roof area. Beside the PV greenhouse, a control greenhouse was built with identical dimensions and orientation to those of the PV greenhouse. Welsh onion was cultivated also in the control greenhouse. The straight-line arranged PV-array (PVs array) cast shadows on a specific area of the cultivated plants continuously during the growth period. The fresh weight (FW) and dry-matter weight (DW) of Welsh onion cultivated under the PVs array shadow were significantly less than those of Welsh onion cultivated in the control greenhouse. The checkerboard PV-array (PVc array) cast shadows in the PVc greenhouse intermittently during growth. Consequently, the inhibitory effects of the PV-array shading on the FW and DW accumulations of Welsh onion were diminished. The electrical energy generated by the PVc array was comparable to that of the PVs array, which is another advantage of the PVc array.
M. Kadowaki, A. Yano, F. Ishizu, T. Tanaka, S. Noda. 2012. Effects of Greenhouse Photovoltaic Array Shading on Welsh Onion Growth. Biosystems Engineering. 111(3):290-297.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyEconomicsPV TechnologiesSystem ConfigurationMarket Assessments
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Japan
Effects of Organic Photovoltaic Modules Installed Inside Greenhouses on Microclimate and Plants
Despite its potential benefits, dual land use for crop growth and electricity generation (agrivoltaics) is not widespread. This study investigates the effect of two types of organic photovoltaic (OPV) modules (red and blue), which differ by spectral characteristics, on greenhouse microclimate and crop performance. The characteristics of the OPV modules were first determined outside greenhouses. Then, experiments involving a tomato crop were done in three greenhouses. Two greenhouses had modules installed above the canopy, at gutter height, while the third served as a control without modules. Radiation transmittance values of the red and blue modules were 32.2 and 28.8%, respectively. The installation of OPV modules resulted in a similar reduction of irradiance at the canopy level, about 38%, in the two OPV greenhouses (OPVGs). Dust accumulation over 11 months of installation inside the greenhouses reduced radiation transmission of the red and blue modules by 2.6 ± 0.8% and 4.9 ± 1.8% (absolute values), respectively. The amount of solar radiation transferred to sensible and latent heat depended apparently on the modules' radiometric characteristics. The level of diffuse radiation in the global solar radiation affected the temperature of the modules. In the control greenhouse, the accumulated yield was higher than in the blue and red OPVGs by 15% and 9%, respectively. Yet, the ratio of accumulated yield to irradiance at the canopy level was higher in the OPVGs. There were no significant differences among the greenhouses concerning the acidity and sugar content of the tomatoes.
M. Teitel, R. Grimberg, S. Ozer, H. Vitoshkin, I. Yehia, E. Magadeley, A. Levi, E. Ziffer, S. Grantz, A. Levy. 07/2023. Effects of Organic Photovoltaic Modules Installed Inside Greenhouses on Microclimate and Plants. Biosystems Engineering. 232:81-96.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Effects of Photovoltaic Solar Farms on Microclimate and Vegetation Diversity
The need for energy and the increasing importance of climate change mitigation are leading to a conversion from conventional to renewable energy sources. Solar photovoltaic (PV) power has seen the most significant increase among all renewable energy sources. However, most of these installations are land-based, significantly changing global land use (LU). The real impacts, whether positive or negative, are poorly understood. This study was undertaken to have a better understanding of the impacts of solar parks on the microclimate and vegetation dynamics. First, different solar parks were visited to take measurements of the surface temperature (Tsurf), photosynthetic active radiation (PAR), air temperature (Tair), and humidity (RH) to quantify the microclimate and perform a vegetation relevé. The measurements were taken at different positions: underneath, in between, and outside solar panels. For vegetation, the data were first converted to diversity indices, which in turn contributed to a multi-indicator land use impact assessment that evaluated effects on vegetation, biodiversity, soil and water. Solar parks had clear effects on microclimate: if the panels were high enough from the ground, they could lower the Tsurf by providing shade and enough airflow. Additionally, the multidimensional functional diversity (FD) analysis of the vegetation indicated that there was less light at a higher humidity and lower temperature underneath the panels. Interestingly, the species underneath the panels also preferred a lower pH and a higher nitrogen level. Finally, the land use impact assessment found that the total land use impact for a wheat field was higher than that of the solar park, which suggests that the conversion of conventional intensive agriculture to a solar park would be beneficial.
J. Vervloesem, E. Marcheggiani, M.A.M. Choudhury, B. Muys. 2022. Effects of Photovoltaic Solar Farms on Microclimate and Vegetation Diversity. Sustainability. 14(12):1-31.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Italy
Effects of Revegetation on Soil Physical and Chemical Properties in Solar Photovoltaic Infrastructure
Solar photovoltaic (PV) technology is being deployed at an unprecedented rate. However, utility-scale solar energy development is land intensive and its large-scale installation can have negative impacts on the environment. In particular, solar energy infrastructure can require extensive landscape modification that transforms soil ecological functions, thereby impacting hydrologic, vegetative, and carbon dynamics. However, reintroducing native vegetation to solar PV sites may be a means of restoring their soils. To this end, we investigated critical soil physical and chemical parameters at a revegetated photovoltaic array and an adjacent reference grassland in Colorado, United States. Seven years after revegetation, we found that carbon and nitrogen remained lower in the PV soil than in the reference soil and contained a greater fraction of coarse particles. We also found that the PV modules introduced heterogeneity in the soil moisture distribution, with precipitation accumulating along the lower edges of panels. The redistribution of soil moisture by panel arrays could potentially be used in concert with planting strategies to maximize plant growth or minimize soil erosion, and should be considered when evaluating the potential to co-locate vegetation with solar infrastructure.
C.S. Choi, A.E. Cagle, J. Macknick, D.E. Bloom, J.S. Caplan, S. Ravi. 2020. Effects of Revegetation on Soil Physical and Chemical Properties in Solar Photovoltaic Infrastructure. Frontiers in Environmental Science. 8(140):1-9.
HydrologySoil
Development Strategy
Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
Colorado
Effects of Shade and Deficit Irrigation on Maize Growth and Development in Fixed and Dynamic Agrivoltaic Systems
Maize production is essential for global food security and represents a major supply in several value chains. However, the projected effects of climate change are likely to decrease drastically water availability for crops in many regions, affecting yield. AgriVoltaics (AV) systems are an innovative solution that may improve maize resilience in water-scarce regions mainly by protecting plants from excessive radiation and by reducing irrigation needs. However, shade from panels may also affect crop development and production. This study addresses the interplay between radiation transmission, crop development and irrigation needs of maize cropping in field conditions, by the description of crop development dynamics, distinguishing between fixed and dynamic panels. We showed that maize crop responded to both independent and combined stresses (shade and water deficit), with a significant decrease in leaf area index, total dry matter and grain yield. Concerning water use, we showed the potential of AV to reduce irrigation inputs (by up to 19–47% compared to unshaded plots) via reduced soil water depletion and reference evapotranspiration. The crop development was impacted by shade by increasing phyllochron and causing a generalized delay in phenology. At a finer temporal scale, we concluded that maize leaves react to shade by reducing stomatal conductance, net assimilation of CO2 and leaf temperature in a correlated way to radiation, opening the possibility to use this behavior to optimize water use and shading strategies. The spatial heterogeneities of radiation in fixed AV systems, compared to dynamic AV systems, were identified as a second-order effect at the plot level on leaf area index and phyllochron, compared to the effect of radiation reduction. Moreover, dynamic AV showed their ability to reduce the spatial heterogeneities in soil water depletion, showing the importance of controlled shade strategies in AV systems concerning water use.
I. A. Ramos-Fuentes, Y. Elamri, B. Cheviron, C. Dejean, G. Belaud, D. Fumey. 04/2023. Effects of Shade and Deficit Irrigation on Maize Growth and Development in Fixed and Dynamic Agrivoltaic Systems. Agricultural Water Management. 280:108187.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyHydrology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
France
Effects of Soiling on Agrivoltaic Systems: Results of a Case Study in Chile
Soiling losses can potentially impact the economic viability of agrivoltaic systems, especially since agricultural activities raise dust directly underneath and besides the PV panels. To analyze the impact of soiling, we perform current-voltage curve measurements and observe the performance ratio of an agrivoltaic pilot plant in central Chile over six months in summer and autumn. Our findings show a significant impact of soling in energy generation and thus economic viability of an agrivoltaic system: Average daily soiling losses reach 0.35 %/day and the PR decreases to values as low as 40 % in summer months without precipitation or cleaning. This implies that research should investigate on the correlation of agricultural activity and soiling, as well as suitable cleaning methods and technologies for agrivoltaic systems.
David Jung, Gabriel H. Gareis, Andreas Staiger, Alois Salmon. 2022. Effects of Soiling on Agrivoltaic Systems: Results of a Case Study in Chile. In: American Institute of Physics (AIP); 2022/12/06; Germany. Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany: American Institute of Physics (AIP); p.
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EconomicsPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Chile
Effects of Solar Photovoltaic Installation on Microclimate and Soil Properties in Uitm 50MWAC Solar Park, Malaysia
Combining solar photovoltaic panels with agricultural crops on the same land were recently proposed as to maximise land use. However, most researchers were based on temperate climate whereas studies in the tropics have yet to be initiated. Thus, this study investigates the microclimate properties and soil properties for potential agricultural crops to be planted. We monitored photosynthesis active radiation (PAR), light intensity (LI), air humidity (RH), air temperature (AT), and wind speed (WS) in outskirt panels, under panels and row between panels at three different locations: highest point area, moderately sloped area and lowest point area. We also sampled the soil for analyses of chemical and physical properties. We found that PAR, LI, and WS remained low beneath the panels at all locations. Interestingly, no significant difference was detected in AT at different treatments. The accumulation of organic matter, moisture content, and soil bulk densities showed similarities between different treatments irrespective of locations. Soil infertility is reflected by low pH, CEC, exchangeable bases, available phosphorus. Besides, the result showed almost no amount of carbon, sulphur and nitrogen was found. This research might be the starting point of a potential agrivoltaic system in Malaysia that will benefit both farmers and engineers.
N F M Noor, A A Reeza. 2022. Effects of Solar Photovoltaic Installation on Microclimate and Soil Properties in Uitm 50MWAC Solar Park, Malaysia. In: IOP Conf. Series: Earth and Environmental Science. The 4th International Conference on Sustainability Agriculture and Biosystem; 2021/11/24; Online. Merlimau, Malacca, Malaysia: IOP; p.
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MicroclimatologySoilHydrology
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Malaysia
Effects on Crop Development, Yields and Chemical Composition of Celeriac (Apium Graveolens L. Var. Rapaceum) Cultivated Underneath an Agrivoltaic System
Agrivoltaic (AV) systems increase land productivity through the combined production of renewable energy and food. Although several studies have addressed their impact on crop production, many aspects remain unexplored. The objective of this study was to determine the effects of AV on the cultivation of celeriac, a common root vegetable in Central Europe. Celeriac was cultivated in 2017 and 2018 as part of an organically managed on-farm experiment, both underneath an AV system and in full-sun conditions. Under AV, photosynthetic active radiation was reduced by about 30%. Monitoring of crop development showed that in both years, plant height increased significantly under AV. Fresh bulb yield decreased by about 19% in 2017 and increased by about 12% in 2018 in AV, but the changes were not significant. Aboveground biomass increased in both years under AV, but only increased significantly in 2018. As aboveground biomass is a determinant of root biomass at harvest in root vegetables, bulb yields may be further increased by a prolonged vegetation period under AV. Compound analysis of celeriac bulbs did not show any clear effects from treatment. As harvestable yields were not significantly reduced, we concluded that celeriac can be considered a suitable crop for cultivation under AV.
A. Weselek, A. Ehmann, S. Zikeli, I. Lewandowski, P. Högy. 2021. Effects on Crop Development, Yields and Chemical Composition of Celeriac (Apium Graveolens L. Var. Rapaceum) Cultivated Underneath an Agrivoltaic System. Agronomy. 11(4):1-17.
HydrologySoilPlant ScienceMicroclimatology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Germany
Efficacy and Efficiency of Italian Energy Policy: The Case of PV Systems in Greenhouse Farms
The production of energy from renewable sources is a form of energy production that has less impact on the environment than the traditional one. For the farmer this new form of production represents an opportunity, especially for the economic benefits that can produce, both in terms of the incentives provided by the public operator and for higher revenues, deriving from the sale of energy back to the grid and/or the savings generated by self-consumed energy, that help to increase the farmer’s income. In this paper, we analyzed a case study of a farm that has realized a grid-connected photovoltaic (PV) system on a greenhouse. In particular, firstly the farm profitability has been estimated and subsequently, in order to assess the efficiency of the energy policy adopted by the Second Conto Energia in Italy, the minimum incentive tariff at which the entrepreneur has an economic advantage to realize a PV system has been determined. Results show that PV system relegates to a marginal role the cultivation of agricultural products compared to energy production and that government PV remuneration policies far outweigh the minimum threshold that makes the investment advantageous.
Filippo Sgroi, Salvatore Tudisca, Anna Maria Di Trapani, Riccardo Testa, Riccardo Squatrito. 06/2014. Efficacy and Efficiency of Italian Energy Policy: The Case of PV Systems in Greenhouse Farms. Energies. 7:3985-4001.
Policy and Regulatory IssuesEconomics
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Italy
Efficiency Improvement of Ground-Mounted Solar Power Generation in Agrivoltaic System by Cultivation of Bok Choy (Brassica rapa subsp. chinensis L.) Under the Panels
An agrivoltaic system is a combination of solar power generation and crop production that has the potential to increase the value of land. The system was carried out at a 25-kW photovoltaic (PV) power plant located at the Asian Development College for Community Economy and Technology (adiCET), Chiang Mai Rajabhat University, Thailand. The growth and yield of bok choy (Brassica rapa subsp. chinensis L.) and the solar power output were investigated and compared with the control. Moreover, the efficiency of the agrivoltaic system was evaluated. The results indicated that the average intensity of solar radiation of 569 W/m2 was obtained. The highest power generation was recorded in the PV with crop production of 2.28 kW. Furthermore, the control plot of crop production at 35 days provided higher growth than bok choy plots under solar panels of 2.1 cm in plant height, 6 in leaf number, 2.2 cm in leaf length and 0.2 cm in leaf wide. High-yield of bok choy was also obtained in the control plot of 17.31 kg. Although the yield of bok choy is extremely low, possibly because of light intensity, crop cultivation under solar panels could reduce the module temperature to less than the PV control of 0.18 °C, resulting in increased voltage and power generation by around 0.09 %. Therefore, an agrivoltaic system is another option for increasing revenue and land equivalent ratio in solar power plants focusing only on electricity generation. However, suitable crops for the space under PV panels should be investigated further.
M. Kumpanalaisatit, W. Setthapun, H. Sintuya, S.N. Jansri. 2022. Efficiency Improvement of Ground-Mounted Solar Power Generation in Agrivoltaic System by Cultivation of Bok Choy (Brassica rapa subsp. chinensis L.) Under the Panels. The International Journal of Renewable Energy Development. 11(1):103-110.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Thailand
Electrical Consumption on Midwestern Dairy Farms in the United States and Agrivoltaics to Shade Cows in a Pasture-Based Dairy System
The objectives of the thesis were to investigate electrical energy use on dairy farms located in west central Minnesota and to evaluate the effects of shade use by cattle from solar photovoltaic systems. As the push for sustainable food production from consumers continues to grow, food industries and processors are looking for ways they can be more marketable to consumers. Not only do food industries investigate sustainable practices within their own systems, they also push their suppliers to explore ways to lower their farms’ carbon footprints. Measurements of baseline fossil fuel consumption within dairy production systems are scarce. Therefore, there is a need to discern where and how fossil fuel-derived energy is being used within dairy production systems. Baseline energy use data collection is the first step in addressing the demand for a reduced carbon footprint within dairy production systems. Energy use on five Midwest dairy farms was evaluated from July 2018 to December 2019. Through in-depth monitoring of electricity-consuming processes, it was found that electricity use can differ quite drastically in different types of milking systems and farms. Electricity on an annual basis per cow ranged from 400 kWh/cow in a low-input and grazing farm to 1,145 kWh/cow in an automated milking farm. To reduce electrical energy consumption as well as reduce the effects of heat stress in pastured dairy cows, producers may investigate using an agrivoltaic system. Biological effects of internal body temperature, milk production, and respiration rates and behavioral effects of activity, rumination, fly avoidance behaviors, and standing and lying time of the solar shade were evaluated. Treatment groups were shade or no shade of cattle on pasture. The results of this agrivoltaic system suggested that grazing cattle that have access to shade had lower respiration rates and lower body temperatures compared to cattle that do not have access to shade. Electricity used in dairy farms was examined to help producers find areas in their farms that have the potential for reduced energy consumption. Furthermore, the use of an agrivoltaic system on a pasture-based dairy was studied for its shading effects on the health and behavior of dairy cows.
K.T. Sharpe. 2020. Electrical Consumption on Midwestern Dairy Farms in the United States and Agrivoltaics to Shade Cows in a Pasture-Based Dairy System [Thesis]. [ProQuest]: University of Minnesota.
Livestock
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing
Document type
Thesis/Dissertation
Country
United States
State
Minnesota
Electrical Energy Producing Greenhouse Shading System with a Semi-transparent Photovoltaic Blind Based on Micro-Spherical Solar Cells
An increasing population and limited arable land area endanger sufficient and variegated food supplies worldwide. Greenhouse cultivation enables highly intensive plant production and thereby enables the production of abundant fresh vegetables and fruits. The salient benefits of greenhouse cultivation are supported by ingenious management of crop environments, assisted by fossil fuel and grid electricity supplies. To reduce dependence on traditional energy resources, various studies have investigated exploitation of renewable energies for greenhouse environment management. Among them, solar photovoltaic (PV) technologies are anticipated to feed electrical energy to greenhouse appliances for microclimate control. This study proposes a venetian-blind-type shading system consisting of semi-transparent PV modules as blind blades based on micro-spherical solar cell technology to achieve greenhouse shading and electricity production concurrently. In response to the solar irradiance level, the PV blind inclination was altered automatically using a direct current (DC) motor driven by electrical energy generated by the PV blind itself. The PV blind was operated continuously during a five-month test period without outage. Moreover, the PV blind generated surplus electrical energy of 2125 kJ for blind system operations during the test period. The annual surplus energy calculated under the present experimental condition was 7.8 kWh m−2 year−1, suggesting that application of the PV blind to a greenhouse roof enables sunlight level control and electrical appliance operations in the greenhouse with a diminished fuel and grid electricity supply, particularly in high-insolation regions.
Zhi Li, Akira Yano, Marco Cossu, Hidekazu Yoshioka, Ichiro Kita, Yasuomi Ibaraki. 2018. Electrical Energy Producing Greenhouse Shading System with a Semi-transparent Photovoltaic Blind Based on Micro-Spherical Solar Cells. Energies. 11:
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MicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Japan
Electricity Production Based on an Agrivoltaic System. A Study Case for ETSIAAB in UPM
Crops lands could eventually be menaced by rapid increase in photovoltaic solar plants (PVSP) installed capacity. PVSP need large space for its operation what competes with the agricultural use of land. The so-called agrivoltaic systems can alleviate this problem with the combination of both activities, food and energy production. Several scientific works confirm the benefits that a combined system of photovoltaic panels and crop provide. For the crops, decreased evapotranspiration and increased water use efficiency are claimed. In the Technical School for Agriculture Engineering, Food and Biosystems (ETSIAAB), of Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM), there are 16.5 ha devoted to research whereform 6.7 ha are experimental crops. The annual electricity consumption of the Experimental facilities is very high (1100 MWh/year). An agrivoltaic system is proposed to reduce electricity bill and the carbon footprint. A simulation was conducted on a trellised vineyard to determine shading fraction under different geometries of PV module configuration and row spacing. The installation of 50 kWp of photovoltaic power panels would produce 83.90 MWh/year. This will supply 6.18% of the current electricity demand. The annual saving would be 16,780 €, since the price of energy is 0.20 €/kWh after taxes. With a cost for the installation of 80,000 €, the payback time would be between 5 and 6 years.
G. P. Moreda Cantero, I. M. López, M. A. Muñoz García. 2021. Electricity Production Based on an Agrivoltaic System. A Study Case for ETSIAAB in UPM. In: Proceedings of the European Conference on Agricultural Engineering AgEng2021. European Conference on Agricultural Engineering AgEng2021; 2021/07/04; Evora, Portugal. Evora, Portugal: Universidade de Évora; p. 232-238
MicroclimatologyMarket AssessmentsEconomicsPlant Science
Embracing New Agriculture Commodity Through Integration of Java Tea as High Value Herbal Crops in Solar PV Farms
Integration of agriculture and renewable energy resources (RER) is currently a hot topic discussed worldwide based on the need for green energy and sustainable economy. The decreasing trend of global market value for the traditional agricultural commodity such as Rubber and Palm Oil really affected the Gross National Income (GNI) and thus, the government of Malaysia outlined a number of strategic thrusts to boost economic growth. Herbal products have been given sufficient rooms for extension as the first approved Entry Point Projects (EPP1) driver of sustainability. Orthosiphon Stamineus also known as Java Tea is among the five commercialize High-Value Herbal crops (HVHc) and chosen to be deployed under PV arrays based on its sustainability and potential market value. The financial analysis is based on 3-months harvesting cycle with reference to the harvesting coefficience pc and realistic cash flow. The Internal Rate of Return (IRR) is valued at 15.74% that benchmarks positive net return for herbal producers. The cash functions based on Return-on-Investment (ROI) can be achieved after 10 months cycle of production with Net Present Value (NPV) of RM8,863.59. This initiative flows in line with the Cleaner Production (CP) concept of efficient usage of natural resources to minimize waste and pollution. The concept of agro-technology integration is presented with strong financial return for the unused space under PV arrays configured for large scale PV farms.
N.F. Othman, M.E. Ya'acob, A.S. Abdul-Rahim, Mohd Shahwahid Othman, M.A.M. Radzi, H. Hizam, Y.D. Wang, A.M. Ya'acob, H.Z.E. Jaafar. 2015. Embracing New Agriculture Commodity Through Integration of Java Tea as High Value Herbal Crops in Solar PV Farms. Journal of Cleaner Production. 91:71-77.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyEconomics
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Malaysia
Emergent Molecular Traits of Lettuce and Tomato Grown under Wavelength-Selective Solar Cells
The integration of semi-transparent organic solar cells (ST-OSCs) in greenhouses offers new agrivoltaic opportunities to meet the growing demands for sustainable food production. The tailored absorption/transmission spectra of ST-OSCs impacts the power generated as well as crop growth, development and responses to the biotic and abiotic environments. To characterize crop responses to ST-OSCs, we grew lettuce and tomato, traditional greenhouse crops, under three ST-OSC filters that create different light spectra. Lettuce yield and early tomato development are not negatively affected by the modified light environment. Our genomic analysis reveals that lettuce production exhibits beneficial traits involving nutrient content and nitrogen utilization while select ST-OSCs impact regulation of flowering initiation in tomato. These results suggest that ST-OSCs integrated into greenhouses are not only a promising technology for energy-neutral, sustainable and climate-change protected crop production, but can deliver benefits beyond energy considerations.
Melodi Charles, Brianne Edwards, Eshwar Ravishankar, John Calero, Reece Henry, Jeromy Rech, Carole Saravitz, Wei You, Harald Ade, Brendan O’Connor, Heike Sederoff. 02/2023. Emergent Molecular Traits of Lettuce and Tomato Grown under Wavelength-Selective Solar Cells. Frontiers in Plant Science.
(!) .
Plant SciencePV Technologies
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Energy Sustainable Greenhouse Crop Cultivation Using Photovoltaic Technologies
The sustainability of energy and food supplies has come to represent a major concern throughout the world today. Greenhouse cultivation, an intensive food-production system, contributes fresh vegetables and fruits to the world food supply. Greenhouse crop yields and quality can be improved by microclimate controls powered by fuels and grid electricity inputs. Therefore, producing abundant and quality crops with improved energy efficiency has been pursued as a challenge to be addressed by researchers and practitioners. Although application of photovoltaics (PV) to greenhouses can reduce fuel and grid electricity consumption, PV inherently conflicts with cultivation because both photosynthesis and PV depend on sunlight availability. Various contrivances have been explored to enhance the compatibility of cultivation and PV power generation. This review describes important aspects of greenhouse cultivation, electricity demand in greenhouses, state-of-the-art of greenhouse PV systems, and PV shading effects on plants. Finally, prospects for energy-sustainable greenhouse PV technologies are presented.
A. Yano, M. Cossu. 2019. Energy Sustainable Greenhouse Crop Cultivation Using Photovoltaic Technologies. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. 109:116-137.
Reviews/InformationalMarket Assessments
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Energy Yield Evaluation of a Rainwater Harvesting System Using a Novel Agrophotovoltaics Design
The aim of this study was to assess an agrivoltaic prototype design integrated with rainwater harvesting, installed at the Khemis Miliana demo site in Algeria. Agrivoltaics combines land-use for food and electricity production. Photovoltaic (PV) modules surfaces can be utilized as water catchment canopies to harvest rainwater for crop irrigation and/or drinking water. In the current investigation, light distribution under the PV modules was assessed, as well as the energy yield and applications of electricity produced, and rainwater harvesting potential. The design of the rainwater harvesting agrivoltaic system in a V-shape design was assessed and the energy yield was modeled and simulated. The energy yield assessment was performed to predict the performance of the V-shape design, as well as determining the best installation parameters and system layout. Agrivoltaic systems have great economic potential by allowing for electricity production and crop growth on the same land area. This would be a significant development in the sustainable development of society.
F. Chekireda, A. Richab , S. Touilb , B. Bingwa. 04/2022. Energy Yield Evaluation of a Rainwater Harvesting System Using a Novel Agrophotovoltaics Design. Desalination and Water Treatment. 255:27-33.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologySystem ConfigurationToolsPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Algeria
[ Reference]
Enovoltaics: Symbiotic Integration of Photovoltaics in Vineyards
In this study, we propose the symbiotic integration of photovoltaic (PV) systems into previously built vineyards structures, so as to reduce land intervention, visual impact and costs while suppressing impact over crop production and quality. For this purpose, we have identified grape trellises as an ideal crop type to implement this concept based on a simulation study that analyzes the shading patterns and the PV energy generation of different PV design configurations using Photovoltaic Geographical Information System’s solar radiation data and system performance tool. Our proposal consists in the vertical integration of photovoltaic surfaces over the vines, using the same trellis structure, therefore minimizing cost and land building. We found that a ratio between row distance and trellis height equal or greater than 1.5 allows for the PV integration without generating significant shadowing between consecutive lines, while vertical orientation of the panels allows complete irradiation to the plants below. Different module configurations have been proposed and evaluated, resulting in a range of 40–60% installable capacity (compared to a ground mounted installation) with negligible shadowing over the leaves and grapes. Land equivalent ratio for the proposed architectures ranges between 1.27–1.50, therefore confirming the viability of this proposed agrivoltaic solution.
J. Padilla, C. Toledo, J. Abad. 09/2022. Enovoltaics: Symbiotic Integration of Photovoltaics in Vineyards. Frontiers in Energy Research. 10:1-11.
MicroclimatologySystem ConfigurationToolsImpact AssessmentsPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Spain
Environmental Analysis of Agrivoltaic Systems
With the global population continuing to increase, getting closer to eight billion, the demand for supplying food, clean water, and energy becomes even greater. The development of agrivoltaic systems combine crop production with the generation of energy from photovoltaic systems. Agrivoltaic systems offer a solution to the increasing demand for food and energy, while also decreasing water consumption and making a dual use of the land. This chapter evaluated the energy production efficiency and global warming potential, impact of greenhouse gases emissions, from agrivoltaic systems compared to traditional photovoltaic systems and power created from coal. The direct land-use efficiencies of agrivoltaic systems, traditional photovoltaic systems, and coal power systems were also assessed. Three system designs were postulated with different dimensions of solar panels and the spacing between them. System design 1 had the most crop production per acre whereas system designs 2 and 3 had the most energy production per acre and an even mix of both crop and energy production per acre, respectively. It was found that the first system design that was developed has the greatest potential for implementation due to its efficiency of energy production and amount of crop production.
E.M. Ott, C.A. Kabus, B.D. Baxter, B. Hannon, I. Celik. 2022. Environmental Analysis of Agrivoltaic Systems. Comprehensive Renewable Energy (Second Edition). 9:127-139.
Reviews/InformationalMarket AssessmentsSystem ConfigurationImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Environmental Benefits of Co-Located Photovoltaic and Greenery Systems: A Review on the Operational Performance and Assessment Framework Across Climate Zones
Co-location of photovoltaic modules and greenery is implemented through photovoltaic-green roof (PV-GR) system in the urban environment and agriculture-photovoltaic (APV) system in the agricultural environment. These systems offer multiple environmental benefits from the synergistic integration of PV and greenery. Nevertheless, the systematic implementation of these systems is still scarce due to the lack of stakeholder awareness on the multifunctional features, performance evaluation, system design framework, and technical knowledge for optimum implementation. Hence, this review paper analyzed 145 available studies across climate zones, and presents 5 general environmental benefits of co-located systems, 7 context-based benefits specific for PV-GR and APV, along with the challenges in implementing the systems. The interdependence of the reported benefits to 5 system designs components through relevant physical mechanisms is also discussed. In view of diverse climate conditions involved in these systems, publications are categorized by their objectives and Koppen climate classification across 13 climate zones for PV-GR and 14 climate zones for APV. Finally, this study proposed a literature-informed assessment framework with 4 evaluation stages to provide a comprehensive and replicable performance assessment. This review paper provides a systematic summary of findings and prospects to improve future research in co-located systems.
F. Rahmaniah, S. En Rong Tay. 07/2023. Environmental Benefits of Co-Located Photovoltaic and Greenery Systems: A Review on the Operational Performance and Assessment Framework Across Climate Zones. Sustainable Energy Technologies and Assessments. 58:1-23.
Reviews/InformationalPlant ScienceMicroclimatologySoilHydrologyPV TechnologiesImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Environmental Co-Benefits of Maintaining Native Vegetation With Solar Photovoltaic Infrastructure
Co-locating solar photovoltaics with vegetation could provide a sustainable solution to meeting growing food and energy demands. However, studies quantifying multiple co-benefits resulting from maintaining vegetation at utility-scale solar power plants are limited. We monitored the microclimate, soil moisture, panel temperature, electricity generation and soil properties at a utility-scale solar facility in a continental climate with different site management practices. The compounding effect of photovoltaic arrays and vegetation may homogenize soil moisture distribution and provide greater soil temperature buffer against extreme temperatures. The vegetated solar areas had significantly higher soil moisture, carbon, and other nutrients compared to bare solar areas. Agrivoltaics in agricultural areas with carbon debt can be an effective climate mitigation strategy along with revitalizing agricultural soils, generating income streams from fallow land, and providing pollinator habitats. However, the benefits of vegetation cooling effects on electricity generation are rather site-specific and depend on the background climate and soil properties. Overall, our findings provide foundational data for site preservation along with targeting site-specific co-benefits, and for developing climate resilient and resource conserving agrivoltaic systems.
C.S. Choi , J. Macknick, Y. Li , D. Bloom, J. McCall, S. Ravi. 2023. Environmental Co-Benefits of Maintaining Native Vegetation With Solar Photovoltaic Infrastructure. Earth's Future. 11(6):1-12.
MicroclimatologySoilHydrologyPV TechnologiesTools
Development Strategy
Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
Minnesota
Environmental Impacts of Renewable Energy (Solar and Wind) on Water, Food and Energy Nexus
Rapid increasing of renewable energies and the knowledge about their environmental effects are very limited. As a result, the renewable energies (e.g. solar or wind energies) will play a vital role in the future because it is well accepted by environmental friendly industries. This dissertation presents the modeling, data analysis and field experiment, developed for investigation of the interactions among microclimatological factors, land characteristics and solar/wind renewable energy production systems. The research covers multi scales from high resolution farm scales (six acres’ area), mid-size large wind farms and global scales. The main idea of this research is to study the environmental impacts of renewable energies which affect the water resources and therefore the water, food and energy nexus. This research studies how renewable energy can change the water use efficiency, biomass production, energy efficiency and ultimately relates it to sustainable development. Selecting the best location, crop and climate for renewable energy is an important key component in obtaining a sustainable development. The first part of the dissertation includes an experimental observation study on the effects of solar panel on the adjacent microclimate and vegetation. The field study setup included installations of local weather stations and soil moisture neutron probes to monitor the microclimatological and moisture variations. The monitoring was performed both between solar arrays and outside the area (control area). The data showed that (1) the soil moisture under panels are significantly higher than the control area, (2) dry biomass of grass is higher under panels and (3) the area under panels were significantly more water efficient. The investigations on the grass species under agri-voltaic panels reveals a significant increase in late season biomass (90% more biomass) and areas under PV panels were significantly more water efficient. This is accomplished by harvesting solar excess and converting it to electricity. Secondly, an algorithm developed using the first law of thermodynamics and solar panel efficiency solved for the energy balance equation. Solar panel efficiency found as a function of microclimatological factors include radiation, temperature, relative humidity and wind speed. The validated algorithm was then applied to the global scales. The computations of efficiencies shows the most efficient geographical locations for solar panel installations based on micro-environmental factors, but also a more generalized methodology to relate potential efficiency to land cover. The third part of the thesis assess the crop yield and water use efficiency of major crops grown in Oregon, considering three shade levels 90%, 75% and 50%. AquaCrop model was used to evaluate the potential water use efficiency in Oregon. Our results show there is no difference in yield when shade is applied but the amount of water needed for irrigation is reduced. The biomass results showed no gain or loss occurs in different shade levels but there is a difference in the amount of irrigated water. The forth part of the dissertation relates to the interactions of the wind turbines with farm lands. A numerical framework was developed to process the wind farm LANDSAT snap shots before and after the wind turbine installations. The numerical scheme was developed using Mapping Evapotranspiration at high Resolution with Internal Calibration (METRIC) and can calculate and analyze evapotranspiration on the agricultural field and analyze the resulted pixel-based data. From the data analyses on Fowler wind farm (located in Indiana, US) approximately 10% more evapotranspiration was seen in agricultural fields that are co-located near wind turbines (i.e. footprints) compared to places that have no wind turbine.
E. Hassanpour Adeh. 09/2018. Environmental Impacts of Renewable Energy (Solar and Wind) on Water, Food and Energy Nexus [Dissertation]. [Corvallis, Oregon]: Oregon State University.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologySoilSitingToolsImpact AssessmentsHydrology
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Thesis/Dissertation
Country
United States
State
Oregon
Environmental Impacts of Utility-Scale Solar Energy
Renewable energy is a promising alternative to fossil fuel-based energy, but its development can require a complex set of environmental tradeoffs. A recent increase in solar energy systems, especially large, centralized installations, underscores the urgency of understanding their environmental interactions. Synthesizing literature across numerous disciplines, we review direct and indirect environmental impacts – both beneficial and adverse – of utility-scale solar energy (USSE) development, including impacts on biodiversity, land-use and land-cover change, soils, water resources, and human health. Additionally, we review feedbacks between USSE infrastructure and land-atmosphere interactions and the potential for USSE systems to mitigate climate change. Several characteristics and development strategies of USSE systems have low environmental impacts relative to other energy systems, including other renewables. We show opportunities to increase USSE environmental co-benefits, the permitting and regulatory constraints and opportunities of USSE, and highlight future research directions to better understand the nexus between USSE and the environment. Increasing the environmental compatibility of USSE systems will maximize the efficacy of this key renewable energy source in mitigating climatic and global environmental change.
R.R. Hernandez, S.B. Easter, M.L. Murphy-Mariscal, F.T. Maestre, M. Tavassoli, E.B. Allen, C.W. Barrows, J. Belnap, R. Ochoa-Hueso, S. Ravi, M.F. Allen. 2014. Environmental Impacts of Utility-Scale Solar Energy. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. 29:766-779.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Environmental Monitoring of a Smart Greenhouse Powered by a Photovoltaic Cooling System
In hot and arid environments such as prevailing in Madinah city (KSA), many plantations need an appropriate environment climate. So, a solar cooling system inside greenhouses is necessary to get successful crops. For this, environmental monitoring of a smart solar cooling system is provided to reach high crops by supervising in real time the appropriate environment for the smart greenhouse. Recently, the integration of clean energy sources and the Internet of Things (IoT) has a primordial role in the creation of smart greenhouses. The principal objective of this present research is to design a smart greenhouse prototype based on a photovoltaic (PV) system. This allows for powering the different parts of the greenhouse such as DC-air conditioning, fans, water pumps and electronic circuits. The results reveal the potential and the necessity of such smart monitoring solution for remote greenhouses located in arid and hot locations.
M. Benghanem, A. Mellit, M. Khushaim. 05/2023. Environmental Monitoring of a Smart Greenhouse Powered by a Photovoltaic Cooling System. Journal of Taibah University for Science. 17(1):1-11.
MicroclimatologyHydrology
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Saudi Arabia
Environmental and Economic Performance Assessment of Integrated Conventional Solar Photovoltaic and Agrophotovoltaic Systems
Land utilisation by the solar energy industry and other sectors, such as residential and agriculture, has become increasingly competitive in recent years. Therefore, space optimisation is essential to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions while optimising electricity generation and profiting from the solar power plant. This article aims to discuss the different configurations of integrated photovoltaic (PV) systems, which combine the requirement features of a ground-mounted photovoltaic farm (GMPV) grouped into three systems: PV-wind, building integrated- or applied- PV (BIPV/BAPV) and agrophotovoltaic (agroPV). These systems generate electricity but differ because PV–wind systems generate electricity from two energy sources, whilst BIPV/BAPV systems utilise existing building space. Improving these systems, the agroPV system combines the benefits of producing power and using the vacant ground beneath the PV panels by cultivating crops. As a result, the BIPV system possesses the lowest emission rate with a range of −0.906–0.071 kgCO2eq/kWh. The manufacturing PV system's emission rate for these systems is highly affected. Meanwhile, the longest energy payback time (EPBT) is 6.3 years (BAPV), and the shortest is 0.5 years (GMPV). GMPV has the lowest EPBT due to the high electricity production of the plant, which allows the immediate repayment of the primary energy consumed. GMPV system has the lowest levelised cost of energy (LCOE) with the range of $0.04–$0.13/kWh. Meanwhile, the agroPV system has a good performance with an emission rate of 0.02 kgCO2eq/kWh, comparable to GMPV systems and lower than other integrated systems in terms of emission. The system has the LCOE of ∼$0.1/kWh, which is slightly higher than GMPV systems due to the system's higher cost but still provides monetary benefit.
M.M. Junedi, N.A. Ludin, N.H. Hamid, P.R. Kathleen, J. Hasila, N.A. Ahmad Affandi. 2022. Environmental and Economic Performance Assessment of Integrated Conventional Solar Photovoltaic and Agrophotovoltaic Systems. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. 168:112799.
Reviews/InformationalImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Estimating the Economics and Adoption Potential of Agrivoltaics in Germany Using a Farm-Level Bottom-up Approach
This article presents the first bottom-up assessment of the economics and adoption potential of agrivoltaics (AV) using national farm accountancy data in Germany. A recently developed framework for the economic assessment of dual land-use systems is applied to estimate a national AV electricity supply curve. The estimation accounts for economies-of-scale, regional variation in solar radiation, and farm-specific agronomic effects. The results demonstrate that solar radiation and investment costs are key determinants. Agronomic costs from crop shading and land losses have a small impact, but differences between farm-type and regions can be observed. Accounting for economies-of-scale favors farms endowed with large arable land area, which are predominantly specialist field crop and other livestock farm types found in Eastern Germany. In absence of economies-of-scale, early adopters are largely specialist milk or other livestock farm types located in Southern Germany. In presence of economies-of-scale and at an electricity price of 8.3 EUR-cents kWh−1, the 10% most cost-efficient farms could meet 8.8% of Germany's total electricity demand on about 1% of arable land. The results show that substantial policy-support is required to make AV competitive with ground-mounted photovoltaics, particularly if economies-of-scale cannot be realized. Adequate policy designs are needed to safeguard AV's land-efficiency advantage, as most farmers would be incentivized to abandon farming beneath the AV system.
A. Feuerbacher, T. Herrmann, S. Neuenfeldt, M. Laub, A. Gocht. 2022. Estimating the Economics and Adoption Potential of Agrivoltaics in Germany Using a Farm-Level Bottom-up Approach. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. 168:112784.
Market AssessmentsEconomicsPV TechnologiesImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Germany
Estimation Model of Agrivoltaic Systems Maximizing for Both Photovoltaic Electricity Generation and Agricultural Production
Climate change and increasing food demand are global issues that require immediate attention. The agrivoltaic system, which involves installing solar panels above farmland, can simultaneously solve climate and food issues. However, current systems tend to reduce agricultural production and delay the harvest period due to shading by the solar panels. A delayed harvest period impacts the income of farmers who wish to sell produce at specific times. Incorporating a model that calculates the amount of electricity generated by solar irradiation, this study establishes a model to estimate the correct start date of cultivation for solar panel covered crops to ensure the correct harvest date and determines the expected income of farmers by calculating agricultural production and power generation. Using taro cultivation in Miyazaki Prefecture as a case study, the model estimated that the start date of cultivation should be brought forward by 23 days to ensure the ideal harvest period and agricultural production. This would prevent an opportunity loss of USD 16,000 per year for a farm area of 10,000 m2. Furthermore, an additional income of USD 142,000 per year can be expected by adjusting shading rates for the cultivation and non-cultivation periods.
D. Yajima, T. Toyoda, M. Kirimura, K. Araki, Y. Ota, K. Nishioka. 04/2023. Estimation Model of Agrivoltaic Systems Maximizing for Both Photovoltaic Electricity Generation and Agricultural Production. Energies. 16(7):3261.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesMarket AssessmentsEconomics
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Japan
Estimation of the Hourly Global Solar Irradiation on the Tilted and Oriented Plane of Photovoltaic Solar Panels Applied to Greenhouse Production
Agrometeorological stations have horizontal solar irradiation data available, but the design and simulation of photovoltaic (PV) systems require data about the solar panel (inclined and/or oriented). Greenhouses for agricultural production, outside the large protected production areas, are usually off-grid; thus, the solar irradiation variable on the panel plane is critical for an optimal PV design. Modeling of solar radiation components (beam, diffuse, and ground-reflected) is carried out by calculating the extraterrestrial solar radiation, solar height, angle of incidence, and diffuse solar radiation. In this study, the modeling was done using Simulink-MATLAB blocks to facilitate its application, using the day of the year, the time of day, and the hourly horizontal global solar irradiation as input variables. The rest of the parameters (i.e., inclination, orientation, solar constant, albedo, latitude, and longitude) were fixed in each block. The results obtained using anisotropic models of diffuse solar irradiation of the sky in the region of Castile and León (Spain) showed improvements over the results obtained with isotropic models. This work enables the precise estimation of solar irradiation on a solar panel flexibly, for particular places, and with the best models for each of the components of solar radiation.
F.J. Diez, A. Martínez-Rodríguez, L.M. Navas-Gracia, L. Chico-Santamarta, A. Correa-Guimaraes, R. Andara. 03/2021. Estimation of the Hourly Global Solar Irradiation on the Tilted and Oriented Plane of Photovoltaic Solar Panels Applied to Greenhouse Production. Agronomy. 11(3):495.
MicroclimatologyTools
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Spain
Evaluating Potential Land Use of Utility-Scale Photovoltaics (Solar Panels) on Farmland in Tennessee
Photovoltaic (PV) cells, commonly referred to as solar panels, absorb energy from sunlight and convert it to electricity. PV energy generation has increased drastically in the United States (U.S.) in the last decade, growing from 26.5 gigawatt-hours in 2014 to over 207 gigawatt-hours in the last 12 months, or from 0.6% to 4.8% of total U.S. electricity production (U.S. Energy Information Administration, 2023a). The combination of increasing cost competitiveness of PV energy generation (U.S. Department of Energy [DOE], 2021) and efforts to decarbonize the U.S. electric grid suggest even more rapid growth. For example, the U.S. DOE (2021) projects that solar generation could grow to as much as 40% of the U.S. electricity supply by 2035, given aggressive decarbonization policies. At a more local level, the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) has set a goal of adding 10 gigawatts (GWs) of solar production capacity from 2022 to 2035 (Tennessee Valley Authority, 2023b). The rapid production growth coupled with aggressive targets for decarbonization and increased solar capacity has focused attention on the amount of land currently being converted to PV energy production and the amount that will ultimately be needed to accommodate future growth. This report attempts to quantify the amount of land currently used for utility-scale PV energy production in Tennessee and to project the amount likely to be used under different scenarios for future growth. More specifically, this report estimates the amount of land in Tennessee used by: (i) existing utility-scale PV production, (ii) contracted but not yet operational utility-scale PV production, and (iii) utility-scale PV production if TVA were to reach its PV electricity generation goals. Given that farmland could be a location of PV electricity production, the report considers the possible effects of growth on the amount of available farmland in Tennessee. In Tennessee, operational utility-scale PV production currently produces 344 megawatts (MWs) of energy (TVA, 2023a). Contracted, but not yet operational, utility-scale PV production in Tennessee will account for another 1,130 MWs of energy (TVA, 2023a). Following industry and academic literature (e.g., Solar Energy Industries Association, 2023; Bolinger and Bolinger 2022), a range of 5.56 to 10 acres per MW of generated power was used to estimate PV land use. Thus, current operational and contracted utility-scale PV facilities in Tennessee would generate 1,474 MWs of energy and require 8,197 to 14,743 acres of land. Tennessee has 26.4 million acres of land and 10.8 million acres of farmland (USDA, 2023). Therefore, operational and contracted utility-scale PV land use equates to 0.031 to 0.056% of Tennessee’s total landmass or 0.076 to 0.137% of Tennessee’s farmland if all these facilities were located on farmland. If by 2035 TVA reached their sustainability goal and added an additional 10 GWs of PV generation to the existing 344 MWs of PV production in Tennessee, and assuming that TVA placed all PV developments in Tennessee, 57,514 to 103,443 acres of land would be required for utility-scale PV installments (i.e., an amount equivalent to 0.22 to 0.39% of Tennessee land or 0.53 to 0.96% of Tennessee farmland if exclusively placed on farmland). However, not all of this additional production would be located in Tennessee, which occupies a little more than half of TVA’s 80,000 square mile service region. To provide greater context, this report also contains information on the location of existing and contracted utility-scale PV developments, the extent of Tennessee farmland being converted to other uses, PV development considerations for agricultural communities, and the potential for collocation of PV power generation and agricultural production, or what is commonly referred to as agrivoltaics.
K. DeLong, O. G. Murphy, D. W. Hughes, C. D. Clark, H. Crissy. 2023. Evaluating Potential Land Use of Utility-Scale Photovoltaics (Solar Panels) on Farmland in Tennessee. AgEcon Search. N/A.
Reviews/InformationalMarket Assessments
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
Tennessee
Evaluating the Performance of Flexible, Semi-Transparent Large-Area Organic Photovoltaic Arrays Deployed on a Greenhouse
Agricultural greenhouses have been identified as a niche application for organic photovoltaic (OPV) integration, leveraging key performance characteristics of OPV technology, including semi-transparency, light weight, and mechanical flexibility. For optimal electrical design and performance assessment of greenhouse-integrated OPV systems, knowledge of the solar irradiance incident on OPV module surfaces is essential. Many greenhouse designs feature roof curvature. For flexible OPV modules deployed on curved greenhouse roofs, this results in a non-homogenous distribution of solar radiation across the module surfaces, which affects electrical output. Conventional modeling methods for estimating solar irradiance on a PV surface assume planarity, and therefore they are insufficient to evaluate OPV (and other flexible PV) installations on curved greenhouse structures. In this study, practical methods to estimate incident solar irradiance on curved surfaces were developed and then applied in an outdoor performance evaluation of large-area, roll-to-roll printed OPV arrays (3.4 m2 active area) installed on a gothic-arch greenhouse roof in Tucson, Arizona between October–February. The outdoor performance of six OPV arrays was assessed using the curved-surface modeling tools primarily considering the effect of irradiance on electrical behavior. The OPV arrays had an overall power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 1.82%, with lower PCE in the afternoon periods compared to morning and midday periods. The OPV arrays experienced an average 32.6% loss in normalized PCE over the course of the measurement period. Based on these results, we conclude that the higher performing OPV devices that are more robust in outdoor conditions coupled with accurate performance monitoring strategies are needed to prove the case for agrivoltaic OPV greenhouses.
R. Waller, M. Kacira, E. Magadley, M. Teitel, I. Yehia. 2022. Evaluating the Performance of Flexible, Semi-Transparent Large-Area Organic Photovoltaic Arrays Deployed on a Greenhouse. AgriEngineering. 4(4):969-992.
MicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem ConfigurationMethodological Comparisons
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
Arizona
Evaluation of Groundcovers Under Solar Panels for Weed Control
The study was conducted to identify the best groundcover for growing under the solar panels for effective weed control. The experiment was laid out in Factorial randomized block design with two factors and three replications. Groundcovers were planted in plots of size 2.0 m ×1.8 m and one plot is left as a control in the experimental area. The study revealed that among the different groundcovers evaluated Sphagneticola trilobata (Singapore daisy) registered a greater weed control and the weed count number in the experimental plots at 120 days after planting in the open condition (3.54) and under solar panels (3.37) respectively. It is imperative from the results that the species Sphagneticola trilobata, Lantana sellowiana, Setcreasea purpurea may be recommended for the management of weeds. The results are in relation with the plant spread values and the highest plant spread at 120 days after planting in the East-West (197cm) and (189.30 cm) was recorded by Sphagneticola trilobata in open and under panel conditions. The same treatment records the North-South spread (147.67cm) and (149.44cm) in open field and under panels at 120 days after planting. The physiological parameters recorded at 120 days after planting also reveals that the (T1) records the highest value than the other treatments and are highly suitable for growing in both the environments with greater weed control.
R. Iswarya, M. Jawaharlal, S. Subramanian, S. Panneerselvam. 2019. Evaluation of Groundcovers Under Solar Panels for Weed Control. Journal of Pharmacognosy and Phytochemistry. 8(3):3495-3501.
Plant Science
Evaluation of Output of Transparent Organic Photovoltaic Modules on Curved Surfaces Depending on Azimuth
The output characteristics of transparent organic photovoltaic (OPV) modules and the transmission characteristics of solar radiation were measured on the horizontal plane, and the availability of combined application of transparent OPV modules and agriculture was confirmed[1],[2]. In agriculture, OPV modules may be applied on the curved surface of greenhouses. In this case, the output characteristics and transmission characteristics of solar radiation on a curved surface must be clarified. Then, the output characteristics of transparent OPV modules were measured on a curved surface. As a result, the effective use of transparent OPV modules on a curved surface was verified.
Y. Hirata, Y. Watanabe, T. Yachi. 2018. Evaluation of Output of Transparent Organic Photovoltaic Modules on Curved Surfaces Depending on Azimuth. In: 2018 IEEE 7th World Conference on Photovoltaic Energy Conversion (WCPEC); 2018/06/10; Waikoloa, HI, USA. Waikoloa, HI, USA: Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers; p. 1112-1115
MicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Conference Paper
Evaluation of Solar Photovoltaic Systems to Shade Cows in a Pasture-based Dairy Herd
The combined use of solar photovoltaics and agriculture may provide farmers with an alternative source of income and reduce heat stress in dairy cows. The objective of this study was to determine the effects on grazing cattle under shade from a solar photovoltaic system. The study was conducted at the University of Minnesota West Central Research and Outreach Center in Morris, Minnesota on a grazing dairy. Twenty-four crossbred cows were randomly assigned to 2 treatment groups (shade or no shade) from June to September in 2019. The replicated (n = 4) treatment groups of 6 cows each were provided shade from a 30-kW photovoltaic system. Two groups of cows had access to shade in paddocks, and 2 groups of cows had no shade in paddocks. All cows were located in the same pasture during summer. Behavior observations and milk production were evaluated for cows during 4 periods of summer. Boluses and an eartag sensor monitored internal body temperature, activity, and rumination on all cows, respectively. Independent variables were the fixed effects of breed, treatment group, coat color, period, and parity, and random effects were replicate group, date, and cow. No differences in fly prevalence, milk production, fat and protein production, or drinking bouts were observed between the treatment groups. Shade cows had more ear flicks (11.4 ear flicks/30 s) than no-shade cows (8.6 ear flicks/30 s) and had dirtier bellies and lower legs (2.2 and 3.2, respectively) than no-shade cows (1.9 and 2.9, respectively). During afternoon hours, shade cows had lower respiration rates (66.4 breaths/min) than no-shade cows (78.3 breaths/min). From 1200 to 1800 h and 1800 to 0000 h, shade cows had lower body temperature (39.0 and 39.2°C, respectively) than no-shade cows (39.3 and 39.4°C, respectively). Furthermore, between milking times (0800 and 1600 h), the shade cows had lower body temperature (38.9°C) than no-shade cows (39.1°C). Agrivoltaics incorporated into pasture dairy systems may reduce the intensity of heats stress in dairy cows and increase well-being of cows and the efficiency of land use.
K.T. Sharpe, B.J. Heins, E.S. Buchanan, M.H. Reese. 2020. Evaluation of Solar Photovoltaic Systems to Shade Cows in a Pasture-based Dairy Herd. The American Dairy Science Association. 104(3):2794-2806.
Livestock
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
Minnesota, Kentucky
Evaluation of a Hybrid System for a Nearly Zero Energy Greenhouse
Greenhouses are widely used in the World, especially in the Mediterranean climate, to provide suitable environment in cultivation of different agricultural crops. Significant amount of energy is necessary to produce, process and distribute these crops. Various systems, including steam or hot water radiation system and hot air heater system, are being used in greenhouse heating. A ground source heat pump system, generally seen as a favorable option since it can provide both heating and cooling energy, is considered for a greenhouse in this study. The aim of this study is to evaluate a renewable energy option for the required total energy need of a greenhouse. Grid connected solar photovoltaic panels are selected to assist a ground source heat pump, and generate sufficient electrical energy for lighting. In this way, a nearly zero energy greenhouse concept is foreseen for three different agricultural products. Monthly and annual heating, cooling and lighting energy load of the greenhouse for these agricultural products were computed. The monthly average electricity generation of 66 photovoltaic panels, which cover 50% of the southern face part of the asymmetric roof, was calculated. Annual photovoltaic electricity generation was found as 21510.4 kWh. It was observed that photovoltaic electricity generation can meet 33.2–67.2% of greenhouse demand in summer operation months. Nevertheless, the coverage ratio, calculated by dividing the photovoltaic panels electricity generation to the electricity demand of the greenhouse (heating, cooling and lighting) for each crop, were very high in winter operation months. Yearly coverage ratio values were 95.7% for tomato, 86.8% for cucumber and 104.5% for lettuce. These high coverage ratio values justify the nearly zero energy concept for the considered greenhouse. Economic and environmental evaluation of the considered system were also accomplished. A simple payback time of the crop cultivations was computed between 7.0 and 7.4 years. The energy payback time of the system was found to be 4.9 years and the greenhouse gas payback time value of 5.7 years and 2.6 years were calculated, based on natural gas and coal based electricity generation, respectively.
N. Yildirim, L. Bilir. 09/2017. Evaluation of a Hybrid System for a Nearly Zero Energy Greenhouse. Energy Conversion and Management. 148:1278-1290.
MicroclimatologyEconomicsSystem ConfigurationToolsSoilImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Turkey
Evolution of Agrivoltaic Farms in Japan
Development of agrivoltaics in Japan started in 2004 in Chiba Prefecture initiated by Akira Nagashima. Today, 1,992 agrivoltaic farms (560 ha) exist throughout Japan except one prefecture out of 47 prefectures. Most agrivoltaics in Japan is small-scale less than 0.1 ha. It is estimated that total power generated by agrivoltaics is 500,000 to 600,000 MWh or 0.8% of the total power generated by photovoltaics in Japan in 2019. Farmland must be converted to non-agricultural use to install photovoltaics, in which agrivoltaics has an advantage over solar parks applicable to all 5 classes of farmland. Increase of devastated and abandoned farmland is a grave concern for the Japanese agriculture and agrivoltaics is expected to contribute to solve this issue. Over 120 crops are grown in agrivoltaics in Japan and for 69% of cases, cultivated crop is changed upon installation of agrivoltaics, which is causing concern that it may disrupt small, fixed markets of those crops. Shading rate in agrivoltaics ranges from 10 to 100% with its median at 30 to 40%. The choice of shading rate is made according to light saturation point of the crop, but a high shading rate is often determined first to maximize profit from electricity sale, because it is much greater than the one from agriculture itself, then suitable crop for that shading rate is chosen. Agrivoltaic development in Japan took off after the introduction of feed-in tariff (FIT) in 2012. FIT was significantly effective in policy impact compared to RPS system previously acquired in Japan, increasing renewable energy supply in Japan by 76% from 2012 to 2019. Photovoltaics has been a driving force increased from 7,600 GWh to 77,000 GWh during the same period. Two directives from the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF), one in March 2013 and another in May 2018, institutionalized agrivoltaics and promoted its development. The second amendment of FIT Law in June 2020, which will be enforced in April 2022, further paved the way for agrivoltaics preferentially treating it. Agrivoltaics is expected play an important role to revitalize the Japanese agriculture including reclamation of devastated or abandoned farmland, as being included in the above-mentioned policies. If all abandoned farmland were converted to agrivoltaic farms, 280 GW of electricity could be produced. The potential of agrivoltaics in 8 prefectures in Kanto region is estimated at least 15 to 39 GW. Emerging innovative agrivoltaics, such as one we see in a high value-added tea agrivoltaics in Shizuoka prefecture, is an economically and environmentally sound business model, which we may want to replicate elsewhere.
Makoto Tajima, Tetsunari Iida. 2020. Evolution of Agrivoltaic Farms in Japan. In: C. Dupraz, editor. AGRIVOLTAICS2020 CONFERENCE: Launching Agrivoltaics World-wide; 2020/10/14; Perpignan, France, Online. AIP Conference Proceedings: AIP Publishing; p.
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Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Japan
Examining Existing Policy to Inform a Comprehensive Legal Framework for Agrivoltaics in the US
Advances in solar photovoltaic applications demonstrate the viability of combining agriculture and solar energy production in a system known as agrivoltaics. Because scarce consideration has been given to the socio-political context of development, this study applies Legal Framework Analysis to identify barriers and opportunities for a comprehensive legal infrastructure to enable agrivoltaics in the U.S. The State of Massachusetts is used as a case study to understand what elements of their regulatory regime contribute to their novel agrivoltaic policy program, while also considering the surrounding federal and local government dynamics in which this state program is embedded. Based on the analysis results, a comprehensive legal framework for agrivoltaics should arguably include a combination of federal and state energy financing mechanisms coupled with favorable state and local land use policies. Specifically, a state-level feed-in tariff and local government allowances for mixed land use between solar and agriculture will be the key features of an enabling legal framework. The results demonstrate that multi-level, multi-sector policy integration is imperative for advancing agrivoltaics and that strategic measures to align solar energy and agricultural land use regimes can catalyze the diffusion of this promising technology in the U.S.
A.S. Pascaris. 2021. Examining Existing Policy to Inform a Comprehensive Legal Framework for Agrivoltaics in the US. Energy Policy. 159:112620.
Policy and Regulatory IssuesSocial PerspectivesReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
Massachusetts
Examining the Potential for Agricultural Benefits from Pollinator Habitat at Solar Facilities in the United States
Of the many roles insects serve for ecosystem function, pollination is possibly the most important service directly linked to human well-being. However, land use changes have contributed to the decline of pollinators and their habitats. In agricultural landscapes that also support renewable energy developments such as utility-scale solar energy [USSE] facilities, opportunities may exist to conserve insect pollinators and locally restore their ecosystem services through the implementation of vegetation management approaches that aim to provide and maintain pollinator habitat at USSE facilities. As a first step toward understanding the potential agricultural benefits of solar-pollinator habitat, we identified areas of overlap between USSE facilities and surrounding pollinator-dependent crop types in the United States (U.S.). Using spatial data on solar energy developments and crop types across the U.S., and assuming a pollinator foraging distance of 1.5 km, we identified over 3,500 km2 of agricultural land near existing and planned USSE facilities that may benefit from increased pollination services through the creation of pollinator habitat at the USSE facilities. The following five pollinator-dependent crop types accounted for over 90% of the agriculture near USSE facilities, and these could benefit most from the creation of pollinator habitat at existing and planned USSE facilities: soybeans, alfalfa, cotton, almonds, and citrus. We discuss how our results may be used to understand potential agro-economic implications of solar-pollinator habitat. Our results show that ecosystem service restoration through the creation of pollinator habitat could improve the sustainability of large-scale renewable energy developments in agricultural landscapes.
L.J. Walston, S.K. Mishra, H.M. Hartmann, I. Hlohowskyj, J. McCall, J. Macknick. 05/2018. Examining the Potential for Agricultural Benefits from Pollinator Habitat at Solar Facilities in the United States. Environmental Science and Technology. 7566-7576.
SitingEconomicsEntomology
Development Strategy
Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
Exploring The Potential of Rooftop Agrivoltaics
For the first time in human history, more than 50 per cent of the population are residing in urban areas, and United Nations projections estimate that two-thirds of the world population will be urban dwellers by 2050. As human populations grow and increasingly urbanize, there will be greater stress on healthy food production and distribution systems. Producing food in a city can improve access to healthy food and reduce transportation related economic and ecological costs. With a lower relative proportion of rural dwellers, and likely a resultant decline of total farmers, our society must shift focus to growing food in urban areas to strengthen the resilience of food security in cities.
Jennifer Bousselot, Thomas Hickey (Colorado State University,). 2022. Exploring The Potential of Rooftop Agrivoltaics.
(!) : Living Architecture Monitor.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Report
Country
United States
State
Colorado
Exploring the Applicability of Agrivoltaic System in UAE and Its Merits
Food, energy security and self-sufficiency have become the main drivers of modern economies. The UAE Cabinet announced the appointment of a Minister of state for food and water security in order to conduct research, develop plans and apply technologies in this field. The aim of this paper is to provide and recommend an appropriate agrivoltaic system for UAE agriculture and livestock grazing and proposing an agrivoltaic dates farm in UAE by reviewing the most important methods, several technologies and arrangements adopted for agrivoltaic and shed light on how food, water and energy can be produced simultaneously. In agrivoltaic system complete farming and irrigation are carried out. Utilization of land under photovoltaic power generation unit can be used for crops production. It has been analyzed the shading effect of photovoltaic panel on crops. In this way land can utilized for both power production as well as agricultures. Semitransparent photovoltaic is much efficient in utilization of land under photovoltaic panel for farming. It gives better yield of crops. Innovative semitransparent flexible photovoltaic material for photovoltaic system is ideal for agrivoltaic system. Furthermore, this kind of system in very useful to reduce the effect of the dust and sand on the Solar panel (PV). Moreover, enhances the PV performance. This research provides a comparison framework and the progress of the most important existing technologies used to implement Agrivoltaic, systems characteristics under study and the operating conditions/constraints of the system such that it can help to project on the UAE land and weather for design and future realization.
H. Abdulmouti, A. Bourezg, R. Ranjan. 2023. Exploring the Applicability of Agrivoltaic System in UAE and Its Merits. 2023 Advances in Science and Engineering Technology International Conferences (ASET). 1-6.
SitingImpact AssessmentsReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United Arab Emirates
FEM Based Thermal Model of an Agrivoltaic System
This study aims at building a finite element model of an agrivoltaic system for thermal simulation. The system under consideration consists of an array of PV modules over a shadenet covering an array of plant crops. The plant crops are modelled as porous mediums for computing air flow. The solar radiative energy recieved by the various components of the system is computed using the surface to surface radiation equations. Heat loss in PV modules and plants by convection is modelled. This model also accounts for heat loss in plants through evaporative cooling. The physical properties of plants are assumed from literature. Properties that need experimental determination are treated as variable parameters.
Karan Rane, Navni Verma, Ardeshir Contractor, Narendra Shiradkar. 2022. FEM Based Thermal Model of an Agrivoltaic System. In: 2022 IEEE 49th Photovoltaics Specialists Conference (PVSC); 2022/06/05; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: IEEE; p.
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MicroclimatologyHydrology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Farmers' Perspectives on Challenges and Opportunities of Agrivoltaics in Turkiye: An Institutional Perspective
Agrivoltaics is a technology aiming to combine renewable energy generation and agricultural production and, as such, has great potential to address land use conflicts. Understanding how farmers perceive the opportunities and barriers to Agrivoltaics implementation is fundamental for stakeholder participation and social acceptance. However, the research on social acceptance of Agrivoltaics technologies has primarily focused on the United States and Europe. These studies have shown that identifying factors underlying stakeholders' perceptions and the surrounding legal framework at an early stage is important for the successful and socially responsible adoption of the technology. In this first study on Turkish farmers' perspectives on Agrivoltaics, we use in-depth semi-structured interviews to explore pioneer farmers' perceptions of the opportunities and challenges in Agrivoltaics. This is also the first study investigating farmers' perspectives with an explicit focus on how they relate to the institutional setting of agricultural land use policy, which we explore by extensive desk research and interviews with the agricultural bureaucracy. The pioneer farmers exhibit an overall positive attitude towards Agrivoltaics by identifying and valuing the synergistic potential of Agrivoltaics systems. In particular, they are perceptive about how they may use Agrivoltaics to solve local problems, including those exacerbated by input dependency and climate change, beyond an abstract opportunity dimension. Despite this solid motivational drive for Agrivoltaics, however, pioneer farmers' concerns about potential bureaucratic hassle as well as shortcomings in the current legislation indicate a weak institutional setting undermining viability of Agrivoltaics implementation. Agricultural bureaucracy's distrust of potential investors and users seem to reflect a serious concern for ‘pseudo-agriculture,’ caused by both low procedural capacity and lack of institutional coordination (among regulatory institutions in Energy and Agriculture). This mistrust, in return, explains farmers' negative experiences, such as red tape in receiving licenses and permits for non-dual renewable energy applications (for agricultural purposes) under current legislative framework, contributing also to their doubts about sustained government support for future dual-use applications. Understanding this institutional setting can support policy makers' decisions on how to align renewable energy investments with agricultural need and purposes.
S. Agir, P. Derin-Gure, B. Senturk. 2023. Farmers' Perspectives on Challenges and Opportunities of Agrivoltaics in Turkiye: An Institutional Perspective. Renewable Energy. 212:35-39.
Social PerspectivesPolicy and Regulatory IssuesStandardization and Best Practices
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Turkey
Farming the Sun and the Crops at Once: A Cost Benefit-Analysis of Implementing an Agrivoltaic System in China
An Agrivoltaic system advocates growing crops underneath solar panels to ensure agricultural productions and solar energy generations at once. This system can potentially solve land use conflicts and promote sustainable farming in China. Multiple field studies have been conducted to understand performances of the Agrivoltaic system across the globe. Yet, literatures have neither discussed how the system performances would vary due to geographic heterogeneities on a larger scale nor understood how farmers would respond to these variations in terms of making adoption decisions. In this study, I investigate whether Chinese farmers are willing to adopt the Agrivoltaic system in their farmlands given their residential regions and corresponding regional solar policies. I found that six provinces (Shandong Province, Shanxi Province, Liaoning Province, Jilin Province, Inner Mongolia region, and Tibet region) have natural advantages for the system. Through cost- benefit analysis, I also found that 99% of the counties in China would economically benefit from adopting the system given current sets of solar subsidies while 93% of the counties would profit even if the subsidy drops 20% in the next 25 years. The northeast three provinces, the Jilin province in particular, have the highest economic potential for the Agrivoltaic system. Meanwhile, this study also indicates the implementation of the system can help address climate change by increasing renewable energy shares in the electricity market.
Y. Liu. 2020. Farming the Sun and the Crops at Once: A Cost Benefit-Analysis of Implementing an Agrivoltaic System in China [Thesis]. [Berkeley, California]: UC Berkeley.
Market AssessmentsEconomics
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Thesis/Dissertation
Country
China
Field Assessment on Agrivoltaic Misai Kucing Techno-Economical Approach in Solar Farming
Agrivoltaic (AV) systems or solar farming which combines agricultural activities with solar energy generation is currently a critical topic being discussed worldwide. Integrating these two resources would optimize the yield both in DC electricity and green crops, improve Solar Photovoltaic (PV) energy performance, and solve land scarcity especially in urban areas besides mitigating carbon emission reductions (CER). Recognizing the vast benefits of agrivoltaic system, researchers in Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang are cultivating high-value herbal crops directly under the solar PV arrays with proper interventions to the existing solarfarm infrastructures and ground conditions. This work established a proof-of-concept techno-economic assessment for herbal tea products from Orthosiphon Stamineus (Misai Kucing herbs) cultivated under agrivoltaic condition at 2MWp Solar Farm Puchong, Selangor, Malaysia. Field setup for 500 units of Misai Kucing (one string) planted in 16x16 polybags with soilless media (cocopeat + burned risk husk + chicken manure) and attached to fertigation system. The economical assessment covers the overall capital expenses (Capex) and operation expenses (Opex) with some potential monetary benefits especially to farmers with return on investments (ROI) less than 3 years operation. The project's net present value (NPV) shows a good trend of profit that supports the herbal processing facility project in agrivoltaic integration.
M.E. Ya'acob, N.F. Othman, M. Buda, E. Jani, A.S. Mat Su. 2021. Field Assessment on Agrivoltaic Misai Kucing Techno-Economical Approach in Solar Farming. In: 2021 International Conference on Electrical, Computer and Energy Technologies (ICECET). 2021 International Conference on Electrical, Computer and Energy Technologies (ICECET); 2021/12/09; Cape Town, South Africa. IEEE: IEEE; p. 1-6
EconomicsPlant ScienceMarket Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Malaysia
Forecasting Insolation Shaded by Solar Panels for Optimal Layout in Agrivoltaic System
Agrivoltaics which install solar panels on farmland, have been expanding due to land competition in the global expansion of solar power generation. Insolation is an essential parameter for crop growth so it is crucial to forecast insolation under solar panels. However, previous examples of insolation estimation do not consider shading differences due to panel layout. In this paper, we constructed a machine-learning model with panel layout features to forecast the insolation shaded by solar panels. As a simulation result, the accuracy was greatly improved compared to the current method using coefficients. This method can realize the optimization of panel placement and contribute to the expansion of agrivoltaics.
Yusuke Sasaki, Tamae Itabashi, Takeo Hamada, Noboru Koshizuka. 2023. Forecasting Insolation Shaded by Solar Panels for Optimal Layout in Agrivoltaic System. In: 2023 IEEE 12th Global Conference on Consumer Electronics (GCCE). 2023 IEEE 12th Global Conference on Consumer Electronics (GCCE); 2023/10/10; Nara, Japan. Nara, Japan: IEEE; p. 534-538
MicroclimatologySystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Japan
From Niche-Innovation to Mainstream Markets: Drivers and Challenges of Industry Adoption of Agrivolatics in the U.S.
Agrivoltaic systems harmonize agriculture and solar energy to mitigate land use competition, strengthen agricultural viability and resilience, and enhance solar development practice. Innovations in agrivoltaics has gained traction globally yet exist in niche-application and early adoption stages in the U.S. While initial research has emphasized technical and economic performance, critical questions remain about stakeholder adoption, social acceptance, and the role of policymakers. To better define the socio-political landscape for agrivoltaic development, we leverage qualitative interviews with U.S. solar professionals. We articulate key sets of drivers and challenges of industry adoption and their interactions. The findings suggest that overcoming the challenges impeding U.S. solar industry adoption of agrivoltaics will require robust market mechanisms that stimulate price improvements as well as coordinated, cross-sector learning processes, research, and regulation. We maintain that socio-political adaptations, coupled with techno-economic advances in price and performance, may constitute the key improvements of the development landscape for agrivoltaics in the U.S. Multi-stakeholder considerations and the co-evolution of technology, practice, and regulation are discussed in the context of developing the enabling framework conditions to progress agrivoltaics from niche-innovation to mainstream markets.
A. S. Pascaris, A. K. Gerlak, G. A. Barron-Gafford. 09/2023. From Niche-Innovation to Mainstream Markets: Drivers and Challenges of Industry Adoption of Agrivolatics in the U.S.. energy Policy. 181:N/A.
Policy and Regulatory IssuesSocial PerspectivesStandardization and Best Practices
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
From Photovoltaic to Agri-Natural-Voltaic (ANaV)
Italy is the geographic area with the highest world concentration of cultural sites, landscapes with a high esthetic value, and biodiversity. Therefore, any modification in the territory is to be performed by highly considering these cultural, landscape, and natural values. Also, Italy has a high human pressure on agricultural areas, especially in flatlands, that generally have a high agronomic value. As a consequence, the planning of photovoltaic installations in agricultural areas must meet at least five basic criteria: to cause as little use as possible to the agricultural soil, to maintain agricultural activities, to strengthen or introduce natural habitats, to properly mitigate the landscape impact, and to be located as far as possible from residential areas. This chapter presents the technological innovation with a high environmental value that characterizes the photovoltaic system, called Agro-Natural-Voltaic (AnaV), also using methodological and planning schemes together with landscape simulations. Moreover, the essay gives a description of the study on the environmental impact (for the administrative procedure of the Environmental Impact Assessment), laid down for the emblematic case study.
G. Campeol, L. Biasio, S. Foffano, D. Scarpa, G. Copparoni. 2023. From Photovoltaic to Agri-Natural-Voltaic (ANaV). A. Sabban, editor. NA: IntechOpen.
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Market AssessmentsSystem ConfigurationEconomics
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Book Section
Country
Italy
Frontiers in Multi-Benefit Value Stacking for Solar Development on Working Lands
While optimizing land use for multiple benefits is not a novel concept, prior work is largely dominated by approaches to co-locate just one activity with solar development. Some notable exceptions include co-locating pollinator habitat with both solar and agriculture [12] and co-locating solar and agriculture with horticulture and dairy-grazing [13]. This has resulted in a patchwork of co-location approaches across multiple disciplines such as energy planning and policy, food systems science, and natural resources management. However, beyond this patchwork lies a new frontier—an emerging need for broader and more deliberate consideration of multiple energy and non-energy activities on working lands.
To facilitate a more systematic exploration of this frontier, we offer a novel multi-benefit value stacking (MBVS) framework to explore land use efficiencies from co-location of solar generation and non-energy uses on working lands, a clear conceptual definition of such opportunities and the scales at which they can be considered, a table of compiled examples, and key gaps for future work in research and policy.
R. Shivaram, N. Buckley Biggs. 2023. Frontiers in Multi-Benefit Value Stacking for Solar Development on Working Lands. Environmental Research Letters. 18:1-7.
Policy and Regulatory IssuesMarket AssessmentsReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Fuzzy Mathematics Based Evaluation Method of Crop Adaptability for Agriculture and Photovoltaic Combined System
In view of the lack of theoretical basis for the selection of crop species under agrivoltaics, a comprehensive evaluation method of crop fitness was proposed by using the idea of fuzzy mathematics. Firstly, the sunlight, temperature and precipitation in the process of crop growth were selected to establish the corresponding membership function and the method of comprehensive evaluation of its fitness. The evaluation model of these three conditions was established, and the fitness function was combined with the evaluation model. And a cyber-physical system suitable for agrivoltaics system is proposed. Finally, taking winter wheat as an example, the fitness of different positions in the photovoltaic array was calculated, and the suitable planting areas were divided. It is given as the theoretical foundation for crop selection,which can be used to optimize the distribution of crops.
(!) . 2021. Fuzzy Mathematics Based Evaluation Method of Crop Adaptability for Agriculture and Photovoltaic Combined System. In: C. Dupraz, editor. AGRIVOLTAICS2020 CONFERENCE: Launching Agrivoltaics World-wide; 2020/10/14; Perpignan, France, Online. NA: AIP Publishing; p.
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Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyHydrology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Geospatial Assessment of Elevated Agrivoltaics on Arable Land in Europe to Highlight the Implications on Design, Land Use and Economic Level
Agrivoltaic systems (a combination of agricultural crop production and photovoltaics (PV) on the same land) have an increasing interest. Realizing this upcoming technology raises still many challenges at design, policy and economic level. This study addresses a geospatial methodology to quantify the important design and policy questions across Europe. An elevated agrivoltaic system on arable land is evaluated: three crop light requirements (shade-loving, shade-tolerant and shade-intolerant) are simulated at a spatial resolution of 25 km across the European Union (EU). As a result, this study gives insight into the needed optimal ground coverage ratio (GCR) of the agrivoltaic system for a specific place. Additionally, estimations of the energy production, levelized cost of energy (LCOE) and land equivalent ratio (LER) are performed in comparison with a separated system. The results of the study show that the location-dependent solar insolation and crop shade tolerance have a major influence on the financial competitiveness and usefulness of these systems, where a proper European policy system and implementation strategy is required. Finally, a technical study shows an increase in PV power of 1290 GWp (almost 10 of the current EU’s PV capacity) if potato cultivation alone (1% of the total arable agricultural area) is converted into agrivoltaic systems.
B. Willockx, C. Lavaert, J. Cappelle. 2022. Geospatial Assessment of Elevated Agrivoltaics on Arable Land in Europe to Highlight the Implications on Design, Land Use and Economic Level. Energy Reports. 8:8736-8751.
MicroclimatologyEconomicsImpact AssessmentsMarket AssessmentsStandardization and Best Practices
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Global Energy Assessment of the Potential of Photovoltaics for Greenhouse Farming
Agrivoltaic (APV) systems have emerged as a promising solution to reduce the land-use competition between PV technology and agriculture. Despite its potential, APV is in a learning stage and it is still necessary to devote big efforts to investigate its actual potential and outdoor performance. This work is focused on the analysis of APV systems in agriculture greenhouses at global scale in terms of energy yield. To conduct this study, we introduce here a novel dual APV model, which is projected in four representative locations with a high crop cultivation greenhouse implantation, i.e. El Ejido (Spain), Pachino (Italy), Antalya (Turkey) and Vicente Guerrero (Mexico), and for 15 representative plant cultivars from 5 different important socioeconomic families of crops, i.e. Cucurbitaceae, Fabaceae, Solanacae, Poaceae, Rosaceae. At this stage, semi-transparent c-Si PV technology has been considered due its high efficiency and reliability. The results show that APV systems could have a transparency factor around 68% without significantly affecting the total crop photosynthetic rate. Taking this into account, APV systems would produce an average annual energy around 135 kWh/m2, and values around 200 kWh/m2 under a favourable scenario. This could represent a contribution to the total market share between 2.3% (México) and 6% (Turkey), and up to 100% of the consumption demand of greenhouses equipped with heating and cooling (GSHP), and lighting.
E.F. Fernández, A.V. Fernández, J.M. Romero, L.R. Torres, P.M. Rodrigo, A.J. Manzaneda, F. Almonacid. 2022. Global Energy Assessment of the Potential of Photovoltaics for Greenhouse Farming. Applied Energy. 309:118474.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesMarket Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Italy, Mexico, Spain, Turkey
Global Sensitivity Based Prioritizing the Parametric Uncertainties in Economic Analysis When Co-Locating Photovoltaic with Agriculture and Aquaculture in China
Teaming up photovoltaic (PV) with agriculture or aquaculture, namely, the agrivoltaics and aquavoltaics, create novel energy-food-(land or water) nexus offering mutual benefits potentially. At present, the profitability of these nexuses is still not well quantified, but it is usually what investors are most concerned about. Hence, an economic analysis framework is proposed to benchmark the profitability of both agrivoltaics and aquavoltaics systems, and further prioritize the most influencing factors for the project economy. The framework is applied in China indicating that the average simple payback period (SPP) ranges between 6.2–6.6 years for agrivoltaics projects, and 9.5–10.1 years for aquavoltaics projects. Capital cost of PV, solar resource richness, and feed-in-tariff are top three influencing factors for the profitability of both agrivoltaics and aquavoltaics systems. The national implementing potential of agrivoltaics and aquavoltaics would be up to 112 GW for agrivoltaics and 564 GW for aquavoltaics in China. Overall, compared to PV-only configuration, agrivoltaics and aquavoltaics contribute to more terms of Sustainable Development Goals to a greater extent, which could be emerging PV deployment patterns during the era of no subsidy on PV feed-in-tariff.
Rui Jing, Yang He, Jijiang He, Yang Liu, Shoubing Yang. 07/2022. Global Sensitivity Based Prioritizing the Parametric Uncertainties in Economic Analysis When Co-Locating Photovoltaic with Agriculture and Aquaculture in China. Renewable Energy. 194:1048-1059.
Market AssessmentsEconomicsPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
Grapevine Growth and Berry Development under the Agrivoltaic Solar Panels in the Vineyards
Agrivoltaic systems, also called solar sharing, stated from an idea that utilizes sunlight above the light saturation point of crops for power generation using solar panels. The agrivoltaic systems are expected to reduce the incident solar radiation, the consequent surface cooling effect, and evapotranspiration, and bring additional income to farms through solar power generation by combining crops with solar photovoltaics. In this study, to evaluate if agrivoltaic systems are suitable for viticulture, we investigated the microclimatic change, the growth of vines and the characteristics of grape grown under solar panels set by planting lines compared with ones in open vineyards. There was high reduction of wind speed during over-wintering season, and low soil temperature under solar panel compared to those in the open field. There was not significant difference in total carbohydrates and bud burst in bearing mother branches between plots. Despite high content of chlorophyll in vines grown under panels, there is no significant difference in shoot growth of vines, berry weight, cluster weight, total soluble solid content and acidity of berries, and anthocyanin content of berry skins in harvested grapes in vineyards under panels and open vineyards. It was observed that harvesting season was delayed by 7－10 days due to late skin coloration in grapes grown in vineyards under panels compared to ones grown in open vineyards. The results from this study would be used as data required in development of viticulture system under panel in the future and further study for evaluating the influence of agrivoltaic system on production of crops including grapes.
S.Y. Ahn, D.B. Lee, H.I. Lee, Z.L. Myint, S.Y. Min, B.M. Kim, W. Oh, J.H. Jung, H.K. Yun. 2022. Grapevine Growth and Berry Development under the Agrivoltaic Solar Panels in the Vineyards. Journal of Bio-Environment Control. 31(4):356-365.
SoilPlant ScienceMicroclimatology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
South Korea
Grassland Carbon-Water Cycling is Minimally Impacted By a Photovoltaic Array
Agrivoltaic systems, whereby photovoltaic arrays are co-located with crop or forage production, can alleviate the tension between expanding solar development and loss of agricultural land. However, the ecological ramifications of these arrays are poorly known. We used field measurements and a plant hydraulic model to quantify carbon-water cycling in a semi-arid C3 perennial grassland growing beneath a single-axis tracking solar array in Colorado, USA. Although the agrivoltaic array reduced light availability by 38%, net photosynthesis and aboveground net primary productivity were reduced by only 6–7% while evapotranspiration decreased by 1.3%. The minimal changes in carbon-water cycling occurred largely because plant photosynthetic traits underneath the panels changed to take advantage of the dynamic shading environment. Our results indicate that agrivoltaic systems can serve as a scalable way to expand solar energy production while maintaining ecosystem function in managed grasslands, especially in climates where water is more limiting than light.
S.A. Kannenberg, M.A. Sturchio, M.D. Venturas, A.K. Knapp. 07/2023. Grassland Carbon-Water Cycling is Minimally Impacted By a Photovoltaic Array. Communications Earth & Environment. 4(238):1-8.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologySoilHydrologyTools
Development Strategy
Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
Colorado
Grassland Productivity Responds Unexpectedly to Dynamic Light and Soil Water Environments Induced by Photovoltaic Arrays
Agrivoltaic (AV) systems are designed to coproduce photovoltaic (PV) energy on lands simultaneously supporting agriculture (food/forage production). PV infrastructure in agroecosystems alters resources critical for plant growth, and water-limited agroecosystems such as grasslands are likely to be particularly sensitive to the unique spatial and temporal patterns of incident sunlight and soil water inherent within AV systems. However, the impact of resource alteration on forage production, the primary ecosystem service from managed grasslands, is poorly resolved. Here, we evaluated seasonal patterns of soil moisture (SM) and diurnal variation in incident sunlight (photosynthetic photon flux density [PPFD]) in a single-axis-tracking AV system established in a formerly managed semiarid C3 grassland in Colorado. Our goals were to (1) quantify dynamic patterns of PPFD and SM within a 1.2 MW PV array in a perennial grassland, and (2) determine how aboveground net primary production (ANPP) and photosynthetic parameters responded to the resource patterns created by the PV array. We hypothesized that spatial variability in ANPP would be strongly related to SM patterns, typical of most grasslands. We measured significant reductions in ANPP directly beneath PV panels, where SM and PPFD were both low. However, in locations with significantly increased SM from the shedding and redistribution of precipitation by PV panels, ANPP was not increased. Instead, ANPP was greatest in locations where plants were shaded in the afternoon but received high levels of PPFD in the morning hours, when air temperatures and vapor pressure deficits were relatively low. Thus, contrary to expectations, we found relatively weak relationships between SM and ANPP despite significant spatial variability in both. Further, there was little evidence that light-saturated photosynthesis (Asat) and quantum yield of CO2 assimilation (ϕCO2) differed for plants growing directly beneath (lowest PPFD) versus between (highest PPFD) PV panels. Overall, the AV system established in this semiarid managed grassland did not alter patterns of ANPP in ways predictable from past studies of controls of ANPP in open grasslands. However, our results suggest that the diurnal timing of low versus high periods of PPFD incident on plants is an important determinant of productivity patterns in grasslands.
Matthew A. Sturchio, Jordan E. Macknick, Greg A. Barron-Gafford, Anping Chen, Cavin Alderfer, Kathleen Condon, Olivia L. Hajek, Benjamin Miller, Benjamin Pauletto, J. Alexander Siggers, Ingrid J. Slette, Alan K. Knapp. 2022. Grassland Productivity Responds Unexpectedly to Dynamic Light and Soil Water Environments Induced by Photovoltaic Arrays. Ecosphere. 13(12):
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Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyHydrologySystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
Colorado
Green-Light Wavelength-Selective Organic Solar Cells for Agrivoltaics: Dependence of Wavelength on Photosynthetic Rate
There is a growing demand for the development of novel solar power systems that can simultaneously solve the problems associated with both energy generation and food supply in agriculture. Green-light wavelength-selective organic solar cells (OSCs), whose transmitted blue and red light can be utilized to promote plant growth were recently reported by our group. However, the influence of wavelength variation on the photosynthetic rate in green-light wavelength-selective OSCs remains unclear. In this study, we report on the design and synthesis of new electron-accepting π-conjugated molecules containing cyclopentene-annelated thiophene with a spiro-substituted 2,7-bis(2-ethylhexyl)fluorene (FT) unit (TT-FT-ID) as a green-light wavelength-selective nonfullerene acceptor along with a reference compound TT-T-ID. Photophysical measurements indicate that the introduction of the FT unit leads to an absorption band with a small full width at half maximum in films, leading to the ability to fine-tune the absorption length. Concerning the optimization of the conditions for the fabrication of the active layers, which are composed of a green-light wavelength-selective donor polymer of poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) and the new acceptors, Bayesian optimization based on Gaussian process regression was applied to minimize the experimental batches. The green-light wavelength-selective factor (SG) and the PCEs in the green-light region (PCE-GR) of the P3HT:TT-FT-ID-based device were determined to be 0.52 and 8.6%, respectively, which are higher values than those of the P3HT:TT-T-ID blend film. The P3HT:TT-FT-ID blend film increased the photosynthetic rate of green pepper compared to that of the P3HT:TT-T-ID blend film. These results indicate that the fine-tuning of the absorbance required for crop growth is an important issue in developing green-light wavelength-selective OSCs for agrivoltaics.
Seihou Jinnai, Naoto Shimohara, Kazunori Ishikawa, Kento Hama, Yohei Iimuro, Takashi Washio, Yasuyuki Watanabe, Yutaka Ie. 2023. Green-Light Wavelength-Selective Organic Solar Cells for Agrivoltaics: Dependence of Wavelength on Photosynthetic Rate. Faraday Discussions.
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Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Greener Sheep: Life Cycle Analysis of Integrated Sheep Agrivoltaic Systems
Solar photovoltaic (PV) growth can be stalled due to social acceptance. Agrivoltaics can improve social acceptance by enabling dual use of land. The most popular type of agrivoltaics in North America is grazing sheep under conventional PV farms. The environmental benefits of this integrated agrivoltaic system are unknown, so this ISO-compliant life cycle assessment study investigates the environmental performance of sheep-based agrivoltaic systems. This study investigated agrivoltaics to produce a combined output of electricity and agricultural goods, in comparison to conventional methods (various electric grid generation mixes in the U.S. and plane pastures) for producing that same quantify of service in both categories. Agrivoltaics is twice as land use efficient as providing sheep and PV services separately. In addition, the global warming potential of agrivoltaics was found to be 3.9% better than conventional PV and sheep grazing separately, and represents two orders of magnitude improvement (280%-894%) over conventional grids in the U.S. and sheep production. Only considering emission reductions from shifting sheep to PV farms for grazing, the U.S. could conserve 5.73E8 kg CO2 eq per year from sheep raising, which is equivalent to removing 117,000 average automobiles from the road. To house the current national 5.2 million domestic sheep in agrivoltaic systems, the U.S. has the potential to expand utility scale PV by a factor of four. The results of this study provide further evidence that agrivoltaic systems are superior to conventional ground-mounted PV systems because they have dual purposes and reduce the environmental impacts associated with producing food and electricity. It is clear that encouraging sheep grazing on all appropriate conventional PV systems is warranted.
R. Handler, J.M. Pearce. 12/2022. Greener Sheep: Life Cycle Analysis of Integrated Sheep Agrivoltaic Systems. Cleaner Energy Systems. 3:1-9.
Impact AssessmentsLivestock
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
Greenhouse Tomato Production with Electricity Generation by Roof-mounted Flexible Solar Panels
The integration of renewable energy sources into greenhouse crop production in southeastern Spain could provide extra income for growers. Wind energy could be captured by small to medium-sized wind turbines, gas could be produced from biomass, and solar energy could be gathered by solar panels. The aim of this study was to examine the effect of flexible solar panels, mounted on top of a greenhouse for electricity production, on yield and fruit quality of tomatoes (Solanum lycopersycum L., cv Daniela). This study was undertaken in a commercial raspa y amagado greenhouse, typical of the Almería region (Spain). Tomato plantlets were planted at a density of 0.75 plants m-2. The flexible solar panels were mounted on two parts of the roof in different arrangements (T1 and T2), each blacking out 9.8 % of its surface area. A control area (T0 arrangement) was fitted with no panels. No difference was found in terms of total or marketable production under these three arrangements, although fruit mean mass and maximum diameter of T0 were significantly greater than T1 and T2. Fruit in T0 matured earlier with more intense color compared with those in T1 and T2. However, these differences had no effect on price as the tomatoes produced under three conditions fell into the same commercial class (G class; diameter 67-81 mm). Solar panels covering 9.8 % roof area of the greenhouse did not affect yield and price of tomatoes despite of their negative effect on fruit size and color.
R. Ureña-Sánchez, Á.J. Callejón-Ferre, J. Pérez-Alonso, Á. Carreño-Ortega. 2012. Greenhouse Tomato Production with Electricity Generation by Roof-mounted Flexible Solar Panels. Scientia Agricola. 69(4):233-239.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyEconomicsPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Spain
Ground-Mounted Photovoltaic and Crop Cultivation: A Comparative Analysis
Human civilization depends on energy sources, mainly fossil fuels. An increase in the prices of fossil fuels and their exhaustibility limit economic growth. Carbon dioxide emission causes global environmental problems. Global crises (including COVID-19) have sharpened food and energy supply problems. The decentralized energy supply systems as well as the expedition of the application of renewable energy may solve these challenges. The economic shift to renewable power generation intensifies the competition between food crop production and green energy for land. This paper applied an open-source spatial-based model to quantify the solar power generation (the ground-mounted photovoltaic panels) for the southern regions of Poland (the Opole region) and Ukraine (the Mykolaiv region). The model used technical, economic, and legal constraints. This study compared economic indicators of the solar power generation and the crop production projects for rain-fed land. The net present value (NPV) and the profitability index (PI) were used for the economic evaluation. Additionally, the coefficients of variation were determined to assess investment risks. The use of r.green.solar model to find the spatial distribution of the reduction of carbon dioxide emission was the novelty of this study. The analysis revealed that the PV projects have higher NPV, but lower PI compared to the crop production. The PV projects have lower coefficients of variation. This fact testifies that these projects are less risky.
Sandro Sacchelli, Valerii Havrysh, Antonina Kalinichenko, Dariusz Suszanowicz. 2022. Ground-Mounted Photovoltaic and Crop Cultivation: A Comparative Analysis. Sustainability. 14(14):
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Market AssessmentsEconomicsSitingImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Poland, Ukraine
Growth of Snapdragon Under Simulated Transparent Photovoltaic Panels for Greenhouse Applications
Transparent photovoltaic (PV) materials can be used as greenhouse coverings that selectively transmit photosynthetically active radiation (PAR). Despite the economic importance of the floriculture industry, research on floriculture crops has been limited in these dual-purpose, agrivoltaic greenhouses. We grew snapdragon under simulated photoselective and neutral-density panels with transmissions ranging from ∼30 to 90%, and absorption edges in the green (G; 500–599 nm), red (R; 600–699 nm), far-red (FR, 700–750 nm), and near-infrared (NIR) wavebands. We hypothesized that snapdragon could tolerate some degree of PV shading without reducing growth and flower number or delaying flowering time. Biomass accumulation, compactness, time to flower, and crop quality under 1) a clear acrylic control, 2) a FR-absorbing, and 3) a NIR-absorbing PV panel were not statistically different when the average daily light integral was between 17 and 20 mol·m−2·d−1. Crop quality progressively diminished below 17 mol·m−2·d−1. These results indicate that snapdragon tolerated ∼15% PV shading during summer months without reduced growth or quality.
Eric J. Stallknecht, Christopher K. Herrera, Thomas D. Sharkey, Richard R. Lunt, Erik S. Runkle. 2023. Growth of Snapdragon Under Simulated Transparent Photovoltaic Panels for Greenhouse Applications. Journal of Environmental Horticulture. 41(4):
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Plant ScienceMicroclimatology
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
Michigan
Handbook of Energy Management in Agriculture
Food and energy requirements are rising, and their security has become a significant concern worldwide with an increased aspiration for development and an increasing global population. Electricity generation from conventional fossil fuels poses a challenge for both the economy and the environment in many countries. Thus, the long-term viability of energy and food systems has become a serious issue across the world. Therefore, the worldwide shift to create low-carbon energy technologies, including renewable energy, has accelerated greater than ever before. Photovoltaic systems (PV) represent a clean electricity generation strategy for many industries, including agriculture. Controlled environmental agriculture, particularly greenhouse agriculture, is in the spotlight due to increasing food demand, decreasing natural resources, climate change, shrinking agricultural lands, and environmental and health concerns. Microclimate controls and other management operations powered by fossil fuels and grid electricity can boost crop yields and quality while costing farmers money and harming the environment. Therefore, PV-integrated greenhouse systems are recognized as one of the most energy-efficient systems for food and energy sustainability in future agriculture. This chapter describes the most critical features of greenhouse farming, such as greenhouse electricity requirements, and the current applications of PV technologies in greenhouses.
R. M. S. R. Chamara, C. K. Beneragama, S. P. Kodithuwakku, M. H. S. M. Hettiarachchi, R. P. W. A. Dilrukshi, A. D. Nagalla, J. A. I. Dileeshan. 2023. Handbook of Energy Management in Agriculture. Singapore: Springer Nature Singapore. 1-30p.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyEconomicsPV TechnologiesSystem ConfigurationReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Book Section
Harvesting Sunshine: A Modular Integrated Framework for Modeling the Agrivoltaic System
Understanding the interplay between energy and water is central to effective natural resource management. With enough energy it is possible to secure sufficient water, with enough water it is possible to produce nearly boundless energy. The sun is the engine which drives the availability of both these resources; nearly every source of energy on earth can ultimately be tracked back to solar energy and solar radiation dictates climatic cycles, distributing water around the globe. Agriculture is the endeavor which most embodies these interactions. Effective natural resource decision making requires multi-scale models which consider the synergies and trade-offs within this Food – Energy – Water (FEW) nexus. These multi-scale models are dependent on research which explores these interactions at scales from the finely detailed field level up to the global level. This dissertation will focus on one technological approach, agrivoltaics, which sits firmly at the nexus of various natural resources, investigating it at multiple scales. First, context is provided about how the agrivoltaic approach fits into the broader FEW nexus, including a systematic review of the FEW nexus, and various perspectives that researchers use to characterize the nexus (Chapter II). This review finds that the volume of research on the FEW nexus has grown exponentially since 2010, that the research is coming from a wide geographic range, and that the majority of the research is related to the Ecosystems and Institutional Change perspectives. Next, an analysis of agrivoltaics at the national level is conducted, producing estimates of the various impacts of wide-scale agrivoltaic adoption in the United States (Chapter III). This analysis estimates that 20% of the US’ total electricity generation can be met with agrivoltaics if less than 1% of the annual US budget is invested into rural infrastructure and if less than 1% of the nation’s farmlands are converted to agrivoltaics. The analysis also finds that widescale installation of agrivoltaic systems can lead to a carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions reduction equivalent to removing 71 million cars from the road annually and the creation of over 100,000 jobs in rural communities. The dissertation concludes with the introduction of an integrated modular framework (AV-EAS) for field level analysis (Chapter IV). The AV-EAS framework incorporates a solar radiation model, a process-based crop growth simulation model, and an economic model in order to simulate an agrivoltaic field and identify optimal panel configurations for a particular location and particular crop based on multiple objectives. An example use of AV-EAS, modeling dry bean growth in western Oregon, finds that increasing the panel row spacing has a greater impact on crop yield than increasing the clearance height of the panels, that the relationship between panel configurations and yield is dependent upon whether the cropping system is energy-limited or water-limited, and that, with current steel-based racking methods, racking costs must be kept below $0.5/Watt for agrivoltaics to remain profitable. The process of characterizing the FEW nexus and developing multi-scale models is an iterative one. This work explores the agrivoltaic approach at multiple scales, introduces an integrated field-scale framework for simulating these systems, and provides a clear pathway for the NewAg lab at Oregon State to deepen the understanding of the potential role of agrivoltaics within the broader FEW nexus.
Kyle W. Proctor. 2022. Harvesting Sunshine: A Modular Integrated Framework for Modeling the Agrivoltaic System [Dissertation]. [Online]: Oregon State University.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyMarket AssessmentsEconomicsSystem ConfigurationImpact AssessmentsReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Thesis/Dissertation
Country
United States
State
Oregon
Herbage Yield, Lamb Growth and Foraging Behavior in Agrivoltaic Production System
Agrivoltaic systems are designed to mutually benefit solar energy and agricultural production in the same location for dual-use of land. This study was conducted to compare lamb growth and pasture production from solar pastures in agrivoltaic systems and traditional open pastures over 2 years in Oregon. Weaned Polypay lambs grew at 120 and 119 g head−1 d−1 in solar and open pastures, respectively in spring 2019 (P = 0.90). The liveweight production between solar (1.5 kg ha−1 d−1) and open pastures (1.3 kg ha−1 d−1) were comparable (P = 0.67). Similarly, lamb liveweight gains and liveweight productions were comparable in both solar (89g head−1 d−1; 4.6kg ha−1 d−1) and open (92 g head−1 d−1; 5.0 kg ha−1 d−1) pastures (all P > 0.05) in 2020. The daily water consumption of the lambs in spring 2019 were similar during early spring, but lambs in open pastures consumed 0.72 L head−1 d−1 more water than those grazed under solar panels in the late spring period (P < 0.01). No difference was observed in water intake of the lambs in spring 2020 (P = 0.42). Over the entire period, solar pastures produced 38% lower herbage than open pastures due to low pasture density in fully shaded areas under solar panels. The results from our grazing study indicated that lower herbage mass available in solar pastures was offset by higher forage quality, resulting in similar spring lamb production to open pastures. Our findings also suggest that the land productivity could be greatly increased through combining sheep grazing and solar energy production on the same land in agrivoltaics systems.
A.C. Andrew, C.W. Higgins, M.A. Smallman, M. Graham, S. Ates. 2021. Herbage Yield, Lamb Growth and Foraging Behavior in Agrivoltaic Production System. Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems. 659175.
SoilLivestockPlant ScienceMicroclimatologyEconomicsImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
Oregon
High-Transparency Clear Window-Based Agrivoltaics
A number of modern glass and window products based on novel glazing designs, low-emissivity thin-film coatings, and proprietary fluorescent interlayer types have been developed recently. Advanced windows of today can control properties such as thermal emissivity, heat gain, colour, and transparency. In novel glass products, solar energy harvesting through PV integration is also featured, enabled by either patterned-semiconductor thin-film energy conversion surfaces, or by using luminescent concentrator-type approaches to achieve higher transparency. Typically, semitransparent and also highly-transparent PV windows are purpose-designed, for applications in construction industry and agrivoltaics (greenhousing), to include special types of luminescent materials, diffractive microstructures, and customized glazing systems and electric circuitry. Recently, significant progress has been demonstrated in building integrated high-transparency solar windows (featuring visible light transmission of up to 70%, with electric power output Pmax ∼ 30−33 Wp/m2, e.g. ClearVue PV Solar Windows); these are expected to add momentum towards the development of smart cities and advanced agrivoltaics in greenhouse installations. At present (in 2023), these ClearVue window designs are the only type of visually-clear and deployment-ready construction materials capable of providing significant energy savings in buildings, simultaneously with a significant amount of renewable energy generation. The objective of this study is to place the recent industrialised development of ClearVue® PV window systems into a broader context of prior studies in the field of luminescent concentrators, as well as to provide some details on the measured performance characteristics of several ClearVue window design types deployed within the building envelope of a research greenhouse, and to elucidate the corresponding differences in their energy harvesting behaviour. An evaluation of the practical applications potential of these recently developed transparent agrivoltaic construction materials is provided, focussing on the measured renewable energy generation figures and the seasonal trends observed during a long-term study. This article reports on the measured performance characteristics of research greenhouse-based agrivoltaic installation constructed at Murdoch University (Perth, Australia) in early 2021.The solar greenhouse at Murdoch University has demonstrated great potential for commercial food production with significant energy savings due to on-site energy production from its building envelope.
Mikhail Vasiliev, Victor Rosenberg, David Goodfield, Jamie Lyford, Chengdao Li. 2023. High-Transparency Clear Window-Based Agrivoltaics. Sustainable Buildings. 6:
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MicroclimatologyEconomicsPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Australia
High-concentration Photovoltaics for Dual-Use With Agriculture
This study assesses the potential of transparent, tracking-integrated CPV to facilitate more effective dual-use of land for simultaneous agricultural and solar energy production. The concept leverages on the fact that a concentration system is a natural light splitter, separating direct solar radiation from the diffuse. Therefore a transparent CPV module using multijunction solar cells can generate a large supply of electrical power while preserving the diffuse component of sunlight for other uses – in this case, to illuminate crops. We consider the solar resource, the light requirements of plants and the achievable optical properties of the proposed system to evaluate the potential of direct-diffuse light-splitting CPV in agriculture. We show that a tracking-integrated, transparent CPV system integrated into the roof of a greenhouse can provide comparable solar energy generation to a Si solar array, while still admitting sufficient light to cover most of the daily light requirements of many crops.
Harry Apostoleris, Matteo Chiesa. 2019. High-concentration Photovoltaics for Dual-Use With Agriculture. In: AIP Conference Proceedings. 15TH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON CONCENTRATOR PHOTOVOLTAIC SYSTEMS (CPV-15); 2019/03/25; Fes, Morocco. Online: AIP; p.
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MicroclimatologySystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
United Arab Emirates, United States
State
Massachusetts
Highly Efficient Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells for Wavelength-Selective Greenhouse: A Promising Agrivoltaic System
In trying to solve simultaneously the energy and food crisis, the concept proposed by Agriculture 4.0, namely a combination between the agriculture and the solar energy could provide a possible solution. The wavelength-selective greenhouse could be a promising agrivoltaic system if the trade-off between photovoltaic roofs and plants will be achieved. Using less studied solar cells as an electricity source for an autonomous greenhouse, this study has demonstrated experimentally that the requirements imposed by a greenhouse can be provided by a DSSC using an affordable commercial yellow dye. The successful implementation of DSSC in autonomous greenhouses is conditioned by three main requirements, and that are the transparency of the entire Photosynthetic Active Radiation (PAR) domain along with high UV absorption, high efficiency of the solar cell, and sustainability during the whole year. The best DSSC has proved a high absorption of UV radiation, closely by 90%, a transparency of the DSSCs preserved on the whole PAR domain and achieved a photovoltaic efficiency two times higher than the best efficiency reported for this dye so far. Furthermore, by preserving the maximum efficiency of almost 5% under the light intensity in the range 50 to 100 mW/cm2, the sustainability of our DSSC over the whole year has been demonstrated.
D. Ursu, M. Vajda, M. Miclau. 08/2022. Highly Efficient Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells for Wavelength-Selective Greenhouse: A Promising Agrivoltaic System. International Journal of Energy Research. 46(13):18550–18561.
MicroclimatologyPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Romania
History and Legal Aspect of Agrivoltaics in Korea
In order to overview the history and legal aspect of Agrivoltaics in Korea, it is necessary to review the key facts of Korea photovoltaics and agriculture. Korea imports 95% of its energy supply, mostly fossil fuel such as coal and oil. Korea has the sufficient pool of renewable energy resource. Most of renewable energy resource is solar power (PV). However, Korea is very densely populated country. Therefore, there is not enough un-used land to install the PV power generation system to achieve the energy transition from the fossil fuel to the renewable energy. Agrivoltaics on the agriculture land can potentially provide the land for the PV power generation to achieve the energy transition. Another need of Agrivoltaics in Korea is Korean farmers need more income. Each Korean farmer owns relatively small farmland to cultivate. Farmland economy is not good compared to the booming manufacturing industry in cities. Most young people from the farmland moved to cities. In order to re-invigorate the farmland economy, Agrivoltaics is needed to generate more income to the farmland. Many research and proof projects are initiated from 2016 and on-going. However, Korean Agriculture Land Law prohibits other usage of the agriculture land other than farming. Recently several congressmen have proposed the revision of the Agriculture Land Law to allow the Agrivoltaics.
Minsu Kim, Soo-Young Oh, Jae Hak Jung. 2022. History and Legal Aspect of Agrivoltaics in Korea. In: AgriVoltaics2021 Conference; 2021/06/14; Online. Korea: AIP Publishing; p.
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Policy and Regulatory IssuesEconomicsStandardization and Best Practices
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
South Korea, Hong Kong
How Does a Shelter of Solar Panels Influence Water Flows in a Soil–Crop System?
Associating on the same land area an upper layer of solar panels together with a crop layer at the ground level has been shown to allow significant saving of land resource compared to separate energy and food productions (Marrou et al., 2013a). Indeed, crops can achieve high yield under the fluctuating shade of these agrivoltaic systems. Moreover, under dry Mediterranean climate, microclimate measurements at crop level below these panels suggest that these systems could contribute to alleviate climatic stress and to save water. On two experimental prototypes of these agrivoltaic systems, we combined two complementary approaches to assess the impact of the solar panels cover on crop water use. First we calculated the bulk actual evapotranspiration (AET) of irrigated lettuces and cucumbers grown in agrivoltaic systems and in the full sun, from field measurements using the water balance equation for a crop–soil system. Then, we proposed a conceptual framework to analyze AET modifications in the partial shade and assess the contribution of identified drivers to this change. This conceptual framework breaks AET into two components (plant transpiration and soil evaporation) and four drivers: climatic demand at canopy level (ET0), fraction of radiation intercepted by the vegetation, plant stomatal conductance, and soil surface hydraulic conductance. From specific field measurements, we assessed the contribution of each driver to the variations of evapotranspiration below the photovoltaic panels (PVP), in comparison with the full sun. Crop AET calculated with the first approach (water balance) was reduced in agrivoltaic systems by 10–30% when available light was equal to 50–70% of full sun radiation, with variations according to the weather season. The second approach showed that reduction of evapotranspiration was mainly driven by the reduction of the climatic demand below the solar panels and did not result systematically in an increase of the water use efficiency, depending on the genotypic plant sensibility of dry matter accumulation to shade. The conceptual framework suggest that water use efficiency in agrivoltaic systems could be increased by selecting crop species and varieties with a rapid soil covering, which contributes to increased light capture and to decreased soil evaporation, leaving more water for plant transpiration and thereby for biomass production.
H. Marrou, L. Dufour, J. Wery. 2013. How Does a Shelter of Solar Panels Influence Water Flows in a Soil–Crop System?. European Journal of Agronomy. 50:38-51.
HydrologyPlant ScienceMicroclimatology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
France
How to Reconcile Renewable Energy and Agricultural Production in a Drying World
Water scarcity is threatening food security and other, plant-related ecosystem services. Renewable energy production provides a sustainable strategy to replace fossil fuel and, by this, mitigate climate change. However, common forms of renewable energy production such as photovoltaics in open space directly compete with agriculture. Agrivoltaics are proposed as a promising technology to reconcile food and energy needs by allowing for agricultural and electrical power production on the same area of land. However, general understanding of the potential of agrivoltaics to facilitate crop yield under changing climatic conditions is lacking. In this study we provide an overview on the effects of agrivoltaics on microclimate and crop growth and yields. We furthermore quantify the global potential of agrivoltaics to attenuate drought effects on crops and develop a conceptual framework for evaluating interactions between solar power and agricultural production under changing climatic conditions. Generally, shading by agrivoltaics will reduce yield in comparison to maximum possible yield under unshaded, well-watered conditions but can reduce interannual variation in yields caused by drought, thus, increase resilience of agricultural production. This drought attenuation potential of agrivoltaics seems to be especially promising in the drought prone regions of the world. Land use efficiency of agrivoltaic systems is directly linked the degree of crop shading which covaries with the drought attenuation potential but will ultimately be guided by political decisions on how to weight energy production vs. food security. The latter depends on economic, societal and ecological aspects related to the implementation of agrivoltaics.
A. Schweiger, L. Pataczek. 04/2023. How to Reconcile Renewable Energy and Agricultural Production in a Drying World. Plants, People, Planet. 1-12.
HydrologyImpact AssessmentsStandardization and Best PracticesReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Crosscutting PV, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Hybrid Photovoltaic/Solar Chimney Power Plant Combined With Agriculture: The Transformation of a Decommissioned Coal-Fired Power Plant
Due to fossil fuel shortage and high carbon emissions, more and more inefficient coal-fired power plants are being decommissioned. Many redundant resources like chimneys and electric equipment are thus left behind, which can be combined with renewable energy for transformation. Therefore, a hybrid photovoltaic/solar chimney (PV/SC) power plant combined with agriculture is proposed to transform a decommissioned thermal power plant in Ningxia, China. The collector canopy is partially covered with PV modules and simultaneously serves as an agricultural greenhouse for planting activities. Meanwhile, the hot air flow under the canopy can be integrated with air source heat pumps (ASHPs) for domestic heating. Detailed mathematical models are developed to investigate power generation and heat collection performance. The economic and environmental benefits are quantitatively evaluated. The results show that the average daily power generation capacity of PV and SC can reach 334.2 MWh and 9.3 MWh, respectively. The total power generation capacity increases by 5.98% compared with an equivalent single PV power plant. The annual CO2 emission reduction can be up to 1.27 × 106 tons, and the total annual revenue is more than $ 5.47 million. The transformed plant has an impressive comprehensive solar energy conversion efficiency of 14.2% considering power generation, agricultural production and heating, which is 36.9% higher than that of an equivalent conventional PV power plant. The proposed plant has a power generation capacity of 343.5 MWh/d and can bring about notable economic and environmental benefits, which are of great significance to the transition of renewable energy and achieving lower carbon emissions. This work can provide a feasible reference for the upgrading of industries with high pollution and low efficiency.
Mingxi Xie, Teng Jia, Yanjun Dai. 2022. Hybrid Photovoltaic/Solar Chimney Power Plant Combined With Agriculture: The Transformation of a Decommissioned Coal-Fired Power Plant. Renewable Energy. 191:1-16.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyMarket AssessmentsEconomicsPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
Hybrid and Organic Photovoltaics for Greenhouse Applications
Reducing the energy demand and dependency on fossil fuels is crucial for improving the sustainability of greenhouses, which are the most energy intensive systems in the agricultural sector. Renewable technologies represent a key option to meet the greenhouse energy demands. Agrivoltaics has recently emerged as a strategy to combine farming activity and power generation through photovoltaics (PV). However, PV systems retrofitting needs to consider the interactions with the existing greenhouse structure, as well as the energy requirements of the equipment for climate control. The influences of PV shading on agronomic parameters have also to be carefully considered. Firstly, this review examines the response of plants to the light and the fundamental aspects of greenhouse facilities. Then, the state-of-the-art of PV systems applied to greenhouses is thoroughly analysed. Simulation studies and experimental works are examined to highlight the effects of PV technologies and module arrangements on energy production and plant growth. Particular attention is devoted to new PV technologies, i.e. organic, dye-sensitized and perovskite solar cells, because of their semi-transparency and flexibility, allowing the easy integration of PV modules into existing or newly conceived greenhouse structures. The review has highlighted that the new PV technologies have an enormous potential due to the possibility of tuning their spectral features according to the characteristics of plants and to the capability of optimizing the use of solar energy into high-tech greenhouses. Shading through these innovative systems has also demonstrated to create a suitable atmosphere for crop growth especially in hot and tropical regions.
Luca La Notte, Lorena Giordano, Emanuele Calabrò, Roberto Bedini, Giuseppe Colla, Giovanni Puglisi, Andrea Reale. 2020. Hybrid and Organic Photovoltaics for Greenhouse Applications. Applied Energy. 278:
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Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Impacts and Opportunities From Large‐Scale Solar Photovoltaic (PV) Electricity Generation on Agricultural Production
With large‐scale solar photovoltaics in Australia experiencing unprecedented levels of investment, now is a unique opportunity for the national economy and for the communities in regional Australia. Environmental impacts are minimal and community benefits can accrue from both large‐ and utility‐scale solar projects, such as jobs and regional investment. But there are questions for the agricultural sector to consider as these opportunities open up:
To what extent is the concern of energy generation versus food production warranted? Should large‐scale solar power stations even be built on agricultural land?
The author uses a case study from the Central West of New South Wales (NSW) to explore these issues as well as briefly reviewing critical research into the international development of agrivoltaics.T.F. Guerin. 2019. Impacts and Opportunities From Large‐Scale Solar Photovoltaic (PV) Electricity Generation on Agricultural Production. Environmental Quality Management. 28(4):7-14.
Social PerspectivesReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Australia
Impacts of Agrivoltaics in Rural Electrification and Decarbonization in the Philippines
Agrivoltaic systems have attracted considerable attention for increasing the renewable energy share in the Philippines while also focusing on decarbonizing electric power systems. Given the vast rice farming areas in the Philippines and their archipelagic geological location, the use of batteries was considered instead of extending transmission lines. The available locations of the rice farm areas and power grid constraints were considered in the power system. Through linear programming, the optimization of the power generation mix model uses the existing capacities of each generator and transmission line in each area of the Philippines, with a temporal resolution of 8760 h per year. The simulation suggests an optimal integration of power generation from agrivoltaics and/or batteries. A total of 11.04 TWh and 95.75 TWh could contribute to the energy mix by using 1% and 10% of agrivoltaics subjected in the rice farmlands, respectively. By simultaneously using batteries with 10% agrivoltaics, carbon emissions can be decreased by 85%, which is higher than the country's official target. This is the first study that provides a technically feasible picture of the large-scale integration of agrivoltaics into the Philippines' power sector.
Ruth Anne Tanlioco Gonocruz, Yoshikuni Yoshida, Akito Ozawa, Rodolfo A. Aguirre, Edward Joseph H. Maguindayao. 2023. Impacts of Agrivoltaics in Rural Electrification and Decarbonization in the Philippines. Applied Energy. 350:
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EconomicsImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Philippines
Implementation of Agricultural Technology Urban Farming Agrivoltaic Based System to Increase Productivity and Empowerment of Farmer Women's Community
The need for food and the need for community empowerment, the fulfillment of new and renewable energy and productive economic activity continue to increase in line with the explosive rate of population growth, this is also what underlies the joint targets of the SDGs in points 2, 5, 7 and 8. The Cemara Hijau Farm (KWT CHF) Farmer Women's Group located in the urban area of Malang city needs solving problems in the form of land expansion, access to sustainable irrigation, and optimum irradiation of crops. In this technology implementation activity, it is carried out to increase the active role of women and increase the agricultural productivity of KWT CHF with various limitations owned. Urban Farming with the vertical concept of agrivoltaic hydroponics can maximize land use in urban areas and photovoltaic-powered LED growlight irradiation can maximize energy and reduce operational costs. Implementation is carried out with the stages of Socialization, Installation, Collaboration, Training, Monitoring and Evaluation. The results of this activity are (1) agrivoltaic technology with a capacity of 1.35 kWh, (2) planting point capacity that can be created 476 points on an area of 8 m2, (3) utilization of circulation tubs as fish farming ponds covering an area of 6 m2 with a capacity of 60 fish, and (4) a 24-hour irradiation system with LED growlight. This community service program can increase the agricultural productivity of KWT CHF, provide added value activities, and reduce agricultural operational costs so that it has a positive impact on sustainable economic value for KWT CHF. For further development, a broader follow-up implementation is needed by involving many regional points by making pilot projects at KWT CHF as pilots for other regions.
M. H. Karim, M. Diantoro, N. Nasikhudin, S. R. Lestari. 03/2023. Implementation of Agricultural Technology Urban Farming Agrivoltaic Based System to Increase Productivity and Empowerment of Farmer Women's Community. Journal of Community Service and Empowerment. 4(1):184-195.
Social PerspectivesReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Indonesia
Implementation of Agrophotovoltaics: Techno-Economic Analysis of the Price-Performance Ratio and Its Policy Implications
Rising demand for solar power generation will lead to increased land use competition, and thus to potential economic and social conflict. A solution to this challenge is to produce food and energy within an agrophotovoltaics (APV) system. Since 2017, governments in Japan, France, Massachusetts (USA), South Korea, and China have introduced policies supporting APV implementation. Governments considering APV implementation – e.g. in India and Germany – for evidence-based policy making are demanding information on how levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) of APV differs from that of conventional ground-mounted photovoltaics (PV), as well as on how additional costs associated with APV installation relate to the benefit of maintaining agricultural activity under APV. Data for a techno-economic price-performance ratio calculation has been retrieved from an inter- and transdisciplinary APV case study in Germany. We observed that the LCOE of APV with €0.0828 kWh−1 is 38% higher than that of ground-mounted PV, resulting in an annual cropland preservation price of €9,052 ha−1 a−1. The annual revenue of potato and winter wheat production under APV resulted in a performance of €10,707 ha−1 a−1 and €1,959 ha−1 a−1 respectively, leading to a beneficial price-performance ratio of 0.85 for potato production and, with a ratio of 4.62, a disadvantageous result for winter wheat. Overall, APV is not necessarily recommended in crop rotating systems. However, in combination with permanent cultures – e.g. berries, fruits, or wine grapes – as the price for these types of applications is lower, while at the same time providing higher performance by optimizing techno-ecological synergies.
S. Schindele, M. Trommsdorff, A. Schlaak, T. Obergfell, G. Bopp, C. Reise, C. Braun, A. Weselek, A. Bauerle, P. Högy, A. Goetzberger, E. Weber. 2020. Implementation of Agrophotovoltaics: Techno-Economic Analysis of the Price-Performance Ratio and Its Policy Implications. Applied Energy. 265:114737.
Plant ScienceEconomicsMarket AssessmentsStandardization and Best Practices
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Germany
Implications of Spatial-Temporal Shading in Agrivoltaics Under Fixed Tilt & Tracking Bifacial Photovoltaic Panels
The spatial and temporal behavior of the incident sunlight can have important implications for agrivoltaic (AV) crop yield. Here we explore the short term (daily) and long term (monthly) variations of the photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) under various tracking and fixed-tilt agrivoltaic PV modules configurations and propose strategies to minimize the shade-induced crop yield loss. For a fixed row to row PV module spacing, vertically installed PV modules facing East/West provide the best spatial homogeneity and a higher intensity of net daily incident PAR, while the traditional North/South faced fixed tilt PV modules result in a high spatial contrast, i.e., a significantly lower PAR underneath the PV modules as compared to the open space between the adjacent rows of PV modules. The shading behavior for the horizontal single axis tracking PV modules shows a seasonal dependence, a higher shading vertically below the PV modules during winters and vice versa for summers. The spatial variation in the crop yield correlates well with that of the net daily PAR spatial pattern in the case of the shade sensitive crops (e.g., tomato) while the spatial yield for the shade tolerant crops (e.g., lettuce) is less affected by PAR variations. We propose an intercropping approach where the cultivated areas for crops having high and low shade sensitivity are identified based on the calculated spatial PAR pattern. A case study of intercropping lettuce with tomato under various PV module configurations shows that this approach can minimize the biomass loss for shade sensitive crops in the presence of spatial PAR heterogeneity.
Zamen Tahir, Nauman Zafar Butt. 2022. Implications of Spatial-Temporal Shading in Agrivoltaics Under Fixed Tilt & Tracking Bifacial Photovoltaic Panels. Renewable Energy. 190:167-176.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologySystem ConfigurationImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
Oregon
Improvement of Electrical Efficiency in a PV Solar Farm Utilizing Agriculture
The effect of vegetation on solar PV panel efficiency was tested in a commercial solar farm in the Negev Desert of Israel. Panel temperature of mono-facial modules in two test sites of 0.22 hectares each with different plant treatments was up to 3.5°C lower at midday compared to the panel temperature in an adjacent reference plot with bare loess soil. The temperature difference was not uniform, being greatest for the upper panels in a ground-mounted array (average reduction 2.2°C), and lowest for panels closest to the ground (1.0°C reduction). The temperature reduction is attributed primarily to smaller fluxes of solar radiation reflected from the plants, which have a lower albedo than the bare soil, and to less infrared radiation emitted from the plants, which are cooler. A small reduction in air temperature due to evapotranspiration also contributed to this outcome. Electricity production measured in the test plots was approximately 1% higher over the summer test period. The Land Equivalent Ratio (LER) of the test plots was 1.67, reflecting the combined contribution of the increased electricity production, the value of the crops, and the reduction in site maintenance costs.
Julian Leaf, Yuval Kaye, Liran Ben-Altabet, Annette Penny, David Meninger, Evyatar Erell. 2022. Improvement of Electrical Efficiency in a PV Solar Farm Utilizing Agriculture. In: AIP Conference Proceedings. AGRIVOLTAICS2021 CONFERENCE: Connecting Agrivoltaics Worldwide; 2021/06/14; Freiburg, Germany. Online: AIP; p.
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Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Israel
Improving Productivity in an Agrivoltaic Farm through the Implementation of Large-Scale Dynamic Beam Splitter Integrated Photovoltaics
Installing photovoltaic (PV) collectors above open agricultural fields (Agrivoltaics) can deal with the shortage of available land area for solar power generation while also providing a means to achieve sustainable food production. Most open field agrivoltaics are based on opaque PV devices. These materials absorb photosynthetically active radiation (PAR, 400-700 nm), reducing crop yield. Here, we evaluate the performance of spectral beam splitter integrated photovoltaic (BSIPV) modules in an iceberg lettuce farm in Yuma, Arizona using a plant growth model. PAR incident on the spectral beam splitter is transmitted effectively to the plants, while the near infrared radiation (NIR, > 700 nm) is reflected to the adjacent bifacial opaque photovoltaic module to generate power. Crop growth conditions were simulated under three case scenarios: 1) open field, 2) conventional opaque PV agrivoltaic farm and 3) BSIPV agrivoltaic farm. Dual-axis solar tracking is considered for both conventional and BSIPV solar modules in the agrivoltaic farm to enhance light collection. In the model, seven rows of modules were placed uniformly across the field at a height of 4 m from the ground. Considering a cool season (winter) growth cycle, the modelled lettuce yield at the time of harvest in the open field was around 900 g/plant in 110 days (from 11/13 to 03/02, as expected). In contrast, during the same season, lettuce grown in a conventional opaque PV agrivoltaic farm received 43% lower PAR in comparison to open field with a coefficient of variation (ratio of standard deviation to mean expressed in percentage) in PAR of 56% across the field. This led to a delayed harvest of up to 30 days to reach the expected target yield (900 g/plant). On the other hand, the BSIPV agrivoltaic farm limited the drop in PAR light to 7% in comparison to open field and the coefficient of variation of PAR to 14% across the field. Thus, BSIPV shows a 36% improvement in PAR relative to the conventional opaque PV agrivoltaic farm. Target yield was achieved across the field during the same season with only eight additional days. The promising results of the current study highly encourage further research on the proposed collector concept. More improvements are expected to be achieved with the optimization of the splitter optical properties and PV modules material, as well as row spacing and collectors tracking algorithm.
Eshwar Ravishankar, Helena Vitoshkin, Abraham Kribus, Gur Mittelman, Ricardo Hernandez. 2022. Improving Productivity in an Agrivoltaic Farm through the Implementation of Large-Scale Dynamic Beam Splitter Integrated Photovoltaics. In: ASHS 2022 Annual Conference; 2022/07/30; Chicago, IL. Chicago, IL: ASHS; p.
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Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
United States
State
Arizona, North Carolina
Improving Productivity of Cropland Through Agrivoltaics
The concept of combining photovoltaics (PV) with agriculture (agrivoltaics or APV) is being explored across the globe and has established field trials in countries including, but not limited to, Germany, Vietnam, Italy, France, Japan and Chile [1]. An agrivoltaic system involves positioning solar panels directly above or near active agricultural land to provide some form of shading to the crops and to generate electricity from the solar array [2]. The usefulness of this concept is seen when considering the abundance of land that becomes available to the PV market if that land can be shared with the agricultural sector. For instance, consider that in 2016 Australia used 372 million hectares of land for agriculture, of which 8.3% was designated cropland [2]. Therefore, even if some proportion of this cropland (say an 8th) are retrofitted with overhanging PV systems, Australia’s effective solar generation area would increase by roughly four million hectares. This would greatly enhance the renewable energy sectors ability to satisfy baseload energy requirements of the national grid.
At first glance the concept of shading plants seems counterintuitive to the perception that cropland should be without obstructions. However, agrivoltaics recognises that crops do not require every hour of sunlight to photosynthesise. Consequently, the solar energy resource can effectively be shared with photovoltaic technology to increase the productivity of the land without greatly decreasing the yield of the crop, and in some cases, increasing crop yield [3]. This is achieved by spacing the rows of solar panels in such a way that the shadows caused by the panels still permit crops to photosynthesise sufficiently in addition to reducing heat related stress caused by the environment. As such, this study aims to review existing literature about agrivoltaics and use experimentation to explore if the advantages they provide are great enough to justify their introduction into Australian agriculture. A key parameter for this study is land productivity that is measured using “land equivalent ratio” (LER) which is a combination of crop yield (measured in kilograms) and energy production (measured in watt-hours). Equation 1 demonstrates how this is calculated:
The interest in energy (𝐼𝐸) and the interest in yield (𝐼𝑌) are values between 0 and 1 that represent how the owner of the system prioritises energy output and crop yield. These coefficients are used to present different points of view that a landowner can use to interpret the results of an agrivoltaic trial. Additionally, 𝐸𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑔𝑦 is the energy generated by the PV array for a stilt mounted agrivoltaics 𝐴𝑃𝑉 system, 𝐸𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑔𝑦𝑆𝐹 is the energy generated from an equivalent ground mounted solar farm, 𝑌𝑖𝑒𝑙𝑑𝐴𝑃𝑉 is the crop yield of the agrivoltaic system and 𝑌𝑖𝑒𝑙𝑑𝑓𝑎𝑟𝑚 is the crop yield of a traditional farm (without overhead solar panels) [4].A. Nassar, I. Perez-Wurfl, C. Roemer, Z. Hameiri. 2021. Improving Productivity of Cropland Through Agrivoltaics. In: Asia Pacific Solar Research Conference; 2021/12/16; Sydney, Australia. Australian PV Institute: Australian PV Institute; p. 1-3
Agricultural YieldsDesign ConfigurationsEnergy ProductionShading and Light Patterns
InSPIRE 2.0 (Final Technical Report)
Co-locating solar projects and agriculture can provide mutual benefits to local farmers (e.g., dual revenue streams, increased yields from pollinator services, irrigation reductions) and to the solar projects (e.g., reduced timeline/costs for installation and O&M, expanded market, increased PV efficiency from a cooler, vegetated microclimate). While prior work sought to demonstrate the feasibility of agricultural co-location (or "agrivoltaic") opportunities, there is a fundamental gap in data available to developers, landowners, and state agencies that prevents widespread deployment of these mutually beneficial practices. This project addressed this gap by (1) establishing a stakeholder research working group composed of multi-sector industry leaders and academics to provide guidance and assist with outreach; (2) undertaking targeted field-based research projects evaluating solar and agriculture co-location tradeoffs; (3) conducting analysis and modeling studies that complement the field-based research; and (4) developing a data portal to consolidate all data on this topic in one location.
J. Macknick, H. Hartmann (National Renewable Energy Laboratory). 2023. InSPIRE 2.0 (Final Technical Report). Golden, CO: National Renewable Energy Laboratory. Report No.: NREL/TP-6A20-85280. Contract No.: AC36-08GO28308; 34165.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Report
Country
United States
Increased Panel Height Enhances Cooling for Photovoltaic Solar Farms
Solar photovoltaic (PV) systems suffer substantial efficiency loss due to environmental and internal heating. However, increasing the canopy height of these systems promotes surface heat transfer and boosts production. This work represents the first wind tunnel experiments to explore this concept in terms of array flow behavior and relative convective heat transfer, comparing model solar arrays of varied height arrangements - a nominal height, extended height, and a staggered height configuration. Analyses of surface thermocouple data show average Nusselt number (
) to increase with array elevation, where panel convection at double height improved up to 1.88 times that of the nominal case. This behavior is an effect of sub-array entrainment of high velocity flow and panel interactions as evidenced through flow statistics and mean kinetic energy budgets on particle image velocimetry (PIV) data. The staggered height arrangement encourages faster sub-panel flow than in the nominal array. Despite sub-array blockage due to the lower panel interaction, heat shedding at panel surfaces promotes improvements on
over 1.3 times that of the nominal height case.S.E. Smith, B. Viggiano, N. Ali, T.J. Silverman, M. Obligado, M. Calaf, R.B. Cal. 2022. Increased Panel Height Enhances Cooling for Photovoltaic Solar Farms. Applied Energy. 325:119819.
MicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
Oregon
Increasing Land Productivity with Agriphotovoltaics: Application to an Alfalfa Field
Agriphotovoltaic systems, consisting of the combination of crops and photovoltaic panels (PVPs) on the same area, have recently emerged as an opportunity to solve the competition for land use between food and energy production. Various crops, pedoclimatic contexts and structures and both fixed and mobile panels have been studied. Over a period of two years, this research has been investigating an agriphotovoltaic (APV) system with mobile panels along two axes of rotation. The studied crop is alfalfa, a grassland species that has received little attention under these conditions. In our experimental set-up, the alfalfa biomass increased by an average of 10 % over the two years of the experiment in the shade of the APV plant (between 29 % − 44 %) in comparison to full sunlight (835 g.m−2.year−1), but in a different way depending on the climatic year. The nutritional qualities were preserved while the canopy's morphology was adapted through an increase in the length of the stems and the surface area of the leaflets. Photovoltaic production was reduced by 15 % due to the optimised tracking for plant growth. This combined production allowed an increase in total productivity per unit area of 51 % (LER: 1.51). The positive agronomic results are explained by a decrease in evapotranspiration caused by the panels in a context where the crop is highly sensitive to water deficit with thin soil. To reach a more general conclusion on synergy, these results need to be completed over several years and compared with other studies in different soil and climatic contexts, as well as with modelling studies.
S. Edouard, D. Combes, M. Van Iseghem, M.N.W. Tin, A.J. Escobar-Gutiérrez. 01/2023. Increasing Land Productivity with Agriphotovoltaics: Application to an Alfalfa Field. Applied Energy. 329:1-12.
HydrologyPlant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
France
Increasing the Agricultural Sustainability of Closed Agrivoltaic Systems With the Integration of Vertical Farming: A Case Study on Baby-Leaf Lettuce
The photovoltaic (PV) greenhouses are closed agrivoltaic (CA) systems that allow the production of energy and food on the same land, but may result in a yield reduction when the shading of the PV panels is excessive. Adopting innovative cropping systems can increase the yield of the CA area, generating a more productive and sustainable agrosystem. In this case study we quantified the increase of land productivity derived from the integration of an experimental vertical farm (VF) for baby leaf lettuce inside a pre-existing commercial CA. The mixed system increased the yield by 13 times compared to the CA and the average LER was 1.31, but only 12 % of the energy consumption was covered by the CA energy. To achieve the energy self-sufficiency and avoid the related CO2 emissions, the VF area should not exceed 7–18 % of the CA area, depending on the PV energy yield and the daily light integral (DLI) of the LED lighting, meaning a land consumption from 5 to 14 times higher than the VF area. The support of the PV energy was essential for the profitability of the VFCA. Design features and solutions were proposed to increase the agronomic and economic sustainability of the VFCA. The VFs can be considered a possible answer for the reconversion of the actual underutilized CAs with high PV cover ratios into productive and efficient cropping systems, but a trade-off between energy production and land consumption should be identified to ensure an acceptable environmental sustainability of the mixed system.
M. Cossu, M. T. Tiloca, A. Cossu, P. A. Deligios, T. Pala, L. Ledda. 08/2023. Increasing the Agricultural Sustainability of Closed Agrivoltaic Systems With the Integration of Vertical Farming: A Case Study on Baby-Leaf Lettuce. Applied Energy. 344(121278):1-14.
Plant SciencePV TechnologiesImpact AssessmentsMicroclimatologyEconomics
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Italy
Increasing the Comprehensive Economic Benefits of Farmland With Even-Lighting Agrivoltaic Systems
Agrivoltaic combines crop planting and electricity generation on the same land, it is considered as an opportunity to resolve the competition for land use between food and energy production. In addition to growing crops, farmers can gain electricity with the installation of agrivoltaic systems on their farmland. They can use this clean energy for agricultural production or sell it for extra income. The Chinese government considers it an important strategy for “Targeted Poverty Alleviation”. However, current methods of agrivoltaic provide uneven and low irradiance for crops, which usually results in reduced yield and low quality. In this study, an improved agrivoltaic system with a grooved glass plate has been designed, manufactured, and investigated, called Even-lighting Agrivoltaic System (EAS). Two experiments were conducted to test the effectiveness of the improvement. We measured the crops’ light environment, the crop growth process, the crop yield and quality, the electricity generation, and calculated the Land Equivalent Ratio (LER) as well as the comprehensive economic benefits on the farmland per hectare. Under the EAS, crops grew fast and the yield was similar or better than that under the natural state. By adding supplementary LED lamps into the EAS, the soluble sugar content of lettuce increased by 72.14% and the nitrate content of lettuce decreased by 21.51%. The average LER of the EAS for common vegetables was 1.64 as demonstrated in this work. Comprehensive economic benefits outperform the installation and maintenance costs, thus, the EAS can increase farmers’ income by an average of 5.14 times. The EAS provides new ideas and directions for the future development of agrivoltaic.
J. Zheng, S. Meng, X. Zhang, H. Zhao, X. Ning, F. Chen, A.A.A. Omer, J. Ingenhoff, W. Liu. 2021. Increasing the Comprehensive Economic Benefits of Farmland With Even-Lighting Agrivoltaic Systems. PLOS ONE. 16(7):1-20.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyEconomicsPV TechnologiesImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal. pone.0254482
Increasing the Total Productivity of a Land by Combining Mobile Photovoltaic Panels and Food Crops
Agrivoltaic systems, consisting of the combination of photovoltaic panels (PVPs) with crops on the same land, recently emerged as an opportunity to resolve the competition for land use between food and energy production. Such systems have proved efficient when using stationary PVPs at half their usual density. Dynamic agrivoltaic systems improved the concept by using orientable PVPs derived from solar trackers. They offer the possibility to intercept the variable part of solar radiation, as well as new means to increase land productivity. The matter was analysed in this work by comparing fixed and dynamic systems with two different orientation policies. Performances of the resulting agrivoltaic systems were studied for two varieties of lettuce over three different seasons. Solar tracking systems placed all plants in a new microclimate where light and shade bands alternated several times a day at any plant position, while stationary systems split the land surface into more stable shaded and sunlit areas. In spite of these differences, transient shading conditions increased plant leaf area in all agrivoltaic systems compared to full-sun conditions, resulting in a higher conversion of the transmitted radiation by the crop. This benefit was lower during seasons with high radiation and under controlled tracking with more light transmitted to the crop. As expected, regular tracking largely increased electric production compared to stationary PVPs but also slightly increased the transmitted radiation, hence crop biomass. A large increase in transmitted radiation was achieved by restricting solar tracking around midday, which resulted in higher biomass in the spring but was counterbalanced by a lower conversion efficiency of transmitted radiation in summer. As a result, high productivity per land area unit was reached using trackers instead of stationary photovoltaic panels in agrivoltaic systems, while maintaining biomass production of lettuce close or even similar to that obtained under full-sun conditions.
B. Valle, T. Simonneau, F. Sourd, P. Pechier, P. Hamard, T. Frisson, M. Ryckewaert, A. Christophe. 2017. Increasing the Total Productivity of a Land by Combining Mobile Photovoltaic Panels and Food Crops. Applied Energy. 206:1495-1507.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
France
Influence of Allocation Methods on the LC-CO2 Emission of an Agrivoltaic System
Agrivoltaic systems are multi-output systems where both solar power and crops are produced on the same land. Unlike other land-based photovoltaics (PV), the agrivoltaic PV modules are ground mounted between crops at some height with a certain tilt. Alternatively, PV modules replace part of a greenhouse or are partially set either below or above a covering material. The system could become an important mitigation option for climate change. However, power generation by PV reduces sunlight transmittance and therefore reduces agricultural yield. An allocation method that will address the potential interference of PV with crops is required for life cycle assessment (LCA) to evaluate greenhouse gas mitigation. This study aims to develop a new allocation method (i.e., solar allocation) and compare the LCA results of the new and traditional allocation methods (i.e., system expansion and economic allocation). The partition rate of the solar allocation is derived from the ratio of the active area covered by PV to the greenhouse surface area and light transmittance. These methods were applied to an agrivoltaic tomato production system using protected horticulture with the introduction of organic photovoltaics as a case-study of a system in Japan. The allocation methods considered in the present study could serve as potential methods in assessing life cycle−CO2 emissions. Above all, the solar allocation method can be used for many crops that will be influenced by PVs. Further improvement of the allocation method is required in cases where crop growth is less influenced by PVs (e.g., shadow-tolerant crops or transparent PV).
A. Leon, K.N. Ishihara. 2018. Influence of Allocation Methods on the LC-CO2 Emission of an Agrivoltaic System. Resources, Conservation and Recycling. 138:110-117.
Impact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Japan
Influences of Greenhouse-Integrated Semi-transparent Photovoltaics on Microclimate and Lettuce Growth
Shading in greenhouses is a simple and cheap method usually used to reduce the intensity of solar radiation and air temperature. Moreover, combining Photovoltaic (PV) panels and crops on the same cropland could alleviate the increasing competition for the agricultural land between food and energy production. In addition, the integration of PV with greenhouses could reduce, or partially replace the energy consumption for greenhouse crop production. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the shading effect of semi-transparent mono-crystalline silicon double glazing photovoltaic panels (STPV), mounted on top of an agricultural greenhouse, which occupied 20% of the roof area, on the microclimate conditions and the growth of lettuce plants inside a greenhouse. Results showed that the combination of STPV and polyethylene cover decreased the solar radiation by 35% to 40% compared to the use of polyethylene cover only for clear days which was in the acceptable range of photosynthetically active radiation for lettuce plants. Moreover, STPV shading decreases the air temperature by 1°C-3°C and had no effect in the relative humidity under natural ventilation. Furthermore, there were no significant differences (p0.05) in the growth of lettuce plants between the shaded greenhouse by the STPV and the unshaded. Shading insignificantly increased the fresh weight, leaf area and the chlorophyll contents (p0.05). In conclusion, the integration of STPV modules can decrease the solar irradiation and the internal air temperatures as well as generate electric energy for environmental control systems without significant influence on the growth of lettuce plants. Meanwhile, it can decrease the water consumption by decreasing the evapotranspiration rate.
Reda Hassanien Emam Hassanien, Li Ming. 2017. Influences of Greenhouse-Integrated Semi-transparent Photovoltaics on Microclimate and Lettuce Growth. International Journal of Agricultural and Biological Engineering. 10(6):
(!) .
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyHydrology
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
Initial Analysis and Development of an Automated Maintenance System for Agrivoltaics Plants
Agrivoltaics power generation is the simultaneous use of agricultural land and photovoltaic panels. In such cases, the panels are placed more sparsely, compared to conventional photovoltaic plants. Furthermore, the panels might be mounted at higher heights, to provide the required space for the farm. Due to this arrangement of the panels in wide areaswith crops on the farm, maintenance of the panels is a hard task. The major part of maintenance is to clean the panels, since the accumulation of farm dust and bird excrement can reduce the efficiency of the panels. In Agrivoltaics plants, the panels can be scattered, thus it is not economical for each panel to have a dedicated cleaning robot. This paper presents the initial design and analysis of an automated system for cleaning such power plants. This system consists of a robotic AGV, which transfers a panel cleaner between the photovoltaic panels mounted over the farms. The initial design is presented. Then, to anticipate the required power and control system, the carrier kinetics and kinematics are modeled and validated through simulations. Then, position and trajectory controllers are designed and simulations are presented. The simulations show desired performance for the introduced controlled system.
Farima Hajiahmadi, Mohammad Dehghani, Payam Zarafshan, S. Ali A. Moosavian, S. Reza Hassan-Beygi. 2023. Initial Analysis and Development of an Automated Maintenance System for Agrivoltaics Plants. AgricEngInt: CIGR Journal. 25(3):
(!) .
Plant SciencePV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Innovative Agrivoltaic Systems to Produce Sustainable Energy: An Economic and Environmental Assessment
Agrivoltaic systems are photovoltaic (PV) technologies in which PV panels are mounted at a sufficient height from the ground to enable conventional cultivation practices underneath. Agrivoltaic systems not only preserve agricultural land, but also benefit crop production by improving water use efficiency and reducing water stress. For these positive attributes, the interest over agrivoltaic systems is increasing, but the lack of a thorough environmental and economic analysis of agrivoltaic systems is limiting their implementation. This work aims to fill this gap by modelling the environmental and economic performances of an innovative agrivoltaic system built on tensile structures (Agrovoltaico®) in the Po Valley. The life cycle assessment performed shows that Agrovoltaico systems have environmental performances similar to those of other PV systems in all the areas of environmental concern investigated (climate change, eutrophication, air quality and resource consumption). Agrovoltaico systems show a Levelized Cost Of Electricity comparable to those of ground or roof mounted PV systems, thanks to both the higher productivity of these sun tracking systems and the materials saved by mounting them on a tensile structure. Relying on tensile structures was economically safe and compatible with the current Italian net-metering approach adopted to incentivise PV systems. It is concluded that the economic and environmental costs of Agrovoltaico systems are comparable to those of other PV systems, though the reduced impact on land occupation and the stabilisation of crop production are relevant added values that should be properly valorised in a future energy system dominated by increasing human land appropriation and climate change.
A. Agostini, M. Colauzzi, S. Amaducci. 2021. Innovative Agrivoltaic Systems to Produce Sustainable Energy: An Economic and Environmental Assessment. Applied Energy. 281:1-13.
EconomicsImpact AssessmentsMarket AssessmentsSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Italy
Innovative Solar Spectral Beam Splitting Concepts: Cogeneration and Photochemistry
The conversion efficiency from sunlight to electricity, for both solar thermal and solar photovoltaic converters, is usually in the range of 10—30%. More than two thirds of the solar energy, collected with considerable effort and capital investment, is rejected back to the environment. We present an analysis of novel spectral beam splitting systems with the applications of cogeneration and photochemical conversion. Significant advantages of these designs include (i) separate conversion mechanism for different radiation wavebands, such that typical efficiency limits are eliminated (ii) introduction of photochemical reactions driven by short waves, reducing photovoltaic thermalization losses and (iii) simple design with small number of elements and without a high level of radiation concentration, eliminating the requirements for accurate optics and active cooling. The results are very promising, with a considerable enhancement of the efficiency relative to photovoltaic and other reference plants.
Gur Mittelman, H. Vitoshkin, Hadas Mamane, Abraham Kribus. 2018. Innovative Solar Spectral Beam Splitting Concepts: Cogeneration and Photochemistry. In: EU PVSEC 2018 - 35th European PV Solar Energy Conference and Exhibition; 2018/08/14; Brussels, Belgium. Belgium: EU PVSEC; p.
(!)
Impact Assessments
Installation of an Agrivoltaic System Influences Microclimatic Conditions and Leaf Gas Exchange in Cranberry
Agrivoltaic systems utilize the same area for both solar power generation and agricultural production. Our goal was to conduct a preliminary study to look at the changes in microclimatic conditions, plant ecophysiology, fruit quality, and yield under a cranberry agrivoltaic system. The study was conducted on a ‘Stevens’ cranberry bog in Carver, Massachusetts, USA. Two treatments were evaluated, an uncovered control area and a replica agrivoltaic system with three prototype solar arrays made out of plywood in a north-south orientation that mimicked a solar tracking system. The solar arrays were spaced 3.5 m apart, 6.0 m in length, and 1.5 m wide at a height of 3.0 m above the plant canopy. Microclimatic sensors were installed under solar arrays, between solar arrays, and in the uncovered control. Seasonally accumulated photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) was reduced by 41% under solar arrays and 29% between solar arrays compared to the control. On a clear sunny day, net carbon assimilation was reduced under the solar arrays at mid-day (12:30) and between solar arrays at mid-morning (09:46) and mid-afternoon (15:46) compared to the uncovered control. On a hot day (max temperature 30.9°C), canopy temperature was reduced by 3.5°C under the solar panels at mid-day and 3.0°C between solar arrays at mid-afternoon. Volumetric soil water content was increased under solar arrays and between solar arrays compared to the uncovered control. Leaf wetness was reduced under solar arrays and between solar arrays compared to the uncovered control. Fruit color measured as total anthocyanin content was not affected by the installation of an agrivoltaic system. Titratable acidity was reduced under the agrivoltaic system, in contrast, total soluble solids were increased.
G. Mupambi, H.A. Sandler, P. Jeranyama. 2022. Installation of an Agrivoltaic System Influences Microclimatic Conditions and Leaf Gas Exchange in Cranberry. In: K.J. Bergstrand, M.T. Naznin, editors. ISHS Acta Horticulturae 1337. IX International Symposium on Light in Horticulture; 2021/05/31; Malmö, Sweden. Online: ISHS; p.
(!)
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyHydrology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
United States
State
Massachusetts
Grape farms face many climate risks during cultivation, and regulatory and sustainability-related challenges after the harvest. To support the farmers, Government of India (GoI) aims to promote adaptive capacity throughout the grape value chain by improving resilient infrastructure. This paper proposes a novel Grapevoltaics farm design based on shared circular business model principles where resources like energy, water, and land are shared between grape farmer and solar plant operator. The resilience (in the near term) and sustainability (in the long term) of such multifunctional systems may be influenced by the decisions taken by the involved stakeholders in terms of resource sharing and support extension when facing climate risk events. To address stakeholder engagement, the proposed Grapevoltaic farms leverage blockchain smart contract, making them Blockchain-enabled Grapevoltaics (BCeDGVs). To understand the feasibility, 1-ha Grapevoltaic farm is modeled for 12 grape growing regions accross India and analysed using Resilience Performance, Life Cycle Analysis, and Techno-Economic (RePLiCATE) approach. The results show that the solar panels provide resilience support based on the rules of engagement written on blockchain smart contracts. The BCeDGVs has 1295.28–2908.08 kWh/kWp/day electricity generation potential across India with a lifetime average of 15,380.65 MWh even after considering the national average photovoltaic degradation rate of 1.9%. The observed grape yields vary between 2 and 31.25 Mt/ha with an average yield of 45 Mt/ha (table grape) and 40 Mt/ha (wine grape), and the rainwater harvest varies between 1.23 to 7.32 Ml. The economic assessment revealed that grape farmers and photovoltaic plant operators across India under BCeDGVs could have revenues ranging between INR 56.25 to 225 million and INR 29.48–66.19 million, respectively, suggesting to relook into the feed-in tariffs and crop selling prices. The environmental sustainability results suggest that 1.984 ha/MW land-use mitigation and 12–100% reduction in groundwater dependency are possible while maintaining the minimum and maximum national average global warming potentials as 0.074 and 0.088 kg CO2-eq./kg grape, respectively. Overall, the integrated assessments find that the BCeDGVs may promote low carbon, climate resilient grape cultivation in India and has possible integration with GoI's GrapeNet platform. This study highlights a new research direction symbiotic grape farms and energy networks.
Nallapaneni Manoj Kumar, Shauhrat S. Chopra. 2023. Integrated Techno-Economic and Life Cycle Assessment of Shared Circular Business Model Based Blockchain-Enabled Dynamic Grapevoltaic Farm for Major Grape Growing States in India. Renewable Energy. 209:365-381.
Market AssessmentsEconomicsSiting
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
India
Integrating Agrivoltaic Systems into Local Industries: A Case Study and Economic Analysis of Rural Japan
The growing number of photovoltaic installations has created competition in land use between the need for electricity and food. Agrivoltaic systems (AVSs) can help solve this problem by increasing land use efficiency through the co-production of electricity and food. However, in Japan, where more than 2000 AVSs have been installed, some undesirable AVS cases have led to new problems. In this study, we developed an AVS installation model that is compatible with a regional society and limits the scale of AVS installation to a low-risk level. AVS projects have also entered local industrial clusters and stimulated the local economy. In this study, we used public information and geographic information systems to ensure quantifiability and applicability. The results revealed that the rural area targeted in this study had an AVS generation potential of 215% (equal to 17.8 GWh) of the region’s annual electricity consumption and an economic ripple effect of 108.9% (EUR 47.8 million) of the region’s gross regional product. Furthermore, the levelized cost of electricity was estimated to be 14.94–25.54 Euro cents/kWh under secure settings. This study provides solutions to food, economic, and energy problems in rural areas by promoting the installation of AVSs.
H. Nakata, S. Ogata. 2023. Integrating Agrivoltaic Systems into Local Industries: A Case Study and Economic Analysis of Rural Japan. Agronomy. 13(2):1-20.
Social PerspectivesMarket AssessmentsEconomicsImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Japan
Integrating Organic Photovoltaics (OPVs) Into Greenhouses: Electrical Performance and Lifetimes of OPVs
This paper presents the electrical performance of organic photovoltaic modules (OPVs) on top of a polyethylene covered greenhouse high tunnel in a Mediterranean climate. Modules from a previous study were kept on the tunnel and monitored together with new modules with improved connectors installed on the greenhouse roof and on frames adjacent to the greenhouse. Measured module power conversion efficiencies ranged from 1% to 3%. The typical combined output of the modules across the tunnel roof were 105Wh on a sunny day and 81Wh on a cloudy day. Module burn-in period was about 15 days, losing around 36% of its initial efficiency. Ts80 lifetimes ranged from 7 days to 94 days. Tunnel integration was shown to accelerate module degradation.
Esther Magadley, Meir Teitel, Ragheb Kabha, Mohamad Dakka, Maayan Friman Peretz, Shay Ozer, Asher Levi, Hagai Yasuor, Murat Kacira, Rebekah Waller, Ibrahim Yehia. 2022. Integrating Organic Photovoltaics (OPVs) Into Greenhouses: Electrical Performance and Lifetimes of OPVs. International Journal of Sustainable Energy. 41(8):1005-1020.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Israel
Integrating Solar Energy With Agriculture: Industry Perspectives on the Market, Community, and Socio-Political Dimensions of Agrivoltaics
Large-scale development of solar-generated electricity is hindered in some regions of the U.S. by land use competition and localized social resistance. One approach to alleviate these coupled challenges is agrivoltaics: the strategic co-location of solar photovoltaics and agriculture. To explore the opportunities and barriers for agrivoltaics, in-depth interviews with solar industry professionals were conducted and findings suggest that the potential for an agrivoltaic project to retain agricultural interests and consequently increase local support for development is the most significant opportunity of dual use solar. Capable of increasing community acceptance, participants expect agrivoltaics to play an important role in future solar endeavors, especially in places where development may be perceived as a threat to agricultural interests. The results further reveal the interconnections among the various dimensions of social acceptance and suggest that the growth of agrivoltaics is contingent on market adoption of the technology through community acceptance and supportive local regulatory environments. As solar photovoltaic systems transcend niche applications to become larger and more prevalent, the dimensions of social acceptance, including the opportunities and barriers associated with each dimension, can help inform decision making to enhance the growth of agrivoltaics and thus photovoltaic development. The findings can help land use planners, solar developers, and municipal governments make informed decisions that strategically and meaningfully integrate agriculture and solar, and in turn provide multiple benefits including the retention of agricultural land, local economic development, and broad adoption of solar energy technologies.
A.S. Pascaris, C. Schelly, L. Burnham, J.M. Pearce. 2021. Integrating Solar Energy With Agriculture: Industry Perspectives on the Market, Community, and Socio-Political Dimensions of Agrivoltaics. Energy Research & Social Science. 75:1-15.
Social PerspectivesPolicy and Regulatory Issues
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
Integration of Bifacial Photovoltaics in Agrivoltaic Systems: A Synergistic Design Approach
To safeguard future renewable energy and food supply the use of agrophotovoltaic (APV) systems was investigated, which enable simultaneous production under the same piece of land. As conventional photovoltaic (PV) array topologies lead to unfavourable conditions for crop growth, the application of APV is limited to areas with high solar insolation. By optimizing the APV array’s design, compatibility with various climates and crop species can be attained. Therefore, the aim of this research was to establish a multi-scale modelling approach and determine the optimal topology for a medium-to-large-scale fixed bifacial APV array. Three main topologies were analyzed under the climate of Boston, USA: S-N facing, E-W wings, and E-W vertical. For each topology, respectively, specific yield was amplified by 39%, 18%, and 13% in comparison to a conventional monofacial ground mounted PV array. E-W vertical is more appropriate for permanent crop species, while S-N facing necessitates the cultivation of shade tolerant crops during summer as electricity generation is prioritized. The E-W wings APV topology combines the best of both; light is distributed homogeneously, and crops are effectively shaded at noon. To promote the growth rate of blueberries under shade, customized bifacial modules were integrated (arranged as the E-W wings). Land productivity enhanced by 50%, whereas electrical AC yield reduced by 33% relative to the conventional and separate production. Through this holistic approach, it is possible to achieve a comprehensive understanding of the limitations and potential synergies associated with the dual use of land; ultimately, encouraging the transition of the agricultural sector into sustainability.
O.A. Katsikogiannis, H. Ziar, O. Isabella. 2022. Integration of Bifacial Photovoltaics in Agrivoltaic Systems: A Synergistic Design Approach. Applied Energy. 309:118475.
MicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem ConfigurationImpact AssessmentsReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Integration of Solar Technology to Modern Greenhouse in China: Current Status, Challenges and Prospect
Given the threat of environmental degradation and land deterioration to conventional agriculture, modern greenhouse cultivation has attracted increasing attention as an effective alternative. However, the high energy consumption of greenhouse systems is concerning given the need to limit the environmental impact of human activities. The solar integration to agricultural greenhouse in the form of modern solar greenhouse has the potential to simultaneously respond to the declining availability of suitable land and the imperative for minimum emissions. In this review, an overview of China's progress towards the development of modern solar greenhouses, as well as the attempts to mitigate the effects of heat loss, shadowing, and poor light condition is presented. A promising prospect is shown by China's modern solar greenhouses at present levels of performances and costs exemplified by the photovoltaic (PV) greenhouses with a practicable payback period of less than 9 years. Additionally, application of advanced solar technology for better thermal storage, PV power generating and light utilization balance has been proved effective to further promote solar energy utilization in modern solar greenhouses.
Tianyue Wang, Gaoxiang Wu, Jiewei Chen, Peng Cui, Zexi Chen, Yangyang Yan, Yan Zhang, Meicheng Li, Dongxiao Niu, Baoguo Li, Hongyi Chen. 2017. Integration of Solar Technology to Modern Greenhouse in China: Current Status, Challenges and Prospect. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. 70:1178-1188.
EconomicsPV TechnologiesReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
Investigating the Potential of East/West Vertical Bifacial Photovoltaic Farm for Agrivoltaic Systems
The sustainable supply of food, energy, and water resources under the additional pressures caused by climate change is a global grand challenge. In Pakistan and many other developing countries, population growth and escalating demands for clean energy, food, and water also impose mounting pressure on agricultural land, necessitating the rapid development of innovative, holistic, and climate-compatible solu- tions. Here, we use a self-consistent electrical–optical–thermal model to explore the potential of east/west (E/W) vertical bifacial photovoltaic (PV) farms for state-of-the-art agrivoltaic (AV) systems—an innovative production system that enables solar energy generation over crops— an approach that can solve key obstacles in solar energy growth for Pakistan and the world whilst ensuring food–water–climate security. We compare the performance of E/W vertical bifacial PV farms with north/south (N/S) tilted bifacial PV farms for PV energy production and ground irradiance available for crops. We show that optimally designed E/W vertical bifacial PV farms provide spatial homogeneity for crop light. We further explore the effect of soiling on PV energy yield and show that due to their inherent resilience to soiling losses, E/W vertical PV farms could reduce the water budget and could be the potential candidates to be mounted in AV systems particularly in the regions hav- ing scarce water supply.
H. Imran, M.H. Riaz. 2021. Investigating the Potential of East/West Vertical Bifacial Photovoltaic Farm for Agrivoltaic Systems. Renewable and Sustainable Energy. 13:1-8.
MicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Pakistan
Investigation of UV Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells Based on Water Electrolyte: A New Insight for Wavelength-Selective Greenhouse
The optimization of the photoactive electrode based on TiO2 with a complex architecture for UV dyes along with water-based electrolyte has successfully allowed us (i) to obtain a photovoltaic efficiency of the dye-sensitized solar cell with 1.45 times higher than the best efficiency reported for synthetic dye and 3 times for curcumin dye so far; (ii) transparency on the entire Photosynthetic Active Radiation domain; (iii) preserving high efficiency for lighting 1 sun (summer) and shading, especially for 60 mW/cm2, which represents the maximum illumination in the rest of the seasons. Our water-based dye-sensitized solar cells loaded with synthetic and natural UV dyes have revealed that the implementation of a dye-sensitized solar cell in autonomous greenhouses is a viable and inexpensive concept.
Daiana Albulescu, Daniel Ursu, Lucian-Mircea Rusnac, Sabina Nitu, Marinela Miclau, Melinda Vajda. 2022. Investigation of UV Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells Based on Water Electrolyte: A New Insight for Wavelength-Selective Greenhouse. Crystals. 12(1):
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PV Technologies
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Is it a Good Time to Develop Commercial Photovoltaic Systems on Farmland? An American-Style Option with Crop Price Risk
Photovoltaic systems require large swaths of land that are currently being used for other purposes, such as farming. One option for developing large photovoltaic systems is converting farms that are currently economically unviable into commercial photovoltaic systems. However, this may not always be an economically rational decision as crop prices have the potential to increase over time. Fluctuations in farm income due to changes in crop prices can alter the optimal choice of whether to continue farming or to convert farmland into commercial photovoltaic systems. This study attempts to resolve this issue by proposing a real options framework to value farm production when crop prices are uncertain. By integrating uncertainty into the decision-making process, the value of keeping unprofitable farms operating prior to developing the area into a commercial photovoltaic system is assessed. This helps decision makers understand the extent to which potential income from developing a photovoltaic system should be greater than potential income from farming when deciding on investing in a photovoltaic system. A case study is conducted to examine this framework and to calculate the net present value of a farm in South Korea. The results indicate that although the money lost from continuing to farm is substantial, farmers should defer conversion to a commercial photovoltaic system until a sufficient drop in crop prices occurs. When applying this strategy, the farmer can gain an additional 100% of expected revenue simply by deferring the development decision until having better information on the market prices of crops.
B. Kim, C. Kim, S. Han, J. Bae, J. Jung. 2020. Is it a Good Time to Develop Commercial Photovoltaic Systems on Farmland? An American-Style Option with Crop Price Risk. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. 125:1-9.
EconomicsImpact AssessmentsReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
South Korea
Just energy imaginaries? Examining realities of solar development on Pennsylvania's farmland
While transitions away from fossil fuels are urgent in a changing climate, the place-based dynamics underlying these renewable energy transitions demonstrate both the potential for shifting historical inequities and the harm of failing to do so. As the cost of solar energy has dropped globally, the socioecological implications of transforming landscapes to host solar photovoltaics (PV) have garnered significant research attention. This study builds on such research by outlining realities of grid-scale solar development on farmland in the US state of Pennsylvania (PA). Through a theoretical grounding in energy justice and land imaginaries, we interviewed farmers and solar stakeholders across PA to better understand why farmers are leasing their land for solar and how these leasing processes balance farmer, stakeholder, and community costs and benefits. We find that farmers enter solar leases for multiple reasons, of which economic gain is a central but insufficient factor. Farmers negotiated lease terms to ensure end-of-life decommissioning, hinged on the hope that the land will be farmable again after solar panels are removed. Yet, as solar was described as a “thirty-year cover crop,” negotiating terms for agrivoltaics was not observed, obscuring the potential for agricultural production to continue during the solar lease. Further, solar developers have utilized option contracts and non-disclosure agreements, reducing the ability of landowners to collectively negotiate for more favorable terms. We situate these findings in both the fraught legacies of energy production in PA, as well as in three main tenets of energy justice, highlighting the caution and hope associated with solar rollouts contributing to just and sustainable energy transitions.
Kaitlyn Spangler, Erica A.H. Smithwick, Stephanie Buechler, Jennifer Baka. 12/2023. Just energy imaginaries? Examining realities of solar development on Pennsylvania's farmland. Energy Research & Social Science. 108:
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Social Perspectives
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
Pennsylvania
Justice-Driven Agrivoltaics: Facilitating Agrivoltaics Embedded in Energy Justice
Agrivoltaics comprises solar energy generation and agricultural activities co-located to create multi-purpose agricultural solar energy systems. In 2021, the global agrivoltaics sector was valued at USD $3.6 billion and is projected to grow to USD $9.3 billion by 2031. Agrivoltaics projects have successfully attracted increasing investment and research demonstrating the technical, economic, and scientific rationale to advance agrivoltaics as a crucial technology to achieve net zero emissions goals. The legal framework enabling agrivoltaics development is at varying stages of maturity across different jurisdictions. This study provides the first socio-legal study of agrivoltaics development applying an energy justice framework. It comparatively analyses the mature agrivoltaics sectors, laws, and policies in Massachusetts (United States of America) and Japan in a functional comparative analysis with New South Wales (Australia) applying the three principal pillars of energy justice; recognition, procedural, and distributive justice. This study demonstrates how energy justice can generate a framework for regulatory reform. Such reform can facilitate the expansion of agrivoltaics and unlock the full potential of co-locating of solar energy and agriculture.
M. Taylor, J. Pettit, T. Sekiyama, M.M. Sokołowski. 12/2023. Justice-Driven Agrivoltaics: Facilitating Agrivoltaics Embedded in Energy Justice. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. 188:1-11.
Social PerspectivesStandardization and Best PracticesReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Key Factors Affecting the Adoption Willingness, Behavior, and Willingness-Behavior Consistency of Farmers Regarding Photovoltaic Agriculture in China
Agricultural fossil energy consumption increases carbon dioxide emissions and is a critical concern in China. Photovoltaic agriculture refers to combining agricultural activities and photovoltaic power generation without changing the agricultural land and affecting agricultural production. It is a new agricultural production approach and has been identified as an important measure to deal with environmental pollution and fossil energy consumption. The goal of this study was to analyze the key factors that influence the willingness, behavior, and willingness-behavior consistency of farmers to adopt photovoltaic agriculture. A survey with 643 participants was conducted in China. The bivariate probit model and the binary logistic regression were used to test nineteen influencing factors. The results showed that the proportion of farmers whose adoption willingness was consistent with the adoption behavior was 37.1%, whereas 62.9% of farmers exhibited inconsistency between adoption willingness and adoption behavior. Differences were observed in the key factors influencing the willingness, behavior, and willingness-behavior consistency of adopting photovoltaic agriculture. The usefulness perception and technical training had significant positive impacts on the adoption willingness, adoption behavior, and willingness-behavior consistency of the farmers, whereas the photovoltaic investment cost had a negative impact. The results of this study provide an understanding of the factors influencing the promotion and dissemination of photovoltaic agriculture, a basis for optimizing related policies, and references to facilitate the implementation of photovoltaic agriculture in rural areas in other countries.
Bo Li, Junqi Ding, Jieqiong Wang, Biao Zhang, Lingxian Zhang. 2021. Key Factors Affecting the Adoption Willingness, Behavior, and Willingness-Behavior Consistency of Farmers Regarding Photovoltaic Agriculture in China. Energy Policy. 149:
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Social PerspectivesPolicy and Regulatory Issues
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
Knowns, Uncertainties, and Challenges in Agrivoltaics to Sustainably Intensify Energy and Food Production
Harnessing solar energy to renewably produce electricity can
contribute to climate mitigation while meeting current energy demands. However, utility-scale photovoltaics are land intensive and can compete with food production. Agrivoltaics, which combines both energy and food production, has the potential to reduce competition for land. However, its benefits remain uncertain. Here, we review the literature to assess how agrivoltaics can provide synergistic benefits across the food-energy-water nexus relative to photovoltaic or agricultural systems in isolation. Overall, agrivoltaics has the potential to enhance the sustainability of agricultural land and the resilience of our food and energy systems while helping meet energy and food demands. However, there are obstacles to be surmounted. Interdisciplinary collaborative research actions to gain a holistic and mechanistic understanding of the ecological, environmental, and socio-economic consequences of agrivoltaics, and to realize how new innovations can unravel the potential of this
emerging strategy, are urgently needed.N. Gomez-Casanovas, P. Mweaze, M. Khanna, B. Branham, A. Time, E. H. DeLucia, C. J. Bernacchi, A. K. Knapp, M. J. Hoque, X. Du, E. Blanc-Betes, G. A. Barron-Gafford, B. Peng, K. Guan, J. Macknick, R. Miao, N, Milijkovic. 08/2023. Knowns, Uncertainties, and Challenges in Agrivoltaics to Sustainably Intensify Energy and Food Production. Cell Press. 1-24.
Reviews/Informational
Lab-to-Fab Development and Long-Term Greenhouse Test of Stable Flexible Semitransparent Organic Photovoltaic Module
The Lab-to-Fab transfer from cell to large-area flexible semitransparent organic photovoltaic (OPV) module by the slot-die coating based on halogen-free host solvent and under ambient air environment is developed. The bulk heterojunction structure (BHJ) and formation mechanism of slot-die-coated active layer on flexible substrate are different from those usually reported. The relationship among processing, film thickness/BHJ morphology, transmittance and performance for the slot-die-coated module, and the optimum strategy are studied in this article. The flexible semitransparent modules with active areas of 45 and 22.5 cm2 have the average visible transmittance of 21.3%–16.7%. The corresponding average power conversion efficiency (PCE) values are 4%–6.2%. The highest PCE can achieve 7.8%. Compared to all large-area flexible semitransparent slot-die-coated OPV modules reported with PCEs (usually ≤5%), the modules prepared here have the best PCE. The electric behavior and stability of these OPV modules and a Si-PV panel under the greenhouse test are studied. Among the stability data (usual T80 lifetime ≤100 days) reported for semitransparent flexible OPV modules under greenhouse test, the T80 lifetime of the OPV modules prepared here can reach 200 days and also remain the highest PCE with the least burn-in loss.
Cheng-Si Tsao, Chih-Min Chuang, Hou-Chin Cha, Yu-Yu Huang, Yun-Ming Sung, Tsui-Yun Chung, Yi-Teng Chang, Zhe-Cheng Hu, Tian-Cheng Liu, Wei-Yang Ma, Yu-Hua Wang, Keng-Peng Chang, Yu-Chiang Chao, Hsin-Fei Meng. 2023. Lab-to-Fab Development and Long-Term Greenhouse Test of Stable Flexible Semitransparent Organic Photovoltaic Module. Materials Today Energy. 36:
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MicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesTools
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Taiwan
Lamb Growth and Pasture Production in Agrivoltaic Production System
Grasslands and croplands located in temperate agro-ecologies are ranked to be the best places to install solar panels for maximum energy production. Therefore, agrivoltaic systems (agricultural production under solar panels) are designed to mutually benefit solar energy and agricultural production in the same location for dual-use of land. However, both livestock farmers and energy companies require information for the application of efficient livestock management practices under solar panels. Therefore, this study was conducted to compare lamb growth and pasture production under solar panels and in open pastures in Corvallis, Oregon in spring 2019 and 2020. Averaged across the grazing periods, weaned Polypay lambs grew at 120 and 119 g/head/d under solar panels and open pastures, respectively in spring 2019 (P=0.90). Although a higher stocking density (36.6 lambs/ha) at the pastures under solar panels was maintained than open pastures (30 lambs/ha) in the late spring period, the liveweight production between grazing under solar panels (1.5 kg ha/d) and open pastures (1.3 kg ha/d) were comparable (P=0.67). Similarly, lambs liveweight gains and liveweight productions were comparable in both pasture types (all P>0.05). The daily water consumption of the lambs in spring 2019 were similar during early spring, but lambs in open pastures consumed 0.72 l/head/d more water than those grazed under solar panels in the late spring period (P<0.01). However, no difference was observed in water intake of the lambs in spring 2020 (P=0.42) The preliminary results from our grazing study indicated that grazing under solar panels can maintain higher carrying capacity of pasture toward summer, and land productivity could be increased up to 200% through combining sheep grazing and solar energy production on the same land. More importantly, solar panels may provide a more animal welfare friendly environment for the grazing livestock as they provide shelter from sun and wind. Key Words: agrivoltaics; lamb growth; solar farming; pasture production
A.C. Andrew. 2021. Lamb Growth and Pasture Production in Agrivoltaic Production System [Thesis]. [Oregon State University]: Oregon State University.
LivestockPlant Science
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Thesis/Dissertation
Country
United States
State
Oregon
Laminated Organic Photovoltaic Modules for Agrivoltaics and Beyond: An Outdoor Stability Study of All-Polymer and Polymer: Small Molecule Blends
The integration of organic photovoltaic (OPV) modules on greenhouses is an encouraging practice to offset the energy demands of crop growth and provide extra functionality to dedicated farmland. Nevertheless, such OPV devices must meet certain optical and stability requirements to turn net zero energy greenhouse systems a reality. Here a donor:acceptor polymer blend is optimized for its use in laminated devices while matching the optical needs of crops. Optical modeling is performed and a greenhouse figure-of-merit is introduced to benchmark the trade-off between photovoltaic performance and transparency for both chloroplasts and humans. Balanced donor:acceptor ratios result in better-performing and more thermally stable devices than acceptor-enriched counterparts. The optimized polymer blend and state-of-the-art polymer:small-molecule blends are next transferred to 25 cm2 laminated modules processed entirely from solution and in ambient conditions. The modules are mounted on a greenhouse as standalone or 4-terminal tandem configurations and their outdoor stability is tracked for months. The study reveals degradation modes undetectable under laboratory conditions such as module delamination, which accounts for 10–20% loss in active area. Among the active layers tested, polymer:fullerene blends are the most stable and position as robust light harvesters in future building-integrated OPV systems.
Xabier Rodríguez-Martínez, Sergi Riera-Galindo, Luis Ever Aguirre, Mariano Campoy-Quiles, Hans Arwin, Olle Inganäs. 2022. Laminated Organic Photovoltaic Modules for Agrivoltaics and Beyond: An Outdoor Stability Study of All-Polymer and Polymer: Small Molecule Blends. Advanced Functional Materials. 33(10):
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MicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesTools
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Spain, Sweden
Land Resource Allocation Between Biomass and Ground-mounted Pv Under Consideration of the Food–Water–Energy Nexus Framework at Regional Scale
An economy’s shift towards climate neutrality requires a massive expansion of renewable energy production. Next to wind, photovoltaic (PV) and biomass will be key renewable resources in many regions. A land-use change to PV increases local electricity production, but influences regional water and biomass availability. However, a regional quantitative guideline on biomass-PV tradeoffs on all agricultural fields under food–water–energy (FWE) nexus thinking is still missing. This work presents a comprehensive bottom-up interdependency assessment between ground-mounted PV and biomass generation on a regional scale by integrating independently established methods based on consistent input data at spatial field resolution. Furthermore, impacts on food and water availability are also quantified. Four scenarios were set up based on current policies and future trend, emphasizing PV yield, feasibility, profit, and biomass yields, respectively. The assessment and scenarios are applied to three representative German counties with distinguished land-use structures and geometries as case studies. Scenario analysis shows that the optimal technical strategy is to free the market letting individuals to maximize revenue from their lands, which likely simultaneously is good for society, achieves high PV yields with limited biomass losses, and has more significant crop water saving effects.
Keyu Bao, Daniela Thrän, Bastian Schröter. 2023. Land Resource Allocation Between Biomass and Ground-mounted Pv Under Consideration of the Food–Water–Energy Nexus Framework at Regional Scale. Renewable Energy. 203:
(!) .
Plant ScienceMarket AssessmentsPV TechnologiesSystem ConfigurationImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Germany
Land Use Prior to Installation of Ground-mounted Photovoltaic in Germany—GIS-Analysis Based on MaStR and Basis-DLM
Ground-mounted photovoltaic (GM PV) in Germany has seen strong growth rates in recent years and is expected to play a considerable role in the country’s future energy supply. The national political goal of reducing the land use change of agricultural land to net-zero by 2050 stands in contrast with the growth, meaning, that conflicts of land use objectives may arise. Systematic monitoring of land use change due to GM PV is required to identify potential land use conflicts at an early stage. Comprehensive monitoring has not yet been carried out. In order to identify the current land use for GM PV as well as the previous use of the land, data from the Marktstammdatenregister (MaStR) and the Digital Basic Landscape Model (Basis-DLM) are combined. By 2018, 11.37 GWp of GM PV had been installed on 25,500 ha. Of the 25,500 ha, more than half (13,292 ha) was arable land, 3807 ha was grassland, 7454 ha was former industrial land (conversion area) and 948 ha was other land. Compared to previous estimates of land demand, this shows a 51% higher use of previously agriculture land. Considering the entire GM PV inventory, the current average specific land use efficiency is around 2.2 ha/MWp, which is higher than indicated in the literature (1.3 ha/MWp). The strongest expansion of GM PV can be seen in the north, north-east and south-east of Germany. Overall, land use competition is low, as the average share of GM PV on agricultural land is only 0.1%. Even though a higher density of installations can be observed in some regions, the shares of GM PV on agricultural land are still very low here at 0.5%. Nevertheless, a stronger expansion can lead to increased regional concentrations and thus land use conflicts.
Jonas Böhm, Thomas de Witte & Coline Michaud. 2022. Land Use Prior to Installation of Ground-mounted Photovoltaic in Germany—GIS-Analysis Based on MaStR and Basis-DLM. Zeitschrift für Energiewirtschaft. 46:147–156.
Policy and Regulatory IssuesToolsImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Germany
Land Utilization Performance of Ground Mounted Photovoltaic Power Plants: A Case Study
Long term studies were conducted on land utilization performances of six (three 25 MWp and three 5 MWp) ground mounted photovoltaic power plants are operating in salt marshy land in western India. The PV modules in the present studies are made up with multi-crystalline silicon (mc-Si), amorphous silicon (a-Si) and cadmium telluride (CdTe) and these are the parts of a 500 MWp solar park. Studies indicated that the salty marsh land surfaces under the shadow of the PV modules were changed by enhancing its humidity and temperature level. This enhancement improved the flora formation in the humid soil possibly due to the flow of leakage current from PV module surface and land is used for agricultural activities. The combination of electrical and agricultural products reduced payback period of total investment and this makes the dual use of land in developing energy and food security. Results showed that the small capacity of mc-Si PV plant has the better electrical yield than that of its larger counterpart and the agricultural yield under a-Si and CdTe plants is better than mc-Si plants.
Swapna Roy, Biswajit Ghosh. 2017. Land Utilization Performance of Ground Mounted Photovoltaic Power Plants: A Case Study. Renewable Energy. 114:1238-1246.
MicroclimatologySoilPolicy and Regulatory IssuesPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
India
Land-Sparing Opportunities for Solar Energy Development in Agricultural Landscapes: A Case Study of the Great Central Valley, CA, United States
Land-cover change from energy development, including solar energy, presents trade-offs for land used for the production of food and the conservation of ecosystems. Solar energy plays a critical role in contributing to the alternative energy mix to mitigate climate change and meet policy milestones; however, the extent that solar energy development on nonconventional surfaces can mitigate land scarcity is understudied. Here, we evaluate the land sparing potential of solar energy development across four nonconventional land-cover types: the built environment, salt-affected land, contaminated land, and water reservoirs (as floatovoltaics), within the Great Central Valley (CV, CA), a globally significant agricultural region where land for food production, urban development, and conservation collide. Furthermore, we calculate the technical potential (TWh year–1) of these land sparing sites and test the degree to which projected electricity needs for the state of California can be met therein. In total, the CV encompasses 15% of CA, 8415 km2 of which was identified as potentially land-sparing for solar energy development. These areas comprise a capacity-based energy potential of at least 17 348 TWh year–1 for photovoltaic (PV) and 2213 TWh year–1 for concentrating solar power (CSP). Accounting for technology efficiencies, this exceeds California’s 2025 projected electricity demands up to 13 and 2 times for PV and CSP, respectively. Our study underscores the potential of strategic renewable energy siting to mitigate environmental trade-offs typically coupled with energy sprawl in agricultural landscapes.
Madison K. Hoffacker, Michael F. Allen, Rebecca R. Hernandez. 2017. Land-Sparing Opportunities for Solar Energy Development in Agricultural Landscapes: A Case Study of the Great Central Valley, CA, United States. Environmental Science & Technology. 51(24):14472–14482.
Policy and Regulatory IssuesMarket AssessmentsPV TechnologiesSiting
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
California
Large-Scale and Cost-Efficient Agrivoltaics System by Spectral Separation
Agrivoltaics (AV) offers a promising solution to address both food and energy crises. However, crop growth under photovoltaic (PV) conditions faces substantial challenges due to insufficient light transmission. We propose a large-scale and cost-effective spectral separated concentrated agricultural photovoltaic (SCAPV) system. The system utilizes concentrator modules, cell components, and dual-axis tracking systems to enhance power conversion efficiency (PCE), achieving a maximum PCE of 11.6%. After three years of successful operation, a 10 kWp power plant achieved an average annual electricity generation exceeding 107 MWh/ha. The results showed higher yields of various crops, including ginger and sweet potatoes, and significant improvements in soil moisture retention compared to open air. The improvements in PCE and microclimate validate the scalability of the SCAPV, which provides better plant conditions and cost-effectiveness, with an estimated cost reduction of 18.8% compared to conventional PV power plant. This study provides valuable insights and directions for improvement in AV.
Fangxin Zhang, Ming Li, Wei Zhang, Wenjun Liu, Altyeb Ali Abaker Omer, Zhisen Zhang, Jianan Zheng, Wen Liu, Xinyu Zhang. 11/2023. Large-Scale and Cost-Efficient Agrivoltaics System by Spectral Separation. iScience. 26(11):1-16.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologySoilPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
Large-scale Photovoltaics? Yes Please, but Not Like This! Insights on Different Perspectives Underlying the Trade-off Between Land Use and Renewable Electricity Development
The need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the electricity sector requires an increase in renewable generation capacity. However, the necessary space for power generation infrastructure can be in conflict with other uses of available land and different perspectives on how the development of renewable electricity should occur can lead to stakeholder oppositions. In an explorative study, I used Q methodology to inquire how affected stakeholders perceived the development of a photovoltaic solar park in Switzerland. This allowed me to identify possible ways to alleviate conflicts between designating land for agricultural use and renewable electricity development. The results show that while most identified worldviews among stakeholders agreed large roof surfaces should be prioritized for solar panels, remaining divergences explain tensions that threatened the realization of the solar park. Two perspectives were in conflict: on one side, actors defending a strict protection of agricultural land; on the other, actors who considered it appropriate to build solar panels on fields. The results also suggest that renewable energy expansion should preserve a balance between large-scale and small-scale photovoltaic power development to be socially acceptable amongst a broad spectrum of stakeholders.
Leonhard Späth. 2018. Large-scale Photovoltaics? Yes Please, but Not Like This! Insights on Different Perspectives Underlying the Trade-off Between Land Use and Renewable Electricity Development. Energy Policy. 122:
(!) .
Social Perspectives
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Switzerland
Legal Framework of Agrivoltaics in Germany
In Germany, agrivoltaic systems are not explicitly embedded in the legal framework. In order to advance the technology and thus make a contribution to the energy transition and sustainable food production, legal implementation is of great relevance. An analysis of the four sectors construction, energy, agriculture and environment presents the current state of affairs. Agrivoltaic systems are usually built in the so-called unplanned outdoor area. In many cases it is difficult to obtain a permit there, because the classification as a privileged project does not always succeed. In the planned area, the stipulation of use is associated with legal difficulties. With regard to the EEG, agrivoltaics often falls into the category of ground mounted systems and therefore is usually not eligible to receive a governmental feed-in tariff on agricultural land. The agricultural sector can recognize areas under agrivoltaic systems as eligible areas and, with the help of a detailed environmental analysis, it should be considered that at least no compensatory measures within the framework of the Eco Account Ordinance need to be created when building an agrivoltaic system. In the energy sector, an increased feed-in tariff can be achieved through certain adjustments.
Jens Vollprecht, Max Trommsdorff, Charis Hermann. 2021. Legal Framework of Agrivoltaics in Germany. In: C. Dupraz, editor. AGRIVOLTAICS2020 Conference: Launching Agrivoltaics World-Wide; 2020/10/14; Perpignan, France, Online. AIP Conference Proceedings: AIP Publishing; p.
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Policy and Regulatory Issues
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Germany
Lessons Learned From Simulating the Energy Yield of an Agrivoltaic Project With Vertical Bifacial Photovoltaic Modules in France
Agrivoltaics is a novel application of solar (PV) photovoltaic power generation where the PV modules are installed in the same field as where crops are also cultivated. This is advantageous because this combines land use while keeping attractive productions for both agricultural crops and power generation. Several configurations currently exist for these agrivoltaic installations, including rooftop PV generators, ground-mounted agrivoltaic plants, and PV installations on greenhouses. One particularly innovative kind of agrivoltaic application uses rows of vertical bifacial PV modules. In recent years, bifacial technology has experienced a swift increase in its share of the PV market, which opens the door to performance improvements and even new kinds of solutions. However, in the current state-of-the-art PV simulation tools, the added complexity introduced by bifacial technology is still not fully covered. This is even more true for agrivoltaic PV plants with vertical bifacial modules. Here, we present a summary of our most relevant findings while assessing the energy yield of an agrivoltaics plant planned with vertical bifacial PV modules in the south of France. The evaluation of the bifacial energy gain (BEG) has been carried out with a novel simulation tool based on the use of the latest 3D evaluation libraries incorporated into the Graphic Processor Units (GPU) of modern computers. These were developed for the video game industry, and they offer many interesting advantages for such bifacial PV applications. We also discuss the main challenges that still lie ahead in the path to a better design optimization and assessment of the energy yield of such vertical PV installations.
Jesus Robledo, Jonathan Leloux, Babacar Sarr, Chris Gueymard, Anton Driesse, Pierre-François Drouin, Sébastien Ortega, Damien André. 2022. Lessons Learned From Simulating the Energy Yield of an Agrivoltaic Project With Vertical Bifacial Photovoltaic Modules in France. In: 38th European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference and Exhibition (EU PVSEC); 2021/09/06; Online. Online: ResearchGate.net; p.
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MicroclimatologySystem ConfigurationSitingTools
Lettuce Production under Mini-PV Modules Arranged in Patterned Designs
The growing need for clean energy and food production are favoring the use of underused spaces, such as rooftops. This study aims to demonstrate the compatibility of the use of rooftops both for the production of photovoltaic energy and for the production of food, despite the fact that both compete for the same resource, sunlight (rooftop agrivoltaic). In the experiment reported in this study, which was carried out in Almería (Spain) during the spring and summer of 2021, three shade treatments were tested for a lettuce crop, produced by photovoltaic modules with different arrangements: concentrated shade (CS), scattered shade (SS) and full sun (FS). This experiment was repeated in two seasons with high radiation levels and temperature. The results show that in these environmental conditions, the cultivation of plants that demand little sunlight, such as lettuce, is compatible with the shading produced by photovoltaic panels. In addition, it is shown that the same percentage of the area covered with shade (22%), but using mini-PV modules arranged in patterns, improves the productivity (fresh weight, dry matter, number of leaves, maximum length and dry matter of roots) of lettuce cultivation, both in spring and summer.
A.C. Ortega,T.A. do Paço, M.D. Pérez, M.G. Galán. 2021. Lettuce Production under Mini-PV Modules Arranged in Patterned Designs. Agronomy. 11(12):1-16.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologySystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Spain
Leveraging the Food-Energy-Water Nexus for Planet Resilience
We have sufficient evidence that our historical management of natural resources is
not sustainable. Food production is stagnating or declining. Nonrenewable energy sources on which the energy sector has historically depended are being rapidly depleted. Water resources, for which the energy and food sectors compete, are being depleted and impaired. This push against planetary boundaries is accelerating due to population growth and climate change. We must increase net resilience of the planet. This cannot be achieved through a single sector approach as focus on adapting a single sector can increase vulnerability of another sector. Instead, we must focus on the inherent linkages of the food, energy, water nexus, in which opportunities exist for sustainable adaptation which increase net resilience. To maximize impacts of change, we identify areas of high demand in which resources are under- or over-allocated. We explore an example of under-application in the foodenergy intersection – electrification of the transportation system, for which a major hurdle is infrastructure. Through geospatial analysis, our results show that a novel approach to address infrastructure needs of electric vehicle charging stations exists by leveraging agrivoltaic systems. In the food-water intersection, we evaluate an example of over-application – fertilizer use in agriculture and the consequential water quality impacts, in which a major hurdle is grower resistance to reducing overapplication. We explore this intersection through simulations that remain within constraints of grower resistance on the field and watershed scales. We show that we have significant control over nitrate (NO3 - ) leaching via our management choices and identify a mechanism which reduces NO3 - leaching when implementing best management practices. Our results show that alternate (and supplemental) approaches can be leveraged to work toward our water quality goals without risking a reduction in yields. However, additional remediation will be needed to reach overall water
quality and yield needs.Casey L. Steadman. 2022. Leveraging the Food-Energy-Water Nexus for Planet Resilience [Dissertation]. [Online]: Oregon State University.
Market AssessmentsEconomicsImpact AssessmentsReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Thesis/Dissertation
Country
United States
State
Oregon
Life Cycle Assessment of Pasture-Based Agrivoltaic Systems: Emissions and Energy Use of Integrated Rabbit Production
Agrivoltaic systems, which deliberately maximize the utility of a single parcel of land for both solar photovoltaic (PV) electricity production and agriculture, have been demonstrated as a viable technology that can ameliorate competing land uses and meet growing energy and food demands efficiently. The goal of this study is to assess the environmental impacts of a novel pasture-based agrivoltaic concept: co-farming rabbits and solar PV. A life cycle assessment (LCA) quantified the impacts of 1) the integrated agrivoltaic concept in comparison to conventional practices including 2) separate rabbit farming and PV production and 3) separate rabbit farming and conventional electricity production. The impact assessment methods employed to determine the environmental impacts were IPCC 2013 global warming potential 100a V1.03 and fossil energy demand V1.11. The results indicate that the pasture-based agrivoltaic system produces the least amount of greenhouse gas emissions (3.8 million kg CO₂ equivalent) and demands the least amount of fossil energy (46 million MJ) per functional unit of cumulative MWh output of electricity and cumulative kg of meat over 30 years in comparison to the two other scenarios under study. The pasture-based agrivoltaic system features a dual synergy that consequently produces 69.3 % less emissions and demands 82.9 % less fossil energy compared to non-integrated production. The potential for agrivoltaic systems to significantly reduce environmental impacts revealed by this LCA demonstrates that integrated solar and pasture-based agricultural systems are superior to conventional practices in terms of their comparatively lower emission and energy intensity. These findings provide empirical support for increased agrivoltaic system development more broadly.
A.S. Pascaris, R. Handler, C. Schelly, J.M. Pearce. 2021. Life Cycle Assessment of Pasture-Based Agrivoltaic Systems: Emissions and Energy Use of Integrated Rabbit Production. Cleaner and Responsible Consumption. 3:100030.
Impact Assessments
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
Texas
Life Cycle Assessment of an Agrivoltaic System with Conventional Potato Production
Climate change and land use conflicts represent two of the greatest challenges worldwide. One possible solution are agrivoltaic (APV) systems, in which agricultural production is combined with a photovoltaic (PV) system in the same area. However, there is insufficient information on the environmental impacts of this technology. Therefore, the goal of this study was to evaluate the environmental impacts of an agrivoltaic system with conventional potato production using life cycle assessment (LCA). For this purpose, three scenarios were developed and compared in terms of their environmental impact: An APV system with combined potato and electricity production (scenario 1), a system with spatially separated potato and photovoltaic (PV) electricity production (scenario 2), and a potato scenario in which the electricity purchase was covered by the German electricity mix (scenario 3). The APV system (scenario 1) and the system with ground-mounted PV modules (scenario 2) performed better than scenario 3. In the Land Use category, scenario 1 caused the lowest environmental impact. Comparing the PV scenarios, scenario 2 had lower impacts in 12 of the 17 impact categories due to lower steel consumption. Also, comparing scenario 1 with scenario 3, lower impacts of the APV system were observed in 13 categories. The impacts of APV systems are generally similar to those of ground mounted PV systems, and impacts of both PV systems are lower than the existing, conventional systems of separate energy and crop production. However, due to ongoing advances in system design, materials used for the mounting structures and in the development of solar modules, it can be expected that the impact of APV will be significantly reduced in the future.
C. Busch, K. Wydra. 2023. Life Cycle Assessment of an Agrivoltaic System with Conventional Potato Production. Journal of Renewable and Sustainable Energy. 15:1-17.
Impact AssessmentsReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Germany
Light Manipulation Using Organic Semiconducting Materials for Enhanced Photosynthesis
Photosynthetic microorganisms, such as algae, are sources of bioproducts. Because they require only sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide to grow, they have potential for future mitigation of CO2 emissions. However, inefficient growth of these organisms remains an issue for realizing these emission reductions, primarily in terms of photosynthetic efficiency, photoinhibition, and photolimitation. Here, we show how use of light filtration through semi-transparent films comprised of organic π-conjugated molecules and organic photovoltaic devices has the potential to improve the photosynthesis efficiency of algae and the total power generation of a combined organic photovoltaic/algal system. Experimental data are used to fit a photosynthetic model predicting algal photosynthetic growth given light intensity and light transmission through an organic photovoltaic device. This work demonstrates the feasibility of using an “agrivoltaic” system combining photosynthetic growth with electricity-producing organic photovoltaics and provides a template for exploring other blended applications of these technologies.
Jackie Zorz, William D.L. Richardson, Audrey Laventure, Marianne Haines, Edward Cieplechowicz, Alireza Aslani, Agasteswar Vadlamani, Joule Bergerson, Gregory C. Welch, Marc Strous. 2021. Light Manipulation Using Organic Semiconducting Materials for Enhanced Photosynthesis. Cell Reports Physical Science. 2(4):
(!) .
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Limits and Prospects of Photovoltaic Covers in Mediterranean Greenhouses
The use of plastic film coverings has made a significant contribution to the development of greenhouses in Italy and to a new generation of greenhouses that differ from those of Central and Northern Europe: the so called Mediterranean Greenhouse. This is a simple structure with cheap coverings and emergency artificial heating systems. During the winter season, the available solar energy is more than sufficient to meet energy requirements. During the hot season, however, the intense solar radiation and the high air temperatures are problematic. Different active and passive strategies are, therefore, used to counteract this excessive energy intake with a considerable increase in costs. We believe that using this surplus energy to produce electricity would: i) provide an income from the sale of electricity; ii) allow the greenhouse to be used throughout the year; iii) reduce the costs of cooling the greenhouse. This paper aims to identify the energy surplus in relation to cultivation requirements that could be used to produce electricity with new and innovative solutions based on flexible and semi-transparent photovoltaic modules. The research was carried out with reference to the southern coast of the Lazio region, central Italy, by evaluating energy supply and demand to determine the surplus of solar energy produced in a greenhouse covered with double plastic film. Besides the shape of the greenhouse, the surplus depends on the covering material and the location. The degree of cloud cover and the type of cultivation carried out in the greenhouse also have an impact. We calculated the surplus energy under extreme conditions: clear sky and cloudy sky, and according to different crop species (tomato 12 months, tomato 8 months, aubergine 12 months). Results showed: i) the surplus of energy available in the greenhouse for the production of energy from new generation solar cells with varying degrees of sky coverage and crop species; ii) the times of the year in which there is an effective surplus of energy; iii) the most suitable crop cycles to achieve a surplus of solar energy to be exploited in the most convenient way.
Alvaro Marucci, Adolfo Gusman, Barbara Pagniello, Andrea Cappuccini. 2013. Limits and Prospects of Photovoltaic Covers in Mediterranean Greenhouses. Journal of Agricultural Engineering. 44(1):
(!) .
MicroclimatologySystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Italy
Low Cost Climate Station for Smart Agriculture Applications With Photovoltaic Energy and Wireless Communication
Measuring climatic conditions is a fundamental task for a wide array of scientific and practical fields. Weather variables change depending on position and time, especially in tropical zones without seasons. Additionally, the increasing development of precision or smart agriculture makes it necessary to improve the measurement systems while widely distributing them at the location of crops. For these reasons, in this work, the design, construction and fabrication of an adaptable autonomous solar-powered climatic station with wireless 3G or WiFi communication is presented. The station measures relative humidity, temperature, atmospheric pressure, precipitation, wind speed, and light radiation. In addition, the system monitors the charge state of the main battery and the energy generated by the photovoltaic module to act as a reference cell for solar energy generation capability and agrivoltaic potential in the installation area. The station can be remotely controlled and reconfigured. The collected data from all sensors can be uploaded to the cloud in real-time. This initiative aims at enhancing the development of free and open source hardware that can be used by the agricultural sector and that allows professionals in the area to improve harvest yield and production conditions.
J.S. Botero-Valencia, M. Mejia-Herrera, Joshua M. Pearce. 2022. Low Cost Climate Station for Smart Agriculture Applications With Photovoltaic Energy and Wireless Communication. HardwareX. 11:
(!) .
EconomicsTools
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Mathematical Modeling Suggests High Potential for the Deployment of Floating Photovoltaic on Fish Ponds
Rising energy needs and pressure to reduce greenhouse gas emissions have led to a significant increase in solar power projects worldwide. Recently, the development of floating photovoltaic (FPV) systems offers promising opportunities for land scarce areas. We present a dynamic model that simulates the main biochemical processes in a milkfish (Chanos chanos) pond subject to FPV cover. We validated the model against experimental data collected from ponds with and without cover during two production seasons (winter and summer) and used it to perform a Monte-Carlo analysis of the ecological effects of different extents of cover. Our results show that the installation of FPV on fish ponds may have a moderate negative impact on fish production, due to a reduction in dissolved oxygen levels. However, losses in fish production are more than compensated by gains in terms of energy (capacity of around 1.13 MW/ha). We estimated that, with approximately 40,000 ha of aquaculture ponds in Taiwan, the deployment of FPV on fish ponds in Taiwan could accommodate an installed capacity more twice as high as the government's objective of 20 GW solar power by 2025. We argue that the rules and regulations pertaining to the integration of FPV on fish ponds should be updated to allow realizing the full potential of this new green technology.
Pierre-Alexandre Château, Rainer F. Wunderlich, Teng-Wei Wang, Hong-Thih Lai, Che-Chun Chen, Fi-John Chang. 2019. Mathematical Modeling Suggests High Potential for the Deployment of Floating Photovoltaic on Fish Ponds. Science of The Total Environment. 687:654-666.
LivestockMicroclimatologySoilSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Taiwan
Maximizing Biomass with Agrivoltaics: Potential and Policy in Saskatchewan Canada
Canada is a leading global agricultural exporter, and roughly half of Canada’s farmland is in Saskatchewan. New agrivoltaics research shows increased biomass for a wide range of crops. This study looks at the potential increase in crop yield and livestock in Saskatchewan through agrivoltaics along with its financial implications. Then, the legislation that could influence the adoption of agrivoltaics in Saskatchewan is reviewed. Specifically, experimental results from agrivoltaic wheat production are analyzed for different adoption scenarios. The impact of converting the province’s pasture grass areas to agrivoltaics and using sheep to harvest them is also examined. The results indicate that approximately 0.4 million more tons of wheat, 2.9 to 3.5 million more tons of forage and 3.9 to 4.6 million additional sheep can be grazed using agrivoltaics in Saskatchewan. Only these two agrivoltaics applications, i.e., wheat farmland and pastureland, result in potential additional billions of dollars in annual provincial agricultural revenue. The Municipalities Act and the Planning and Development Act were found to have the most impact on agrivoltaics in the province as official community plans and zoning bylaws can impede diffusion. Agrivoltaics can be integrated into legislation to avoid delays in the adoption of the technology so that the province reaps all of the benefits.
U. Jamil, J. M. Pearce. 06/2023. Maximizing Biomass with Agrivoltaics: Potential and Policy in Saskatchewan Canada. Biomass for Resilient Foods. 3(2):188-216.
Policy and Regulatory IssuesMethodological ComparisonsReviews/InformationalMarket AssessmentsEconomics
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Animal Grazing
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Canada
Measurement of Light Interception by Crops under Solar Panels using PARbars
In agrivoltaics systems, sunlight is used both by solar panels for electricity production and by crops for
production of plant products. There can be synergy in the combination of crops with solar panels, e.g. when adverse conditions are relieved by the presence of the panels, but often there will be a trade-off between electricity yield and crop yield. To explore these synergies and trade-offs and to design best fitted agrivoltaics systems for specified conditions, two types of models can be combined that 1) describe radiation interception and electricity production by the solar panels and 2) describe crop production under the remaining light [1]. Crop growth and crop yield are determined by the amount of light that is intercepted by the canopy and used for photosynthesis. Light interception is therefore an important part of crop growth models [2]. Crops may adapt to shading by increasing stem elongation and reducing leaf thickness in order to intercept a larger fraction of incoming radiation. Knowledge of these crop responses to shading is needed and can be gained by actual measurements on crops growing at different light levels. In addition to (non) destructive measurements such as stem length, specific leaf area (cm2 /g dry matter), total leaf area and biomass of various plant organs, light interception by the crop can be measured. This paper describes a system that is applied in the Sunbiose project [www.sunbiose.nl] for continuous measurement of light interception by row crops under solar panels. This system uses long bars containing multiple light sensors to measure light over the entire width of the agrivoltaics system, both above the crop (but below the solar panels) and below the
crop. Continuous measurement allows analysis of variation over time.Frank de Ruijter, Bernardo Maestrini, Bert Meurs, Marleen Hermelink, Herman Helsen. 2023. Measurement of Light Interception by Crops under Solar Panels using PARbars. In: AgriVoltaics Conference; 2023/05/24; Strasbourg. Strasbourg: AgriVoltaics Conference; p. 1-2
Plant ScienceMicroclimatology
Measuring Tomato Production and Water Productivity in Agrivoltaic Systems
Growing populations and industrialization rates across the world are leading to increased food and energy demand. The challenge of meeting this demand while also mitigating climate change impacts serves as a driving force for the development of renewable energies technologies. This study focuses on the role of Agrivoltaic systems in meeting this challenge. Agrivoltaic systems are dual-use systems which allow for both agricultural and electrical production. These systems also have the potential to reduced water demand and increase overall water productivity of certain agricultural crops. This study observed the microclimate and growth characteristics of Tomato plants (Solanum lycopersicum var Legend) grown within three different locations on an Agrivoltaic field and with two different irrigation treatments (full and deficit). The emitters evaluation characteristics were shown low average discharge rate and standard deviation in all the treatments. Uniformity coefficient and distribution uniformity were values ranged from 69%-99.5% and 47% - 85%, respectively. Overall water productivity increases could potentially be more pronounced in systems with greater overall water distribution uniformity. The microclimate results showed significant differences in air temperature and relative humidity between all the treatments. Air temperature was highest in the control and row plots (22.3 °C, 21.5 °C) but lower beneath the panels (19.8 °C). Average relative humidity was highest in the row, followed by the control and then the panel areas (79.38%, 74.63%, 73.54%). In addition, soil temperature and soil moisture content showed significant difference with all the treatments. Increasing shading from panels corresponded with decreasing soil temperature. Average soil temperate was 20 °C in the panel area, 24.7 °C between the rows, and 25.6 °C in the control. When comparing wind speed data from the climate stations, wind speed was highest in control area compared to row area (0.89 m/sec and 0.65 m/sec). Reference ET was significantly different between the two stations in control area and between the rows. Total crop yield was highest in the control full irrigated areas a, b (88.42 kg/row, 68.13 kg/row), and decreased as shading increased, row full irrigated areas a, b had 53.59 kg/row, 32.76 kg/row, panel full irrigated areas a, b had (33.61 kg/row, 21.64 kg/row). However, water applied was also highest in the control (a = 3.15 m3, b =2.94 m3). The combination of solar shading and deficit irrigation has the potential to trade a reduction in yields for reductions in water use. Water productivity was highest in areas which were both shaded and experiencing deficit irrigation, row deficit a (93.11 kg/m3) and panel deficit a (68.90 kg/m3). These results indicate the existence of some optimal water productivity point. While likely not the optimal point, the row deficit results demonstrate this potential, as the water row deficit water productivity is 53.98 kg/ m3 greater than the control deficit, and 24.21 kg/m3 greater than the panel deficit. These results indicate the potential of Agrivoltaic systems to improve water productivity even for crops which are traditionally considered shade-intolerant. The water productivity impacts shown in this study in a Mediterranean climate are likely to be magnified in arid and semi-arid areas, this work highlights the need for further research in these areas.
C.W. Higgins. 2020. Measuring Tomato Production and Water Productivity in Agrivoltaic Systems [Thesis]. [Oregon State University]: Oregon State University.
HydrologySoilPlant ScienceMicroclimatology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Thesis/Dissertation
Country
United States
State
Oregon
Micro Climate Evaluation Based on 6-level Temperature for Agrivoltaic Tropical Condition
Rapidly decreasing price of photovoltaic (PV) modules in the world market in line with the increasing demand
of fresh produce promotes the idea of agro-PV integration or commonly known as agrivoltaic system. The agrivoltaic concept is an integrated system that associate, on the same land area, food crops and solar photovoltaic panels where the PV panels provides some shading elements for plant growth. This study provides some important information on the ground condition of an Agrivoltaic system installed in Selangor state, Malaysia. The stochastic tropical weather condition is explored based on four main factors which are Vapour Pressure Deficit (VPD), air temperature, air humidity and wind speed underneath PV arrays for 5 days continuous monitoring with 1 minute time intervals. The maximum height of PV array at site is 1.3 meter with development area of 3.67m x 3.36m (18 x 95Wp Monocrystalline modules). The temperature value using K-type thermosensor underneath PV is segregated into six temperature levels which covers temperature range
from PV bottom surface until ground temperature with 1 feet clearance.N Fadzlinda Othman, AS Mat Su, ME Ya'acob, H Che Man, Noor Iskandar. 2020. Micro Climate Evaluation Based on 6-level Temperature for Agrivoltaic Tropical Condition. In: AIP Conference Proceedings 2291. The 7th International Conference on Advanced Material Engineering & Technology (ICAMET) 2019; 2019/11/29; Seoul, South Korea. Online: AIP Publishing; p.
(!)
Plant ScienceMicroclimatology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Malaysia
Microclimate Under Agrivoltaic Systems: Is Crop Growth Rate Affected in the Partial Shade of Solar Panels?
Agrivoltaic systems are mixed systems that associate, on the same land area at the same time, food crops and solar photovoltaic panels (PVPs). The aim of the present study is to assess whether the growth rate of crops is affected in the specific shade of PVPs. Changes in air, ground and crop temperature can be suspected due to the reduction of incident radiation below the photovoltaic shelter. Soil temperature (5cm and 25cm depth), air temperature and humidity, wind speed as well as incident radiations were recorded at hourly time steps in the full sun treatment and in two agrivoltaic systems with different densities of PVPs during three weather seasons (winter, spring and summer). In addition, crop temperatures were monitored on short cycle crops (lettuce and cucumber) and a long cycle crop (durum wheat). The number of leaves was also assessed periodically on the vegetable crops. Mean daily air temperature and humidity were similar in the full sun treatments and in the shaded situations, whatever the climatic season. On the contrary, mean daily soil temperature significantly decreased below the PVPs compared to the full sun treatment. The hourly pattern of crop temperature during day-time (24h) was affected in the shade. In this experiment, the ratio between crop temperature and incident radiation was higher below the PVPs in the morning. This could be due to a reduction of sensible heat losses by the plants (absence of dew deposit in the early morning or reduced transpiration) in the shade compared to the full sun treatment. However, mean daily crop temperature was found not to change significantly in the shade and the growth rate was similar in all the treatments. Significant differences in the leaf emission rate were measured only during the juvenile phase (three weeks after planting) in lettuces and cucumbers and could result from changes in soil temperature. As a conclusion, this study suggests that little adaptations in cropping practices should be required to switch from an open cropping to an agrivoltaic cropping system and attention should mostly be focused on mitigating light reduction and on selection of plants with a maximal radiation use efficiency in these conditions of fluctuating shade.
H. Marrou, L. Guilioni, L. Dufour, C. Dupraz, J. Wery. 2013. Microclimate Under Agrivoltaic Systems: Is Crop Growth Rate Affected in the Partial Shade of Solar Panels?. Agricultural and Forest Meteorology. 177:117-132.
SoilPlant ScienceMicroclimatologySystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
France
Microclimatic and Energetic Feasibility of Agrivoltaic Systems: State of the Art
Agrivoltaic systems have been proposed as the most prominent synergetic application of
agricultural and energetic sectors. Integrating solar power generating with agricultural activities is relatively new; however, it has started with implementing the PV panels into the greenhouses. Comparatively, openfield agrivoltaics systems are still growing and under-development in many locations around the world. The urge to explore innovative solutions for the increasing demand for electricity and food has been the main motivation for the research centers, researchers, and governments to escalate agrivoltaics development globally. In this paper, the current and most recent projects and studies of open-field agrivoltaic systems are presented, compared, and analyzed in order to anticipate the potential and path of development for agrivoltaics in the near future. Several pieces of research from different countries globally were included to illustrate the main features and performance indicators of agrivoltaic systems. The paper concludes that the agrivoltaics system has the potential to grow to big-scale projects in different climatic regions because it provides benefits either by increasing the Land Equivalent Ratio (LER), protecting the plants from severe ambient weather, and diversifying the income for farmers. New technologies and methods have been integrated with the agrivoltaics systems in different projects to optimize the model; however, many aspects
of development could be introduced in the near future.Issam Khele, Marta Szabo. 2021. Microclimatic and Energetic Feasibility of Agrivoltaic Systems: State of the Art. Periodical of the Committee of Agricultural and Biosystem Engineering of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. 102-115.
Impact AssessmentsReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Micrometeorological Environment in Traditional and Photovoltaic Greenhouses and Effects on Growth and Quality of Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.)
In recent years there was a large spread of photovoltaic (PV) greenhouses, in spite of some agronomic
problems caused by micrometeorological limitations for the underlying crops during cold season. To evaluate the effects of PV panels situated on the roof of a greenhouse, Air Temperature (AT) and Global Solar Radiation (GSR) were monitored in a PV greenhouse and a traditional one and their effects on quali-quantitative features of tomato berries were analysed. In the PV greenhouse a relevant reduction of temperature (about -2°C in march-may) and global solar radiation (less than a half of the traditional one in the same period) was observed and tomato yield was lower, with a poor content of lycopene, β-carotene, sucrose, reducing sugars and total sugars in the fruits. On the contrary, chlorophyll concentration in the leaves and use efficiency of solar radiation were higher and the compensation point
lower in comparison to the plants grown in the traditional greenhouse.Roberta Bulgari, Gabriele Cola, Antonio Ferrante, Giulia Franzoni, Luigi Mariani, Livia Martinetti. 2015. Micrometeorological Environment in Traditional and Photovoltaic Greenhouses and Effects on Growth and Quality of Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.). Italian Journal of Agrometeorology. 20(2):
(!) .
Plant ScienceMicroclimatology
Model-Based Analysis of the Irradiance Beneath Solar PV Panel for Agrivoltaics Applications
This paper models the irradiance beneath solar photovoltaic (PV) panels, which is essential in agrivoltaics applications for selecting the appropriate crop types. To this end, this paper presents a model-approach to calculating the irradiance on a virtual surface beneath a PV panel at several heights. The model employs view factor techniques to address the shading due to the solar panel and reflection from the ground. The modelled results are an agreeable match with the PVsyst results, verifying the utility of the proposed modelling approach. Furthermore, results regarding the dependence of the irradiance profile on the heights and tilt angle of fixed-size PV panels are discussed.
Moaz Zia, Arastoo H. Salimi, Daqing Piao, Hamidreza Nazaripouya. 2023. Model-Based Analysis of the Irradiance Beneath Solar PV Panel for Agrivoltaics Applications. In: North American Power Symposium; 2023/10/15; Asheville, North Carolina, USA. Piscataway, NJ, USA: IEEE; p.
(!)
Microclimatology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
United States
State
Oklahoma
Modeling Crop Yields for Different Agrophotovoltaic Shading Scenarios
The interest in agrivoltaic systems, which combine crops and electricity production in the same land,
has increased in the last years especially thanks to the allocation of funds by the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP) in 2021 and the “Guidelines on agrivoltaic plants” in 2022, which state that such plants must not cause a reduction in the final crop yield. For this reason, the objective of this thesis work is to evaluate the introduction of agrivoltaics in Italy through the study of the effect of the presence of photovoltaic panels on the final yield of a selected crop in a certain area, i.e. the potato crop in the area of Ferrara in the Emilia-Romagna region, to preliminary hypothesizing a first agrivoltaic configuration, in collaboration with A2A company. The study of the impact of photovoltaic panels on the potato harvested yield was carried out by using the Decision Support System for Agrotechnology Transfer (DSSAT) software, which simulates more than 42 different crops under different spatial and temporal growth scenarios, considering several input parameters related to soil, meteorological and crop management data, which can be used as forcings depending on what is to be studied. In the case of this thesis work, soil and crop management input parameters for the potato crop in the Ferrara area were estimated and validated to assess initial conditions. Subsequently, the crop yield for the years 2017-2022 was calculated using the crop model to understand the impact on crop yield of solar radiation, temperature, and precipitation, which were expected to change due to the presence of the panels. As for the assessment of the initial conditions, the results confirmed the input data put as parameters thanks to the comparison between the simulated crop yield with that actually recorded in the area, which averaged 40 t · ha−1 . On the other hand, the annual variability analysis identified three categories of years based on the response to shading, i.e., where the yield decline occurred at 20% (2019), 30% (2017, 2020, 2022) and 40% (2018, 2021) shading, and based on the absolute yield of the crop, i.e., above average (2018), around average (2017, 2019, 2020) and below average (2021, 2022). These categories were useful for carrying out the study of the influence of individual meteorological parameters. As for radiation, the results indicate that the monthly variability of radiation over the growing period does not present a definite pattern to explain the crop response to shading when considering individual months (with p-values below the significance threshold of 0.05), but becomes representative when considering the cumulative radiation of the first two to three months. This leads to the conclusion that there is an absolute value of incident radiation that must be reached in the first two months for the harvested yield to remain stable until the 30-40% shading scenario, within the range of (1223, 1301) MJ · sqm−1 . Furthermore, it was observed that this response to shading is influenced almost solely by radiation alone, while temperature and precipitation predominantly impact the absolute value of the crop yield in different years. Specifically for temperature, it was observed that an increase in temperature in suboptimal years (i.e. 2021 and 2022, as seen above) causes absolute crop yield to be comparable to the average of other years (with an average increase of 15-20%). This result is less evident when considering precipitation, for which an increase does not correspond automatically in an increase in absolute crop yield, especially in years with intermediate weather values, where the relationship between the three variables takes on a greater prevalence than the individual weather factors. Finally, simulations were carried out for three agrivoltaic structures, which differed in row spacing (pitch), panel height, and panel configuration (1P or 2P, if the structure involves one or two attached panels). It was found that the 2P tracker structure with 14 m pitch is the optimal one, as the production drop occurs at 3.5 m distance from the panels, corresponding to 57% of the arable land not affected by the panels, with also a 10% increase in inter-row production compared to the scenario without panels. In conclusion, the findings of this preliminary study indicate that agrivoltaic systems should be designed taking into account the need to ensure a minimum level of incident radiation at least in the first two months of cultivation, to avoid an inter-row production drop. Furthermore, photovoltaic panels are not responsible for the absolute low yield in years with unfavorable weather conditions, such as cold years; on the contrary, they may mitigate the damages to the crop by creating an underneath microclimate and the resulting higher temperature, which however is a hypothesis to be verified in more detail in future
studies.Bianca Uberti Foppa. 2023. Modeling Crop Yields for Different Agrophotovoltaic Shading Scenarios [Thesis]. [Online]: Università Ca' Foscari Venezia.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologySoilHydrologyPolicy and Regulatory Issues
Modeling Irradiance Distributions in Agrivoltaic Systems
Land use constraints have motivated investigation into the spatial coexistence of solar photovoltaic electricity production and agricultural production. Previous work suggests that agriculture-photovoltaic (agrivoltaic) systems either decrease crop yield or are limited to shade-tolerant crops. Existing experimental work has also empha- sized fixed south-facing configurations with traditional commercial panel shapes, and modeling work is sparse. In this work, the effects of different photovoltaic array con- figurations and panel designs on field insolation spatial and temporal variation are explored in detail to determine photovoltaic design routes that may increase expected crop yield in agrivoltaic systems. It is found that photovoltaic row orientation is the most influential factor on insolation homogeneity due to shadow migration paths. Additionally, it is shown that utilization of mini-modules in patterned panel designs may create more optimal conditions for plant growth while using the same area of PV, thus improving the land efficiency ratio of the agrivoltaic system. Different solar tracking algorithms are explored to optimize the trade-off between electricity pro- duction and expected crop growth. The feasibility of select agrivoltaic systems is explored for multiple U.S. locations. This thesis concludes with recommendations for photovoltaic system designs corresponding with specific crop growth considerations.
A. Perna. 2019. Modeling Irradiance Distributions in Agrivoltaic Systems [Thesis]. [Purdue University]: Purdue University.
MicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Thesis/Dissertation
Country
United States
State
California, Indiana, Texas
Modeling and Analyses of Energy Performances of Photovoltaic Greenhouses With Sun-Tracking Functionality
Dynamic photovoltaic (PV) greenhouses integrate sustainable energy generation with plant cultivation, offering
more possibilities of energy production and microclimate control by adjusting the sun-tracking angles. Previous studies on PV greenhouses barely paid attention to the PV partial shading effects, and rarely recorded the performance across the full range of rotation angles. In this study, we first build computer simulation models of typical greenhouses with high-density (1/2 roof area) and low-density (1/3 and 1/4 roof area) PV layouts. Then four special sun-tracking positions are found in the model of equivalent global irradiance, which is defined as the quotient of the total input power divided by the area of PV module under partial diffuse shadows. Simulation models are also built in terms of PV modules and interior irradiance. Simulations are conducted using the climate data of Delft, the Netherlands (52.01 , 4.36 ° ° N E). Results show that high-density PVs under no-shading sun tracking generate 6.91% more energy than that under conventional (quasi-perpendicular) sun-tracking. Meanwhile, no-shading sun tracking allows more diffuse sunlight to enter the greenhouse mounted with highdensity PV panels, resulting in 10.96% and 10.68% improvement on the annual average global irradiance and uniformity on the target plane compared to the fixed PV panels in the closed position. Regarding low-density PV layouts, which barely suffer from partial shading problems, quasi-perpendicular sun tracking improves the annual energy generation by 7.40% relative to the closed position. However, the average global irradiance reaches the minimum in this position because more sunlight is blocked by PVs. Meanwhile, the average uniformity of global irradiance reveals good (but not the best) performance, resulting in up to 9.80% (1/3 coverage) and 4.70% (1/4 coverage) improvement respectively compared to the closed position. The proposed methods and simulation results provide guidelines for the initial design and daily operation of PV greenhouses, aiming to
balance the PV power generation and food production.Yuan Gao, Jianfei Dong, Olindo Isabella, Rudi Santbergen, Hairen Tan, Miro Zeman, Guoqi Zhang. 2019. Modeling and Analyses of Energy Performances of Photovoltaic Greenhouses With Sun-Tracking Functionality. Applied Energy. 233:424-442.
MicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Netherlands
Modeling of Landscape for the Integration of Agrivoltaics Using a GIS Approach
Italy, with the highest number of UNESCO heritage sites worldwide and among the countries with the most ambitious renewable (i.e., photovoltaic) energy targets in Europe, is a living lab for experimenting with contradictions and synergies between a traditional idea of landscape preservation, and the new challenges offered by the introduction of photovoltaics in the landscape. The agrivoltaics has been emerging as a novel paradigm of integrated PV, making dual and synergic use of land for agriculture and PV generation. However, the design of agrivoltaic systems follows criteria that do not explicitly consider the landscape features. The landscape preservation is mainly conceived as protection of certain areas, and many projects only consider normative limits to realize the systems. The objective of this research work has been to develop a GIS-based tool able to implement the commonly descriptive approach used to address the integration of agrivoltaics into the landscape pattern. Metrics have been properly defined and evaluated to describe the landscape structure, its composition and spatial arrangement. They are applied to describe single landscape elements by such features as size, shape, number or for whole landscape by describing the arrangement of landscape elements. A quantitative analysis of the landscape, given by this spatially explicit approach, will provide preliminary inputs for the design of the agrivoltaic patterns in order to achieve the most relevant landscape integration criteria based on archetypes. This GIS tool is targeted at the policy makers as well as PV project developers.
Grazia Fattoruso, Alessandra Scognamiglio, Andrea Venturo, Domenico Toscano, Giulia Nardella, Massimiliano Fabbricino. 2023. Modeling of Landscape for the Integration of Agrivoltaics Using a GIS Approach. In: Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 14110. Computational Science and Its Applications – ICCSA 2023 Workshops; 2023/07/03; Athens, Greece. Online: Springer, Cham; p.
(!)
SitingTools
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Italy
Modeling of Large-Scale Integration of Agrivoltaic Systems: Impact on the Japanese Power Grid
The emerging potential of agrivoltaics prompted this study. We analyzed the potential value of large-scale integration of agrivoltaic technology in rural farming areas in Japan. Optimal power grid scenarios for agrivoltaics were developed using linear programming. We evaluated the effect of a storage battery system and expanded transmission line capacities using a temporal resolution of 8760 h for all regions in Japan. The output suppression was also investigated when the technology was implemented in rice paddy areas or in equivalent land areas (35% of the total cultivated land; 35TCL). The effects of using batteries and/or expanding the transmission line capacities with different crop densities in each region were analyzed to minimize the total power system costs and to compare overall CO2 emissions. Findings suggest that installation of agrivoltaics is more efficient in the rice paddy field than 35TCL because of the crop distribution across all regions in the country and its proximity to high energy demanded regions. In optimizing agrivoltaic integration, results suggest concurrent utilization of agrivoltaic with expanded transmission lines and utilized battery storage have underscored the beneficial effects of agrivoltaics in power grid planning to efficiently control excess output from agrivoltaics and reduce CO2 emission than utilizing transmission capacity and battery storage with agrivoltaics separately. Concrete spatial plans can ensure the stability of the grid and enhance the integration of renewable energy as a primary power source.
R.A. Gonocruz, S. Uchiyama, Y. Yoshida. 2022. Modeling of Large-Scale Integration of Agrivoltaic Systems: Impact on the Japanese Power Grid. Journal of Cleaner Production. 363:132545.
EconomicsPV TechnologiesImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Japan
Modeling of Stochastic Temperature and Heat Stress Directly Underneath Agrivoltaic Conditions with Orthosiphon Stamineus Crop Cultivation
This paper presents the field measured data of the ambient temperature profile and the heat stress occurrences directly underneath ground-mounted solar photovoltaic (PV) arrays (monocrystalline-based), focusing on different temperature levels. A previous study has shown that a 1 °C increase in PV cell temperature results in a reduction of 0.5% in energy conversion efficiency; thus, the temperature factor is critical, especially to solar farm operators. The transpiration process also plays an important role in the cooling of green plants where, on average, it could dissipate a significant amount of the total solar energy absorbed by the leaves, making it a good natural cooling mechanism. It was found from this work that the PV system’s bottom surface temperature was the main source of dissipated heat, as shown in the thermal images recorded at 5-min intervals at three sampling times. A statistical analysis further showed that the thermal correlation for the transpiration process and heat stress occurrences between the PV system’s bottom surface and plant height will be an important factor for large scale plant cultivation in agrivoltaic farms.
Noor Fadzlinda Othman, Mohammad Effendy Yaacob, Ahmad Suhaizi Mat Su, Juju Nakasha Jaafar, Hashim Hizam, Mohd Fairuz Shahidan, Ahmad Hakiim Jamaluddin, Guangnan Chen, Adam Jalaludin. 2020. Modeling of Stochastic Temperature and Heat Stress Directly Underneath Agrivoltaic Conditions with Orthosiphon Stamineus Crop Cultivation. Agronomy. 10(10):
(!) .
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologySoilPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Malaysia
Modeling the Ecosystem Services of Native Vegetation Management Practices at Solar Energy Facilities in the Midwestern United States
The increasing pressure on land resources for food and energy production along with efforts to maintain natural systems necessitates the development of compatible land uses that maximize the co-benefits of multiple ecosystem services. One such land sharing opportunity is the restoration and management of native grassland vegetation beneath ground-mounted solar energy facilities, which can both protect biodiversity and restore related ecosystem services. In this paper, we applied the InVEST modeling framework to investigate the potential response of four ecosystem services (carbon storage, pollinator supply, sediment retention, and water retention) to native grassland habitat restoration at 30 solar facilities across the Midwest United States. Compared to pre-solar agricultural land uses, solar-native grassland habitat produced a 3-fold increase in pollinator supply and a 65% increase in carbon storage potential. We also observed increases in sediment and water retention of over 95% and 19%, respectively. We applied these results to project the potential benefits of adoption of native grassland management practices in current and future solar energy buildout scenarios. Our study demonstrates how multifunctional land uses in agriculture-dominated landscapes may improve the provision of a variety of ecosystem services and improve the landscape compatibility of renewable energy and food production.
L.J. Walston, Y. Li, H.M. Hartmann, J. Macknick, A. Hanson, C. Nootenboom, E. Lonsdorf, J. Hellmann. 2021. Modeling the Ecosystem Services of Native Vegetation Management Practices at Solar Energy Facilities in the Midwestern United States. Ecosystem Services. 47:101227.
HydrologySoilPlant ScienceImpact AssessmentsWildlifeEntomology
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Wisconsin
Modeling the Effect of Longwave Radiation From Solar Panels on Soil Moisture
Agrivoltaics, which integrates photovoltaic power production with agriculture in the same plot of land, has the potential to reduce land competition and crop irrigation. To optimize agrivoltaic systems for crop growth, energy pathways must be characterized. While solar panels shade the crops, they also emit longwave radiation. At the end of the dry season, Adeh et al. (2018) observed that the soil moisture in the sunny aisles between solar panels was lower than that of the control area in full sun. The additional longwave energy from the panels may explain this difference in evaporation. This study tests that theory by quantifying the downwelling longwave energy at the ground surface. The results indicate that if all the longwave energy contributed to evaporation, the locations of peak heat flux would experience an additional 60 to 80 cm of water loss throughout the dry season compared to the control area. This is orders of magnitude higher than the observed soil moisture difference, which affirms that longwave radiation could be the cause, and provides an upper bound for the difference in evaporation. The model also demonstrates that longwave energy should not be neglected when considering a full energy balance on soil under solar panels.
Laurel A. Shepard. 2022. Modeling the Effect of Longwave Radiation From Solar Panels on Soil Moisture [Thesis]. [Online]: Oregon State University.
MicroclimatologySoilPV TechnologiesSystem ConfigurationImpact AssessmentsHydrology
Modelling and Analysis of Vertical Bifacial Agrivoltaic Test System at Skjetlein High School, Norway
The agriculture sector is facing three significant challenges: i) food production
must double by 2030 in order to feed an ever-growing population, ii) decrease in the amount of arable lands and iii) accelerating climate change. Agricultural crop is exposed to extreme climate events and lacks water due to heat stress. With frequent drought and growing unpredictability in climate, it has become the need of the hour to have systems running on fully-renewable energy sources, not to mention the urgent need to preserve, rather than deplete, ever-scarcer water resources. Systems of this nature enable us to work towards increased crop productivity by making farmlands more resilient to climate extremities/change. Innovative solution like agrivoltaics can address these problems. They adapt photovoltaic(PV) technology so as to coexist with crop cultivation. Agrivoltaics are attracting a lot of attention across the globe, especially in regions where PV power plants and agricultural practices are common. As of this writing, there have only been two agrivoltaic studies in continental climate zones. Norway has been doing well in terms of its renewable energy mix by fully utilizing its hydro energy resources. Norway was previously classified as a country with low PV potential, but as of 2021, it has a total installed PV capacity of 216.8 MW. Norway’s agriculture sector is doing fairly well, especially when you consider the challenges involved: cold winters, hilly mountain areas, and high relative humidity. The backbone of Norwegian agriculture is grasslands and livestock, i.e., grassland covers 70% of Norwegian agricultural land The potential usage of agrivoltaics in Norwegian conditions has not been researched so far. This thesis aims to find a suitable modelling procedure to model a vertical bifacial East/West oriented agrivoltaic system. This model uses a 53.3 kWp agrivoltaic system, located at Skjetlein videreg˚aende skole, Trondheim (N63°41.06′ E10°45.39′ ) with ’timothy grass’ as a crop. Crop yield will be estimated using the CATIMO crop model. The energy analysis results agree well with the literature concerning the performance of vertical bifacial systems in Norwegian conditions. In an agrivoltaic scenario, vertically East/West oriented PV systems provide a homogeneous light distribution compared to conventionally oriented South-facing PV systems. Sun hour analysis reveals different shading patterns on crops near the edges of PV modules compared to internal rows. Estimated land-use efficiency of agrivoltaic systems is 79% higher than the efficiency of conventional land use, either for PV power plants (100% energy) or for the cultivation of crops (100% crop). Overall, the methodology developed in this thesis is an effective modelling tool
that can be used for other agrivoltaic configurations, crops, and climate zone.Ravi Kumar, Ronald Reagon. 2022. Modelling and Analysis of Vertical Bifacial Agrivoltaic Test System at Skjetlein High School, Norway [Thesis]. [Online]: Norwegian University of Science and Technology.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyEconomicsSystem ConfigurationSitingImpact AssessmentsReviews/Informational
Module Technology for Agrivoltaics: Vertical Bifacial Versus Tilted Monofacial Farms
Agrivoltaics (AV) is an innovative approach in which solar photovoltaic (PV) energy generation is collocated with agricultural production to enable food-energy-water synergies and landscape ecological conservation. This dual-use requirement leads to unique cooptimization challenges (e.g., shading, soiling, and spacing) that make module technology and farm topology choices distinctly different from the traditional solar farms. Here, we compare the performance of the traditional optimally titled North/South (N/S)-faced monofacial farms with a potential alternative based on vertical East/West (E/W)-faced bifacial farms. Remarkably, the vertical farm produces essentially the same energy output and photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) compared with the traditional farms as long as the PV array density is reduced to half or lower relative to that for the standard ground-mounted PV farms. Our results explain the relative merits of the traditional monofacial versus vertical bifacial farms as a function of array density, acceptable PAR deficit, and energy production. The combined PAR/Energy yields for the vertical bifacial farm may not always be superior, it could still be an attractive choice for AV due to its distinct advantages such as minimum land coverage, least hindrance to the farm machinery and rainfall, inherent resilience to PV soiling, easier cleaning, and cost advantages due to the potentially reduced elevation.
M. Riaz, H. Imran, R. Younas, M. Alam, N.Z. Butt. 2021. Module Technology for Agrivoltaics: Vertical Bifacial Versus Tilted Monofacial Farms. IEEE Journal of Photovoltaics. 11(2):469-477.
MicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem ConfigurationImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Monitoring of Microclimate Underneath Agrivoltaic Systems Using IoT Station
Agrivoltaic systems work on the principle of combining farmland with Photovoltaic energy
conversion giving the land it sits on dual purpose. Moreover, by combining solar electricity conversion and crop production additional benefits such as water saving and, in some cases even higher crop yields compared to open field conditions. For this technology to be wildly implemented a deeper understanding on the effects the agrivoltaic system has on the underlying farmland is required. In this work, an IoT sensor station used for monitoring albedo, temperature, and humidity inside an agrivoltaic system is developed. The work is carried out through researching and testing electrical components that is to be used inside of the monitoring station as well as development of the code used by the microcontroller to communicate between the different sensors. The prototype station was then tested a total of three times at Kärrbo Prästgård and the gathered data compared with pre-installed sensors located at the testing site. After each test run the IoT stations performance was analyzed for potential improvements to be implemented before subsequent tests. The final design of monitoring station showed a high accuracy in the albedo data during daytime with some deviations during early mornings and late afternoon due to the inherit limitations in the
sensitivities of the electrical components used to measure solar radiation.E. Stridsman. 2023. Monitoring of Microclimate Underneath Agrivoltaic Systems Using IoT Station [Thesis]. [Sweden]: Mälardalens University.
MicroclimatologyPV Technologies
Monofacial vs Bifacial Solar Photovoltaic Systems in Snowy Environments
There has been a recent surge in interest in the more accurate snow loss estimates for solar photovoltaic (PV) systems as large-scale deployments move into northern latitudes. Preliminary results show bifacial modules may clear snow faster than monofacial PV. This study analyzes snow losses on these two types of systems using empirical hourly data including energy, solar irradiation and albedo, and open-source image processing methods from images of the arrays in a northern environment in the winter. Projection transformations based on reference anchor points and snowless ground truth images provide reliable masking and optical distortion correction with fixed surveillance cameras. This allows individual PV module-level snow shedding ratio determination as well as average cumulative snow load by employing grayscale segmentation. The data is used to determine the no-snow losses of two systems during summer and snow losses during winter. The results found monofacial snow losses are in average 33% for winter period, and 16% on an annual basis. Bifacial systems perform better than monofacial in severe winter conditions as average winter snow losses was 16% and the annual losses were 2% in the worst-case scenario. In addition, there was a bifacial gain of 19% compared to monofacial system during winter.
K.S. Hayibo, A. Petsiuk, P. Mayville. L. Brown, J.M. Pearce. 2022. Monofacial vs Bifacial Solar Photovoltaic Systems in Snowy Environments. Renewable Energy. 193:657-668.
PV TechnologiesReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
Michigan
Multidimensional Role of Agrovoltaics in Era of EU Green Deal: Current Status and Analysis of Water–Energy–Food–Land Dependencies
The European Green Deal has set climate and energy targets for 2030 and the goal of achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, while supporting energy independence and economic growth. Following these goals, and as expected, the transition to “green” renewable energy is growing and will be intensified, in the near future. One of the main pillars of this transition, particularly for Mediterranean countries, is solar photovoltaic (PV) power. However, this is the least land-efficient energy source, while it is also highly competitive in food production, since solar parks are often developed in former agricultural areas, thus resulting in the systematic reduction in arable lands. Therefore, in the context of PV energy planning, the protection and preservation of arable lands should be considered a key issue. The emerging technology of agrovoltaics offers a balanced solution for both agricultural and renewable energy development. The sustainable “symbiosis” of food and energy under common lands also supports the specific objective of the post-2020 Common Agricultural Policy, regarding the mitigation of and adaptation to the changing climate, as well as the highly uncertain socio-economic and geopolitical environment. The purpose of this study is twofold, i.e., (a) to identify the state of play of the technologies and energy efficiency measures of agrovoltaics, and (b) to present a comprehensive analysis of their interactions with the water–energy–food–land nexus. As a proof of concept, we consider the plain of Arta, which is a typical agricultural area of Greece, where we employ a parametric analysis to assess key features of agrovoltaic development with respect to energy vs. food production, as well as water saving, as result of reduced evapotranspiration.
A. Roxani, A. Zisos, G. Sakki, A. Efstratiadis. 05/2023. Multidimensional Role of Agrovoltaics in Era of EU Green Deal: Current Status and Analysis of Water–Energy–Food–Land Dependencies. Land. 12(5):1069.
Plant ScienceHydrologyMarket AssessmentsSystem ConfigurationImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Greece
Multifunction Land Use to Promote Energy Communities in Mediterranean Region: Cases of Egypt and Italy
Mediterranean rural settlements suffer from numerous environmental challenges, specifically the annual decrease of the farmlands, climate change threats, and growing resource consumption and demand, such as energy, the core of development. Rural areas play a significant role in achieving food security and sustainable development. Therefore, this paper promotes the energy community and agrivoltaic key concepts as pillars to show how buildings and farms’ land uses positively impact the ecosystem. The study focused on Egypt and Italy as representatives of the entire region. Two rural settlements with the same characteristics representing typical agriculture-based patterns have been selected: Lasaifar Albalad, representing 339 villages in the Delta Region, northern Egypt, and Pontinia, representing rural typologies of the 1930s in the Lazio Region, central Italy. Then, two focus groups with versatile stakeholders were conducted. The results showed the juxtaposition of the key concepts and national rural and agricultural policies and fostered a novel approach between Egypt and Italy. The study presented the first analysis of both contexts. The focus groups promoted the ideas, led to a better understanding of the implementation possibilities, raised awareness, improved social acceptance, and highlighted the significant barriers. It paved the way for a further study (micro-scale on-ground practices) to be planned and implemented soon.
Ahmed Abouaiana, Alessandra Battisti. 2022. Multifunction Land Use to Promote Energy Communities in Mediterranean Region: Cases of Egypt and Italy. Land. 11(5):
(!) .
Social PerspectivesPolicy and Regulatory IssuesEconomicsImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Egypt, Italy
Native Vegetation Performance under a Solar PV Array at the National Wind Technology Center
Construction activities at most large-scale ground installations of photovoltaic (PV) arrays are preceded by land clearing and re-grading to uniform slope and smooth surface conditions to facilitate convenient construction access and facility operations. The impact to original vegetation is usually total eradication followed by installation of a gravel cover kept clear of vegetation by use of herbicides. The degree to which that total loss can be mitigated by some form of revegetation is a subject in its infancy, and most vegetation studies at PV development sites only address weed control and the impact of tall plants on the efficiency of the solar collectors from shading.This study seeks to address this void, advancing the state of knowledge of how constructed PV arrays affect ground-level environments, and to what degree plant cover, having acceptable characteristics within engineering constraints, can be re-established.
B. Beatty, J. Macknick, J. McCall, G. Braus, D. Buckner (National Renewable Energy Laboratory,). 2017. Native Vegetation Performance under a Solar PV Array at the National Wind Technology Center. Golden, CO: National Renewable Energy Laboratory. Report No.: NREL/TP-1900-66218. Contract No.: Contract No. DE-AC36-08GO28308.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatology
Development Strategy
Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Report
Country
United States
State
Colorado
Net-Zero Energy Optimization of Solar Greenhouses in Severe Cold Climate Using Passive Insulation and Photovoltaic
To take into account the crop growth of greenhouse and reduce energy consumption, this study investigated to optimize and retrofit a typical solar greenhouse in the severe cold climate of China into a net-zero energy solar greenhouse (NZESG). The envelope passive insulation measure and roof flexible photovoltaic (PV) technique are innovatively combined and some optimization cases were proposed based on simulation and analytical studies. The foamed cement insulation boards with different thicknesses and envelope positions were added as 11 passive insulation retrofit cases. The flexible PV panels in checkerboard (PV1), horizontal (PV2) and longitudinal (PV3) arrangements were positioned on the greenhouse roof and their electrical energy was estimated through PVsyst software. The optimal case was obtained based on the local technical standard for nearly zero energy consumption buildings and energy-saving, carbon reduction, payback period and cost multi-objective entropy weight method. The key finding is that passive energy-saving retrofit Case (a) & PV1 has the highest comprehensive score and is the optimal NZESG case. Its investment cost and payback period of Case (a) & PV1 are 45526.40 CNY and 5.23 years respectively. Case (a) adopts 50 mm foamed cement board with external insulation. Although the effect of energy-saving and CO2 reduction is poor, Case (a) has the shortest payback period and the lowest cost. PV1 has the lowest investment and higher power generation. It also shows that the investment payback period and cost weight are high, which are the key parameters for comprehensive evaluation of the retrofit cases; The entropy weight method is objective and scientific. The retrofit measures and optimization method can facilitate the promotion and application of NZESGs.
Wei Jiang, Yang Jin, Gongliang Liu, Zhipeng Ju, Müslüm Arıcı, Dong Li, Wei Guo. 2023. Net-Zero Energy Optimization of Solar Greenhouses in Severe Cold Climate Using Passive Insulation and Photovoltaic. Journal of Cleaner Production. 402:
(!) .
MicroclimatologyMarket AssessmentsEconomicsSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
Nexus Between Agriculture and Photovoltaics (Agrivoltaics, Agriphotovoltaics) for Sustainable Development Goal: a Review
The coexistence of agricultural land and solar photovoltaics (PV) can be named Agriphotovoltaics (APV). APV concept was developed two decades ago however its actual implementation is happening nowadays. APV directly solves SDGs 7, and 11 by generating benevolent renewable energy without damaging the land and keep producing food for people. In this work, a comprehensive review of the APV system is documented. Currently available software tools, field experiment results, and PV for APV are described in this work which identified that for forecasting APV, a more robust tool is required. Vertically placed Bifacial PV, transparent, and semitransparent tilted PVs can be suitable for shade-intolerant crops whereas opaque PVs are appropriate for shade-tolerant crops. The knowledge gap between various stakeholders such as solar PV researchers, agricultural researchers, and land users needs to be more rigorous. Economic and policymakers should share dialogue to improve the growth of APV which not only solves SDG 7, and 11 but also meets the target for SDG 5, 8, 9,12, and 15.
Aritra Ghosh. 12/2023. Nexus Between Agriculture and Photovoltaics (Agrivoltaics, Agriphotovoltaics) for Sustainable Development Goal: a Review. Solar Energy. 266(112146):
(!) .
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Nitric Oxide Crosstalk With Phytohormone is Involved in Enhancing Photosynthesis of Tetrastigma hemsleyanum for Photovoltaic Adaptation
Photovoltaic agriculture is a newly emerging ecological planting pattern. In view of the adverse effect on production, a better understanding of photovoltaic adaptation responses is essential for the development of the innovative agriculture mode in sustainable crop production. Here, we investigated the impact of photovoltaic condition on endogenous hormone composition and transcriptome profile of Tetrastigma hemsleyanum. A total of 16 differentially accumulated phytohormones and 12,615 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified. Photovoltaic adaptation significantly decreased the contents of phytohormones especially salicylic acid (SA) and jasmonic acid (JA). DEGs were the most relevant to photosynthesis and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathway especially the key genes encoding proteins involved in photosystem I (PS I) and photosystem II (PS II) reaction center. Nitric oxide (NO), JA, and SA treatment alone significantly enhanced the photosynthetic efficiency which was decreased by exposure to photovoltaic condition, but the combined treatment of “NO + SA” could weaken the enhancement effect by regulating the expression level of psaL, CHIL, petF1, psbQ, and psaE genes. Exogenous phytohormones and NO treatment mitigated the accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and potentiated antioxidant capacity, which would be weakened by the combined treatment of “NO + SA.” SA and JA significantly decreased endogenous NO burst triggered by photovoltaic adaptation. SA might be a potent scavenger of NO and counter the restoration effect of NO on growth and photosynthetic potential in T. hemsleyanum. The results could provide reference for the application of phytohormones/other signaling molecules in photovoltaic agriculture.
Zhuomi Xie, Chuyun Yang, Mingjie Li, Zhongyi Zhang, Yao Wu, Li Gu, Xin Peng. 2022. Nitric Oxide Crosstalk With Phytohormone is Involved in Enhancing Photosynthesis of Tetrastigma hemsleyanum for Photovoltaic Adaptation. Frontiers in Plant Science. 13:
(!) .
Plant ScienceHydrologySystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
Not All Light Spectra Were Created Equal: Can We Harvest Light for Optimum Food-Energy Co-Generation?
Humanity's growing appetites for food and energy are placing unprecedented yield targets on our lands. Chasing those ever-expanding land intensification targets gave rise to monocultures and sharpened the divide between food and energy production groups. Here, we argue that this does not have to be a zero-sum game if food and energy can be co-generated in the same land. Co-generation can lead to sustainable intensification but requires a paradigm shift in the way we manage our resources, particularly light. Using an extended model of plant photosynthesis and transpiration, we demonstrate how plants react to different incident light spectra and show that manipulating light could be effective for boosting land and water efficiencies, thus potentially improving soil health. This knowledge can possibly unlock the real potential of promising modern agricultural technologies that target optimization of light allocations such as agrivoltaics. This study suggests that the blue part of the light spectrum is less efficient in terms of carbon assimilation and water use and could be more effectively used to produce solar energy, while the red part could efficiently produce biomass. A sensitivity analysis to the most important crop and environmental variables (irradiance, air temperature, humidity, and CO2 concentration) shows that plant response to different light treatments is sensitive to environmental boundary conditions and is species-specific. Therefore, further research is necessary to assess which crops and climates are more suitable to optimize the proposed food-water-energy nexus.
Matteo Camporese, Majdi Abou Najm. 2022. Not All Light Spectra Were Created Equal: Can We Harvest Light for Optimum Food-Energy Co-Generation?. Earth's Future. 10(12):
(!) .
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyHydrology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Novel Measurement Concept for AGRIPVPLUS Systems - A Triple Approach
The European Green Deal aims for Europe becomes the world's first climate-neutral continent by 2050. In this strategy, Photovoltaic (PV) is one of the key technologies to reduce significant greenhouse gas emissions. However, large ground-mounted PV power plants generate conflict between stakeholders interested in the same land. Farmers are worried about losing land to grow crops and thus their income. Conservationists are concerned about the dramatic loss of biodiversity, and energy producers want to build profitable PV power plants. Therefore, we must bring all stakeholders together to work out innovative and sustainable land-use strategies combining agriculture, biodiversity, and energy production. Agrivoltaic (Agri-PV) involves the use of land both for agriculture and solar energy generation. Such dual systems have been developed in recent years. So far, however, their potential to contribute to biodiversity and ecosystem services restoration has been rarely discussed. Our demonstrator aims to investigate an innovative and sustainable triple-use approach, called the AgriPVplus system, that combines crop production, solar energy generation, and biodiversity measures. Our measurement concept enables the investigation of energy yield measurements of different module technologies, different orientations to investigate the grid compatibility through vertical east-west installed bifacial PV modules, and the measurement of abiotic parameters such as photosynthetic active irradiance, soil temperature, and moisture to investigate the impact on the agriculture crops and biodiversity. This paper will show a novel measurement concept to demonstrate the interfaces between energy production, crop yield, and nature conservation.
Hugo Sánchez, Sebastian Dittmann, Santiago Tosello, Carlos Meza, Sandra Dullau, Maren Helen Meyer, Pascal Scholz, Sabine Tischew, Ralph Gottschalg. 2022. Novel Measurement Concept for AGRIPVPLUS Systems - A Triple Approach. In: 8th World Conference on Photovoltaic Energy Conversion; 2022/08/26; Milan, Italy. Online: Research Gate; p.
(!)
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Germany
On the Advent of Solar Concentrating Photovoltaic Modules in Crop Cultivation Environments
Energy is a crucial component of the agri-food sector since almost 30% of the world's energy is consumed by this sector. Under such circumstances, the employment of renewable energies can be a sustainable solution to mitigate the adverse environmental impacts as consequences of the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the agri-food supply chain. Generation of electricity using photovoltaic (PV) technology to supply the power demand of the agriculture and food production sectors requires large areas of land. To solve this problem, the co-generation of solar PV electricity and crop production (agrivoltaic concept) is expected to relieve this restriction. An emerging agrivoltaic technology is the installation of concentrating PV (CPV) systems in crop cultivation environments to both provide the power demand and produce food on the same land. This study presents an overview of agrivoltaic systems and CPV technology with a special focus on the advent of CPV modules in agricultural environments. In this case, the main benefits and challenges of this technology are presented and discussed.
Shiva Gorjian, Farid Jalili Jamshidian, Pietro Elia Campana. 2022. On the Advent of Solar Concentrating Photovoltaic Modules in Crop Cultivation Environments. In: Energy Proceedings. International Conference on Applied Energy 2021; 2021/11/29; Thailand/Online. Online: Research Gate; p.
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Reviews/Informational
On the Coexistence of Solar-Energy Conversion and Plant Cultivation
In this paper we propose a configuration of a solar, e.g., photovoltaic, power plant, which allows for additional agricultural use of the land involved, although the collectors are optimized for solar-energy conversion. If the collectors are not installed directly on the ground, but are elevated by about 2m above the ground with the periodic distance between collector rows of about three times the height of the collectors, one achieves nearly uniform radiation, (integrated over the day), on the ground of a value of about two-thirds of the global radiation without solar collectors. The mathematical relations allowing calculation of the fraction of light reaching the ground under the collector field are derived. Numerical calculations for both the direct and diffuse part of solar radiation are carried out yielding the seasonal and local dependence of this fraction. In addition, we give an outline of the various advantages offered by this configuration.
A. Goetzberger, A. Zastrow. 1982. On the Coexistence of Solar-Energy Conversion and Plant Cultivation. International Journal of Solar Energy. 1(1):55-69.
Microclimatology
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Germany
On the Light Intensity Value under Photovoltaic Arrays for Agrivoltaic Integration
The biggest problem in agriculture sector across Malaysia recently, evolve around the limitation of agri-land especially in the urban or sub-urban area where the basic infrastructures have already been in place. Most of agri-land has been converted to industrial land based on increasing demand and faster returns. Agrivoltaic system plays a significant role as a practical solution in mitigating and providing agri space for agricultural activities by means of integration with the existing solar Photovoltaic (PV) farm infrastructure. The area under solar PV array is shaded by the PV modules which is an opaque surface and only receives sunlight thru reflected lights from the ground and openings between modules. The field assessment is conducted in Puchong Solarfarm, Selangor, Malaysia with the generating capacity of 2 MWp using ground-mounted solar structures. Condition under PV arrays can be considered as a low light intensity but unfortunately the estimated value of light penetration for the agri-space have not been discussed in literature. Thus, this study provides some field information on the light intensity value for spot location directly underneath solar PV in comparison with direct sunlight spot area. This information would assist solar operators and potential farmers to established suitable crops in the solarfarm infrastructures as means of optimizing the solarfarm area.
Mohammad Effendy Ya'acob, Noor Fadzlinda Othman, Nur Aisha Nazri. 2022. On the Light Intensity Value under Photovoltaic Arrays for Agrivoltaic Integration. In: IEEE Xplore. 2022 IEEE International Conference on Power and Energy (PECon); 2022/12/05; Kedah Darul Aman, Malaysia. Malaysia: IEEE; p.
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Microclimatology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Malaysia
On-Farm Renewable Energy Systems: A Systematic Review
Over the years, energy is becoming an essential factor with an impact on social, economic, and environmental aspects. More than 2.5 billion people are connected to agriculture worldwide, so the importance of agricultural energy production has become increasingly important. This study provides a comprehensive review of renewable energy, environment, and farm publication trends. Two hundred articles from 1988 to 2022 were analyzed, with special attention devoted to the last three extreme years, using the Scopus database and the Bibliometrix tool for analysis and visualization. Research on this topic experienced significant developments after 2008, with many fluctuations being revealed. Historically, China and the USA were the most productive countries in agricultural energy production advancements. However, in the last three years, the research center’s respective contributions have undergone major changes. China maintained its dominance, but the importance of the USA fell sharply, and new centers (India, Poland) appeared. Biogas is the most popular method which is used and searched in this area between 1988–2022 since it includes both sustainability and locality. However, between 2020–2022, the importance of the circular economy has been highlighted in the literature. Complex energy systems, dual use of land, and energy storage might be the most important challenges for future research.
A. Pestisha, Z. Gabnai, A. Chalgynbayeva, P. Lengyel, A. Bai. 2023. On-Farm Renewable Energy Systems: A Systematic Review. Energies. 16(2):1-25.
Reviews/InformationalMethodological Comparisons
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
On-farm Applications of Solar PV Systems
With the rapidly increasing trend of worldwide population growth that is estimated to reach more than 9 billion by 2050, the strain on the agriculture sector has been substantially increased. At the same time, the issues of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and the depletion of fossil fuels are putting an end to conventional agricultural practices. With the infiltration of renewable technologies, the agriculture sector aims to feed the growing population in a more sustainable manner. Considering all the renewable energy sources, solar energy is among the most adaptable ones with farm applications. Over the years, photovoltaic (PV) technology has been employed to supply the required power for various agricultural applications, including water pumping and irrigation, saltwater desalination, crop drying, greenhouse cultivation, etc. Additionally, a new technology known as agrophotovoltaic (APV) has been recently implemented in several farm lands worldwide for the coproduction of PV power and food. Currently, several dairy farms are using PV systems to fulfill the electric demands of their equipment and facilities, including crop protection systems. The implementation of solar PV technologies reduces fuel consumption, allowing for the development of more sustainable and flexible technologies. Advancements in PV-powered agricultural techniques would be highly beneficial, particularly for countries whose economy heavily relies on this sector.
S. Gorjian, R. Singh, A. Shukla, A.R. Mazhar. 2020. On-farm Applications of Solar PV Systems. S. Gorjian and A. Shukla, editor. 1st Edition. Academic Press in an imprint of Elsevier: Elsevier Science. 147-190p.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Book Section
One Year of Grassland Vegetation Dynamics in Two Sheep-Grazed Agrivoltaic Systems
In agrivoltaic systems with solar fixed panels, the provision of ecosystem services by agricultural productions could be compromised due to very large changes in plant microclimate. But we still do not know properly the changes in grasslands ecosystem services. On two sheep-grazed sites located in lowland (Braize, Br) and upland (Marmanhac, Ma) grasslands of central France, we studied for one year the direct effects of various shading conditions induced by solar fixed panels on abiotic variables (light, water and soil temperature) and on vegetation (daily growth height, forage quantity and quality, number of species). Under exclosure of grazing, three treatments per site were set up, control (without solar-panel influence), inter-rows (variable influence) and panel (full influence). The results showed that light was reduced by 93% on average over the year in the shade of the panels with a cooler soil temperature of 2.6°C on Ma and 3.4°C on Br compared to the control. However, the soil moisture response varied between sites, depending on the different seasonal rainfall events and on soil texture. This resulted in 2.6 (Ma) to 3.2 (Br) times faster daily height growth and better forage quality. However, annual biomass production and species number showed no difference between the control and the panel. Only the inter-row treatment, which receives variable shading conditions throughout the day and seasons, shows variable biomass responses across sites. Experimental work will continue for several years in order to parameterise models to simulate the ecosystem services of agrivoltaic parks over the long term.
Madej Loan, Catherine Picon-Cochard, Bouhier de L’Ecluse Cyrille, Cogny Christophe, Michaud Luc, Roncoroni Marilyn, Colosse David. 2022. One Year of Grassland Vegetation Dynamics in Two Sheep-Grazed Agrivoltaic Systems. In: AGRIVOLTAICS2021 CONFERENCE: Connecting Agrivoltaics Worldwide; 2021/06/14; Freiburg, Germany. Freiburg, Germany: AIP Conference Proceedings; p.
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LivestockPlant ScienceMicroclimatologySoilHydrology
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
France
Open AccessArticle Grid-Connected Solar Photovoltaic System for Nile Tilapia Farms in Southern Mexico: Techno-Economic and Environmental Evaluation
Tilapia farming is the predominant aquaculture activity, with 4623 aquaculture farms in Mexico alone. It is relevant to apply technological alternatives to mitigate production costs, mainly those associated with supporting energy savings for aeration and water pumping in aquaculture farms. There is limited information confirming the feasibility of implementing photovoltaic systems connected to the grid (On grid-PV) in aquaculture farms. The working hypothesis proposed for the development of the work was that On Grid PV systems in Tilapia aquaculture farms in Mexico are technically feasible, economically viable and environmentally acceptable. Therefore, the objective of this research is to design a grid-connected photovoltaic system for rural Tilapia aquaculture farms in Mexico and analyze it with a feasibility assessment through technical, economic and environmental variables, as part of the link between academia and the productive sector. Methodologically, the On Grid-PV design was carried out in an aquaculture farm in Veracruz, Mexico, as a case study. It was developed in two stages: the field phase (1), where a non-participant observation guide and a survey with open questions were applied to perform the energy diagnosis, and the cabinet phase (2) where the calculation of the economic and environmental variables was carried out with the clean energy management software Retscreen expert, the engineering design was based on the Mexican Official Standard for electrical installations, and Sunny Design 5.22.5 was used to calculate and analyze the electrical parameters of the On Grid PV. The results revealed an investment cost of USD 30,062.61, the cost per KWp was of 1.36 USD/Watt, and the economic indicators were the net present value (USD 41,517.44), internal rate of return (38.2%) and cost–benefit ratio (5.6). Thus, the capital investment is recovered in 4.7 years thanks to the savings obtained by generating 2429 kW/h per month. As for the environment, it is estimated that 11,221 kg of CO2 equivalent would be released into the atmosphere without the On Grid-PV. In conclusion, the hypothesis is accepted and it is confirmed that On Grid-PV installations for Tilapia farms are technically feasible, economically viable and environmentally acceptable; their implementation would imply the possibility for aquaculture farms to produce Tilapia at a lower production cost and minimized environmental impact in terms of energy. It is recommended that aquaculture farmers in Mexico and the world implement this eco-technology that supports the sustainable development of aquaculture.
Elizabeth Delfín-Portela, Luis Carlos Sandoval-Herazo, David Reyes-González, Humberto Mata-Alejandro, María Cristina López-Méndez, Gregorio Fernández-Lambert, Erick Arturo Betanzo-Torres. 2023. Open AccessArticle Grid-Connected Solar Photovoltaic System for Nile Tilapia Farms in Southern Mexico: Techno-Economic and Environmental Evaluation. Applied Sciences. 13(1):
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MicroclimatologySoilPolicy and Regulatory IssuesEconomicsSystem ConfigurationImpact AssessmentsReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Mexico
Open-Field Agrivoltaic System Impacts on Photothermal Environment and Light Environment Simulation Analysis in Eastern China
In order to clarify the temporal and spatial changes in the internal photothermal environment in an open-field agrivoltaic system (OAVS), this paper took the OAVS in eastern China as the research object and divided the internal area into the southern area, middle area and northern area, according to the spatial structure. Further, a photothermal environment test was conducted in the above three areas in the summer and winter. The results showed that the summer average daylight rate (Rm-avg) in the middle area was 66.6%, while the Rm-avg in the other two areas was about 20%, with no significant difference. In the winter, the light environment in the southern area was slightly better, and the Rm-avg in the above three areas was 26.4%, 24.7% and 19.7%, respectively. On the whole, the relationship between the thermal environmental factors and the solar radiation intensity was consistent. Further, a 3D model of an OAVS was established using Autodesk Ecotect Analysis 2011, and the internal light environment was simulated. Compared with the measured values, the relative error was less than 10%, which verified the reliability of the OAVS model. Then, the model was used to reveal the temporal and spatial changes in the light environment of the OAVS. The simulation results showed that the daylighting rate in the summer from the ground to the height of the fig canopy inside the system was 20.7% to 61.5%. In the winter, the daylighting rate from the ground to the height of the fig canopy inside the system was 17.7% to 36.4%. The effectiveness of the OAVS in reducing the level of solar radiation intensity depended on the time of day and the angle of the sun. At the spatial scale, due to the strong consumption of light by photovoltaic panels, there was a strong horizontal and vertical light environment gradient inside the system. In conclusion, the photothermal environment research of an OAVS based on Autodesk Ecotect Analysis 2011 can not only provide a basis for agricultural production and structural design such as span, height and the laying density of PV panels, but also expand its application to regions with different latitudes and longitudes and specific climates.
L. Zhang, Z. Yang, X. Wu, W. Wang, C. Yang, G. Xu, C. Wu, E. Bao. 07/2023. Open-Field Agrivoltaic System Impacts on Photothermal Environment and Light Environment Simulation Analysis in Eastern China. Agronomy. 13(7):N/A.
MicroclimatologySoilSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
Open-Platform Sensor Node for Agrivoltaics
Modern agricultural methods are adopting smart manufacturing concepts to meet the ever-increasing world demand for food. Real-time remote monitoring systems automatically measure and manage the production environment, while machine learning/ artificial intelligence algorithms are used to understand the complex intricacies of the many factors needed to maximize production yield. Thus, smart farming depends on data collected from the field, transmitted to a controller, curated, and analyzed. Actuators are then controlled to take action, such as adjusting irrigation or nutrient dosing. The need to power the newly integrated devices in the field has motivated the support of smart agrivoltaics. Smart agrivoltaics co-locates photovoltaic energy production with crop cultivation to promote sustainability. The problem is that existing smart agrivoltaics commercial solutions are proprietary, closed ecosystems; the user cannot modify or alter the system from sensor to actuator, limiting the usefulness for research. Meanwhile, open-sourced designs, such as those available freely through an internet search, tend to be more oriented toward the hobbyist; various functions may not work together, and there has been little system-oriented design. Thus, these open-source designs are also unsuitable for research. This paper presents a flexible, customizable, reliable sensor node and open platform. Off-the-shelf commercial sensor modules were used to increase accessibility for prototyping, while system and firmware design was structured in a way to allow robust operation yet also enable easy customization.
Sajeda AlYasjeen, Nabila Elbeheiry, Sawsan Shukri, Robert S. Balog. 2023. Open-Platform Sensor Node for Agrivoltaics. In: IEEE Xplore. 2023 IEEE Texas Power and Energy Conference (TPEC); 2023/02/13; College Station, TX, USA. Online: IEEE; p.
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Tools
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Conference Paper
Open-Source Design and Economics of Manual Variable-Tilt Angle DIY Wood-Based Solar Photovoltaic Racking System
Fixed-tilt mechanical racking, consisting of proprietary aluminum extrusions, can dominate the capital costs of small-scale solar photovoltaic (PV) systems. Recent design research has shown that wood-racking can decrease the capital costs of small systems by more than 75% in North America. To determine if wood racking provides enough savings to enable labor to be exchanged profitably for higher solar electric output, this article develops a novel variable tilt angle open-source wood-based do-it-yourself (DIY) PV rack that can be built and adjusted at exceptionally low costs. A detailed levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) production analysis is performed after the optimal monthly tilt angles are determined for a range of latitudes. The results show the racking systems with an optimal variable seasonal tilt angle have the best lifetime energy production, with 5.2% more energy generated compared to the fixed-tilt system (or 4.8% more energy, if limited to a maximum tilt angle of 60°). Both fixed and variable wooden racking systems show similar LCOE, which is only 29% of the LCOE of commercial metal racking. The results of this study indicate that the novel variable tilt rack, whether used as a small-scale DIY project or scaled up to fulfill larger energy demands, provides both the lowest cost option even when modest labor costs are included and also may provide specific advantages for applications such as agrivoltaics.
Nicholas Vandewetering, Koami Soulemane Hayibo, Joshua M. Pearce. 2022. Open-Source Design and Economics of Manual Variable-Tilt Angle DIY Wood-Based Solar Photovoltaic Racking System. Designs. 6(3):
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EconomicsSystem ConfigurationTools
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Open-Source Vertical Swinging Wood-Based Solar Photovoltaic Racking Systems
Vertical bifacial solar photovoltaic (PV) racking systems offer the opportunity for large-scale agrivoltaics to be employed at farms producing field crops with conventional farming equipment. Unfortunately, commercial proprietary vertical racks cost more than all types of conventional PV farm racking solutions. To overcome these cost barriers, this study reports on the development of a new wood-based PV racking design. The open-source design consists of a hinge mechanism, which reduces mechanical loading and enables wood to be used as the main structural material, and is the first of its kind. This open-source vertical wood-based PV rack is (i) constructed from locally accessible (domestic) renewable and sustainable materials, (ii) able to be made with hand tools by the average farmer on site, (iii) possesses a 25-year lifetime to match PV warranties, and (iv) is structurally sound, following Canadian building codes to weather high wind speeds and heavy snow loads. The results showed that the capital cost of the racking system is less expensive than the commercial equivalent and all of the previous wood-based rack designs, at a single unit retail cost of CAD 0.21. The racking LCOE is 77% of the cost of an equivalent commercial racking system using retail small-scale component costs, and is 22%, 34%, and 38% less expensive than commercial metal vertical racking, wood fixed tilt racking, and wood seasonal tilt racking costs, respectively. Overall, wooden vertical swinging PV racking provides users with a low-cost, highly available alternative to conventional metal vertical racking, along with a potential increase in energy yield in high wind areas thanks to its unique swinging mechanism.
Nicholas Vandewetering, Koami Soulemane Hayibo, Joshua M. Pearce. 2023. Open-Source Vertical Swinging Wood-Based Solar Photovoltaic Racking Systems. Designs. 7(2):
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EconomicsSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Opportunities and Challenges for Scaling Agrivoltaics in Rural and Urban Africa
Crop Area Integrated Photovoltaics (CAIPV) systems yield electricity and crops on the same area of land. Most CAIPV research and commercial activity over the last decade has taken place in temperate countries of the Global North; activity in Africa has been comparatively very limited. Depending on several factors, the shade from the PV arrays may cause crop yields to decrease, increase, or remain close to control. It is expected that yields of many crops would increase on sunny arid sites in Africa. This paper seeks to quantify and compare CAIPV's two yield components (electricity and food) under different scenarios in the African context, with a close look at potential CAIPV integration into PV mini-grids. Metrics of PV energy generation and demand are contrasted with crop yield and demand, and it is shown that the PV surface area required to meet electricity needs of most Africans is dwarfed by the corresponding land area needed for crops to meet nutritional needs. As PV area corresponds to crop area in CAIPV, it becomes clear that per capita food yields of projects will only make a miniscule contribution to local nutrition if distributed equally amongst all users of a mini-grid. Corollary agricultural benefits of mini-grids such as food refrigeration and electrified crop processing are noted to be attributed solely to the PV electricity, and have no relation to the shade provided by the PV arrays. Nevertheless, it is shown that significant quantities of food and jobs may be created if CAIPV systems can increase their surface area by securing large energy offtakers, whether in the form of off-grid industrial clients, via on-grid feed-in tariff schemes, or even future possibilities of large-scale PV-to-fuel intercontinental export operations. In all cases, policy support is urged in building the educational, legal, and financial frameworks to facilitate such scaling.
James Macdonald, Lorenz Probst, Josep Roca Cladera. 2022. Opportunities and Challenges for Scaling Agrivoltaics in Rural and Urban Africa. In: AIP Conference Proceedings. AgriVoltaics2021 Conference; 2021/06/14; Online. Online: AIP Publishing; p.
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Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Opportunities for Agrivoltaic Systems to Achieve Synergistic Food-Energy-Environmental Needs and Address Sustainability Goals
Achieving decarbonization goals to address global climate change and increasing energy needs requires significant continued investments in solar energy. The expansion of utility-scale solar development across the globe has increased the pressure on land resources for energy generation and other land uses (e.g., agriculture, biodiversity conservation). To address this growing issue, greater emphasis has been placed on solar development strategies that maximize the benefits of solar energy generation and multiple ecosystem services, such as the development of agrivoltaics systems that co-locate solar energy production and various forms of conservation and agricultural land uses. The purpose of this paper is to systematically synthesize the potential ecosystem services of agrivoltaics and summarize how these development strategies could address several United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Our review will focus on four broad potential ecosystem services of agrivoltaics: (1) energy and economic benefits; (2) agricultural provisioning services of food production and animal husbandry; (3) biodiversity conservation; and (4) regulating ecosystem services such as carbon sequestration and water and soil conservation. In particular, we will highlight the state of the science, challenges, and knowledge gaps that represent opportunities for further study to better understand how solar energy deployment can facilitate sustainable development.
Leroy J. Walston, Tristan Barley, Indraneel Bhandari, Ben Campbell, James McCall, Heidi M. Hartmann, Adam G. Dolezal. 2022. Opportunities for Agrivoltaic Systems to Achieve Synergistic Food-Energy-Environmental Needs and Address Sustainability Goals. Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems. 6:
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Impact AssessmentsReviews/InformationalEntomology
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production, Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Opportunities to Enhance Pollinator Biodiversity in Solar Parks
Renewable power capacity is increasing globally in response to energy decarbonisation, with solar photovoltaic (PV) projected to be the dominant renewable. A significant proportion of solar PV is deployed as ground-mounted solar parks with potential implications for the hosting ecosystem. Given their relatively rapid introduction, the impacts on land use and the local environment are poorly understood. However, if deployed and managed strategically, solar parks could offer unique opportunities to enhance the local environment and benefit biodiversity, with implications for ecosystem components such as pollinators. With a focus on north-west Europe, we systematically review the available evidence on how land management practices relevant to solar parks can enhance pollinator biodiversity. We assessed 185 articles for the quantity and agreement of evidence for 27 management interventions and assigned a confidence score to each finding. We show that a range of interventions applied to solar parks could increase their ability to enhance pollinator biodiversity. We then use our assessment to synthesise ten evidence-based recommendations on how to improve solar park management for pollinators by providing foraging and reproductive resources, undergoing considered management practices, increasing landscape heterogeneity and connectivity and providing microclimatic variation. Ensuring beneficial management of rapidly growing solar parks contributes to their wider environmental sustainability, with positive implications for both pollinator conservation and the energy sector in general.
H. Blaydes, S. G. Potts, J. D. Whyatt, A. Armstrong. 07/2021. Opportunities to Enhance Pollinator Biodiversity in Solar Parks. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. 145:111065.
Reviews/InformationalEntomology
Development Strategy
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Germany, United Kingdom
Optical and Electrical Performance of an Agrivoltaic Field With Spectral Beam Splitting
Solar photovoltaic power generation is a mature and competitive technology, but its high land area requirements conflict with other uses of available land. Agrivoltaics (APV) allows dual use of land, with photovoltaic panels installed over agricultural crops. However, the panels block a significant portion of the solar radiation, leading in many cases to a severe reduction in growth and productivity of the agricultural crop. Here, we present a novel type of collector to resolve this competition between electricity and crop yields by spectral splitting of the incident direct radiation using simple planar components. Photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) is transmitted to the crop while near-infrared radiation (NIR) is directed to the PV panels. The annual optical and electrical performance of a large-scale agrivoltaic field with these spectrum-splitting collectors is investigated in detail. The study is conducted using a computational model that includes optics, heat transfer, and electrical conversion. The reliability of the model was validated using experimental data obtained from a small-scale experimental setup. Results show that the electricity production per unit land area of the spectrum-splitting collectors can be similar to that of conventional APV fields and may reach even higher value by about 20% with optimized spectral splitters. According to the simulations, the loss of PAR on the ground due to the collectors may be significantly reduced, reaching only 10% compared to 21% in a conventional APV field.
Ben Aviad Shalom, Gur Mittelman, Abraham Kribus, Helena Vitoshkin. 12/2023. Optical and Electrical Performance of an Agrivoltaic Field With Spectral Beam Splitting. Renewable Energy. 219(Part 1):1-12.
MicroclimatologyPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Optimal Efficient Energy Production by PV Module Tile-Orientation Prediction without Compromising Crop-Light Demands in Agrivoltaic Systems
This study analyses the local microclimate information to discover the ideal Agrivoltaic
system tilt-orientation angles and the influence of crops on energy production. The study's objectives are twofold:(1) to provide a comprehensive method for determining the ideal tilt-orientation angles of PV modules that would both match the demands of crop-light requirements and optimize the energy output, and (2) to develop a mathematical model that considers the integration of crops within the AVS when projecting energy output. The simulation utilized a mix of PV tilt angle 0˚-90˚ with orientation 0˚-359˚ and hourly local meteorological data over one year. The study's findings showed that local microclimate data can be used to anticipate the tilt-orientation angle of PV modules to fulfil crop-light demand. The maximum solar irradiance collected on the PV module is 1819 kW/m2 /year at a tilt angle of 8˚ and orientation of 187˚. In comparison, 40.92% of light reduction is observed below the same combination. Furthermore, it was discovered that cultivation of Andrographis paniculata using the same combination produced higher yields than cultivation in open areas. Next, AVS installation also reduces the temperature of the PV module by 1.28 ̊C and increases the efficiency of the PV module by approximately 0.82%. Following that, the LER value for AVS recorded at 2.17. In conclusion, this AVS model offer enormous potential to predict ideal
PV tilt-orientation and assessing the effect of crops on energy output.M. A. Z. Abdin, M. N. Mahyuddin, M. A. A. M. Zainuri. 07/2023. Optimal Efficient Energy Production by PV Module Tile-Orientation Prediction without Compromising Crop-Light Demands in Agrivoltaic Systems. IEEE Access. 1-18.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem ConfigurationStandardization and Best PracticesToolsImpact Assessments
Optimal Integration of Microalgae Production With Photovoltaic Panels: Environmental Impacts and Energy Balance
Background
Microalgae are 10 to 20 times more productive than the current agricultural biodiesel producing oleaginous crops. However, they require larger energy supplies, so that their environmental impacts remain uncertain, as illustrated by the contradictory results in the literature. Besides, solar radiation is often too high relative to the photosynthetic capacity of microalgae. This leads to photosaturation, photoinhibition, overheating and eventually induces mortality. Shadowing microalgae with solar panels would, therefore, be a promising solution for both increasing productivity during hotter periods and producing local electricity for the process. The main objective of this study is to measure, via LCA framework, the energy performance and environmental impact of microalgae biodiesel produced in a solar greenhouse, alternating optimal microalgae species and photovoltaic panel (PV) coverage. A mathematical model is simulated to investigate the microalgae productivity in raceways under meteorological conditions in Sophia Antipolis (south of France) at variable coverture percentages (0% to 90%) of CIGS solar panels on greenhouses constructed with low-emissivity (low-E) glass.
Results A trade-off must be met between electricity and biomass production, as a larger photovoltaic coverture would limit microalgae production. From an energetic point of view, the optimal configuration lies between 10 and 20% of PV coverage. Nevertheless, from an environmental point of view, the best option is 50% PV coverage. However, the difference between impact assessments obtained for 20% and 50% PV is negligible, while the NER is 48% higher for 20% PV than for 50% PV coverage. Hence, a 20% coverture of photovoltaic panels is the best scenario from an energetic and environmental point of view.
Conclusions
In comparison with the cultivation of microalgae without PV, the use of photovoltaic panels triggers a synergetic effect, sourcing local electricity and reducing climate change impacts. Considering an economic approach, low photovoltaic panel coverage would probably be more attractive. However, even with a 10% area of photovoltaic panels, the environmental footprint would already significantly decrease. It is expected that significant improvements in microalgae productivity or more advanced production processes should rapidly enhance these performances.Marjorie Morales, Arnaud Hélias, Olivier Bernard. 2019. Optimal Integration of Microalgae Production With Photovoltaic Panels: Environmental Impacts and Energy Balance. Biotechnology for Biofuels. 12:
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Plant ScienceSystem ConfigurationStandardization and Best PracticesImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Optimal Inverter and Wire Selection for Solar Photovoltaic Fencing Applications
Despite the benefits and the economic advantages of agrivoltaics, capital costs limit deployment velocity. One recent potential solution to this challenge is to radically reduce the cost of racking materials by using existing farm fencing as vertical photovoltaic (PV) racking. This type of fenced-based PV system is inherently electrically challenging because of the relatively long distances between individual modules that are not present in more densely packed conventional solar PV farms. This study provides practical insights for inverter selection and wire sizing optimization for fence-based agrivoltaic systems. Numerical simulation sensitivities on the levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) were performed for 1) distance from the fence to the AC electrical panel, 2) inverter costs, and 3) geographic locations. The results showed that microinverters had better performance when the cross-over fence length was under 30 m or when the system was designed with less than seven solar PV modules, whereas string inverters were a better selection for longer fences. The cross-over number of modules depends significantly on the cost of the inverters, which is a parameter that influences the system's design. The capital costs for a fence retrofit are far less than for any form of conventional PV racking. In addition, the LCOE of the vertical fencing solar agrivoltaic system can be competitive with conventional ground-mounted solar PV for the niche of farmers. Especially, when they are located between the latitudes of 10° and 50° in either the northern or southern hemisphere, and coupled with their ancillary benefits they represent a great alternative for conventional PV systems.
Koami S. Hayibo, Joshua M. Pearce. 2022. Optimal Inverter and Wire Selection for Solar Photovoltaic Fencing Applications. Renewable Energy Focus. 42:115-128.
Market AssessmentsEconomicsSystem ConfigurationStandardization and Best PracticesTools
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Optimisation of Vertically Mounted Agrivoltaic Systems
Agrivoltaic systems represent a key technology for reaching sustainable development goals, by reducing the competition of land used for food versus land used for electricity. Moreover, agrivoltaic systems are at the centre of the nexus between electricity production, crop production, and irrigation water savings. In this study, an optimisation model for vertically mounted agrivoltaic systems with bifacial photovoltaic modules is developed. The model combines three main sub-models: solar radiation and shadings, photovoltaics, and crop yield. Validation of the sub-models is performed showing good agreement with measured data and commercial software. The optimisation model is set as multi objective to explore the trade-offs between competing agrivoltaic key performance indicators. Oats and potatoes are used as reference crops in this study.
The results show that the row distance between bifacial photovoltaic module structures significantly affects the photosynthetically active radiation distribution. The resulting crop yield of oats and potato is reduced by about 50% as row distance decreases from 20 m to 5 m. The implementation of an agrivoltaic system for the investigated crops at the chosen location shows a land equivalent ratio above 1.2, which justifies the use of the technology for reaching national sustainability goals.
P.E. Campana, B. Stridh, S. Amaducci, M. Colauzzi. 2021. Optimisation of Vertically Mounted Agrivoltaic Systems. Journal of Cleaner Production. 325:129091.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem ConfigurationImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Sweden
Optimization of LED-Based Agrivoltaic System: Combining Photovoltaic and Light Emitting Diode Technology in a Horticultural System to Improve the Space and Energy Efficiency of Crop Cultivation
By 2050, the global demand for food and energy is expected to grow by 70% and 50%, respectively, as a result
of the increase of the world’s population. Despite the significant growth of the food demand, the agricultural land can only be increased by another 2%. Besides that, the agricultural sector is heavily dependent on fossil fuels. Over the coming decades, the share of fossil fuels in the energy mix has to be reduced drastically to decrease the negative impact of the world energy use on the environment. However, the land area needed to produce renewable energy is significantly higher per unit produced than for traditional energy sources. At some places, this results in competition between food and energy production for the use of available land. It is clear that significant changes have to take place in the agricultural sector, regarding land and energy use, to keep up with the growing world population and to reduce its impact on the environment. During the last decades, significant improvements have been made in horticulture. This research combines two of these developments, namely: the integration of photovoltaic (PV) modules in a horticultural system (agrivoltaics) and the use of light emitting diodes (LEDs) as supplemental lighting source for crops. The main objective of this study is to find the most space and energy efficient LED-based agrivoltaic system for the cultivation of lettuce and tomato in three different climates. In order to understand the dynamics of an LED fixture and the optimal lighting conditions for the specified crops, a light simulation model is developed in the Matlab environment. With this simulation model, one is able to determine the characteristics of an LED fixture required for optimal crop growth. The performance of this model is verified by comparing the output of the model with practical measurements with an LED bar. Furthermore, four greenhouse systems and a plant factory are designed. The first scenario is a reference greenhouse that uses High Pressure Sodium (HPS) lighting as an addition to sunlight. The second scenario is comparable to the reference greenhouse, but uses LED lighting instead of HPS lighting. The third scenario is a greenhouse that uses LED lighting and has a checkerboard PV array configuration installed on the roof. In this greenhouse, the amount of sunlight reaching the crops is reduced and the LED lamps ensure that a sufficient amount of light reaches the crops. The fourth scenario is a greenhouse that is fully covered with PV modules and therefore no sunlight is able to enter the greenhouse. LED lamps are the sole source of light for the crops. In contrast with the semi-closed greenhouse systems, the plant factory is a closed insulated system and therefore uses LEDs as the only source of light. The roof of the plant factory is covered with PV modules. Also, it has five storeys of crops, while the greenhouse scenarios only have one layer. For the systems that include a PV system, it is assumed that the electricity produced by the PV systems is dumped on the grid. Besides that, the electricity needed for the systems driven by electricity, is drawn from the grid. There is no storage system present in these systems. The performance regarding space and energy efficiency is analyzed for these five systems for both lettuce and tomato and for three different climate zones and latitudes (24-68◦N). The locations are Kiruna (Sweden), Delft (the Netherlands) and Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates). This study shows that the purpose of a horticultural system is important to determine which configuration is optimal. When the productivity per area is the most important requirement, the plant factory has the best performance in all locations, mainly because of the multiple storeys of crops. The combined productivity of the crops and PV energy is six times higher compared to a conventional greenhouse. In case both the productivity and the energy use are important, the greenhouse that uses LED lighting and has a checkerboard PV module configuration installed on the roof has the best performance of all systems in Delft. Compared to a conventional greenhouse, the efficacy of this LED-based agrivoltaic greenhouse is increased by 56%. In more extreme climates, like in Abu Dhabi and Kiruna, a plant factory produces the most crops per unit of
energy required. The efficacy in these locations is 6.3 and 1.8 times higher, respectively, compared to the conventional greenhouse. In general, this works shows that the production of food and renewable energy do not have to be in competition for the same piece of land; they can be combined in one system while increasing the cumulative productivity per square meter and the total efficacy of the system.Martijn van Wijk. 09/2020. Optimization of LED-Based Agrivoltaic System: Combining Photovoltaic and Light Emitting Diode Technology in a Horticultural System to Improve the Space and Energy Efficiency of Crop Cultivation [Thesis]. [Delft University of Technology]: Delft University of Technology.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem ConfigurationStandardization and Best PracticesToolsReviews/Informational
Optimization of PV Array Density for Fixed Tilt Bifacial Solar Panels for Efficient Agrivoltaic Systems
Agrivoltaic systems are innovative production systems for dual production of solar energy and agriculture from the same land. The technology has a great potential to holistically address food-energy-water challenges across globe. The design of solar PV arrays for agrivoltaics differs from a standard solar system due to the constraints of shading at the crop level. We explore optimization of PV array row density for fixed tilt bifacial PV for a given crop and the food-energy productivity requirements from the system. Bifacial PV arrays in vertical tilt facing East/West are compared to North/South faced bifacial PV arrays at fixed optimal tilt and relative productivity of energy and food at a given array density is investigated using daily temporal calculations of sunlight at PV and crop levels. We further explore the effect of tilt angle for fixed tilt agrivoltaic systems and explore its effect on energy and drop shadows on crops for the two PV orientations.
Muhammad Hussnain Riaz, Hassan Imran, Nauman Zafar Butt. 2020. Optimization of PV Array Density for Fixed Tilt Bifacial Solar Panels for Efficient Agrivoltaic Systems. In: IEEE Xplore. 2020 47th IEEE Photovoltaic Specialists Conference (PVSC); 2020/06/15; Calgary, AB, Canada. Calgary, AB, Canada: IEEE; p.
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MicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Optimization of Single-Axis Tracking of Photovoltaic Modules for Agrivoltaic Systems
Agrivoltaics is an emerging technology of collocating solar photovoltaics with agriculture that has many potential synergetic food-energy-water benefits. The design of agrivoltaic systems demands a careful balance for sharing sunlight between solar panels and crops to ensure an optimal food-energy productivity. We explore the optimal single-axis tracking schemes for agrivoltaics that can provide the precise balance of sunlight between PV and crops. The single-axis tracking schemes are applied to bifacial panel arrays in two different PV orientations, i.e., East/West vs. North/South faced. By modeling the temporal variations of drop shadows on crops and the known requirements of photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) by the crop, we propose customized solar tracking schemes that vary between standard sun tracking and reverse sun tracking during the day according to the crop requirement. During the early daytime after sunrise and closer to the sunset, PAR is lower than the saturated PAR for the plants. Closer to noon, available PAR can exceed the crop needs. An optimal algorithm ensures that the PAR available to the crops remains closer to its required PAR so that the excess sunlight could be harvested by the PV arrays. The seasonal variation in customized tracking schemes is explored for the two PV orientations.
H. Imran, M.H. Riaz, N.Z. Butt. 2021. Optimization of Single-Axis Tracking of Photovoltaic Modules for Agrivoltaic Systems. In: IEEE Conference on Photovoltaic Specialists; 2020/06/15; Canada. Online: IEEE; p. 1-4
MicroclimatologySystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Optimization of the Design of an Agrophotovoltaic System in Future Climate Conditions in South Korea
A hybrid framework is proposed to identify the optimal design of agrophotovoltaic (APV) system that can be a promising alternative to resolve the food security issue by producing both solar energy and crops. It consists of four components: (1) Environmental database involving historical climate and soil data, (2) Solar energy module estimating energy quantity via polynomial regression (PR), (3) ALMANAC simulation that estimates crop parameters and yields; and (4) Analysis module identifying the optimum operational plan under climate change scenarios. The framework is calibrated with historical data collected from the APV system at the Jeollanamdo Agricultural Research and Extension Services (35.0161° N, 126.7108° E) in South Korea. Five crops of sesame, mungbean, red bean, corn, and soybean are considered under four climate change scenarios (i.e., SSP126, SSP245, SSP370, and SSP585) with two different time horizons (i.e., 2021–2050 and 2051–2080). According to the experiment, the APV system with mungbean is the most profitable with the unit profit of $ 77.44/m2 under 25.6% shading ratio from 2021 to 2050. The novel framework for the optimal design of the APV system enables to increase the income of a famer and resolve the food security under climate change environment in future.
Sumin Kim, Sojung Kim. 04/2023. Optimization of the Design of an Agrophotovoltaic System in Future Climate Conditions in South Korea. Renewable Energy. 206:928-938.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyEconomicsSystem ConfigurationImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Optimizing Agrivoltaics Electricity Generation in Sweden
Agrivoltaics have emerged as a viable solution to address the trade-off occurring between the
use of land for the cultivation of food and generation of electricity, both of which are essential to humanity. This degree project carried out a techno-economic analysis to assess the impact of optimizing technical parameters on the energy generated by vertical configuration agrivoltaic systems. A simulation was conducted on a 1-hectare land area at varying row distances (5m, 10m, 15m, and 20m) corresponding to different system capacities of 455.9kWp, 227.9kWp, 136.74kWp, and 117.6kWp respectively, along with varying clearance height (0.5m, 1m, and 1.5m), azimuth angles between -90° and 90°, and locations: Västerås, Visby, Lund, Skövde, and Kalmar. The findings highlight the optimal conditions for maximizing specific production (kWh/kWp/year), system production (MWh/year), and financial indicators. In conclusion, 227.9kWp agrivoltaics system at 10m row distance and 1m clearance height, is observed to achieve a balance between system production and specific production, as well exhibiting higher economic profitability. Additionally, Visby among all selected study
locations, had the highest electricity production due to its longer sun hours.B. O. Kazeem, K. Kumari. 06/2023. Optimizing Agrivoltaics Electricity Generation in Sweden [Thesis]. [Sweden]: Malardalen University.
MicroclimatologyEconomicsSystem ConfigurationStandardization and Best PracticesReviews/InformationalSiting
Optimizing Light Environment of the Oblique Single-axis Tracking Agrivoltaic System
A combination of food crops and solar panels on the same space can be called as an agrivoltaic (AV) system. In our previous paper, we put forward a scientific method to match crops. This paper studies the solar radiation distribution during the effective growth period of crops in the agrivoltaic system based on the oblique single-axis tracking bracket by building the model with Ecotect in a approximate method. On the basis of solar radiation distribution analysis, the right crop is choosed. Then, we puts forward an improved tracking algorithm for optimizing the solar radiation distribution for the selected crop. The algorithm is performed by controlling the shading area while ensuring power generation.
Deng Wang, Yaojie Sun. 07/2018. Optimizing Light Environment of the Oblique Single-axis Tracking Agrivoltaic System. In: nd International Symposium on Resource Exploration and Environmental Science; 2018/04/28; Ordos City, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, China. IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science: IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science; p.
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MicroclimatologySystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
China
Optimizing Sunlight Distribution in Agrivoltaic Systems for the Swedish Climate
Due to a rising land demand for the construction of large-scale PV-systems, there is increasing
competition between energy and food production. A new emerging segment within the PV market called agrivoltaics is providing a contributing solution to this issue by co-using the land for both crop cultivation and PV energy. Agrivoltaics is a relatively new application in Sweden, so far there is only one research site in Kärrbo Prästgård, Västerås, which was built in 2020. This thesis aims to examine how the basic layout of a PV system affects the irradiance distribution of an agrivoltaic system located in Sweden. With the aim of reaching an effective light sharing to provide the crops with acceptable growing conditions while producing as much electricity as possible. Methodologically, this was done by performing optical light simulations for a big number of different PV layouts. The results show how the module row distance and the array height have the most significant influence on the total irradiance distribution throughout the year. Furthermore, by altering the clearance height and the system azimuth, the irradiance uniformity on the ground can be improved, which results in more similar growing conditions for all the cultivated crops. Arguments are also given for why it is helpful to consider the temporal distribution of the ground irradiance. This thesis has shown that there are PV system layouts that provide low degrees of shading for the crops cultivated on the ground beneath the modules. However, if agrivoltaics is a suitable application for the Swedish climate or not is still an open question. Economic analysis is needed to examine the profitability of agrivoltaic systems in Sweden, and experimental studies on how the shading from the PV modules affect the crop growth in practice would also be useful. In the result section, there are some example layouts given for different degrees of tolerated ground shading which can be used when planning for future agrivoltaic parks. The results generated in the optical light simulations will be accessible for future research.
These data files can be found attached together with this report on the DiVA portal.Amanda Daniels. 07/2022. Optimizing Sunlight Distribution in Agrivoltaic Systems for the Swedish Climate [Thesis]. [Uppsala University]: Uppsala University.
MicroclimatologySystem Configuration
Optimizing the Spectral Sharing in a Vertical Bifacial Agrivoltaics Farm
Agrivoltaics (AV) allows double usage of the land by yielding both food and energy. Such farms are more suitable for high population density locations like India. In this work, we study the impact of the vertical, bifacial AV farm on the rice (Oryza sativa) yield in a hot, tropical climate prevailing in the south-eastern part of India (Chennai, 13.0827° N, 80.2707° E). We compare two different bifacial silicon solar cell technologies: (a) passivated emitter rear contact (PERC+), and (b) silicon heterojunction (SHJ), using vertical configurations. We show that SHJ yields more energy than PERC for the considered location, mainly due to its high-temperature coefficient, high inherent bifaciality, spectral and the temperature advantage of the vertical configuration. To maximize both the rice and energy yield with equal importance, we discuss two strategies: (a) varying the pitch of the panels (2 m and 4 m) (b) optimizing the spectral sharing between the panels and plants by reflecting the photosynthetically active radiation incident over the panels (2 m pitch). We found that increasing the pitch of the panels (4 m pitch) could improve the rice yield but drastically reduces the energy yield (∼45% compared to an optimal photovoltaics (PV) farm). Using simulation, we show that by reflecting the small portion of the spectrum (400–500 nm) incident on the PV panels (an additional advantage of the vertical configuration), both the rice and energy yield could achieve a win–win situation (∼80% of rice yield compared to an open farm and 74% of the energy yield compared to an optimally tilted PV farm) with a higher land equivalent ratio of 1.54. The disadvantage of SHJs in the PV farm becomes advantageous in an AV farm due to its low dependence on the reflected portion of the spectrum compared to PERC+ solar cells. This work will motivate the development of low-cost technologies to make spectral sharing a viable option in the future, considering the limited availability of the land.
Ramachandran Ammapet Vijayan, Jeevalakshmi Sivanarul, Muthubalan Varadharajaperumal. 2021. Optimizing the Spectral Sharing in a Vertical Bifacial Agrivoltaics Farm. Physics D: Applied Physics. 54(30):1-8.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
India
Organic Photovoltaic Greenhouses: A Unique Application for Semi-Transparent PV?
Organic photovoltaics are an emerging solar power technology which embody properties such as
transparency, flexibility, and rapid, roll to roll manufacture, opening the potential for unique niche applications. We report a detailed techno-economic analysis of one such application, namely the photovoltaic greenhouse, and discuss whether the unique properties of the technology can provide advantages over conventional photovoltaics. The potential for spectral selectivity through the choice of OPV materials is evaluated for the case of a photovoltaic greenhouse. The action spectrum of typical greenhouse crops is used to determine the impact on crop growth of blocking different spectral ranges from the crops. Transfer matrix optical modelling is used to assess the efficiency and spectrally resolved transparency of a variety of commercially available semi-conducting polymer materials, in addition to a non-commercial low-band-gap material with absorption outside that required for crop growth. Economic analysis suggests there could be a huge potential for OPV greenhouses if aggressive cost targets can be met. Technical analysis shows that semi-transparent OPV devices may struggle to perform better than opaque crystalline silicon with partial coverage, however, OPV devices using the low-band-gap material PMDPP3T, as well as a high efficiency mid-band-gap polymer PCDTBT, can demonstrate improved performance in comparison to opaque, flexible thin-film modules such as CIGS. These results stress the importance of developing new, highly transparent electrode and interlayer materials, along with high
efficiency active layers, if the full potential of this application is going to be realised.Christopher J. M. Emmott, Jason A. Röhr, Mariano Campoy-Quiles, Thomas Kirchartz, Antonio Urbina, Nicholas J. Ekins-Daukes, Jenny Nelson. 02/2015. Organic Photovoltaic Greenhouses: A Unique Application for Semi-Transparent PV?. Energy & Environmental Science. 1317–1328.
MicroclimatologyEconomicsPV TechnologiesMarket Assessments
Development Strategy
Greenhouse, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Organic Photovoltaics on Greenhouse Rooftops: Effects on Plant Growth
Greenhouse agriculture is a high-growth and high-volume market that rapidly expands worldwide to address the societal needs for food production. The increasing demand for energy to cover their requirements, coupled with the limited amount of available fossil fuels, has turned the agriculture community in the exploitation of renewable energy sources. Intensive research is currently focuses on the use of solar energy in agriculture constructions. Organic Photovoltaics (OPVs) are constantly gaining ground among other PV technologies due to their low weight, tunable optical transmittance, flexibility and high conformability. In this work, semi-transparent OPVs based on the blend of regioregular poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) and phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM) were integrated on the rooftop of the 24 m2 experimental Mediterranean greenhouse covering the 22% of its total area in order to investigate its effect on the growth and behavior of cultivated pepper plants (Capsicum annuum). Under the shade of OPVs, the pepper plants produced 20.2% more fruit mass compared to the control ones. In addition, at the end of the growing season, the height of the shaded plants was 21.8% larger than the remaining plants.
C. Zisis, E.M. Pechlivani, S. Tsimikli, E. Mekeridis, A. Laskarakis, S. Logothetidis. 2019. Organic Photovoltaics on Greenhouse Rooftops: Effects on Plant Growth. In: S Kassavetis, S Logothetidis, editors. Nanotexnology 2018: International Conferences & Exhibition on Nanotechnologies. International Conferences & Exhibition on Nanosciences & Nanotechnologies and Flexible Organic Electronics; 2018/06/30; Thessaloniki, Greece.
(!) : Materials Today: Proceedings; p. 65-72
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Greece
Outdoor Behaviour of Organic Photovoltaics on a Greenhouse Roof
This study presents a detailed analysis of the outdoor behaviour of organic photovoltaic (OPV) panels on a polytunnel type greenhouse roof in a Mediterranean climate, looking at the effects of environmental variables and panel orientations on the electrical behaviour and degradation of the panels, thus providing crucial outdoor testing results of greenhouse integrated OPVs in this climatic region. The OPV panel placed at the polytunnel ridge of the roof yielded highest outputs, efficiencies and fill factors during the measurement period. However, the use of panels on the East and West sides of the greenhouse roof, could reduce midday output peaks and therefore provide a more balanced power supply throughout the day. The diurnal variation in OPV behaviour was influenced by simultaneous effects of changing irradiance and temperature. It was found that although output was higher, the OPVs showed dips in fill factor and efficiency at times with high incident irradiance. This was assumed to be due to a reversible degradation phenomenon under high direct irradiance conditions, which led to higher performance during morning hours compared to the afternoon and was followed by a recovery overnight and to some extent in shaded conditions.
Esther Magadley, Meir Teitel, Maayan Friman Peretz, Murat Kacira, Ibrahim Yehia. 02/2020. Outdoor Behaviour of Organic Photovoltaics on a Greenhouse Roof. Sustainable Energy Technologies and Assessments. 37:
(!) .
PV Technologies
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Israel
Overcoming Unreasonably Burdensome Restrictions on the Use of Farmland for Solar Generation
In towns and counties across the United States, local governments have adopted severe and unreasonably burdensome restrictions on the use of farmland for utility-scale solar energy facilities. These restrictions are preventing solar development on millions of acres of land and impeding the energy transition. Existing state law is sufficient to overcome local restrictions in many states, but additional reform may be required in others. This working paper describes strategies for overcoming local restrictions under existing law and sets out a menu of options for reform.
Matthew Eisenson (Sabin Center for Climate Change Law, Renewable Energy Legal Defense Initiative (RELDI), Property and Environment Research Center (PERC)). 2023. Overcoming Unreasonably Burdensome Restrictions on the Use of Farmland for Solar Generation. SSRN: SSRN.
Social PerspectivesPolicy and Regulatory IssuesReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Report
Country
United States
Overview of Opportunities for Co-Location of Solar Energy Technologies and Vegetation
Large-scale solar facilities have the potential to contribute significantly to national electricity production. Many solar installations are large-scale or utility-scale, with a capacity over 1 MW and connected directly to the electric grid. Large-scale solar facilities offer an opportunity to achieve economies of scale in solar deployment, yet there have been concerns about the amount of land required for solar projects and the impact of solar projects on local habitat. During the site preparation phase for utility-scale solar facilities, developers often grade land and remove all vegetation to minimize installation and operational costs, prevent plants from shading panels, and minimize potential fire or wildlife risks. However, the common site preparation practice of removing vegetation can be avoided in certain circumstances, and there have been successful examples where solar facilities have been co-located with agricultural operations or have native vegetation growing beneath the panels. In this study we outline some of the impacts large-scale solar facilities can have on the local environment, provide examples of installations where impacts have been minimized through co-location with vegetation, characterize the types of colocation, and give an overview of the potential benefits from co-location of solar energy projects and vegetation. The varieties of co-location can be replicated or modified for site-specific use at other solar energy installations around the world. We conclude with opportunities to improve upon our understanding of ways to reduce the environmental impacts of large-scale
solar installations.
Jordan Macknick, Brenda Beatty, Graham Hill (National Renewable Energy Laboratory). 2013. Overview of Opportunities for Co-Location of Solar Energy Technologies and Vegetation. Golden, CO: National Renewable Energy Laboratory. Report No.: NREL/TP-6A20-60240. Contract No.: Contract No. DE-AC36-08GO28308.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production, Crosscutting PV, Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Report
Overview of the Fundamentals and Applications of Bifacial Photovoltaic Technology: Agrivoltaics and Aquavoltaics
Bifacial technology is attracting the attention of the photovoltaic community. Although considered premature, research and development activities still need to be carried out to improve bPV performance. In addition, the need for a standard test reference will aid bankability and increase confidence in this technology. This article describes the state of the art of bifacial technology, going through the bPV cell and its difference compared to conventional monofacial cells and listing the different sources of limitations, with an identification of different parameters that characterize the performance of the bifacial. Then, the paper reviews the different modeling methods that allow predicting the performance of bPV systems, and ends with the most important applications, whether for dual use of land to produce energy and food (agrivoltaic) or for placing bPV modules on water bodies instead of on the ground (aquavoltaics), or for vertical use as solar fences, acoustic barriers, or building-integrated photovoltaic modules.
Elmehdi Mouhib, Leonardo Micheli, Florencia M. Almonacid, Eduardo F. Fernández. 11/2022. Overview of the Fundamentals and Applications of Bifacial Photovoltaic Technology: Agrivoltaics and Aquavoltaics. Energies. 15(23):
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PV TechnologiesReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Overview of the Potential and Challenges for Agri-Photovoltaics in the European Union
Agri-Photovoltaics (Agri-PV) consists in the simultaneous use of land for both solar photovoltaic power generation and agricultural production. It is an innovative form of PV deployment that has attracted attention worldwide and now also in the EU. It is highly relevant to a range of policies, including those related to the energy transition, agriculture, environment and research & innovation (R&I), and directly supports the goals of the European Green Deal (EGD). This report investigates the technical potential of Agri-PV systems in the EU and finds that using only 1% of the EU’s utilised Agricultural Area with Agri-PV systems could allow 1 TW of PV capacity, for instance well above the 590 GW foreseen by 2030 in the recent EU Solar Strategy communication. The study also maps the current situation in relation to the definition of Agri-PV and to related standards and guidelines, and draws attention to the challenges faced by developers for implementing projects. Furthermore, it explores the synergies between the agricultural, environment and energy policies and identifies the R&D challenges. Last but not least, the report makes recommendations regarding future steps to support the expansion of Agri-PV in the EU. The main points include a clear and concrete definition of Agri-PV, potentially as part of a European standard for Agri-PV systems, the promotion of Agri-PV at policy level through the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) plans as well as the Member States’ national energy strategies (financial support, dedicated capacity targets, etc.), the simplification of permitting and grid connection procedures, the engagement of the rural communities to the planning and decision making and the assurance of the welfare of the farmer (economic benefit, security of property, etc.). Continued research and development, in particular cross-cutting studies that take into account energy, crop yield and biodiversity aspects, will be essential to overcome technical challenges and ensure fully sustainable solutions for the future.
Anatoli Chatzipanagi, Nigel Taylor, Arnulf Jaeger-Waldau (European Commission, Joint Research Centre). 2023. Overview of the Potential and Challenges for Agri-Photovoltaics in the European Union. Publications Office of the European Union: European Union.
Policy and Regulatory IssuesMarket AssessmentsEconomicsStandardization and Best PracticesSocial PerspectivesReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Report
Country
Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden
PV Technology and Manufacturing
This chapter outlines the recent technologies in solar cells and their advancements in supporting various industries to achieve greater efficiency and compatibility. For example, the agrivoltaic technology is discussed. This technology integrates food, energy and sometimes water security. Other topics focus on more novel and sustainable cell manufacturing technologies that will push the utilization of PV technology further, such as tandem cells as well as innovative metallic transparent substrates.
Abdul Hai Alami, Shamma Alasad, Haya Aljaghoub, Mohamad Ayoub, Adnan Alashkar, Ayman Mdallal, Ranem Hasan. 2023. PV Technology and Manufacturing. Abdul Hai Alami, editor. Switzerland: Springer Cham.
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Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyEconomicsPV TechnologiesReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Book Section
PYM: A New, Affordable, Image-based Method Using a Raspberry Pi to Phenotype Plant Leaf Area in a Wide Diversity of Environments
Background
Plant science uses increasing amounts of phenotypic data to unravel the complex interactions between biological systems and their variable environments. Originally, phenotyping approaches were limited by manual, often destructive operations, causing large errors. Plant imaging emerged as a viable alternative allowing non-invasive and automated data acquisition. Several procedures based on image analysis were developed to monitor leaf growth as a major phenotyping target. However, in most proposals, a time-consuming parameterization of the analysis pipeline is required to handle variable conditions between images, particularly in the field due to unstable light and interferences with soil surface or weeds. To cope with these difficulties, we developed a low-cost, 2D imaging method, hereafter called PYM. The method is based on plant leaf ability to absorb blue light while reflecting infrared wavelengths. PYM consists of a Raspberry Pi computer equipped with an infrared camera and a blue filter and is associated with scripts that compute projected leaf area. This new method was tested on diverse species placed in contrasting conditions. Application to field conditions was evaluated on lettuces grown under photovoltaic panels. The objective was to look for possible acclimation of leaf expansion under photovoltaic panels to optimise the use of solar radiation per unit soil area.
Results The new PYM device proved to be efficient and accurate for screening leaf area of various species in wide ranges of environments. In the most challenging conditions that we tested, error on plant leaf area was reduced to 5% using PYM compared to 100% when using a recently published method. A high-throughput phenotyping cart, holding 6 chained PYM devices, was designed to capture up to 2000 pictures of field-grown lettuce plants in less than 2 h. Automated analysis of image stacks of individual plants over their growth cycles revealed unexpected differences in leaf expansion rate between lettuces rows depending on their position below or between the photovoltaic panels.
Conclusions
The imaging device described here has several benefits, such as affordability, low cost, reliability and flexibility for online analysis and storage. It should be easily appropriated and customized to meet the needs of various users.Benoît Valle, Thierry Simonneau, Romain Boulord, Francis Sourd, Thibault Frisson, Maxime Ryckewaert, Philippe Hamard, Nicolas Brichet, Myriam Dauzat, Angélique Christophe. 2017. PYM: A New, Affordable, Image-based Method Using a Raspberry Pi to Phenotype Plant Leaf Area in a Wide Diversity of Environments. Plant Methods. 13:
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Plant ScienceSystem ConfigurationTools
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
France
Parametric Open Source Cold-Frame Agrivoltaic Systems
There is an intense need to optimize agrivoltaic systems. This article describes the invention of a new testing system: the parametric open source cold-frame agrivoltaic system (POSCAS). POSCAS is an adapted gardening cold-frame used in cold climates as it acts as a small greenhouse for agricultural production. POSCAS is designed to test partially transparent solar photovoltaic (PV) modules targeting the agrivoltaic market. It can both function as a traditional cold frame, but it can also be automated to function as a full-service greenhouse. The integrated PV module roof can be used to power the controls or it can be attached to a microinverter to produce power. POSCAS can be placed in an experimental array for testing agricultural and power production. It can be easily adapted for any type of partially transparent PV module. An array of POSCAS systems allows for the testing of agrivoltaic impacts from the percent transparency of the modules by varying the thickness of a thin film PV material or the density of silicon-based cells, and various forms of optical enhancement, anti-reflection coatings and solar light spectral shifting materials in the back sheet. All agrivoltaic variables can be customized to identify ideal PV designs for a given agricultural crop.
Joshua M. Pearce. 2021. Parametric Open Source Cold-Frame Agrivoltaic Systems. Inventions. 6(4):
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EconomicsPV TechnologiesReviews/InformationalSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
Partial Shading by Solar Panels Delays Bloom, Increases Floral Abundance during the Late-Season for Pollinators in a Dryland, Agrivoltaic Ecosystem
Habitat for pollinators is declining worldwide, threatening the health of both wild and agricultural ecosystems. Photovoltaic solar energy installation is booming, frequently near agricultural lands, where the land underneath ground-mounted photovoltaic panels is traditionally unused. Some solar developers and agriculturalists in the United States are filling the solar understory with habitat for pollinating insects in efforts to maximize land-use efficiency in agricultural lands. However, the impact of the solar panel canopy on the understory pollinator-plant community is unknown. Here we investigated the effects of solar arrays on plant composition, bloom timing and foraging behavior of pollinators from June to September (after peak bloom) in full shade plots and partial shade plots under solar panels as well as in full sun plots (controls) outside of the solar panels. We found that floral abundance increased and bloom timing was delayed in the partial shade plots, which has the potential to benefit late-season foragers in water-limited ecosystems. Pollinator abundance, diversity, and richness were similar in full sun and partial shade plots, both greater than in full shade. Pollinator-flower visitation rates did not differ among treatments at this scale. This demonstrates that pollinators will use habitat under solar arrays, despite variations in community structure across shade gradients. We anticipate that these findings will inform local farmers and solar developers who manage solar understories, as well as agriculture and pollinator health advocates as they seek land for pollinator habitat restoration in target areas.
M. Graham, S. Ates, A.P. Melathopoulos, A.R. Moldenke, S.J. DeBano, L.R. Best, C.W. Higgins . 2021. Partial Shading by Solar Panels Delays Bloom, Increases Floral Abundance during the Late-Season for Pollinators in a Dryland, Agrivoltaic Ecosystem. Scientific Reports. 0000.
HydrologySoilEntomologyPlant ScienceMicroclimatologyMethodological Comparisons
Development Strategy
Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
Oregon
Pasture Production and Lamb Growth in Agrivoltaic System
Grasslands and croplands located in temperate agro-ecologies are ranked to be the best places to install solar panels for maximum energy production. Therefore, agrivoltaic systems (agricultural production under solar panels) are designed to mutually benefit solar energy and agricultural production in the same location for dual-use of land. However, both livestock farmers and energy companies require information for the application of efficient livestock management practices under solar panels. Therefore, this study was conducted to compare lamb growth and pasture production under solar panels and in open pastures in Corvallis, Oregon in spring 2019 and 2020. Averaged across the grazing periods, weaned Polypay lambs grew at 120 and 119 g/head/d under solar panels and open pastures, respectively in spring 2019 (P=0.90). Although a higher stocking density (36.6 lambs/ha) at the pastures under solar panels was maintained than open pastures (30 lambs/ha) in the late spring period, the liveweight production between grazing under solar panels (1.5 kg ha/d) and open pastures (1.3 kg ha/d) were comparable (P=0.67). Similarly, lambs liveweight gains and liveweight productions were comparable in both pasture types (all P>0.05). The daily water consumption of the lambs in spring 2019 were similar during early spring, but lambs in open pastures consumed 0.72 l/head/d more water than those grazed under solar panels in the late spring period (P<0.01). However, no difference was observed in water intake of the lambs in spring 2020 (P=0.42) The preliminary results from our grazing study indicated that grazing under solar panels can maintain higher carrying capacity of pasture toward summer, and land productivity could be increased up to 200% through combining sheep grazing and solar energy production on the same land. More importantly, solar panels may provide a more animal welfare friendly environment for the grazing livestock as they provide shelter from sun and wind.
Alyssa C. Andrew, Chad W. Higgins, Massimo Bionaz, Mary A. Smallman, Serkan Ates. 2021. Pasture Production and Lamb Growth in Agrivoltaic System. In: Christian Dupraz, editor. AIP Conference Proceedings. AGRIVOLTAICS2020 CONFERENCE: Launching Agrivoltaics World-wide; 2020/10/14; Perpignan, France, Online. AIP Publishing: AIP Publishing; p.
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Livestock
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
United States
State
Oregon
Pembuatan Prototipe Pengimplementasian Agrivoltaic Pada Tanaman Cabai Di Tambak, Mojosongo, Boyolali
Agrivoltaics is a concept of combining agricultural land or animal husbandry with solar panels or known as “solar sharing”. This study examines how the placement of solar panels in chili plantations, how solar panels affect chili plantations, how the results of comparisons between chili plantations installed with solar panels and chili plantations without solar panels in Tambak, Mojosongo, Boyolali. The method which used to analyze the relationship between solar panels and chili plants with these crops is to design an agrivoltaic prototype. The object of this study is a miniature chili plantation with an area of 4m x 2m which is given a barrier in the middle, one of which is shaded by solar panels each planted seedlings of peppers 6 seedlings. Chili plantations without solar panels have faster growth than chili plantations shaded by solar panels. Plant height growth is on average 0.25% faster without shading solar panels. The number of flowers is 2.4% more without the shading of the solar panels. The number of fruits is 5% more without shading solar panels. The electric energy results obtained by solar panels in the first day producing 377,96 Wh. In second day producing 660,35 Wh and third day producing 571,29 Wh.
Aziz Kamseno. 08/2022. Pembuatan Prototipe Pengimplementasian Agrivoltaic Pada Tanaman Cabai Di Tambak, Mojosongo, Boyolali [Thesis]. [Universitas Muhammadiyah Surakarta]: Universitas Muhammadiyah Surakarta.
Plant Science
Performance Analysis and Neural Modelling of a Greenhouse Integrated Photovoltaic System
In the modern agriculture, greenhouses are well established as technological solutions aimed to increase plants productivity and crops quality. Greenhouses can include added capabilities for the energy generation by the integration of photovoltaic solar modules in their cladding areas provided that the blocking effect of photosynthetically active radiation is not significant for plants growing. After a comprehensive literature survey on the integration of photovoltaic systems in greenhouses, this work describes the results of an experience carried out at Almería (South Eastern Spain), where it has been built and monitored a 1.024m2 pilot photovoltaic greenhouse. The experimental set up has consisted of a greenhouse roof 9.79% coverage ratio by means of 24 flexible thin film modules, installed in two different checkerboard configurations. The obtained results indicate that, for the conditions of the undertaken experiment, the yearly electricity production normalised to the greenhouse ground surface is 8.25kWhm−2, concordant to previous findings for the used type of modules. In addition to this, an artificial neural network model has been elaborated to predict the electricity instantaneous production of the system, showing the suitability of this modelling technique for complex and non linear systems, as it is the case of the constructively integrated PV plants, either in greenhouses and buildings, where both impinging radiation and system configuration are highly constrained by the pre-existing structures.
J. Pérez-Alonso, M. Pérez-García, M. Pasamontes-Romera, A.J. Callejón-Ferre. 09/2012. Performance Analysis and Neural Modelling of a Greenhouse Integrated Photovoltaic System. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. 16(7):4675-4685.
PV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Spain
Performance Analysis of Agrophotovoltaic Systems with Solanum Lycopersicum Crops
The coexistence of solar photovoltaics (PV) and agriculture on the same piece of land is known as Agrophotovoltaics (APV). Along with a few additional advantages, APV systems are presently being investigated for the thermal control of solar PV modules using natural transpiration cooling from crops. In the present work, an experimental setup of a grid-connected rooftop solar PV system of 2.0 kW was designed, developed, and installed at Nagpur [21° 08′ N, 46.72″ E] India. The Solanum lycopersicum plants commonly known as ‘Tomato’ were cultivated below the 50 % solar PV modules to convert the half PV power plant into an Agrophotovoltaic system. The experiments were performed to compare the electrical and thermal performance of the conventional solar PV plant and the APV plant for one month. Along with the power plant’s performance, the overall growth of tomato crops was also monitored throughout experiments. The experiments conclude that as compared with the conventional solar PV system, the temperature of the solar PV modules in the APV system reduces by around 6.51 %lower for the height-I whereas for height –II the module temperature of APV system was lower by around 3.12 % and the power output increases by17.96 % more energy for height-I whereas for height-II the APV plant generates 14.70 % more energy per day. Also, it had been observed that the growth of the cultivated tomato crops in the APV was the same as that of the crop grown in the open sky. Based on the current experimental research, a 1 MW APV system's expected yearly electricity generation would be 215,520 kWh higher than a normal solar PV plant for height-I and176400 kWh more electricity for height-II. Furthermore, in addition to the bonus of increased power generation, the same piece of land would be used to produce tomato or other high-yielding crops.
Rahul M. Waghmare, Ravindra Jilte, Sandeep Joshi. 2023. Performance Analysis of Agrophotovoltaic Systems with Solanum Lycopersicum Crops. In: Materials Today: Proceedings. Materials Today; 2023/08/02; Singapore, Singapore. Singapore, Singapore: Elsevier; p.
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MicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
India
Performance Analysis of Greenhouses with Integrated Photovoltaic Modules
Thanks to the DM 19.02.2007, Italian government supported the development and the expansion of solar photovoltaic in Italy. The feed-in tariff had a great success, and like in Spain and Germany big size photovoltaic plants have been built, especially in the south of the country. The south of Italy presents high irradiation (up to 1.700 equivalent hours) and economically agriculture is an important local resource. This aspect led to the concept of the solar greenhouses, a way to match the electricity production by PV modules with an improvement of the cultivation possibilities. Solar greenhouses includes integrated PV modules mounted on the roof oriented to south and his design is new and still has to be evaluated in details. In particular important parameters like the luminance, the type of cultivations and the temperature of the PV modules must be carefully analyzed to have a real good match between the agriculture and the electricity production purpose. In the paper TRNSYS 16 has been used for the simulation of temperatures and humidity in the structure. The simulation had the goal to define the performance of the solar greenhouse during the year, with the possibility to individuate important construction parameters for the realization of a greenhouse efficient from all point of views.
Maurizio Carlini, Mauro Villarini, Stefano Esposto, Milena Bernardi. 2010. Performance Analysis of Greenhouses with Integrated Photovoltaic Modules. In: David Taniar, Osvaldo Gervasi, Beniamino Murgante, Eric Pardede, Bernady O. Apduhan, editors. Computational Science and Its Applications - ICCSA 2010. International Conference on Computational Science and Its Applications; 2010/03/23; Fukuoka, Japan. Germany: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg; p. 206–214
MicroclimatologyPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Italy
Performance Analysis of Radiation and Electricity Yield in a Photovoltaic Panel Integrated Greenhouse Using the Radiation and Thermal Models
The agricultural photovoltaic panel integrated greenhouse (PVIG) are attempted to improve the utilization of solar energy for sustainable agriculture. This study proposes a numerical method to predict the radiation distribution and the electricity yield of a PVIG throughout the year using 3D radiation model and thermal model. The radiation model is validated in a PVIG in the southeast of China with 36 rooftop PV panels of straight-line layout and the PV array covering 25% of the greenhouse roof area. According to simulation of conventional greenhouse and PVIG with straight-line (La), crisscross (Lb) and checkerboard (Lc) PV panels’ layouts, the performance of different PVIG is evaluated in terms of the non-uniformity of the radiation distribution, the radiation intensity and the electricity yield of PV panels. The non-uniformity of the hourly radiation under the La layout is not much different from the layout Lb and Lc, and the cumulative weekly radiation under the layout of La is increased by 8.3% and 12.7% in the experimental PVIG, respectively. The thermal model of PV panels mounted on the greenhouse roof is developed to accurately predict the PV electricity yield, considering the impact of greenhouses and external environments on PV panels. In contrast to the layouts of La and Lb, the annual electricity yield of PV panels with the layout of Lc raises by 3.2 and 2.2 kWh m−2 respectively. Compared with conventional greenhouse, the distribution and intensity of cumulative weekly radiation are not significantly affected by the optimal PV array covering 25% of the greenhouse roof area. These results indicate that the 3D radiation model and thermal model can be used as an efficient tool to optimize the performance of PVIG.
Jiaoliao Chen, Fang Xu, Binjie Ding, Nanye Wu, Zheng Shen, Libin Zhang. 09/2019. Performance Analysis of Radiation and Electricity Yield in a Photovoltaic Panel Integrated Greenhouse Using the Radiation and Thermal Models. Computers and Electronics in Agriculture. 164:
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MicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
Performance Analysis of a Spectrally Selective Solar Cell Using PV-GIS Data
Spectrally selective solar cells (SSSC) can be used to combine photovoltaics and photosynthesis by adjusting
the transmittance to the Chlorophyll absorption spectrum. In contrast to opaque agrivoltaic systems with spatial shading, the spectrally selective approach allows full coverage of greenhouses or photo-bioreactors. Recently, we presented a SSSC that is based on a resonant cavity enhanced solar cell. However, the transmission window of the SSSC is dependent on the entrance angle. In this work we analyze the impact of the installation angle and the cardinal orientation of the SSSC on the transmitted light for the locations Almeria, Spain and Oldenburg, Germany. Furthermore, we compare the performance of an experimentally realized SSSC and of the estimated future potential of an improved SSSC. This work shows, that the
selective transparency has enough angular robustness to supply plants all year long with vital illumination.Norbert Osterthun, Maximilian Götz-Köhler, Nils Neugebohrn, Kai Gehrke, Martin Vehse, Carsten Agert. 2022. Performance Analysis of a Spectrally Selective Solar Cell Using PV-GIS Data. In: AIP Conference Proceedings. AGRIVOLTAICS2021 CONFERENCE: Connecting Agrivoltaics Worldwide; 2021/06/14; Freiburg, Germany. Online: AIP Publishing; p.
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PV TechnologiesSystem ConfigurationMicroclimatologySiting
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Germany, Spain
Performance Evaluation for Agrovoltaic DC Generation in Tropical Climatic Conditions
The advancement of photovoltaic (PV) technology requires integration with existing system i.e. agriculture process for a nexus application. In this paper, tropical field performance of 1 kWp Agrovoltaic system is compared with a normal reference array located at the Renewable Energy Research Office (RERO), Faculty of Engineering UPM Serdang, Malaysia. The chosen crops is Misai Kucing (Orthosiphon Stamineus) grown directly underneath the PV array with proper fertigation system. The actual performance of both system is measured for 5 continuous days in December 2018 with 5 minutes data intervals. The results based on the data collection is calculated for these parameters namely energy yield, yield factor, capacity factor, power efficiency and PV array efficiency. The research show that the Agrovoltaic system has better performance compared to the normal reference array in parameters such as DC generation, PV efficiency and Capacity Factor with values of 43.3 kWh, 14.27% 37.9% (maximum CF value) respectively. The plant density factor of Agrovoltaic panel is assumed to be negligible where for this case study, all area underneath the specified PV array is full of crop seedlings.
N.F. Othman, A.S. Mat Su, S. Yap, M.E. Ya’acob, H. Hizam, N. Iskandar. 2019. Performance Evaluation for Agrovoltaic DC Generation in Tropical Climatic Conditions. In: AIP Conference Proceedings. 5TH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON GREEN DESIGN AND MANUFACTURE; 2019/04/29; Jawa Barat, Indonesia. Online: AIP Publishing; p.
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MicroclimatologyPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Malaysia
Performance Evaluation of Vertical Bifacial and Single-axis Tracked Agrivoltaic Systems on Arable Land
This study evaluates and compares two types of interspersed bifacial agrivoltaic systems in Belgium: a fixed vertical system and a dynamic single-axis tracker, focusing on sugarbeet cultivation. Additionally, the impact of different tracking algorithms on crop yield and quality is investigated. The main approach involves developing an empirical crop model based on radiation use efficiency (RUE) and utilizing a radiation tool to simulate crop yield and quality. Field measurements of electricity and crop output are conducted over a span of two years, 2021 and 2022. The findings reveal that the dynamic solar tracker outperforms the fixed vertical bifacial setup in both years. The smart-tracking algorithm, applied under optimal watering conditions in the 2021 season, leads to a significant increase in energy yield (＋30%) and land use efficiency (＋20%) at a lower cost, while maintaining comparable crop yields to the vertical setup. However, limitations are observed in the empirical crop growth model’s ability to account for climatic variability in the dry 2022 year, reducing its usefulness during the design phase. Notably, the practical implementation of the systems highlights challenges during construction and exploitation, emphasizing the significance of considering these practical factors together with climate, structure and crop choice assessing the effectiveness and to de-risk investments.
Brecht Willockx, Cas Lavaert, Jan Cappelle. 2023. Performance Evaluation of Vertical Bifacial and Single-axis Tracked Agrivoltaic Systems on Arable Land. Renewable Energy. 217:
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Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyMarket AssessmentsSystem ConfigurationImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Belgium
Performance of Agrivoltaic Systems for Shade-Intolerant Crops: Land for Both Food and Clean Energy Production
The purpose of this research is to examine the performance of agrivoltaic systems, which produce crops and electricity simultaneously, by installing stilt-mounted photovoltaic (PV) panels on farmland. As PV power stations continue to enjoy remarkable growth, land occupation with the purpose of establishing solar farms will intensify the competition for land resources between food and clean energy production. In a bid to reduce this competition, previous studies have suggested the use of agrivoltaic systems, which produce shade-tolerant crops such as lettuce under PV modules. However, if agrivoltaics work well only for some shade-tolerant crops, as existing studies seem to infer, their practical applicability would be very limited. Thus, this research explores the performance of an agrivoltaic farm producing corn, a typical shade-intolerant crop. The research was conducted at a 100-m2 experimental farm with three sub-configurations: no modules (control), low-module density, and high-module density. Eight 0.76-m-wide PV module arrays, spaced at 0.71 m intervals comprise the high-density configuration, while four PV module arrays spaced at 1.67 m intervals comprise the low-density configuration. In each configuration, 25 corn stalks were planted 0.5 m apart (9 stalks/m2).
The results showed that the stilt-mounted agrivoltaic system can mitigate the trade-off between crop production and clean energy generation even when applied to shade-intolerant crops. First, the biomass of corn stover grown in the low-density PV module configuration was larger than that of the no-module control configuration by 4.9%. Second, the corn yield per square meter of the low-density configuration was larger than that of the control by 5.6%. Third, the total annual revenue of the high-density configuration was 8.3 times larger than that of the control, while that of the low-density configuration was 4.7 times larger. Furthermore, according to the cost-benefit analysis for this case study, a good return on the investment is likely for such agrivoltaic systems. The cost-benefit ratios of high-density and low-density configurations over a 20-year period were 1.898 and 1.779, respectively, indicating that both systems would be financially feasible.
The results of this research should encourage more conventional farmers, clean energy producers, and policy makers to consider adopting stilt-mounted PV systems. Beyond its applications in agriculture, this system has the potential to generate electricity on pasture land, water surfaces, roads, and many other places without devastating the natural environment. Particularly in densely populated regions, mountainous areas, small inhabited islands, and barren desert areas, where land resources are relatively scarce, this system could exploit limited land resources for simultaneous food and clean energy production.T. Sekiyama. 2019. Performance of Agrivoltaic Systems for Shade-Intolerant Crops: Land for Both Food and Clean Energy Production [Thesis]. [Digital Access To Scholarship at Harvard]: Harvard Extension School.
Plant ScienceEconomicsSystem ConfigurationPolicy and Regulatory IssuesMarket Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Thesis/Dissertation
Country
Japan
Performance of Photovoltaic Canarian Greenhouse: a Comparison Study Between Summer and Winter Seasons
A large-scale use of the renewable energy in agriculture has become an optimal way to successfully deal with the issues of sustainability and climate change. Recently, the integration of solar panels on the roof of the greenhouse gave birth to a new crop production system called photovoltaic greenhouse.
In this paper, we investigated the shading effect of the flexible photovoltaic panels, mounted on the greenhouse roof area in the checkerboard format, on the microclimate and the tomatoes yield during the summer and winter period. This study was undertaken in a two tomato canarian greenhouses, typical of the south Mediterranean region.
The results of our study showed that the photovoltaic panels covering 40% roof area of the canary type greenhouse does not have a significant effect on the climatic parameters. Additionally, during the hot period, the photovoltaic panels reduced the temperature inside the greenhouse and sometimes falling in the optimum range for the tomatoes growth. Furthermore, this occupancy rate of the photovoltaic panels does not have a significant effect on the overall yield of tomatoes.K. Ezzaeri, H. Fatnassi, A. Wifaya, A. Bazgaou, A. Aharoune, C. Poncet, A. Bekkaoui, L. Bouirden. 2020. Performance of Photovoltaic Canarian Greenhouse: a Comparison Study Between Summer and Winter Seasons. Solar Energy. 198:275-282.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologySystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Morocco
Perovskite Solar Cells: Emerging Photovoltaic Technology for Achieving Net-Zero Emission Agrivoltaics Ecosystem
The expected population growth and resulting increase in food and energy demands have become global concerns to be addressed with urgent and targeted actions. Agrivoltaics has recently emerged as the practice of co-locating photovoltaic (PV) infrastructure and agriculture to alleviate land-use competition between energy and agriculture production. However, PV and agriculture are highly dependent on the utilization of sunlight. Therefore, the design of a PV system is critical for maximizing electricity generation and plant biomass production. Perovskite solar cells (PSCs), as an emerging PV technology, attract intensive attention owing to low fabrication cost, high performance, and tunable transmission. Accordingly, PSCs show promising application in a net-zero emission agrivoltaics ecosystem. In this perspective, the advantages of PSC-integrated agrivoltaics are discussed by comparing with traditional PV technologies. Thereafter, the promising and sustainable way is proposed to employ PSCs for electricity generation, plant growth, and aquatic animal development in an agrivoltaics ecosystem. Lastly, a design principle is provided for tailoring PSCs for a sustainable agrivoltaics ecosystem to simultaneously solve the energy and food crises.
Boping Yang, Mingming Zhang, Guo Qiao, Hong Zhang. 2023. Perovskite Solar Cells: Emerging Photovoltaic Technology for Achieving Net-Zero Emission Agrivoltaics Ecosystem. Solar RRL. 7(13):
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LivestockMicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Photosynthetically Active Radiation Decomposition Models for Agrivoltaic Systems Applications
Decomposition models of solar irradiance estimate the magnitude of diffuse horizontal irradiance from global horizontal irradiance. These two radiation components are well-known to be essential for the prediction of solar photovoltaic systems performance. In open-field agrivoltaic systems, that is the dual use of land for both agricultural activities and solar power conversion, cultivated crops receive an unequal amount of direct, diffuse and reflected photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) depending on the area they are growing due to the non-homogenously shadings caused by the solar panels installed (above the crops or vertically mounted). It is known that PAR is more efficient for canopy photosynthesis under conditions of diffuse PAR than direct PAR per unit of total PAR. For this reason, it is fundamental to estimate the diffuse PAR component in agrivoltaic systems studies to properly predict the crop yield. Since PAR is the part of electromagnetic radiation in the waveband from 400 to 700 nm that can be used for photosynthesis by the crops, several stand-alone decomposition models of solar irradiance are selected in this study to partition PAR into direct and diffuse. These models are applied and validated in three locations in Sweden: Lanna, Hyltemossa and Norunda, using the coefficients stated on the original publications of the models and locally fitted coefficients. Results showed weaker performances in all stand-alone models for non-locally fitted coefficients (nRMSE ranging from 29% to 95%). However, performances improve with re-parameterization, reaching highest nRMSE of 37.94% in Lanna. YANG2 decomposition model is the best-performing one, reaching lowest nRMSE of 24.31% in Norunda applying re-estimated coefficients. Country level sets of coefficients for the best-performing models, YANG2 and STARKE, are given after parameterization using joined data of the three locations in Sweden. These Sweden-fitted models are tested and showing nRMSE of 25.56% (YANG2) and 28.36% (STARKE). These results can be used to perform estimations of PAR diffuse component in Sweden where measurements are not available, and the overall methodology can be similarly applied to other countries.
S.M. Lu, S. Zainali, P.E. Campana, B. Stridh, A. Avelin, S. Amaducci, M. Colauzzi. 2022. Photosynthetically Active Radiation Decomposition Models for Agrivoltaic Systems Applications. Solar Energy. 244:536-549.
MicroclimatologyMethodological Comparisons
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Sweden
Photovoltaic Agricultural Internet of Things Towards Realizing the Next Generation of Smart Farming
Serious challenges for to drive agricultural sustainability combined with climate crisis issues have induced an urgent need to decarbonise agriculture. In this paper, we briefly introduce a novel concept of the Photovoltaic Agricultural Internet of Things (PAIoT). This system approach fuses agricultural production with renewable power generation and control via an IoT platform. We discuss PAIoT applications and potential to realize the next generation of smart farming. In addition, we provide a review of key issues on the feasibility of PAIoT and further propose novel techniques to mitigate these key issues.
Kai Huang, Lei Shu, Kailiang Li, Fan Yang, Guangjie Han, Xiaochan Wang, Simon Pearson. 2020. Photovoltaic Agricultural Internet of Things Towards Realizing the Next Generation of Smart Farming. IEEE Access. 8:76300-76312.
System ConfigurationStandardization and Best PracticesReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Photovoltaic Agriculture - New Opportunity for Photovoltaic Applications in China
Photovoltaic industry has been an important development direction of China's strategic emerging industries since 2012, and more and more attentions have been paid to broaden the domestic demand to solve the problem of overcapacity of China's PV industry. Photovoltaic agriculture, the combination of photovoltaic power generation and agricultural activities, is a natural response to supply the green and sustainable electricity for agriculture. There are several main application modes of photovoltaic agriculture such as photovoltaic agricultural greenhouse, photovoltaic breeding, photovoltaic wastewater purification, photovoltaic water pumping and new type rural solar power station. Photovoltaic agriculture can effectively alleviate the contradiction between more population and less land, powerfully promote the development of controlled environmental agriculture, evidently increase economic benefits of farmers, and significantly improve environment due to emissions reduction in China. In recent years, photovoltaic agriculture has a rapid development in China due to powerful support policies, flourishing controlled environmental agriculture, policy-oriented rural electrification and promising electric machinery for greenhouse. Therefore, photovoltaic agriculture provides new opportunity for China's photovoltaic industry, thus not only to solve the dilemma of overcapacity for China's photovoltaic industry effectively, but also to accelerate the development of modern agriculture in China. However, the more theoretical researches and practical exploration must be conducted to optimize the combination of photovoltaic power generation and agricultural planting. And the unified standards must be established to standardize the design and scale of projects of photovoltaic agriculture. Also, photovoltaic enterprises need to produce widely applicable photovoltaic products for agricultural production and farmers’ life.
Jinlin Xue. 2017. Photovoltaic Agriculture - New Opportunity for Photovoltaic Applications in China. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. 73:1-9.
Reviews/InformationalPolicy and Regulatory Issues
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse, Animal Grazing
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
Photovoltaic Application in Modern Agriculture
The use of photovoltaic (PV) electricity in modern agriculture has shown its advantages since the 1970s when it was possible to obtain a substantial green energy without the pollution by burning fossil fuels (coal, oil or natural gas) or the threaten of nuclear accident. Due to the price descent of the PV system, some new applications are becoming economically attractive, like the combination of PV and agriculture. Meanwhile, the use of agricultural soils contributes to making photovoltaic a low-cost energy generation source. Briefly, this combination can be a standby power or a direct injection to grid that is applied in a wide range of modern farming: irrigation, greenhouses and agricultural machinery. Therefore, the main aim of this study is to introduce these various applications of photovoltaics in modern agriculture.
Huaxin Wang, Miguel Angel Muñoz Garcia, Guillermo P. Moreda Cantero. 2016. Photovoltaic Application in Modern Agriculture. In: VII Congreso de Estudiantes Universitarios de Ciencia, Tecnología e Ingeniería Agronómica. VII Congreso de Estudiantes Universitarios de Ciencia, Tecnología e Ingeniería Agronómica; 2015/05/05; Madrid, Spain. Spain: VII Congreso de Estudiantes Universitarios de Ciencia, Tecnología e Ingeniería Agronómica; p.
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MicroclimatologyReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Photovoltaic Greenhouses: A Feasible Solutions for Islands? Design, Operation, Monitoring and Lessons Learned From a Real Case Study
A photovoltaic (PV) greenhouse has a part of its transparent covering replaced by (opaque) PV components. This system allows for a " double use " of the resource land, because it generates energy in the form of biomass (crops, or flowers, or algae) and, also, electric energy. In islands, where land is limited, the energy demand is increasing; the use of renewables is crucial for the preservation of the ecosystems. At the same time, the production of food on site is very important. Therefore, PV greenhouses seem to be a good option. This paper presents the analysis of the a PV greenhouse that has been built in 2011 in the French island of La Réunion and monitored for 3 years now.
Alessandra Scognamiglio, Francois Garde, Tahiana Ratsimba, Anne Monnier, Eric Scotto. 2015. Photovoltaic Greenhouses: A Feasible Solutions for Islands? Design, Operation, Monitoring and Lessons Learned From a Real Case Study. In: The 6th World Conference on Photovoltaic Energy Conversion; 2014/11/23; Kyoto, Japan. Online: researchgate.net; p.
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Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyEconomics
Photovoltaic Greenhouses: Evaluation of Shading Effect and Its Influence on Agricultural Performances
During the last years, European government remuneration polices promoted the realisation of photovoltaic systems integrated with the structures instead of on ground photovoltaic (PV) plants. In this context, in rural areas, greenhouses covered with PV modules have been developed. In order to interdict the building of greenhouses with an amount of opaque panels on covering not coherent with the plant production, local laws assigned a threshold value, usually between 25% and 50%, of the projection on the soil of the roof. These ranges seem not to be based on scientific evaluation about the agricultural performances required to the building but only on empirical assessments. Purpose of this paper is to contribute to better understand the effect of different configurations of PV panels on the covering of a monospan duo-pitched roof greenhouse in terms of shading effect and energy efficiency during different periods of the year. At this aim, daylighting and insolation analysis were performed by means of the software Autodesk® Ecotect® Analysis (Autodesk, Inc., San Rafael, CA, USA) on greenhouse model with different covering ratio of polycrystalline photovoltaic panels on the roof.
Sergio Castellano. 2014. Photovoltaic Greenhouses: Evaluation of Shading Effect and Its Influence on Agricultural Performances. Journal of Agricultural Engineering. 45(4):
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MicroclimatologySystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Photovoltaic Panel Temperature and Heat Distribution Analysis for Thermoelectric Generator Application
An experimental study has been conducted to analyze the feasibility of converting the excess heat from PV panels into electrical energy by observing the temperature levels and heat distribution of typical monocrystalline silicon (mono cSi) photovoltaic (PV) panels for photovoltaic-thermoelectric generator (PV-TEG) hybrid application in tropical climate, for example in a Hybrid Agrivoltaic (HAV) Greenhouse System project. It was concluded that the excess heat from the bottom surface of PV panels can be utilize by converting the heat via heat differential to harvest extra electrical energy by applying TEG modules or system. From the experimental results, the highest temperature of the bottom PV panel surface panel recorded at 81.1°C during solar noon and expected to reach even higher during hot weather season. The highest power output from the 160 numbers TEG modules in series and parallel arrangement were expected to reach 119 Watt in the afternoon on a normal sunny day. This output is expected to fluctuate over the weather temperature fluctuation throughout the day.
A. Ruzaimi, S. Shafie, W. Z. W. Hassan, N. Azis, M. E. Ya'acob, E. E. Supeni. 2019. Photovoltaic Panel Temperature and Heat Distribution Analysis for Thermoelectric Generator Application. In: 2018 IEEE 5th International Conference on Smart Instrumentation, Measurement and Application (ICSIMA); 2018/11/28; Songkhla, Thailand. Online: IEEE Xplore; p.
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MicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Photovoltaic Panels as Shading Resources for Livestock
Based on our search, we believe that this is the first paper to evaluate the use of photovoltaic panels as shade resources for livestock. Photovoltaic panels can provide artificial shades to protect livestock against intense solar radiation while serving as a clean energy source, reducing CO2 emission, and providing an additional source of income to farmers. These benefits foster sustainable livestock farming practices. In this study, we (1) determined livestock shade preference for photovoltaic panels and the classical 80%-blockage cloth material, and (2) quantified the reduction in radiant heat load provided by these shade structures. To determine the shade preference, the behavior of five Corriedale lambs and six Corriedale ewes were observed in a paddock with two shade structures (one with photovoltaic panels and another with an 80%-blockage cloth). The following behavioral activities were determined using the instantaneous scan sampling method each 10-min from 07:00 h to 17:00 h: grazing, ruminating, idling, lying, standing, under the sun, under the shade from photovoltaic panels, and under the shade from cloth. To correlate animal behavior with environmental conditions and to quantify the reduction in radiant heat load provided by these shade structures, the following meteorological variables were recorded: solar radiation (total and short-wave), air temperature, relative humidity, wind speed, and black-globe temperature (in the shades and in the sun). We observed that the animals spent less than 1% of their time under the shade from cloth compared to 38% under the shade from photovoltaic panels and 61% exposed to the sun. Sheep preference for shade projected by photovoltaic panels might be explained by the reduced radiant heat load (approximately lower by 40 W m−2) compared to that from the cloth. When the intensity of solar radiation increased from 250 to 850 W m−2, the time the animals spent outside the shades decreased from 96.7 ± 3.6% to 30.2 ± 6.3%, which was coupled with a similar increase in the time spent in the shade from photovoltaic panels (from 13.0 ± 3.3% to 69.3 ± 6.2%). For the same increase in solar radiation, the energy generated (integrated over 5-min) by the photovoltaic panels increased from 38.8 ± 5.9 to 197.9 ± 3.8 kWh. Over a period of one year, an electric energy of 5.19 MWh (monthly average of 432.33 kWh) was generated and 2.77 tons of CO2 were not emitted to the atmosphere. In economic terms, the electric energy generated in one year was equivalent to a saving of $740.
A.S.C. Maia, E.d.A. Culhari, V.d.F.C. Fonsêca, H.F.M. Milan, K.G. Gebremedhin. 2020. Photovoltaic Panels as Shading Resources for Livestock. Journal of Cleaner Production. 258:1-9.
LivestockPV TechnologiesMicroclimatologyImpact AssessmentsEconomics
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Brazil
Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conversion: Technologies, Applications and Environmental Impacts
Shiva Gorjian, Ashish Shukla. 2020. Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conversion: Technologies, Applications and Environmental Impacts. LONDON, England, United Kingdom: Academic Press. 453p.
PV TechnologiesSystem ConfigurationReviews/Informational
Photovoltaic Tea Plantation in China
Photovoltaic (PV) agriculture is a new type of agriculture that widely applies solar power generation to modern agricultural planting, breeding, irrigation, pest control and power supply of agricultural machinery. PV-agriculture system meets the requirements of biological chain relationship and biologically optimal production of raw material-energy system, follows the production rules of agricultural products and innovates material and energy conversion technology so as to achieve the purpose of intelligent light, water and temperature regulation. The agricultural products produced by PV-agriculture system is safer, more nutritious and more productive than the products produced by the traditional way. Tea (Camellia sinensis) is a typical weak light tolerant plant and the best crop for building PV-agriculture system. The advances in PV-tea plantation system studies, including effects of PV on yield, quality, abiotic stress and economic efficiency of tea production are discussed in the present paper.
Zhuo-Yu Cai, Long-Jie Zhang, Kai-Rong Wang, Rong-Jin Zheng, Yue-Rong Liang. 2019. Photovoltaic Tea Plantation in China. Agriculture & Food. 7:28-36.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologySystem Configuration
Photovoltaic Win–Win
With the cost of photovoltaics falling and installed capacity increasing rapidly, there is a real need for research into the impacts of large-scale solar installations. Solar arrays compete with agriculture for land, but this can be minimized by intermingling solar panels with agriculture in what has been termed agrivoltaic systems. Elnaz Hassanpour Adeh, from Oregon State University, and co-workers used a field experiment to investigate the impact of a six-acre agrivoltaic solar farm on microclimatology, soil moisture and pasture production.
They find that significant differences in mean air temperature, relative humidity, wind speed, wind direction and soil moisture are caused by the panels. Pasture under solar panels experienced a significant increase (up to 90%) in late-season biomass. This net yield benefit was largely due to increased water-use efficiency in the shaded areas that left water stored in the soil available throughout the entire growing season. This study shows that, at least in semi-arid pastures with wet winters, solar deployment can reduce pasture water demand, thereby increasing yields while generating power.
Alastair Brown. 2019. Photovoltaic Win–Win. Nature Climate Change. 9:7.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatology
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing
Document type
Journal Article
Photovoltaic/Spectrum Performance Analysis of a Multifunctional Solid Spectral Splitting Covering for Passive Solar Greenhouse Roof
Full-spectrum efficient conversion is one of the international frontiers research in the field of greenhouse engineering. Visible light (400–780 nm) is critical for driving the photosynthesis process of greenhouse plants, but near-infrared spectrum (780–2500 nm) have little contributions and may cause overheating. In this research, a novel greenhouse covering structure named as the spectral splitting covering is designed which can transmit visible light and convert near-infrared light into electricity. The working principle of this covering and the design and analysis of structure parameters are introduced, and meanwhile, a numerical simulation of the light path variation of internal structure and the optical characteristics of the device are also provided. Based on the simulation results, the visible light transmissivity and the electric power of this covering were measured under the actual weather condition. The energy analysis and performance estimation of the system are provided at last. The results show that the simulated transmissivity was in good agreement with the experimental values, and the all-day visible light transmissivity was above 40% and the maximum reached 57.7%. The electric power of this covering shows a trend of being high at noon and low in the morning and evening. The maximum value was 133.2 W∙m−2 and the full-day photovoltaic efficiency was 6.88%. The visible light energy entering the greenhouse was 4.49 MJ∙m−2·d−1 for crop photosynthesis, and this covering can effectively reduce the cooling energy consumption in greenhouse with the 78% near-infrared blocking rate. It can be proved that this new covering can ensure the plant growth and convert the near-infrared light into electricity without the solar tracking system, which realizes the concentrating spectral splitting utilization and provides a new approach for improving the comprehensive utilization of full-spectrum solar energy in the greenhouse.
Qianlei Ma, Yi Zhang, Gang Wu, Qichang Yang, Yu Yuan, Ruifeng Cheng, Yuxin Tong, Hui Fang. 2022. Photovoltaic/Spectrum Performance Analysis of a Multifunctional Solid Spectral Splitting Covering for Passive Solar Greenhouse Roof. Energy Conversion and Management. 251:
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PV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Photovoltaics Alter Plant Productivity
Large arrays of photovoltaic panels could potentially generate substantial amounts of renewable energy, but they require land that might otherwise be used for food production. To avoid this trade-off and instead coproduce energy and forage food, agrivoltaic systems (that is, solar panels placed over or between crop rows) have been developed and are now deployed in semiarid grassland areas. However, how the presence of solar arrays affects light, soil moisture and plant productivity is not well established. Writing in Ecosphere, Sturchio et al. show that aboveground net primary production in a formerly managed C3 grassland in Colorado, USA, was only significantly reduced directly beneath solar panels, in areas where soil moisture and incident sunlight were low. By contrast, they find that productivity was increased when plants had more sunlight in the morning but were shaded in the afternoon. Surprisingly, where soil moisture was highest (owing to water runoff from the photovoltaic panels), aboveground net primary production was unaffected. These findings indicate that although productivity is likely to be reduced directly beneath solar panels, there is high spatial variability in productivity across photovoltaic arrays — including areas where productivity is enhanced — owing to complex interactions between changes in soil moisture and incident sunlight.
Simon Harold. 2023. Photovoltaics Alter Plant Productivity. Nature Ecology & Evolution. 7:494.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
Colorado
Photovoltaics and Electrification in Agriculture
The editorial introduces a Special Issue entitled “Photovoltaics and Electrification in Agriculture”. Agriculture requires not only tillage and fertilization but also water supply and, in some cases, heating and cooling. These needs go hand in hand with the use of energy, which, increasingly, is electrical energy. An option that has dropped a lot in price in recent years is photovoltaic energy. This type of energy has experienced an explosion in terms of its expansion worldwide and has been revealed as a viable solution to rapidly increase the electrical power of non-fossil origin. However, the use of panels must compete with the use of the soil for cultivation, and in many cases, it could displace the use of the soil for cultivation, something that would not be desirable either from a production point of view or from an ecological point of view. For this, a new concept of soil sharing for crops and energy production is being developed in what is called “agrovoltaics”. This shared production model is analyzed in this document. In addition, the electrification of agriculture allows the introduction of elements, such as sensors, the IoT, and intelligent control. The internet connection opens the doors to technologies such as those based on data, digital control, and what is called precision agriculture, both for cultivation in greenhouses and for regular cultivation. This would not be possible without an electrical energy source that allows powering the inter-connected elements, photovoltaics being the best candidate again. However, above all, we must not forget the issue of CO2 emissions due to the use of energy in agriculture. In this sense, photovoltaic energy can reduce the carbon footprint and provide one of the cheapest energy sources available. All these topics are analyzed in this Special Issue, focusing on photovoltaics and its uses and impact on agriculture. Energy is inherent in ancient and modern agriculture, in one form or another. It is necessary for tillage, for pumping, and for the transport and transformation of the products. Modern agriculture manages to produce enough food for the growing world population (even though it is not correctly distributed, and this generates famines in many areas of the planet). This is possible thanks not only to the use of new agriculture techniques but also to the help of the energy necessary to carry out these techniques. In most cases, the origin of this energy could be electrical, even more and more in transport, with electric vehicles, and without any doubt, for pumping, heating, cooling and in the powering of the control systems associated to the new agriculture based on expert systems. The origin of the energy must be renewable to guarantee the achievement of neutrality of greenhouse gas emissions and therefore, probably the most important source will be photovoltaic energy. According to Eurostat [1] areas such as EU, agriculture poses around 3.3% of the final energy consumption. From it, 55% comes from fossil fuel sources, despite the global consumption decreased by 8.1% in the past two decades. Besides this, it must be pointed out that globally, electricity is only around 20% of the energy consumed, but it has been increasing in the past decades, when it was less than 10% fifty years ago, according to IEA [2]. Electricity also makes it possible to technify crops in so-called precision agriculture. In this way, agriculture optimizes the resources used, reduces the carbon footprint and the environmental impact, and manages to produce more, better, and more efficiently. Precision agriculture is the evolution of agriculture towards sustainability. All of this requires efficient technology and energy with the least possible impact, such as photovoltaic energy.
M.A.M. García, L.H. Callejo. 2021. Photovoltaics and Electrification in Agriculture. Agronomy. 12(1):1-5.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Photovoltaics in Agriculture: A Case Study on Decision Making of Farmers
This paper aims to identify the success factors, incentives, barriers and challenges in the adoption process of photovoltaics (PV) in the agricultural sector, with particular focus placed on decision making of individual farmers and network effects. We investigated a successful case of an Austrian farmers' association that set up a community power plant concept and a society for facilitating PV adoption among farmers. We found that PV adoption decisions are driven by economic and environmental considerations and that while ethical considerations are relatively strong among farmers, they cannot be used as predictors in the decision making process. Results furthermore suggest that while adoption of PV increases belief in technological progress as a solution to environmental problems, it may simultaneously lead to a weakening in the belief that underlying lifestyle changes are necessary. Our conclusions address crucial aspects of PV adoption in agriculture, and implications for policy measures related to respective community initiatives.
Thomas Brudermann, Kathrin Reinsberger, Anita Orthofer, Martin Kislinger, Alfred Posch. 2013. Photovoltaics in Agriculture: A Case Study on Decision Making of Farmers. Energy Policy. 61:96-103.
Social PerspectivesPolicy and Regulatory Issues
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Austria
Photovoltaics in Horticulture as an Opportunity to Reduce Operating Costs. A Case Study in Poland
Fruit farms can become prosumers - producers of electricity for their own needs, without the possibility of selling overproduction. The subject of the study were the costs of electricity in fruit growing. The paper presents a research hypothesis that reads: Agriculture-Polish orcharding can contribute to an increase in the share of energy produced from renewable sources. The aim of the study was to determine the impact of installed photovoltaic panels on the cost of fruit-growing activities. The research methodology was based on a case study. An orchard farm producing apples and peaches on a total area of 33 ha was presented. The costs of fruit growing were developed and the share of electricity consumption costs was indicated in them. Studies have shown that a return on investment in photovoltaic panels is possible after about 8 years. Energy costs account for around 6% of the cost of an orchard. Installing photovoltaic panels on the roofs of cold stores will reduce these costs by half. The main conclusion of the study is that the costs of electricity consumption can be reduced in Poland as a result of the use of fotovoltaic installations, provided that you receive financial support from the state or other institutions, e.g. in the form of subsidies or exemption from agricultural tax.
A. Lakomiak, K. A. Zhichkin. 2019. Photovoltaics in Horticulture as an Opportunity to Reduce Operating Costs. A Case Study in Poland. Journal of Physics: Conference Series. 1399(4):
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Market AssessmentsEconomics
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Poland
Photovoltaics in Swedish Agriculture: Technical Potential, Grid Integration and Profitability
This paper investigates the realizable potential for photovoltaic (PV) systems in Swedish agriculture. Marginal lands and available building areas for PV systems are quantified, and factors limiting the potential are analyzed. It is shown that the potential for PV in Swedish agriculture is high, but what is fully realizable is limited by the capacity of the rural power grid. A case study in the rural municipality of Herrljunga was conducted and scaled to national level. The study shows that the risk of surges in the medium voltage grid (10 kV) in rural areas are small in case where all roof surfaces with an annual solar irradiance of over 950 kWh/m2 are used for solar power. The total electricity production from the Swedish agriculture, if all roof areas with this irradiance level were used, is estimated to 4 TWh annually. With solar power on all roof surfaces with an annual irradiance of at least 900 kWh per m2 problems with voltage rise and overloads in the electricity grid might occur. The electrical grid capacities thus substantially limit how much solar power can be installed. Our results also show that the profitability limits the potential to 0.2 TWh on a national level, but that it could increase if more optimistic economic conditions are assumed.
(!) . 2016. Photovoltaics in Swedish Agriculture: Technical Potential, Grid Integration and Profitability. In: Solar World Congress 2015; 2015/11/08; Daegu, Korea. Online: International Solar Energy Society; p.
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Market AssessmentsEconomics
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production, Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Sweden
Photovoltaism, Agriculture and Ecology: From Agrivoltaism to Ecovoltaism
Claude Grison, Lucie Cases, Martine Hossaert-McKey, Mailys Le Moigne. 2021. Photovoltaism, Agriculture and Ecology: From Agrivoltaism to Ecovoltaism. LONDON, England, United Kingdom: ISTE Ltd.. 176p.
Social PerspectivesPolicy and Regulatory IssuesSystem ConfigurationImpact AssessmentsReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production, Habitat/Ecovoltaics, Greenhouse
Document type
Book
Country
France
Planning Ground Based Utility Scale Solar Energy as Green Infrastructure to Enhance Ecosystem Services
The agricultural sector is often characterized by monocultures and high company fragmentation that led to biodiversity loss and compromised important ecosystem functions, among these the pollination. Pollination is necessary for the health of ecological and agricultural systems, since they guarantee the fecundation of 80% of flower-flora species. This service is valuated among 235 and 577 billion dollars each year. Land use change is among the potential cause of pollinator's reduction. In most southern Italian regions, as Apulia, there was a land use competition between agriculture and renewable energy production, in particular photovoltaic (PV) system, due to the European policy aiming to decarbonize the energy production. Lot of agriculture companies moved toward the PV development to retrieve certain revenue, thanks to legislative and fiscal policies encouraging PV development. Here we propose a methodology to harmonize energy production, agriculture and the enhancement of ecosystem services, looking for a synergy between different economic activities and stakeholders. Areas occupied by PV system can be used for other purposes, as grazing or cultivation or educational activities. Naturalization activities can give back these spaces to pollinator populations notwithstanding the presence of PV panels, enhancing the pollination ecosystem service without affecting other agricultural areas.
Teodoro Semeraro, Alessandro Pomes, Cecilia Del Giudice, Danilo Negro, Roberta Aretano. 2018. Planning Ground Based Utility Scale Solar Energy as Green Infrastructure to Enhance Ecosystem Services. Energy Policy. 117:218-227.
Plant ScienceMarket AssessmentsEconomicsEntomology
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Italy
Plant Growth Under Photovoltaic Arrays of Varying Transparencies – A Study of Plant Response to Light and Shadow in Agrivoltaic Systems
Amidst the rising global pressures put on the interdependent systems in the food, energy, and water nexus, this document highlights the potential for systems-based solutions at the intersection of food cultivation, ecosystem services, and energy production in urban and rural environments. Agrivoltaics (APV) is a land-use model that enables simultaneous cultivation of food crops and electricity generation on the same plot of land. Agrivoltaic systems integrate solar photovoltaic (PV) energy generation with agricultural operations, maximizing the utilization of solar energy. This approach has gained significant research interest in the United States with scalable implementation is on the horizon.
Research efforts at Colorado State University (CSU) aim to advance the understanding of plant responses to various shade conditions under PV arrays, benefiting stakeholders in agriculture, solar energy industries, policymakers, and governmental agencies. In particular, agrivoltaic research conducted at CSU's Horticulture and Landscape Architecture (HLA) department has focused on open field specialty crops and native pollinator plant species while documenting the overarching light and temperature growing environment. A replicated 2-year crop trial was conducted at the open field test site, comparing crop yield and growing conditions under three different PV module types with varying transparencies to traditional full sun production. Statistical analysis revealed a reduction in squash yield directly under the PV panels while no significant differences in yield for bell peppers, jalapeno peppers, lettuce and tomatoes growing north and south of the arrays. In a separate study, a simulated green roof structure was constructed around an existing PV array at CSU's Foothills Campus to explore the feasibility of rooftop agrivoltaics. A one-year study of six native pollinator plant species was conducted to assess differences in establishment, survivability, growth index, and growing conditions between full sun and PV shade environments. Overall, there were no statistically significant differences in mean Plant Growth Index (PGI) throughout the establishment season, however, notable variations in overwinter survivability were observed.
In both studies the PV modules moderated the environment, resulting in lower maximum daytime ambient temperatures and even greater reduction in soil temperature throughout the growing season. Light levels are reduced under all PV module types with the least reduction under semi-transparent modules. Variations in growing conditions in these APV systems indicate the need for further research to optimize PV systems in order to maximize energy production and plant vitality.Thomas Hickey. 2023. Plant Growth Under Photovoltaic Arrays of Varying Transparencies – A Study of Plant Response to Light and Shadow in Agrivoltaic Systems [Thesis]. [ProQuest]: Colorado State University,.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologySoilPV TechnologiesSystem ConfigurationReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Thesis/Dissertation
Country
United States
State
Colorado
Plant Growth and Development Under Experimental Transparent Photovoltaic and Red-Fluorescent Greenhouse Coverings
While greenhouse design varies in sophistication, all greenhouses utilize covers that transmit photosynthetically active radiation (PAR; 400–700 nm) to crops grown inside. These covering materials can have different transmission characteristics including spectral distribution,
photosynthetic photon flux density (PPFD; 400–700 nm), and diffuseness (i.e., light scattering). Such characteristics can independently or interactively impact the growth and development of greenhouse crops. There is increasing interest in developing and integrating advanced greenhouse covers with 1) photovoltaic (PV) materials that generate electricity to power mechanical equipment or provide an additional, passive income source for growers; and 2) fluorescent pigments that alter the solar spectrum to potentially increase crop growth and yield. Despite their potential, their shortand long-term effects on greenhouse crop yield and quality are largely unknown. Thus, the objective of this research was to evaluate the growth, flowering, and fruiting of economically important greenhouse crops under experimental transparent PV panels and red-fluorescent covers to inform further development and ultimately application in greenhouse-based horticulture. The integration of PV panels in agriculture, commonly referred to as "agrivoltaics", is a possible solution to concurrently address the rising global energy and food demand while considering land-use efficiency. As PV materials have developed technologically, they can now be designed to selectively transmit PAR and potentially be integrated into greenhouse structures. However, a tradeoff is created where PV materials and plants compete for the same resource – solar energy. The tradeoffs of PV panel absorption (for electricity generation) and transmission (for plant growth) of various light wavebands are not well understood. Therefore, we evaluated the effects of
neutral-density and experimental, photoselective PV materials that primarily absorbed photons between 400 and 850 nm on commercially important crop types of leafy greens, culinary herbs, fruiting crops, and floriculture crops. Regardless of the transmitted photon distribution, the best predictor of crop yield and quality was the average daily light integral (DLI; 400–700 nm). Over multiple years of research, leafy greens, culinary herbs, and floriculture crops exhibited greater tolerance to PV shading than fruiting crops and therefore have the greatest potential for cultivation in agrivoltaic systems. In contrast, PV shading decreased the yield of fruiting crops. Our findings collectively suggest that PV panels with the greatest PAR transmission (i.e., primarily absorb photons <400 and >700 nm) are the most suitable for greenhouse applications. At the same PPFD, decreasing the intensity of blue (B; 400–499 nm) and green (G; 500–599 nm) light and increasing the intensity of red (R; 600–699 nm) light can potentially increase plant biomass accumulation. This can be attributed to a higher photosynthetic efficiency of R light compared to B and G light, as well as greater leaf expansion and photon interception in a low Blight environment. Spectrum-shifting films absorb B and G light and amplify R light, and to a lesser extent, far-red (FR; 700–750 nm) light. However, this spectral conversion decreases the transmitted PPFD. Our objective was to determine whether a red-fluorescent material would increase biomass accumulation of various greenhouse crops despite the reduction in DLI. In an initial study, a redfluorescent material increased the shoot fresh mass (SFM) of lettuce (Lactuca sativa) by up to 45%, depending on cultivar, compared to a neutral-density (unpigmented) plastic with a 10–25% higher transmitted PPFD. Cultivars with the greatest increase in SFM also had greater leaf area, projected canopy area, and/or plant diameter. In a second study, a red-fluorescent material increased the SFM of lettuce by 17–27% compared to a neutral-density plastic with a similar transmitted DLI, but this effect was not consistent among fruiting or floriculture crops. These experimental results enhance our understanding of the interplay between light quality and intensity on crop growth and opportunities and limitations of using red-fluorescent plastics and transparent PV panels in greenhouse horticulture.Eric Joseph Stallknecht. 2023. Plant Growth and Development Under Experimental Transparent Photovoltaic and Red-Fluorescent Greenhouse Coverings [Dissertation]. [Michigan State University ProQuest Dissertations Publishing]: Michigan State University.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV Technologies
Pollinator-Focused Solar: Observations of Plant-Pollinator Interactions in The Agrivoltaic Understory
Habitat for pollinating insects is declining, which is a concern for agricultural communities that rely on pollination services. Meanwhile, solar energy development is increasing as communities seek to source energy renewably. Land under solar panels is traditionally unused, so some communities are planting pollinator habitat under solar panel canopies to maximize land-use efficiency. However, there are currently no published, peer-reviewed data on whether pollinators use habitat in this solar panel understory. We present a case study of plant-pollinator interactions at a solar energy generation site in southwestern Oregon, a water-limited, dryland ecosystem. Results show no difference in visitation rates of insects to flowers located inside versus outside the solar array. Panel shading did offset the bloom timing for some species, and flowers partially shaded under solar panels produced more blooms during the late season, a time when forage is typically low in this water-limited environment. These data can inform agriculture and pollinator health advocates as they seek land for pollinator habitat restoration in target areas, as well as local solar developers and homeowners deciding how to manage land beneath solar arrays.
M. Graham. 2020. Pollinator-Focused Solar: Observations of Plant-Pollinator Interactions in The Agrivoltaic Understory [Thesis]. [Oregon State University]: Oregon State University.
HydrologySoilEntomologyPlant ScienceMicroclimatologyMethodological Comparisons
Development Strategy
Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Thesis/Dissertation
Country
United States
State
Oregon
Possibilities of Pollinator Conservation Under Solar Farming
Solar energy is becoming more competitive with non-renewable sources, as day by day solar energy production is increasing. It has also been found that nowadays there is a huge utilization of land for the purpose of solar energy production (Dolezal et al., 2021). Solar energy may be exploited in various ways on farms. The term "solar energy farming (SEF)" is used to refer agricultural–solar utilisation systems (also known as agri-voltaic) in which utilised arable land is either augmented with solar energy farming or converted to solar energy farming (Al-Saidi and Lahham, 2019). In addition to technological challenges, solar developers must purchase or lease property that is connected to the current electricity system. Solar projects made out of gravel or mowed turf grass encircled by security fence raise ambient temperatures and are regarded ugly by the general population (Barron- Gafford et al., 2016). Solar farms are large-scale solar installations that harvest the sun's energy using photovoltaic (PV) panels, often known as solar panels, or alternative methods of collecting solar energy, such as concentrating solar systems. In a variety of respects, they differ from rooftop solar systems and even commercial solar power systems (Dolezal et al., 2021). In rural regions, where the removal of land for agricultural use would have economic consequences, especially if farmers rent land for production, resistance might be significant. Ignoring environmental and social concerns leads to disgruntled communities, unfavorable media attention, higher prices, and the potential for solar expansion to be derailed.
Adding components to solar farms that bring extra advantages to the local community is one method to overcome this opposition. The replacement of onsite gravel or turf with well-planned landscaping that adds conservation or commercial benefit is an innovative method. Pollinator conservation necessitates the reintroduction of flowering plants and nesting sites to the landscape (Goulson et al., 2015). The native, perennial, flowering plants of the Midwest attract both wild and managed bees (Tuell et al., 2008), and when planted in a mix (Gill et al., 2014), the number of pollinators increases throughout the growing season. It has also been reported that after planting flowering plants under solar farm, it supplied enough amount of forage for predominant bees and other pollinators which are found to decline in the United States (Koh et al. 2016).
S. Sen, S. Borkataki, S.P. Nanda, M.D. Reddy. 2022. Possibilities of Pollinator Conservation Under Solar Farming. Agriculture & Environment. 3(3):44-46.
Reviews/InformationalEntomology
Possible Implementations of Agrivoltaics in Sweden: With Focus on Solar Irradiation and Electricity Production
With a need for rapid growth of renewable energy sources like photovoltaics, there will also be a competition of land. Agriculture and solar energy share the same optimum conditions of land to produce. But with a combination of the two on the same surface, a concept called agrivoltaic, that issue can be solved. This projects has investigated the possibilities of implementing an agrivoltaic system in Sweden in the near future with a focus on solar irradiation, energy production and crop selection. The decrease in solar irradiation under the panels was simulated because it is an important parameter in making these kinds of systems profitable from a crop and energy perspective. The annual energy production and energy yield was also simulated for various system designs for a comparison between the two important parameters of an agrivoltaic system.
One solar fence system, a single axis tracker system and an integrated PV system was chosen for the simulations. In general, all results of agrivoltaics is location dependent due to important differences in solar irradiance and climate. The solar fence system had the best results regarding the solar irradiance, with a decrease in the range of 3-5% and 20-28 % depending on the design. Single axis trackers had a minimum 3-8 % and maximum 40-59 % and integrated PV had a minimum 42-60% and maximum 50-75 % reduction. When the annual energy was compared with a row spacing of 12 m, the solar fence has an annual energy of 1738 kWh and single axis trackers got 2812 kWh. The results indicate that depending on what is most important for the system, the recommendations are different. If energy is more important, then the single axis tracker system can be a good fit but if it is solar irradiance, the solar fence is better. Both systems should be suitable for shade tolerant crops but if experimenting with others such as field bean and barley, the solar fence is more appropriate. The results for the integrated panels designs indicates that these designs are not a good first fit for Sweden since the reduction is greater than 50 % for most designs. Since there is only one agrivoltaic system in Sweden with results on one type of crop, there is a need for more systems with different designs and crops to be able to tell the real potential of agrivoltaics is Sweden.
J. Suuronen. 2022. Possible Implementations of Agrivoltaics in Sweden: With Focus on Solar Irradiation and Electricity Production [Thesis]. [Online]: Uppsala University.
MicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem ConfigurationReviews/InformationalMarket Assessments
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production
Document type
Thesis/Dissertation
Country
Sweden
Potential Evaluation of Agrivoltaic Case of Kyoto Prefecture Japan
Japanese government permitted to install PV, named Agrivoltaic, on a running farm by 2013. The purposes of this commission are securing land for renewable energy installation and increasing new, young farmer. This paper clarifies both optimized Agrivoltaic structure and Agrivoltaic introduction potential. The structure optimization is considered as 3 dimensional using 3D-CAD and agricultural crop growth program is simulated to evaluate the effect of sunlight shading on PV. Agrivoltaic introduction potential assessment involved installation environment geographical data (like radiation strength, ground strength, distance to neighbors, and amount of snowing) This paper utilized geographical information system for topological assessment. These processes evaluate current and future Agrivoltaic installation potential following multi criteria.
Atsutaka Yamada, Seichi Ogata. 2021. Potential Evaluation of Agrivoltaic Case of Kyoto Prefecture Japan. In: AIP Conference Proceedings. AGRIVOLTAICS2020 CONFERENCE: Launching Agrivoltaics World-wide; 2020/10/14; Perpignan, France, Online. Online: AIP Publishing; p.
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Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyMarket AssessmentsPV TechnologiesSiting
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Japan
Potential of Agrivoltaics Systems Into Olive Groves in the Mediterranean Region
Agrivoltaics systems have emerged as an approach to alleviate competition for land use between food and energy production. Conducting a thorough analysis of the impact that shading from PV modules can have on crops is crucial for the correct design of the system, as excessive shading can lead to important crop yield reductions. This paper focuses on integrating agrivoltaics systems within super-intensive olive groves in the Mediterranean region. A dual model is used to calculate the suitable transparency of PV modules, representing the area not occupied by PV cells. This model customizes the results based on the site's meteorological parameters and the photosynthetic light-response curve of the olive cultivar. The results indicate that transparency levels vary between 0.57 and 0.71, with the lowest values observed in locations with higher solar radiation, such as Egypt and Tunisia. Using these transparency values and typical 20%-efficiency monocrystalline silicon modules, the annual average energy generation per m2 in the selected locations is 65.9 kWh. Another finding reveals that optimizing the model by considering only the months corresponding to the olive growth cycle can reduce the required transparency, thereby increasing the installed PV capacity by up to 3.5%. Furthermore, the potential deployment of these systems is evaluated in terms of installed PV capacity, energy generation, CO2 emissions and job creation. The calculations show that installing agrivoltaics systems into 1% of the total olive surface area in the Mediterranean region would: (i) result in a 2.5% increase in the global PV capacity, (ii) generate 1.8% of the current electricity demand in the selected Mediterranean countries, (iii) avoid the emissions of 4 Mt. (CO2) per year, and (iv) create around 560,000 jobs.
Alvaro Fernandez-Solas, Ana M. Fernandez-Oca, Florencia Almonacid, Eduardo F. Fernandez. 12/2023. Potential of Agrivoltaics Systems Into Olive Groves in the Mediterranean Region. Applied Energy. 352:1-14.
Economics
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Spain
Potential of Agrivoltaics to Contribute to Socio-Economic Sustainability: A Case Study in Maharashtra/India
In the ongoing energy transition in India, ground mounted photovoltaic (GM-PV) plays a crucial role which becomes evident when looking at both governmental PV targets and recent developments. Despite cost-effectiveness speaking in favor of GM-PV, generally, a major drawback of GM-PV is the high land usage. One possibility to overcome conflicting interests of land use is agrivoltaics – a combined land-use for food and electricity production.
This paper summarizes the findings of a feasibility study on a 50 MWp agrivoltaic project in Maharashtra conducted by Fraunhofer ISE in 2018/2019 focusing on social impact and economic viability. The analyses indicate that an agrivoltaic system appears economically feasible with expected levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) of INR 2.02 (EUR 0.0243) already including cost on water management, rainwater harvesting, water storage, and irrigation. Depending on the institutional arrangement between the farming community and the investor, the social impact is expected to vary from high benefits to risk of severe poverty among affected farmers.
Further findings indicate that the use of bifacial glass-glass PV modules raises electrical yield by 6.4% compared to mono facial modules. Regarding land use, the study suggests that the analyzed agrivoltaic system is likely to almost double average land use efficiency measured by the combined output of electricity and agriculture per unit of land (+94%).Max Trommsdorff, Maximilian Vorast, Neha Durga, Sachin Padwardhan. 2021. Potential of Agrivoltaics to Contribute to Socio-Economic Sustainability: A Case Study in Maharashtra/India. In: C. Dupraz, editor. AIP Conference Proceedings. AGRIVOLTAICS2020 Conference: Launching Agrivoltaics World-Wide; 2020/10/14; Perpignan, France, Online. Online: AIP Publishing; p.
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Plant ScienceEconomicsImpact AssessmentsMarket Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
India
Powering Agriculture: Present Status, Future Potential, and Challenges of Renewable Energy Applications
Modern agriculture requires much greater energy input than conventional agriculture, which heavily depends on fossil fuels for drying grain, manufacturing fertilizers, driving machinery, and generating electricity used for heating and lighting purposes. These energy-intensive activities at or off the farm level are major contributors to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. In developing countries, the agriculture sector is responsible for 35% of GHG emissions, while this figure is only 12% in developed countries. However, climate change and its impact can be alleviated by promoting renewable energy (RE) in agricultural applications, such as solar, wind, hydro-powered water pumps, greenhouse heating and cooling, solar water heaters, solar dryers for post-harvest processing, and lighting technologies. Nevertheless, transforming from a non-renewable energy-based system to a renewable-based agriculture system imposes several challenges. RE transition should be immediate and orderly, and requires incentive-based policies for both lower- and higher-income countries. This study investigates the application of renewable energies for agricultural activities for developing and developed countries, and reveals the present status and future potential along with challenges to be faced in this sector. The results suggest that renewable energy application in agriculture is well adopted in developed countries. In contrast, developing countries are still struggling to apply renewable resources in agriculture for challenges such as technical and economic ones, and RE application in agriculture could be the key to sustainable agriculture sector development. Related policy implications are indicated.
M. M. Rahman, I. Khan, D. L. Field, K. Techato, K. Alameh. 2022. Powering Agriculture: Present Status, Future Potential, and Challenges of Renewable Energy Applications. Renewable Energy. 188:731-749.
Reviews/InformationalImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Australia, Bangladesh
Precision Agriculture: Automated Irrigation System in Tandem With Solar Panels for Melon Farming Cultivation
This present study aimed to design and apply an automated irrigation system powered by solar panels for melon farming cultivation. It related to precision agriculture practices from which benefited as an environmental friendly approach. This study was performed by designing irrigation systems, constructing solar panels as a power source for generating pump used to irrigate melon orchard. The results showed that those combinations setup were benefited to reduce manual irrigation system which is normally conducted by human efforts. Further, it also acted as an environmental friendly practice since the system is attempted to utilize solar energy as main power source for irrigation pump. Based on obtained results, it may conclude that abundance energy in our earth can be used for precision agriculture practices with the aim to reduce environmental pollution and waste.
I.S. Nasution, A.A. Munawar, Devianti, P. Satriyo, H.G. Gunawan, Y. Yunus. 2021. Precision Agriculture: Automated Irrigation System in Tandem With Solar Panels for Melon Farming Cultivation. In: IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science. ICATES 2020; 2020/09/21; Banda Aceh, Indonesia. IOP Series: IOP Publishing; p. 1-6
HydrologyPlant Science
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Indonesia
Predicting Patterns of Solar Energy Buildout to Identify Opportunities for Biodiversity Conservation
The construction of solar energy facilities can have positive or negative impacts on biodiversity depending on siting and associated land use transitions. We identified drivers of solar siting and quantified patterns of buildout in states surrounding the Chesapeake Bay watershed – a biodiversity hotspot with numerous ecosystem services. Using a convolutional neural network, we mapped the footprints of ground-mounted solar arrays present in satellite imagery annually from 2017 to 2021 in Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New York, Virginia, and West Virginia. As of 2021, we identified 958 solar arrays covering 52.3 km2 built primarily on previously cultivated land, while avoiding natural landcover. We fit a binomial-Weibull model to these solar timeseries data in a hierarchical, Bayesian framework to quantify the relationship between geospatial covariates and rate of solar development. Solar array construction rate increased in cultivated areas, areas of lower agricultural suitability, lower slope, lower forest cover, lower biodiversity protection, and greater distances from roads. We also estimated changes in the rate of solar construction over time and found differences among states: acceleration in Virginia and deceleration in New York. We used parameter estimates to map the relative likelihood of future solar development across the study area. This methodology can be used to anticipate where solar is likely to be built in different landscapes and how these patterns align with conservation goals. Around the Chesapeake Bay watershed, the selection of lower quality agricultural areas for solar energy minimizes removal of important habitat and provides opportunities for native plant and pollinator restoration.
M. J. Evans, K. Mainali, R. Soobitsky, E. Mills, S. Minnemeyer. 05/2023. Predicting Patterns of Solar Energy Buildout to Identify Opportunities for Biodiversity Conservation. Biological Conservation. 283(110074):1-12.
Siting
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
Delaware, Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia
Price for Covering Cropland with an Agrivoltaic System: PV Panels Replacing Shading Nets in Chilean Blueberry Cultivation
Agrivoltaic has no commercial application in South America due to higher capital expenditure compared to traditional photovoltaic systems. Currently, Chilean farmers use plastic crop covers to protect fruits from adverse weather impacts such as excessive irradiation, avoiding sunstrokes in crops, and to use water more efficiently, limiting evapotranspiration. Since agrivoltaic could serve as an alternative for crop cover, we analyze and compare the costs for agrivoltaic with the cost of plastic covers, introducing a metric to calculate the price for covering cropland with an agrivoltaic system. Based on a selected case we demonstrate that the price of covering cropland with agrivoltaic is still higher than the price of covering cropland with shading nets and thus additional costs or design modifications for agrivoltaic systems cannot solely be justified based on the provided economic benefit of shading. Still, depending on the local cost structure of crop protection with plastic cover, agrivoltaic can create notable synergies. Also, we conclude that the price for covering cropland with agrivoltaic can further be reduced when capacity density of agrivoltaic is decreased. Still, further research is needed to investigate on the physical aspects of photovoltaic panels replacing plastic covers to protect crops.
D. Jung, A. Salmon. 12/2022. Price for Covering Cropland with an Agrivoltaic System: PV Panels Replacing Shading Nets in Chilean Blueberry Cultivation. In: AIP Conference Proceedings. AGRIVOLTAICS2021 CONFERENCE: Connecting Agrivoltaics Worldwide; 2021/06/14; Freiberg, Germany. Online: AIP Conference Proceedings; p. 1-8
EconomicsSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Chile
Productivity and Radiation Use Efficiency of Lettuces Grown in the Partial Shade of Photovoltaic Panels
Combining photovoltaic panels (PVPs) and crops on the same land unit were recently proposed as an alternative to the conversion of cropland into photovoltaic plants. This could alleviate the increasing competition for land between food and energy production. In such agrivoltaic systems, an upper layer of PVPs partially shades crops at ground level. The aim of this work was to (i) assess the effect on crop yield of two PVPs densities, resulting in two shade levels equal to 50% and 70% of the incoming radiation and (ii) identify morphological and physiological determinants of the plant response to shade. Experiments were conducted on four varieties of lettuces (two crisphead lettuces and two cutting lettuces), during two seasons. In all cases, the relative lettuce yield at harvest was equal or higher than the available relative radiation. Lettuce yield was maintained through an improved Radiation Interception Efficiency (RIE) in the shade, while Radiation Conversion Efficiency (RCE) did not change significantly. Enhanced RIE was explained by (i) an increase in the total leaf area per plant, despite a decrease in the number of leaves and (ii) a different distribution of leaf area among the pool of leaves, the maximal size of leaves increasing in the shade. Our result provides a framework for the selection of adapted varieties according to their morphological traits and physiological responses to PVP shade, in order to optimize agrivoltaic systems.
H. Marrou, J. Wery, L. Dufour, C. Dupraz. 2013. Productivity and Radiation Use Efficiency of Lettuces Grown in the Partial Shade of Photovoltaic Panels. European Journal of Agronomy. 44:54-66.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
France
Progress In Agriculture Photovoltaic Leveraging CPV
Concentration photovoltaic (CPV) is an emerging technology and even though representing just a small percentage of the overall photovoltaic industry it is applied in demonstration projects worldwide. We have combined the idea of CPV with the concept of agriculture photovoltaic (APV). In its core concept this idea realizes the simultaneous use of one and the same land area for crop growth and solar driven power generation. We call it APV-CPV and the basics had been reported and published previously. In this paper we present the recent progress for this new and trend setting technology. We discuss in detail the efficiency of the solar cells being used in the CPV part of the setup and explain the overall efficiency of the APV-CPV system with respect to its optimization for maximum power generation. For the CPV
solar cells we find a max. efficiency of 16.8% working with 6.5 suns. This is just slight shy of a theoretical max. efficiency of 20% for the solar cells being used. We describe the gradual improvement of initial APV-CPV prototypes to mature demonstration systems. A comparison of the APV-CPV system with conventional agriculture photovoltaic as well as conventional “pure” photovoltaic setups is being elaborated. We find that with a cost of 1.5 US$ per Watt we are just slightly higher. However, for systems established on a 30-acre land area, these slightly higher costs are compensated by the possibility of simultaneous usage for crop growth with a significantly reduce water evaporation on that land area.
Zhisen Zhang, Fangxin Zhang, Ming Li, Luqing Liu, Hui Lv, Yang Liu, Peijun Yao, Wenjun Liu, Quninglan Ou, Wen Liu, Jan Ingenhoff. 2018. Progress In Agriculture Photovoltaic Leveraging CPV. In: 14th International Conference on Concentrator Photovoltaic Systems (CPV-14); 2018/04/16; Puertollano, Spain. Online: AIP Conference Proceedings; p.
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Plant ScienceMarket AssessmentsEconomicsPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
China
Progress and Challenges of Crop Production and Electricity Generation in Agrivoltaic Systems Using Semi-transparent Photovoltaic Technology
The world population and consequently the global need for food continue to grow. At the same time, areas will be used to generate clean electricity to cope with climate change and global warming. The combination of crop production and solar photovoltaics in the form of “agrivoltaic technology” offers advantages for both sides that provide an adequate, resource-efficient solution to the persistent problem of competition for arable lands. The implementation of agrivoltaic systems has been exponentially increased in recent years and reached the global installed capacity of 2.8 GW in 2020 from the initial capacity of 5 MW in 2012. The agrivoltaic systems installed worldwide mostly employ conventional opaque photovoltaic (PV) modules, causing a change in the microclimate under the panels that become critical when shading ratios are high. Semi-transparent PV (STPV) modules have been recently employed to mitigate this issue which is profoundly studied in this research by considering the use of semi-transparent technologies based on crystalline silicon (c-Si), thin-film photovoltaics, organic PVs (OPVs), dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs), concentrating PVs (CPVs), and luminescent solar concentrators (LSCs) in open (arable farming lands) and closed (cultivation greenhouses) agrivoltaic systems. The results indicated that c-Si STPV modules have the highest share of employment in agrivoltaic systems due to their extreme benefits of low costs, high stability, and high efficiency in comparison with other technologies, while in contrast, the use of thin-film STPV modules have been rarely reported in the literature. Additionally, STPV modules using OPVs and DSSCs offer the capability to achieve wavelength-selective transparency, causing the photosynthetic active radiation to pass through while the remained spectrum is utilized to generate electricity. Other potential solutions come from CPVs and LSCs, in which, diffuse light is available for the growth of cultivated plants, while direct concentrated sunlight can generate electricity. Although STPV modules are proven as a feasible solution for use in agrivoltaic systems, still more developments are required in terms of the modules’ efficiency enhancement and costs reduction, while more detailed research is required to observe the response of cultivated plants to make this technology a viable sustainable solution in the future.
S. Gorjian, E. Bousi, Ö.E. Özdemir, M. Trommsdorff, N.M. Kumar, A. Anand, K. Kante, S.S. Choprac. 2022. Progress and Challenges of Crop Production and Electricity Generation in Agrivoltaic Systems Using Semi-transparent Photovoltaic Technology. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. 158:112126.
Reviews/InformationalPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Projection of Local Energy Balance Considering the Potential of Agrivoltaics
Municipalities in Japan have begun to decarbonize their energy systems by introducing significant
amounts of renewable energy and building independent and decentralized energy systems. As a basis for the discussion, we projected the balance of renewable energy supply potential and electricity demand in each of the 59 municipalities in Fukushima Prefecture. We found that the total supply of electricity in the prefecture is more
than twice as large as their demand, but that the supply is insufficient in some municipalities and that the supply-demand balance can be improved by aggregating the municipalities into seven regional blocs.Kei Gomi, Hono Ishimoto, Kosei Takeyoshi, Richao Cong, Takuya Togawa, Takashi Tsuji, Shogo Nakamura, Satoshi Ohnishi. 2023. Projection of Local Energy Balance Considering the Potential of Agrivoltaics. In: Grand Renewable Energy 2022 International Conference; 2022/11/13; Japan. Japan: Organizing Committee of Grand Renewable Energy 2022 International Conference; p.
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Market AssessmentsEconomics
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Japan
Promising Potentials of Agrivoltaic Systems for the Development of Malaysia Green Economy
Combination of solar photovoltaic (PV) systems with crops cultivation creates the need for renewable synergy known as Agrivoltaic (AV). The AV system is in line with the Kyoto Protocol which promotes the reduction of carbon emission and usage of fossil-fuel. The integration of these two resources would optimize the yield, improving AV system efficiency and solving the issue of land scarcity. Currently PV landscapes are transformed to a new transdisciplinary design of land used and extended to ecological performances and beneficial impacts to the surroundings. Malaysia has been actively promoting the adaptation of PV technology as an alternative energy mix for the country since 2010. This study provides some insights of techno-economic aspects with respect to the increasing number and size of PV installations. Detail calculation based on Monte Carlo Simulation for growth rate are also discussed. The large scale solar PV farms are a good indicator of inculcating the AV concept for pathway in developing Malaysia green economy.
N.F. Othman, A.S. Mat Su, M.E. Ya'acob. 2018. Promising Potentials of Agrivoltaic Systems for the Development of Malaysia Green Economy. IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science. 146(1):1-7.
EconomicsPolicy and Regulatory Issues
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Malaysia
Proper Design for the Integration of Photovoltaic and Agricultural Production According to the Agrivoltaic Paradigm
The intercontinental agreements of the conference of parties, and European policies such as the Green Deal require countries like Italy to respect stringent limits on the production of electricity from traditional sources. Italy's response to this line of action has been the development of the PNIEC and the PNRR, two plans aimed at the development and recovery of the country in every area, with the utmost attention to the energy sector. In this intricate political scenario, AgriVoltaic (AV)represents an interesting technological alternative for the installation of massive photovoltaic systems in territories where the availability of land is limited. The double use of the land in the agrivoltaic sites allows to "doubly harvest from the sun", increasing the land use exploitation with lower environmental impact. This effect strongly depends on the system configuration for both the PV and agricultural sides. In this work a PV plant designed in Southern Italy is illustrated, in which each hectare can be used for a PV plant with rated power of 0.7 MWp and about 900 Arbequina olive trees. The effect of different module layouts on the photovoltaic and crop production is analysed, with particular focus on the shadowing effect. This study highlights that there is a trade-off between a high-density PV module arrangement, with high PV production and low agricultural harvesting, and a highly spaced arrangement with lower PV production. Using mathematical model to perform analysis on both the energetic and agronomical sides, this work combines its result into a financial analysis to shape the best investment features. Finally, the “land use saving” analysis is performed to compare the agrivoltaic with the traditional photovoltaic and agricultural plants. The final purpose of this work is to clearly define the value of the agrivoltaic technology in the development of a sustainable energetic horizon.
Raffaele Polacco. 2022. Proper Design for the Integration of Photovoltaic and Agricultural Production According to the Agrivoltaic Paradigm [Thesis]. [Online]: Politecnico Di Torino.
Market AssessmentsEconomicsImpact AssessmentsReviews/Informational
Proposal of Energy Independent Greenhouse
This paper proposes an architecture of an energy independent and automated greenhouse. Energy independence is obtained by using Dye-sensitized Solar Cells (DSSC) as the energy source and at the same time they act like infrared light filter decreasing water consumption by reduction of the rate of evapotranspiration. Also, in order to acquire the energy independence, they are used for geothermal heating/cooling system and solar tracking method to optimize solar energy absorption of DSSCs. To reduce the shaded area, the supporting structure of DSSCs is 3D printed using transparent materials. All data like temperature, humidity, amount of energy consumption/absorption are stored in cloud and analyzed to improve system efficiency.
Elisei Ilies, Magdalena Marinca, Szilard Bularka, Melinda Vajda, Daiana Albulescu, Ciprian Seiculescu. 2022. Proposal of Energy Independent Greenhouse. In: 2021 IEEE 27th International Symposium for Design and Technology in Electronic Packaging (SIITME); 2021/10/27; Timisoara, Romania. Online: IEEE; p.
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System Configuration
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Romania
Quantitatively Distinguishing the Impact of Solar Photovoltaics Programs on Vegetation in Dryland Using Satellite Imagery
Global drylands are experiencing booming development of centralized photovoltaics (PV), which aims to address the dual challenges posed by climate change and energy transformation. In dryland areas with large-scale deployment of solar PV infrastructure, vegetation was reported to experience drastic changes. However, the long-term dynamic changes and driving mechanisms have not been thoroughly studied yet. Quantitatively distinguishing the disturbances of climate change and PV plant deployment on vegetation change is the key to understanding the environmental impact of clean energy development and formulating adaptive ecological recovery measures. To understand this, we selected the Gonghe solar power project in northern China, one of the largest dryland PV plants in the world, as a case study. Specifically, satellite-derived Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and meteorological data from ground stations were used to analyze the changing patterns of vegetation growth and climatic factors. The relative contributions of climatic factors and PV plant deployment to NDVI change were quantified by multiple regression analysis. The results indicated that vegetation has increased gradually since 2000, with the rate of vegetation recovery doubled during the PV expansion period. From 2013 to 2020, climate change was the main driver of increased vegetation (56%), followed by the expansion of solar PV infrastructures (44%). Vegetation inside PV arrays increased 1.4 times faster than outside, mainly because the PV panels improve the efficiency of rainwater utilization in summer and reduce the negative impact of excessive sunlight in the growing season. In addition, vegetation management practices like grazing can further enhance carbon sequestration and create sustainable livelihood opportunities, achieving sustainable economic, social, and ecological development. The novelty of the study lies in the proposed framework to quantify the impact of solar PV programs on vegetation in dryland allowing easy interpretations of vegetation dynamics under clean energy development and climate change, which provide scientific references for clean energy planning and ecological recovery in arid areas.
Zilong Xia, Yingjie Li, Wei Zhang, Shanchuan Guo, Lilin Zheng, Nan Jia, Ruishan Chen, Xiaona Guo, Peijun Du. 2023. Quantitatively Distinguishing the Impact of Solar Photovoltaics Programs on Vegetation in Dryland Using Satellite Imagery. Land Degradation & Development. 34(14):4373–4385.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatology
Development Strategy
Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
Rain Concentration and Sheltering Effect of Solar Panels on Cultivated Plots
Agrivoltaism is the association of agricultural and photovoltaic energy production on the same land area, coping with the increasing pressure on land use and water resources while delivering clean and renewable energy. However, the solar panels located above the cultivated plots also have a seemingly yes unexplored effect on rain redistribution, sheltering large parts of the plot but redirecting concentrated fluxes on a few locations. The spatial heterogeneity in water amounts observed on the ground is high in the general case; its dynamical patterns are directly attributable to the mobile panels through their geometrical characteristics (dimensions, height, coverage percentage) and the strategies selected to rotate them around their support tube. A coefficient of variation is used to measure this spatial heterogeneity and to compare it with the coefficient of uniformity that classically describes the efficiency of irrigation systems. A rain redistribution model (AVrain) was derived from literature elements and theoretical grounds and then validated from experiments in both field and controlled conditions. AVrain simulates the effective rain amounts on the plot from a few forcing data (rainfall, wind velocity and direction) and thus allows real-time strategies that consist in operating the panels so as to limit the rain interception mainly responsible for the spatial heterogeneities. Such avoidance strategies resulted in a sharp decrease in the coefficient of variation, e.g. 0.22 vs. 2.13 for panels held flat during one of the monitored rain events, which is a fairly good uniformity score for irrigation specialists. Finally, the water amounts predicted by AVrain were used as inputs to Hydrus-2D for a brief exploratory study on the impact of the presence of solar panels on rain redistribution at shallow depths within soils: similar, more diffuse patterns were simulated and were coherent with field measurements.
Y. Elamri, B. Cheviron, A. Mange, C. Dejean, F. Liron, G. Belaud. 2018. Rain Concentration and Sheltering Effect of Solar Panels on Cultivated Plots. Hydrology and Earth System Sciences. 22:1-37.
HydrologyPlant Science
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
France
Rainwater Management in Agrivoltaic Systems
Agrivoltaics is a concept in which a piece of land is simultaneously used for both energy and food production by
mounting photovoltaic modules at a certain height above (or in between strips of) agricultural land. A local and systemlevel incorporation of water management is imperative to the sustainable implementation of agrivoltaics. Water raining on the modules can be gathered and used for distinct purposes: groundwater recharge, crop irrigation, and cleaning and cooling of the PV modules. This research provides an initial overview of positive and negative impacts for each water use concept and outlines issues that should be taken into consideration and the potential for research and development. Various Managed Aquifer Recharge (MAR) technologies are a way to clean and store the water periodically in an underlying aquifer. Irrigation increases yield within the plant level and therefore increases the system’s output. Thanks to the power supply generated by the PV modules, high-tech irrigation systems can be implemented in agrivoltaic systems; the special adaption of irrigation systems to agrivoltaics poses significant potential for research and development. Meanwhile, the necessity, i.e., profitability of cleaning and/ or cooling PV modules depends on local environmental and economic factors. Several cleaning techniques have been developed to mitigate soiling, ranging from manual cleaning to fully automatic cleaning systems. In agrivoltaic systems, the soiling risk can increase. Semiautomatic systems seem to have the greatest potential for agrivoltaics, because they can be used with farming equipment. Multiple cooling techniques have been developed to decrease cell temperature to increase power output, with some of them involving water. Water flowing over the module surface is a promising cooling technique for agrivoltaic applications. Attaching a perforated tube to the upper edge, the entire module can be covered in a thin film of water which cools very effectively (while also cleaning the surface). A closed-circuit system could be created involving the technical components used for rainwater harvesting. The economic feasibility of cooling panels in agrivoltaic systems needs to be investigated. In certain locations, rainwater-harvesting could also be relevant for
ground-mounted PV systems.J.V. Rößner. 11/2022. Rainwater Management in Agrivoltaic Systems. In: WCPEC-8, 8th World Conference on Photovoltaic Energy Conversion; 2022/09/26; Milan, Italy. Online: 8th World Conference on Photovoltaic Energy Conversion; p. 1-3
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Germany
Realising Co-Benefits for Natural Capital and Ecosystem Services from Solar Parks: A Co-Developed, Evidence-Based Approach
The number of ground-mounted solar parks is increasing across the world in response to energy decarbonisation. Solar parks offer an opportunity to deliver ecosystem co-benefits but there is also a risk that their development and operation may be detrimental to ecosystems. Consequently, we created the Solar Park Impacts on Ecosystem Services (SPIES) decision-support tool (DST) to provide evidence-based insight of the impacts of different solar park management practices on ecosystem services. The SPIES DST is underpinned by 704 pieces of evidence from 457 peer-reviewed academic journal articles that assessed the impacts of land management on ecosystem services, collated through a systematic review. Application to two operational solar parks evidences the commercial relevance of the SPIES DST and its potential to enable those responsible for designing and managing solar parks to maximise the ecosystem co-benefits and minimise detrimental effects. Further, evaluation using data from nine solar parks across the south of England demonstrates the validity of the DST outcomes. With the increasing land take for renewable energy infrastructure, DSTs, such as SPIES, that promote the co-delivery of other ecosystem benefits can help to ensure that the energy transition does not swap climate change for local scale ecosystem degradation, and potentially prompt improvements in ecosystem health.
R.J. Randle-Boggis, P.C.L. White, J. Cruz, G. Parker, H. Montag, J.M.O. Scurlock, A. Armstrong. 2020. Realising Co-Benefits for Natural Capital and Ecosystem Services from Solar Parks: A Co-Developed, Evidence-Based Approach. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. 125:109775.
Reviews/InformationalEntomologyPlant ScienceMethodological Comparisons
Development Strategy
Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United Kingdom
Reducing Land Competition for Agriculture and Photovoltaic Energy Generation-A Comparison of Two Agro-Photovoltaic Plants in Japan
Photovoltaic energy generation has great potential to reduce green house gas emissions compared to conventional sources of
electricity. However, its wide-spread application can cause competition of land-use to arise due to the large areas required. To lessen this competition, concepts for co-usage of photovoltaics and agriculture have been proposed. In an agro-photovoltaic plant electricity is generated from photovoltaic (PV) panels mounted in designed spacing and height, so that limited shading allows for productive agriculture on the land below. A well-designed agro-photovoltaic system can potentially reduce land-use competition and provide additional income and employment opportunities in rural areas which are currently under pressure of depopulation and over-aging in Japan. This work looks at the implementation of two realizations of the concept within the present framework in Japan. The light distribution underneath the PV arrays is calculated. Total received sun light at ground level varies greatly between the two designs with
81% and 43% compared to unobstructed condition. Homogeneity and time-variability of direct sun light incidence are discussed.Martin Elborg. 2017. Reducing Land Competition for Agriculture and Photovoltaic Energy Generation-A Comparison of Two Agro-Photovoltaic Plants in Japan. International Journal of Science and Research. 6(9):
(!) .
MicroclimatologySystem ConfigurationSiting
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Japan
Relative Yield Decomposition: A Method for Understanding the Behaviour of Complex Crop Models
Dynamic crop simulation models are widely used to investigate, through virtual experiments, the response of crop yield to changes in climate, management or crop genetic traits. In a search for widespread applicability, crop models include a large number of processes, sometimes to the detriment of their mathematical transparency. Simulated crop yield responses to variation in model inputs result from the integration over a long period (one or several years) of many different crop processes interacting at the model time-step, typically the day. Thus, by definition, yield explanatory factors are intricate and difficult to link efficiently to the crop processes. Ranking their relative contributions to the final yield output is for example almost impossible. In this work, we introduce a new approach to understand the response of crop yield Y by comparing two simulation runs (computing two yields Y1 and Y2) of the same model and by focussing on the relative yield: y = Y1/Y2. Providing that the mathematical formulation of the dynamic crop model verifies simple hypotheses held by most crop models, we show that it is possible to factorise the relative yield y into several terms. These terms can be (i) interpreted as the specific effects of the modelled crop processes on the crop yield, (ii) compared to rank the effects of the crop processes on the crop yield. Their definition involves using state variables of the model computed during the simulation runs. The method does not involve running the model numerous times, neither changing its formulation. It may require to output new variables that are not in the set of variables proposed by the released version of the model. We call our method the relative yield decomposition (RYD) method. We illustrate how the RYD provides insight in the analysis of complex crop models by applying it to two models: Yield-SAFE (agroforestry model) and STICS (crop model). The method allows to identify and quantify the importance of the main processes responsible for crop yield variations for different simulation configurations in the two models. The relative yield decomposition method is complementary to other model analysis methods like sensitivity analysis or multiple model simulations. We show that it could be applied to some widely used crop models (e.g. AQUACROP, CERES, CROPGRO, CROPSYST, EPIC, SIRIUS, SUCROS). The relative yield decomposition method appears as a powerful and generic tool to analyse the behaviour of complex crop models that can help to improve the formulation of the models, or even to study specific plant traits or crop processes when applied to a model accurate enough.
Grégoire Talbot, Sébastien Roux, Anil Graves, Christian Dupraz, Hélène Marrou, Jacques Wery. 2014. Relative Yield Decomposition: A Method for Understanding the Behaviour of Complex Crop Models. Environmental Modelling & Software. 51:136-148.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologySystem ConfigurationTools
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Remarkable Agrivoltaic Influence on Soil Moisture, Micrometeorology and Water-Use Efficiency
Power demands are set to increase by two-fold within the current century and a high fraction of that demand should be met by carbon free sources. Among the renewable energies, solar energy is among the fastest growing; therefore, a comprehensive and accurate design methodology for solar systems and how they interact with the local environment is vital. This paper addresses the environmental effects of solar panels on an unirrigated pasture that often experiences water stress. Changes to the microclimatology, soil moisture, water usage, and biomass productivity due to the presence of solar panels were quantified. The goal of this study was to show that the impacts of these factors should be considered in designing the solar farms to take advantage of potential net gains in agricultural and power production. Microclimatological stations were placed in the Rabbit Hills agrivoltaic solar arrays, located in Oregon State campus, two years after the solar array was installed. Soil moisture was quantified using neutron probe readings. Significant differences in mean air temperature, relative humidity, wind speed, wind direction, and soil moisture were observed. Areas under PV solar panels maintained higher soil moisture throughout the period of observation. A significant increase in late season biomass was also observed for areas under the PV panels (90% more biomass), and areas under PV panels were significantly more water efficient (328% more efficient).
E.H. Adeh, J.S. Selker, C.W. Higgins. 11/2018. Remarkable Agrivoltaic Influence on Soil Moisture, Micrometeorology and Water-Use Efficiency. PLOS ONE. 13(11):1-15.
HydrologySoilPlant ScienceMicroclimatology
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
Oregon
Research on Modular Hortivoltaic Solutions
The present paper aims to document and identify some possible modular hortivoltaic solutions, which efficiently combine horticultural production with the generation of photovoltaic electricity on smaller spaces than usual in agrivoltaic applications. This initiative involves the development of structures to support photovoltaic panels, under which horticultural species can be grown in containers of different sizes and whose irrigation is carried out in a significant proportion with the help of rainwater collected from the surface of photovoltaic panels. At the same time, an assessment will be made of the potential of green energy generated by the photovoltaic panel modules with the presentation of some species that can be cultivated for utilitarian and ornamental purposes. The solutions resulting from the synergy generated by the combination of photovoltaic panels - green roofs will be able to be generalized and recommended in a wide range of situations, thus responding to the current needs of resource reuse and combating climate change.
Gabriel Cristian Miloș, Mihaela Ioana Georgescu, Sorina Aurelia Petra, George Adrian Peticilă, Nicolaie Costache, Florin Toma. 2022. Research on Modular Hortivoltaic Solutions. Scientific Papers. Series B. Horticulture. 66(1):718-723.
Plant ScienceMarket AssessmentsEconomics
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Romania
Research on Niche Evaluation of Photovoltaic Agriculture in China
To evaluate the ecological niche of China’s photovoltaic agriculture, this paper firstly analyzed the composition of photovoltaic agriculture and constructed the ecosystem of photovoltaic agriculture. Then, we defined the concept of the ecological niche of photovoltaic agriculture, and based on this the preliminary niche evaluation index system was constructed. Further, redundant indicators in the preliminary index system were deleted based on the rough set theory, and the final niche evaluation index system was constructed. Finally, the ecological niche of photovoltaic agriculture was evaluated using the DANP method and cloud model. We found that the niche level of China’s photovoltaic agriculture is between low and medium levels. Specifically, the level of resource niche is the highest, between medium and high levels; following is policy niche, near medium level; then is environmental niche, which is at a slightly lower medium level; the last three in turn are technology niche, social niche and economic niche. The technology should fully realize the synergistic effect of photovoltaic power generation and agricultural production, and the policy should play better environmental, social and economic functions on this basis to achieve a higher niche level of China’s photovoltaic agriculture.
Jian Chen, Lingjun Wang, Yuanyuan Li. 2022. Research on Niche Evaluation of Photovoltaic Agriculture in China. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 19(22):
(!) .
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
Research on Shading Effect inside Photovoltaic Greenhouses and Its Optimization Method Based on Parametric Modeling
Greenhouse planting is of great significance to the modernization of agriculture. The advent of photovoltaic greenhouses has increased the land use rate compared with the original greenhouse planting, and has produced more clean energy, greatly reducing the carbon emission. However, the photovoltaic system will lead to the shading effect in the greenhouse, which harms the growth and development of crops. Therefore, it is critical to analyze the internal circumstances when the photovoltaic greenhouse to be designed. To this end, this paper firstly analyzes the key elements in the design of photovoltaic greenhouses. Then, based on typical photovoltaic solar greenhouses in China, an analysis method is proposed using parametric modeling combined with historical meteorological data. Finally, the changes of the distribution of light environment in photovoltaic greenhouses under different coverage ratios are compared, providing a theoretical basis for the optimization of photovoltaic greenhouses, and a regulation method of photovoltaic greenhouses based on the characteristics of crop light requirements is proposed, which maximizes the overall income under the condition of ensuring the normal growth and development of crops.
Mingxin Wang, Shengyu Tao, Jian Zhang, Jingnan Li, Huaxin Ding, Yaojie Sun. 2021. Research on Shading Effect inside Photovoltaic Greenhouses and Its Optimization Method Based on Parametric Modeling. In: 2021 4th International Conference on Energy, Electrical and Power Engineering (CEEPE); 2021/04/23; Chongqing, China. Online: IEEE Xplore; p.
(!)
MicroclimatologySystem ConfigurationStandardization and Best Practices
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
China
Research on the Size Optimization of Photovoltaic Panels and Integrated Application With Chinese Solar Greenhouses
Currently, two main problems in the research of greenhouse and photovoltaic integrated applications exist: the photovoltaic board design is not driven by agricultural production demand, and an appropriate research model is lacking. Here, a sky illumination model is proposed that can not only explain greenhouse daylighting but also address the problem of photovoltaic shading. An optimal design scheme of grid photovoltaic panels to replace large photovoltaic panels is proposed, and the integrated application effect with Chinese solar greenhouses is simulated. Results showed that (1) the shading effect of a single photovoltaic strip with an appropriate width at a certain height above the ground was so small that it could nearly be ignored. (2) Such photovoltaic panels were arranged in grids at select intervals, and with an increased spacing width (from 0 to 20 cm), the light transmittance increased gradually (from 0 to 90%). (3) To integrate the grid photovoltaic panels with Chinese solar greenhouses, they did not completely block the sunlight, so they did not severely affect the greenhouse daylighting. The layout of such photovoltaic panels can be well adapted to Chinese solar greenhouse, and the scheme and the model can also be widely applied to other types of greenhouses.
Kai Zhang, Jihua Yu, Yan Ren. 2022. Research on the Size Optimization of Photovoltaic Panels and Integrated Application With Chinese Solar Greenhouses. Renewable Energy. 182:536-551.
MicroclimatologySystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
Residential Agrivoltaics: Energy Efficiency and Water Conservation in the Urban Landscape
Agrivoltaics shows promise as a practice that can reduce agricultural water use and plant water stress, while also increasing photovoltaic (PV) efficiency due to cooler temperatures of the panels from evapotranspiration below, but little work has investigated this practice at the residential scale. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the potential impact on water use and garden plants that would be found on a typical residential property, and evaluate the impact on solar PV energy production using residential agrivoltaics vs. typical roof-mount residential solar panels. Experimental plots were established to compare lettuce growth and water use between full-sun and a shaded agrivoltaics setup, and to compare temperatures and power production of the PV panels in the agrivoltaics plot vs. a typical roof-mount installation. Results showed significantly less irrigation requirements in the agrivolatic plot vs. the full-sun plot. Weights and leaf counts were significantly lower in the agrivolatic plot, though average leaf lengths were greater than in the full-sun plot. Roof-mount PV panel temperature was significantly higher than the agrivoltaics panel, depending on cloud cover and irradiance, which corresponded to up to a 3.6% decrease in power loss. Results show promise for both water conservation and energy production benefits, but further work is needed to determine optimal conditions that would not affect plant yield, and to verify effects on PV panel production under full load conditions.
B. D. Giudice, C. Stillinger, E. Chapman, M. Martin, B. Riihimaki. 2021. Residential Agrivoltaics: Energy Efficiency and Water Conservation in the Urban Landscape. In: IEEE. IEEE Green Technologies Conference (IEEE-Green); 2021/04/07; Denver County, Colorado. Online: IEEE; p.
(!)
HydrologySoilPlant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
United States
Review of Agrivoltaics Systems Potential in Palestine
Agrivoltaics Systems' potential has been investigated in this paper. The literature hardly has any such studies of Palestine, so this work is one of the first attempts to clarify this subject. Recently a number of photovoltaic plants have been constructed in a huge field because of the growing need for clean alternative energy sources as the demand in the country and the world for energy increases. Due to the land's agricultural nature, Palestine is able to win from developing these stations if the agrivoltaics concept is used as large-scale PV plants are consuming vast areas. This article is therefore a benchmark for lawmakers and plants owners to consider increase their plants potential by employing agrivoltaic systems.
A. Braik, A. Makhalfih, K. Sopian, H. Jarimi, A. Ibrahim. 2021. Review of Agrivoltaics Systems Potential in Palestine. In: IEEE Xplore. 2021 IEEE Jordan International Joint Conference on Electrical Engineering and Information Technology (JEEIT); 2021/11/16; Amman, Jordan. Online: IEEE; p. 176-180
Reviews/InformationalMarket AssessmentsSiting
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Israel
Review of Results of Agro-Photovoltaic Systems Implementation in Agriculture
This article provides an overview of agro-photovoltaic systems already implemented and researched or tested in the world, describes the results of exploitation of such systems, their efficiency, benefits for agriculture, possibilities for further research, and for the development of green electricity production. Some information is also provided in order to show the viability of the development of photovoltaic power plants, their environmental friendliness, and their important role in halting climate change. The results of the researches of the globally implemented agro-photovoltaic systems show the indisputable efficiency of these systems and their obvious advantage over the traditional agricultural technologies. Some suggestions are discussed for further researches of agro-photovoltaic systems. The history of implementation of agro-photovoltaic systems began before less than 20 years. So far, now we have only a small group of leading countries in this area, but in most of the remaining countries, these systems are still unknown and untested. Therefore the goal of this overview was to disclose the efficiency of the agro-photovoltaic systems, their viability, and to contribute to the dissemination of information in order to pave the way for acceleration of progress in this promising field of agriculture.
Vytautas Adomavicius (Kaunas University of Technology). 2021. Review of Results of Agro-Photovoltaic Systems Implementation in Agriculture. Online: ResearchGate.net.
EconomicsReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Report
Review on Agrophotovoltaic Systems With a Premise on Thermal Management of Photovoltaic Modules Therein
Agrophotovoltaics (APV) is the coexistence of solar photovoltaics (PV) and agriculture on the same piece of land. Although
the concept of APV is known for the last two decades, its actual penetration in society is inconsiderable. The objective of the current article is to discuss the various APV systems explored in the past and to highlight the futuristic APVs. Furthermore, this study presents the review of the available experimental work on the performance and environmental and techno-economic aspects of the APV systems. The key features, crop selection criteria, feasible crops for Indian climatic conditions, and the future research directions of APV systems have been summarized. Furthermore, apart from the known techno-economic benefts of APV, a premise on its another utility for the thermal management of the solar PV modules by crops’ natural transpiration cooling has been presented in this study. A theoretical study demonstrates the gain in the electrical output of the solar PV plant as compared with the conventional PV installation. The theoretical study has been carried out considering the meteorological data of Nagpur (21.1458° N, 79.0882° E). The estimation has been carried out using Nominal Operating Cell Temperature (NOCT) model, NREL irradiance database—NSRDB, and System Advisor Model (SAM). An experimental study has been conducted on APV systems with a 2-kW solar PV plant and tomato crops to investigate its actual performance. The study shows an increment of 17.96% in the daily energy generation as compared
with the conventional solar PV power plant.Rahul Waghmare, Ravindra Jilte, Sandeep Joshi, Pranjali Tete. 2022. Review on Agrophotovoltaic Systems With a Premise on Thermal Management of Photovoltaic Modules Therein. Environmental Science and Pollution Research. 30:
(!) .
MicroclimatologySystem ConfigurationReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Review on Photovoltaic Agriculture Application and Its Potential on Grape Farms in Xinjiang, China
Photovoltaic industry has become extremely important in China as a strategic emerging policy since 2012, and how to widen the domestic demand to overcome the problem of overcapacity has drawn much attention. The so-called “Agrivoltaic”, or, photovoltaic agriculture, could provide a possibly superior approach to providing green and sustainable electricity simultaneously. Xinjiang province, located in Northwestern China, is abundant in renewable energy resources such as wind power and solar radiation; on the other hand, Xinjiang is famous for its growth of grapes with high-intensity of sweetness. Hence, in this paper we firstly introduce some new opportunities for photovoltaic agriculture applications in China, such as photovoltaic greenhouse, photovoltaic water pumping and photovoltaic water purification. Then we focus on one of the applications – the Agrivoltaic potential on grape farms in Xinjiang, and investigate the potential co-develop between the grape production and the solar PV farms, so that the farmers could use the electricity generated from the PV station and simultaneously got the second income from selling the electricity to the grid, without noticeable influence on the crop production output. The results indicate a positive economic value from this hypothesis agrivoltaic system, with green electricity generation, village electrification and the maintenance of the approximately same production of grapes. However, more researches and empirical explorations should be implemented further to draw some unified standard on the agrivoltaic system, so that the output could be stabilized and more and more farmers would be convinced and join the program.
N. Chen, P. Wu, Y. Gao, X. Ma. 2018. Review on Photovoltaic Agriculture Application and Its Potential on Grape Farms in Xinjiang, China. Advances in Sciences and Engineering. 10(2):73-81.
Reviews/Informational
Seasonal Storage for Excess Solar Energy on Farms in Norway
The number of solar energy installations in Norway has grown rapidly in recent years. While households account for most of these installations, many businesses
and schools are also investing in solar photovoltaics (PV). Farmers have the option to install PV on their agricultural land. This concept, known as agrivoltaics (APV), involves the dual use of energy production and agriculture on the same land area. The number of APV installations globally has grown over the past years, but it is still a relatively new concept in Norway. Such systems predominantly generate power during summer, while Norwegian electricity consumers use the most electricity during winter. Additionally, these winter months are the period when the electricity spot prices reach their highest peaks. For farmers with APV, utilizing seasonal storage can be a solution to this challenge. Seasonal storage can charge during periods of excess power production and discharge when the prices are high. This can contribute to more efficient use of the produced solar power and may benefit the farmer financially.
This thesis will investigate the implementation of APV and seasonal storage at Skjetlein High School. Additionally, the cost-effectiveness of seasonal storage will be discussed. Possible APV scenarios will be simulated and used in a storage model. An optimization model is constructed to find a suitable storage size (capacity and power rating) according to one of two control strategies. The first control strategy aims to minimize the total electricity bill, while the other strategy aims to minimize the electricity bill and storage investment costs. The results show that the integration of seasonal storage can reduce electricity bill costs from 62-78%. However, the thesis suggests that seasonal storage systems are less economically feasible than smaller storage systems with a duration from weeks to a couple of months.Ingrid Røstad Brøndbo. 06/2023. Seasonal Storage for Excess Solar Energy on Farms in Norway [Thesis]. [Trondheim, Norway]: Norwegian University of Science and Technology.
EconomicsSystem ConfigurationReviews/Informational
Sector-Wide Social Impact Scoping of Agrivoltaic Systems: A Case Study in Japan
The recent rapid promotion of renewable energy technology (RET) worldwide may have led to a greater social impact on local communities, where multiple otherwise-small individual units of RET are concentrated in one place, as may occur in the case of small photovoltaic power generating units, for example. This study examines such a case of the dissemination of innovative agrivoltaic systems (AVSs), a system in which photovoltaic power facilities are installed above cultivated farmland, across Japanese rural areas. The paper offers a preliminary sector-wide social impact scoping (SSIS) for potential cumulative social impact of a dissemination policy of AVSs. AVSs were predicted to positively impact many local stakeholders. It was found that AVSs themselves improve energy security as they are, but if particular devices are accommodated, energy security is further improved. Several measures, including providing information to farm operators regarding specific examples of favourable economic outcomes and good agricultural practices, are recommended to mitigate any negative impact of AVS installation. Policymakers should undertake SSIS for RET to reveal the variety of views among otherwise reticent stakeholders so that they can eventually increase the positive impact and mitigate the negative impact of RET.
N. Irie, N. Kawahara, A.M. Esteves. 2019. Sector-Wide Social Impact Scoping of Agrivoltaic Systems: A Case Study in Japan. Renewable Energy. 139:1463-1476.
Social PerspectivesPolicy and Regulatory IssuesMarket AssessmentsReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Japan
Semi-Transparent Organic Photovoltaics Applied as Greenhouse Shade for Spring and Summer Tomato Production in Arid Climate
Recognizing the growing interest in the application of organic photovoltaics (OPVs) with greenhouse crop production systems, in this study we used flexible, roll-to-roll printed, semi-transparent OPV arrays as a roof shade for a greenhouse hydroponic tomato production system during a spring and summer production season in the arid southwestern U.S. The wavelength-selective OPV arrays were installed in a contiguous area on a section of the greenhouse roof, decreasing the transmittance of all solar radiation wavelengths and photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) wavelengths (400–700 nm) to the OPV-shaded area by approximately 40% and 37%, respectively. Microclimate conditions and tomato crop growth and yield parameters were measured in both the OPV-shaded (‘OPV’) and non-OPV-shaded (‘Control’) sections of the greenhouse. The OPV shade stabilized the canopy temperature during midday periods with the highest solar radiation intensities, performing the function of a conventional shading method. Although delayed fruit development and ripening in the OPV section resulted in lower total yields compared to the Control section (24.6 kg m−2 and 27.7 kg m−2, respectively), after the fourth (of 10 total) harvests, the average weekly yield, fruit number, and fruit mass were not significantly different between the treatment (OPV-shaded) and control group. Light use efficiency (LUE), defined as the ratio of total fruit yield to accumulated PAR received by the plant canopy, was nearly twice as high as the Control section, with 21.4 g of fruit per mole of PAR for plants in the OPV-covered section compared to 10.1 g in the Control section. Overall, this study demonstrated that the use of semi-transparent OPVs as a seasonal shade element for greenhouse production in a high-light region is feasible. However, a higher transmission of PAR and greater OPV device efficiency and durability could make OPV shades more economically viable, providing a desirable solution for co-located greenhouse crop production and renewable energy generation in hot and high-light intensity regions.
Rebekah Waller, Murat Kacira, Esther Magadley, Meir Teitel, Ibrahim Yehia. 2021. Semi-Transparent Organic Photovoltaics Applied as Greenhouse Shade for Spring and Summer Tomato Production in Arid Climate. Agronomy. 11(6):
(!) .
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
Arizona
Semi-transparent Organic Photovoltaics for Agrivoltaic Applications
Sustainable food and energy supply on limited agricultural land is a major challenge under the growing global population. The current large-scale plastic-covered traditional greenhouses ensure the stability of crop yield and quality throughout the year. However, traditional greenhouses rely on fossil fuel or grid electricity input. Agrivoltaic greenhouse systems, as a new technology, can reduce fuel and grid electricity consumption, but photovoltaic conflicts with photosynthesis because both use solar energy as input energy. Organic photovoltaic (OPV) is unique. It has wavelength-selective absorption spectra and excellent flexibility. Therefore, a match between OPV and the plastic-covered traditional greenhouse is inevitable. This overview focuses on the opportunities and advantages of OPV in the agrivoltaics area, and assess the economic viability of OPV agrivoltaic systems. In addition, challenges to OPV implementation in agrivoltaic systems are also discussed, including OPV technology, agronomic management and crop selection. This study digs into the innovative application of OPV agrivoltaic technology and demonstrates the technology’s enormous potential.
Wei Song, Jinfeng Ge, Lin Xie, Zhenyu Chen, Qinrui Ye, Dinghong Sun, Jingyu Shi, Xinyu Tong, Xiaoli Zhang, Ziyi Ge. 2023. Semi-transparent Organic Photovoltaics for Agrivoltaic Applications. Nano Energy. 116:
(!) .
MicroclimatologyEconomicsPV TechnologiesSystem ConfigurationReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Sensitivity Analysis for Optimized Agrivoltaic Designs: An Inquiry on the Trade-off Between Homogenous Light Conditions and Electrical Yield
Agrivoltaics facilitates the collocation of agriculture and solar power generation while helping to increase the income in the farming sector by producing extra electricity. In order to secure benefits for both sectors, this study considers the configuration variables for the agrivoltaic system design which usually deviate from the commercial ground-mounted photovoltaic systems. The homogeneity of light conditions on the ground level in 7 locations across the world with different climate conditions is analyzed in detail using different system designs. In addition, this study compares electricity productions of different agrivoltaic designs. The designs for optimal crop yield and for optimal electricity production are different. The homogeneity of the light conditions on ground level varies greatly depending on the system design, and the results of the homogeneity of the lighting conditions on the ground, which varies depending on 7 locations, were analyzed. And also, global tilted irradiation, which directly affects electric energy production, was analyzed at each location. as a result, the homogeneity of the irradiation under the arrays differs according to the azimuth. And also, the east-west system mentioned in this paper has the highest homogeneity of irradiation and the lowest global tilted irradiation.
Ohhyun Kwon, Jinsuk Kang, Maximilian Trommsdorff, Kyungsoo Lee. 2021. Sensitivity Analysis for Optimized Agrivoltaic Designs: An Inquiry on the Trade-off Between Homogenous Light Conditions and Electrical Yield. In: IEEE Xplore. 2020 47th IEEE Photovoltaic Specialists Conference; 2020/06/15; Calgary, AB, Canada. Online: IEEE; p.
(!)
MicroclimatologySystem ConfigurationSiting
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Shade of Solar Panels Relieves Heat Load Of Sheep
Use of solar panels as shading resource combines better animal welfare, generation of renewable energy and animal production in the same area. This concept is termed Animal Agrivoltaics. In this study we integrated behavioural and physiological data in order to determine benefits provided by shade of solar panels on heat stress indicators of sheep. Nine adult Corriedale ewes (Body mass: 70 ± 12 kg; fleece length: 70 ± 5 mm) had miniature temperature loggers attached on them for every-minute samplings of wool-surface, skin and vaginal temperature, from 08:00 to 17:00 h, along 20 consecutive days. Ewes also had shade-use behaviour directly and continuously monitored. Ewes were kept in a paddock shaded with a roof structure that consists of ten photovoltaic panels (shade availability: 2.14 m2 animal−1). Over the study period, ewes were exposed to levels of solar radiation as much as 900 W m−2. From 08:00 to 17:00 h, regardless of the duration of sun exposure or in the shade of solar panels, the vaginal temperature of ewes remained within a narrow range (38.5 ºC - 39.2 ºC). At levels of solar irradiance above 500 W m−2, ewes increased wool-surface temperature by 10 ºC and skin temperature by 2 ºC with increasing heat load and time exposed to sun. Under such circumstances, they were more likely to move to shade of solar panels. Between 10:00 and 14:00 h, shade of solar panels provided to ewes 30 % less radiant heat load than if they were exposed to sun. As a result, as the time in shade increased, the wool-surface temperature of ewes was reduced by 7 ºC - 8 ºC, and skin temperature by 1.0 ºC - 1.5 ºC. In conclusion, this study provides strong evidence that shade of solar panels efficiently reduces heat load in sheep.
V. F. C. Fonsêca, E. d. A. Culhari, G. A. B. Moura, S. T. Nascimento, H. M. Milan, A. S. C. MaiaFonsêca. 08/2023. Shade of Solar Panels Relieves Heat Load Of Sheep. Applied Animal Behavior Science. 265:
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LivestockMicroclimatologySystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Brazil
Shading Analysis of Agrivoltaic Systems: The Shading’s Effect on Lettuce and Potato From Elevated Agrivoltaic System in Sweden
The world is progressing towards a more sustainable society, where renewable energy sources, including solar energy, play a crucial role. This study aims to address the conflict
between agriculture and energy production by exploring the installation of solar panels on farmland. Four scenarios are considered, with varying parameters such as latitude, azimuth, slope, and row distance between photovoltaic (PV) modules. The study focuses on two different crops, lettuce and potato, which have varying tolerances to shading. The objective is to understand how the shadows cast by solar panels affect the growth of these crops. To analyze the impact of shading, the PVsyst software program is utilized to obtain PAR values for each scenario. The calculations are performed using Excel equations. The literature review encompasses scientific sources that provide insights into both PV technology and agriculture, bolstering the research findings. To ensure realism and manage simulation time, certain delimitations were made. These include limiting the study to two cities in Sweden, comparing only two crops, and conducting simulations during the summer period. The results reveal a significant potential for growing potatoes under PV modules. However, lettuce faces difficulties due to its high requirement for solar intensity (PAR), making it less adaptable to shade. The findings of this study indicate that crops like potatoes, which have a lower requirement for PAR, can be successfully cultivated in conjunction with photovoltaic (PV) systems. However, it is not advisable to implement AV systems in areas where sensitive crops like lettuce, which necessitate a significant number of sun hours with high solar intensity.
Ahmad Guleed, Komail Farid. 2023. Shading Analysis of Agrivoltaic Systems: The Shading’s Effect on Lettuce and Potato From Elevated Agrivoltaic System in Sweden [Thesis]. [Online]: Mälardalen University.
MicroclimatologySystem ConfigurationStandardization and Best PracticesImpact AssessmentsSiting
Shading Apple Trees With an Agrivoltaic System: Impact on Water Relations, Leaf Morphophysiological Characteristics and Yield Determinants
The installation of dynamic photovoltaic panels over apple orchards could meet the challenges of protecting orchards from climate change and drive the energetic transition. However, the impact of solar panel's shading on apple performance needs to be investigated before being commercially adopted. A dynamic agrivoltaic system was installed in the south of France over a 10-year-old 'Golden Delicious' apple orchard and studied during three experimental seasons (2019–2021). This study aimed to evaluate the impact of fluctuating shading (photovoltaic panel orientation to maximise panel light interception) on water relations, leaf morphophysiological characteristics and yield determinants. With the selected photovoltaic design and strategy, trees were grown under a fluctuating shading (variable shading between 4% and 88% during the day) with a mean shading rate of 50–55%. On average, the air temperature was reduced by 3.8 °C, while relative humidity was increased by 14% under shading conditions. Depending on the season, the lower radiation and stressful microclimate decreased the irrigation between 6% and 31%. Fluctuating shading reduced the photosynthetic capacity of leaves and increased their specific leaf area (thinner leaves). The reduction in carbohydrate assimilation under shading was associated with lower starch reserve accumulation in the shoots (-7%), lower flower intensity at the shoot scale (-31%) and a lower proportion of trees with a high floribundity in 2020 (-45%). However, less alternate bearing was observed under shading, and better frost protection resulted in a higher proportion of trees bearing fruit under photovoltaic panels (+31%) and number of fruits per fruit-bearing tree (+44%) in 2021. Fruit size was less sensitive than fruit number to shading. Fruit size was reduced by 17% in 2019 but maintained in 2020 and 2021, probably due to a better water status of shaded trees that accumulated more water. Fruit dry matter content under shading was reduced by an average of 24%. In conclusion, agrivoltaic systems may reduce alternate bearing behaviour in apple trees, showing the importance of carrying out a multi-year study. However, the fluctuating shading strategy tested in this study did not maintain sufficient yields, with yields below 40 t/ha in all three years of study. Identifying the positive and negative effects of shading in this study may be useful for the development of sustainable apple orchard shading strategies.
P. Juillion, G. Lopez, D. Fumey, V. Lesniak. M. Génard, G. Vercambre. 2022. Shading Apple Trees With an Agrivoltaic System: Impact on Water Relations, Leaf Morphophysiological Characteristics and Yield Determinants. Scientia Horticulturae. 306:1-12.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
France
Shading Effect of Photovoltaic Panels on Horticulture Crops Production: A Mini Review
Agrivoltaics (APV) combine crops with solar photovoltaics (PV) on the same land area to provide sustainability benefits across land, energy and water systems (Parkinson and Hunt in Environ Sci Technol Lett 7:525–531, 2020). This innovative system is among the most developing techniques in agriculture that attract significant researches attention in the past ten years. The objective of this mini review is to present and summarize the recent studies on the effect of PV shading on crop cultivation (open field system and greenhouses integrated PV panels), with the aim to identify a correlation between the growth indicators, crop quality (antioxidant activity, sugar content, etc.) and the characteristics of PV installation (shading degree). The alteration of microclimate parameters such as solar radiation, air temperature, humidity and soil temperature under the PV panels was highlighted. Moreover, impact of APV shading on irrigation and water saving and economic feasibility of APV was further discussed. Our main findings are that (1) the reduction in solar radiation is the main changed factor underneath the APV canopy where a reduction of more than 40% the solar radiation due to the presence of the PV panels was observed. (2) Agrivoltaic systems (PV greenhouse or ground) with cover ratio equal or lower than 25% did not show significant effects on plant growth and quality. (3) Inhibitory effects on crops growth was observed with coverage ratio of 50 to 100% except for strawberry and spinach. (4) Water use efficiency for some crops species in dry land climate was greater in the APV system. Given the findings, the research seems promising enough to support APV practices that limit PV panel shading to be lower than 25% to avoid affecting crop growth, assumed to be the priority of an agricultural operation.
Sami Touil, Amina Richa, Meriem Fizir, Brendon Bingwa. 2021. Shading Effect of Photovoltaic Panels on Horticulture Crops Production: A Mini Review. Reviews in Environmental Science and Bio/Technology. 20:281–296.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyHydrologySystem ConfigurationReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Shading and Electric Performance of a Prototype Greenhouse Blind System Based on Semi-transparent Photovoltaic Technology
Photovoltaic (PV) energy is emerging in the greenhouse industry to compensate energy demands for cultivation. Because both crops and PVs need sunlight, their compatibility on the same land unit often conflicts. To overcome this difficulty, we prototyped a venetian-blind-type shading system comprising semi-transparent bifacial PV modules that concurrently function for greenhouse shading control and electricity production. The PV blind installed in a test greenhouse was operated automatically according to the external solar irradiance. When the solar irradiance was higher than a predetermined threshold level, the PV modules were oriented parallel to the roof with sunlight shading
of 42%. The PV modules were oriented to be perpendicular to the roof when the irradiance level was low, prioritizing the sunlight intake into the greenhouse. The blind system operations were managed completely by the electrical energy generated by the PV modules. Actually, the PV-produced electricity was surplus to the blind system operations, suggesting that additional greenhouse appliances can be operated by the PV-produced electricity. This system might be applicable to greenhouses in high-insolation regions as an energetically stand-alone dynamic shading system to produce a better light environment for crops.
Zhi Li, Akira Yano, Marco Cossu, Hidekazu Yoshioka, Ichiro Kita, Yasuomi Ibaraki. 2018. Shading and Electric Performance of a Prototype Greenhouse Blind System Based on Semi-transparent Photovoltaic Technology. Journal of Agricultural Meteorology. 75=4(3):114-122.
MicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Japan
Shading and Par Under Different Density Agrivoltaic Systems, Their Simulation and Effect on Wheat Productivity
The introduction of renewable energy to mitigate climate change and the need for sufficient land to increase food production are mutually exclusive. Agrivoltaic systems (AVS) integrate the production of agricultural crops and electric power on the same piece of land but the main issue is the reduced availability of light to crops below the AVS, which restricts optimum crop growth and yield. This study examines the radiation and shade distribution over the crop surface among three densities of photovoltaic (PV) panels {Partial density (PD), Half density (HD) and Full density (FD)} under the AVS. Wheat variety GW 496 was chosen to grow under the AVS with line sowing and drip irrigation. Among three densities of photovoltaic (PV) panels, the proportion of shaded area over the crop surface was found highest in full density plot and lowest in partial density plot. The shaded area under AVS varied from 24.1% to 75.4% of the total area. The shaded area under different density plots, adversely affects the availability of photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) over the crop surface. The reduction of PAR under the AVS was more affected by panel density. Maximum reduction in PAR under AVS was observed in FD plot and minimum in the PD plot. A sharp increase in the PAR level was observed from shading to open sun conditions. The lowest value of PAR level (56 μmol m−2 s1) was recorded in just below the panel’s array. The consistent overestimation of PAR was observed during the crop growing period in all the PVPs density plots. The result revealed that the grid points under shade conditions showed a better association between observed and simulated incident PAR than unshaded grid points. Furthermore, the simulation results revealed that the model modeled PAR better in PD plot. The study also found that wheat grown under no shade yielded 4.51 t/ha over reduced light either in PD (3.06 t/ha), HD (2.77 t/ha), and FD plots (2.62 t/ha). Shading treatments showed that the crop yield decreased with an increase in shading intensity.
Ved Prakash, Manoj M. Lunagaria, A.P. Trivedi, Ashutosh Upadhyaya, Rakesh Kumar, Anup Das, Anand Kumar Gupta, Yogesh Kumar. 2023. Shading and Par Under Different Density Agrivoltaic Systems, Their Simulation and Effect on Wheat Productivity. European Journal of Agronomy. 149:
(!) .
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologySystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
India
Simulated Solar Panels Create Altered Microhabitats in Desert Landforms
Solar energy development is a significant driver of land-use change worldwide, and desert ecosystems are particularly well suited to energy production because of their high insolation rates. Deserts are also characterized by uncertain rainfall, high species endemism, and distinct landforms that vary in geophysical properties. Weather and physical features that differ across landforms interact with shade and water runoff regimes imposed by solar panels, creating novel microhabitats that influence biotic communities. Endemic species may be particularly affected because they often have limited distributions, narrow climatic envelopes, or specialized life histories. We used experimental panels to simulate the effects of solar development on microhabitats and annual plant communities present on gravelly bajada and caliche pan habitat, two common habitat types in California's Mojave Desert. We evaluated soils and microclimatic conditions and measured community response under panels and in the open for seven years (2012-2018). We found that differences in site characteristics and weather affected the ecological impact of panels on the annual plant community. Panel shade tended to increase species richness on the more stressful caliche pan habitat, and this effect was strongest in dry years. Shade effects on diversity and abundance also tended to be positive or neutral on caliche pan habitat. On gravelly bajada habitat, panel shade did not significantly affect richness or diversity and tended to decrease plant abundance. Panel runoff rarely affected richness or diversity on either habitat type, but effects on abundance tended to be negative-suggesting that panel rain shadows were more important than runoff from low-volume rain events. These results demonstrate that the ecological consequences of solar development can vary over space and time, and suggest that a nuanced approach will be needed to predict impacts across desert landforms differing in physical characteristics.
K.E. Tanner, K.A. Moore‐O'Leary I.M. Parker B.M. Pavlik R.R. Hernandez. 2020. Simulated Solar Panels Create Altered Microhabitats in Desert Landforms. Ecosphere. 11(4):e03089.
HydrologySoilPlant ScienceMicroclimatology
Development Strategy
Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
California
Simulation Approach to Estimate Rice Yield and Energy Generation Under Agrivoltaic System
Agrivoltaic is the combination of two words, agriculture and photovoltaic that associating solar photovoltaic panels and crop at the same time on the same land area. Agrivoltaic system (AV) was proposed as an innovative solution to solve the competition of land around the years 2000s when many farmers in the US and Europe started to convert their land from food crop to energy crop production due to higher demand of biofuel energy. In Japan, AV became more popular after the introduction of Feed-in Tariff (FIT) scheme in July 2012. This scheme made mandatory for electric utility operator to buy electricity from renewable sources at fixed prices for 10 to 20 years depending on the installed capacity. Many rice farmers on the flat land are attracted to this scheme due to the potential of increasing their income. However, MAFF has enacted a guideline to ensure that crop yield under AV should not decrease more than by 20% when compared to the crop yield in the same area. If so, the AV would be dismantled, and the land should return to purely agriculture activities. Throughout the literature review up to date, it is understood that accumulation of empirical research on AV is very limited in Japan. Although there are numerous research examples on the influence of insufficient solar radiation on the crop growth, field experiment coupled with modelling study are still lacking. In addition, there are only limited studies which examined the influence of partial shading from solar photovoltaic panels on the rice (shade intolerant) in Japan. Most of the previous studies in AV focused on lettuce, tomato, cucumber, and maize (shade tolerant). The principal objective of this study is to investigate the effect of rice yield cultivated in an irrigated field under AV in Japan. Then through the use of modelling approaches to simulate solar radiation under AV and its effect on rice yield, the optimum distribution of solar radiation between solar panels and rice crop by adjusting the tilt angle to maximize the monetary income to the AV farm.
T.C. Hau. 2019. Simulation Approach to Estimate Rice Yield and Energy Generation Under Agrivoltaic System [Thesis]. [The University of Tokyo]: Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV Technologies
Simulation and Analysis of Green House Based Agri-Voltaic System Using Energy 3D Software
Solar energy is useful not only for agriculture but also for generating electricity which has been widely tapped
around the world replacing conventional non-renewable energy. The demand for food and energy is increasing at a fast rate and their security has become the prime issue. The sun provides the necessary energy to crops and vegetations to carry out photosynthesis so that plants can grow and bear fruits and vegetables. Agriculture and energy production using PV cells can be used together to form Agri-Voltaic system, which is capable of producing non-conventional energy as well as agricultural products. Agricultural products can be grown in small green houses. These green houses can be installed with solar panel. The performance of green house on roof-integrated with crystalline photovoltaic (PV) system installed located at Guwahati,
Assam in North-East India using Energy 3D software have been used here for analysis.Sandip Bordoloi. 2021. Simulation and Analysis of Green House Based Agri-Voltaic System Using Energy 3D Software. ADBU Journal of Engineering Technology. 10(3):
(!) .
MicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Simulation model to Analyze the Spatial Distribution of Solar Radiation in Agrivoltaic Mediterranean Greenhouses and Its Effect on Crop Water Needs
Agrivoltaics is a new paradigm that combines agricultural and renewable energy production, making agriculture more sustainable, profitable, and resilient. Applying the agrivoltaics approach to greenhouse production presents both a challenge and an opportunity. The opportunity lies in the use of greenhouse rooftops to install PV panels to provide required shading in hot summer months in a more efficient and profitable way. The challenge relates to the fact that the intensity and uniformity of the shading may affect crop development and yield.
To address this dilemma, the present study proposes a new model to simulate the distribution and uniformity of the radiation inside agrivoltaic greenhouses with PV panels installed on their rooftops. The proposed model can analyze any plane geometry for greenhouses as well as any PV panel layout and surface covering percentage. It can also generate reference evapotranspiration (ETo) maps to analyze the effect of radiation on crop water requirements and support farmers to manage irrigation.
The results of the model not only provide the average reduction of radiation as a function of the fraction of greenhouse covered by PV panels, but also the uniformity of the radiation distribution, which is a key factor when designing an agrivoltaic greenhouse. The proposed model was validated by applying it to a case study in a real experimental greenhouse that had been utilized in a previous research work.Cristóbal J. Torrente, Juan Reca, Rafael López-Luque, Juan Martínez, Francisco J. Casares. 01/2024. Simulation model to Analyze the Spatial Distribution of Solar Radiation in Agrivoltaic Mediterranean Greenhouses and Its Effect on Crop Water Needs. Applied Energy. 353(A):
(!) .
MicroclimatologyHydrologySystem ConfigurationTools
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Simulation of Crop Yields Grown Under Agro-Photovoltaic Panels: A Case Study in Chonnam Province, South Korea
Agro-photovoltaic systems are of interest to the agricultural industry because they can produce both electricity and crops in the same farm field. In this study, we aimed to simulate staple crop yields under agro-photovoltaic panels (AVP) based on the calibration of crop models in the decision support system for agricultural technology (DSSAT) 4.6 package. We reproduced yield data of paddy rice, barley, and soybean grown in AVP experimental fields in Bosung and Naju, Chonnam Province, South Korea, using CERES-Rice, CERES-Barley, and CROPGRO-Soybean models. A geospatial crop simulation modeling (GCSM) system, developed using the crop models, was then applied to simulate the regional variations in crop yield according to solar radiation reduction scenarios. Simulated crop yields agreed with the corresponding measured crop yields with root mean squared errors of 0.29-ton ha−1 for paddy rice, 0.46-ton ha−1 for barley, and 0.31-ton ha−1 for soybean, showing no significant differences according to paired sample t-tests. We also demonstrated that the GCSM system could effectively simulate spatiotemporal variations in crop yields due to the solar radiation reduction regimes. An additional advancement in the GCSM design could help prepare a sustainable adaption strategy and understand future food supply insecurity.
Jonghan Ko, Jaeil Cho, Jinsil Choi, Chang-Yong Yoon, Kyu-Nam An, Jong-Oh Ban, Dong-Kwan Kim. 2021. Simulation of Crop Yields Grown Under Agro-Photovoltaic Panels: A Case Study in Chonnam Province, South Korea. Energies. 14(24):
(!) .
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologySystem ConfigurationMethodological Comparisons
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
South Korea
Simulation of Solar Irradiance Distribution Under Agrivoltaic Facilities
Agrivoltaic facility is the composite system that the solar panel is installed above the farmland, and it enables crop and electricity production simultaneously. Solar panels of the agrivoltaic facilities can block and reduce the amount of solar irradiance arriving at the farmland, but it can help the crop growth by preventing excessive solar irradiance. Therefore, to clarify how the agrivoltaic facilities affect the crop growth, precise solar irradiance distribution under the solar panel should be modeled. In this study, PAR (photosynthetically active radiation), radiation from 400 to 700 nm, which crops usually use to grow, was extracted from the total irradiance and its distribution model under various conditions was developed. Monthly irradiance distributions varied because the elevation of the sun was changed over time, which made the position changed that the local maximum and minimum irradiance appear. The higher panel height did not cause any significant difference in the amount of irradiance reaching below the solar panel, but its distribution became more uniform. Furthermore, the panel angles with the most irradiance arriving below the solar panel were different by month, but its difference was up to 2%p between the irradiance with 30° angle which is usually recommended in Korea. Finally, the interval between panels was adjusted; when the ratio of the length of the panel to the empty space was 1:2, the irradiance of 0.719 times was reached compared to when there was no panel, 0.579 times for 1:1 and 0.442 times for 2:1.
Y.J. Jeong, S.I. Lee, J.H.Lee, B.H. Seo, D.S. Kim, J. Lee, W. Choi. 2022. Simulation of Solar Irradiance Distribution Under Agrivoltaic Facilities. Journal of The Korean Society of Agricultural Engineers. 64(2):1-13.
MicroclimatologySystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
South Korea
Siting Renewable Energy Facilities Using a Matching Algorithm: A Case Study in Japan
Finding an optimal match between installation sites and renewable energy (RE) facilities while ensuring that private initiatives meet local socio-environmental needs is a significant albeit complicated task. Different sites may need diverse considerations, such as landscape conservation, while information on the true local preferences and costs of RE facilities is unknown to the planner, causing information asymmetry and inefficiency. This study explores how a matching model can be utilised for empirically planning RE siting using an illustrative case study. It employs the so-called ‘college admission problem’ of the matching model. The matching algorithm enables the matching of sites and RE specifications, reflecting the true preferences of local people regarding facility siting. The matching result would ensure the most desirable choice for local people, as adopting the ‘student-optimal matching’ algorithm generates desirable matching patterns for the locals among the stable matching patterns.
Noriko Irie, Ryusei Iwamura, Kaho Sugiura, Naoko Kawahara. 2023. Siting Renewable Energy Facilities Using a Matching Algorithm: A Case Study in Japan. Land. 12(1):
(!) .
Social PerspectivesPolicy and Regulatory IssuesSitingMethodological Comparisons
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Japan
Smart Cities and Communities: A Case Study of Agrovoltaic Systems Applied to an Italian Urban Periphery
Building and modelling inclusive and sustainable urban areas is a current essential priority in the policy agenda. The smart cities model is occupying a key role in this context, promoting the use of renewable energy sources as well as increasing the well-being of citizens. In this framework, the presented research proposes the application of the smart method to an Italian urban periphery. To exploit the landscape and economy sector of the context, the authors decided to evaluate the installation of agrovoltaic power plants. The agrovoltaic system is also combined with other energy solutions, such as heat pump installations to evaluate their mutual benefits in terms of energy production and emission avoided. Once the simulation model of alternative solutions, such as electric bike-sharing, agrivoltaic plant, and energy efficiency of the building was elaborated in Matlab/Simulink, the application of a smart methodology was necessary to draft the priority ranking of the various strategies. Results highlight which solution obtained a positive impact on the overall smart axes, providing a useful approach for designers to plan a sustainable and smart project.
Federico D'Alessandro, Fabrizio Sevagian, Axel Riccardo Massulli, Fabio Nardecchia, Laura Pompei. 2023. Smart Cities and Communities: A Case Study of Agrovoltaic Systems Applied to an Italian Urban Periphery. In: 2023 IEEE International Conference on Environment and Electrical Engineering and 2023 IEEE Industrial and Commercial Power Systems Europe (EEEIC / I&CPS Europe); 2023/06/06; Madrid, Spain. Online: IEEE; p.
(!)
Social PerspectivesMarket AssessmentsEconomics
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Italy
Smart Sustainable Agrivoltaics Systems: The Future of Sustainable Agricultural Technology (Agri-tech) and Green Energy
Agricultural productivity depends primarily on energy, water, and land resources, which are increasingly becoming more scarce and expensive. Electricity generation with photovoltaic (PV) solar energy technology requires significant amounts of space, especially in densely populated countries, generating a societal debate about allocating land (that may have alternative uses) for deploying PV systems. Rather than dedicating vast amounts of agricultural land to be used as solar farms, PV systems are deployed in agricultural lands so that a given piece of land can be used for agriculture and energy generation (the so-called agrivoltaics). A framework based on systems thinking is essential for the design and operation of smart, sustainable agrivoltaics systems to meet the design goals or to satisfy the expectation of all stakeholders (farmers, energy developers, policymakers, and local community members that may be impacted). In this paper, we propose a system-based conceptual and design framework for smart, sustainable agrivoltaics. We also discuss the benefits of agrivoltaics and the challenges to their adoption.
G. S. Kuaban, P. Czekalski, O. Nwobodo, R. Sell, A. Nikitenko, K. Berkolds, K. T. Tanko. 2023. Smart Sustainable Agrivoltaics Systems: The Future of Sustainable Agricultural Technology (Agri-tech) and Green Energy. In: International Conference on Electrical, Computer, Communications and Mechatronics Engineering (ICECCME 2023); 2023/07/19; Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain. Europe: ResearchGate; p. N/A
Standardization and Best PracticesReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Conference Paper
Social Acceptance of Dual Land Use Approaches: Stakeholders' Perceptions of the Drivers and Barriers Confronting Agrivoltaics Diffusion
Agrivoltaics is a dual land-use approach, combining food and energy production. It is a yet underexplored innovation with high potential to address land-use conflicts. Understanding the basis on which stakeholders judge and decide on such innovations is crucial to understanding perception and adoption, especially when the potential value of an innovation is not solely on an individual level but also on a societal level. Therefore, we combine two theoretical lenses, the innovation diffusion theory for an individual and the social acceptance perspective for a societal lens. Through 27 semi-structured stakeholder interviews, we explore perceptions of agrivoltaics by different stakeholder types in three countries (Germany, Belgium, and Denmark) and different agrivoltaics system designs (vertical, horizontal, and as replacement of cover installations). We categorize our emerging themes into drivers and barriers of agrivoltaic diffusion in five subdimensions based on the known characteristics of innovation diffusion (Relative Advantage, Compatibility, Complexity, Trialability, and Communicability) and find social acceptance is the overarching dimension that embraces the five subdimensions by either strengthening or weakening acceptance on the micro, meso or macro level. Based on this categorization, we develop a conceptual model to highlight the need to address perceived drivers of, and barriers to, innovation adoption on different social acceptance levels. Our findings contribute to a better understanding of which perceptions play an essential role to whom. First, such a more holistic perspective can support policymakers' decisions on how to boost agrivoltaics as a potentially valuable innovation. Second, it can help researchers decide what to focus on when designing pilot studies, and third, it can support product and project developers decide on how to design agrivoltaic projects with better acceptance rates from all the involved stakeholder groups.
G. Torma, J. Aschemann-Witzel. 01/2023. Social Acceptance of Dual Land Use Approaches: Stakeholders' Perceptions of the Drivers and Barriers Confronting Agrivoltaics Diffusion. Journal of Rural Studies. 97:610-625.
Social PerspectivesReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Belgium, Denmark, Germany
Social Acceptance of Renewable Energy Development in Southern Spain: Exploring Tendencies, Locations, Criteria and Situations
Although, in general, there is a high level of public acceptance of renewable energies (RE) in Spain, at a local scale, protests and campaigns against RE projects are becoming increasingly frequent. In order to identify the factors that most influence the acceptance/rejection of renewable electricity generation technologies (photovoltaic, wind and biomass) at a local level, in this study we conducted a structured survey of the population of the province of Jaén in southern Spain. The analysis of the results of the questionnaire reveals that the social acceptance of RE plants is influenced by their location and size, and identifies the main criteria and situations that people take into consideration when deciding whether to support or reject RE projects. Although the results suggest that all RE technologies are widely accepted, they also highlight a preference for photovoltaic energy and for medium-sized plants in sites with low natural value. This article provides information and recommendations to facilitate the drafting of policies, plans and future studies that will enable social barriers to the implementation of RE technologies to be reduced, so helping accelerate the energy transition that is required in order for agreed climate targets to be met.
F.J. Rodríguez-Segura, J.C. Osorio-Aravena, M. Frolova, J. Terrados-Cepeda, E. Muñoz-Cerón. 02/2023. Social Acceptance of Renewable Energy Development in Southern Spain: Exploring Tendencies, Locations, Criteria and Situations. Energy Policy. 173:1-12.
Social Perspectives
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Spain
Soil properties changes after seven years of ground mounted photovoltaic panels in Central Italy coastal area
Land use change is a major driver of soils’ properties variation and potential degradation. Solar photovoltaic
plants installed on the ground represent a key to mitigating global climate change and greenhouse gas emissions. However, it could represent an emerging source of land consumption, although reversible, which prevents the use of soils for agricultural purposes and may affect crucial ecosystems services. Despite the large widespread deployment of photovoltaic plants, their potential effect on soil properties has been poorly investigated. The aim of this study was to assess changes of soil physical, chemical and biochemical properties seven years after the installation of the panels. For this purpose, the soil under photovoltaic panels was compared with the GAP area between the panels’ arrays and with an adjacent soil not affected by the plant. The main results showed that seven years of soil coverage modified soil fertility with the significant reduction of water holding capacity and soil temperature, while electrical conductivity (EC) and pH increased. Additionally, under the panels soil organic matter was dramatically reduced (− 61% and − 50% for TOC and TN, respectively compared to GAP area) inducing a parallel decrease of microbial activity assessed either as respiration or enzymatic activities. As for the effect of land use change, the installation of the power plant induced significant changes in soils’ physical, chemical and biochemical properties creating a striped pattern that may require some time to recover the necessary homogeneity of soil properties but shouldn’t compromise the future re-conversion to agricultural
land use after power plant decommissioning.Maria Cristina Moscatelli, Rosita Marabottini, Luisa Massaccesi, Sara Marinari. 06/2022. Soil properties changes after seven years of ground mounted photovoltaic panels in Central Italy coastal area. Geoderma Regional. 29:
(!) .
Soil
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Italy
Soilless Production of Wild Rocket as Affected by Greenhouse Coverage with Photovoltaic Modules
Solar photovoltaic greenhouses have become more popular, especially in the countries of southern Europe, due to specific government remuneration policies. How-ever, many agronomic questions need to be addressed. This research was carried out in three types of commercial greenhouses covered with different materials (polycarbonate modules – PCM, traditional – TPM and innovative semi-transparent – IPM photovoltaic modules) with the aim to verify the compatibility of solar energy production with the pro-duction of high-quality wild rocket (Diplotaxis tenuifolia L.). IPM may satisfy the entire electricity demand of a commercial greenhouse. Yield for rocket grown in TPM was lower than for IPM and PCM. Antioxidant properties and dry weight decreased as a conse-quence of decreasing cumulative photosynthetic photon flux density. Nitrate content in TPM was higher (about 10.000 mg·kg-1 FW) than the maximum limits allowed by EC Regulation No. 1258/2011, whereas it was lower in IPM and PCM (1.805 and 668 mg·kg-1 FW, respec-tively). The results suggest that it is possible to combine solar energy production with high-quality wild rocket production, using innovative semi-transparent PV modules.
Donato Buttaro, Massimiliano Renna, Carmela Gerardi, Federica Blando, Pietro Santamaria, Francesco Serio. 04/2016. Soilless Production of Wild Rocket as Affected by Greenhouse Coverage with Photovoltaic Modules. Acta Sci. Pol. Hortorum Cultus. 139-142.
SoilPV TechnologiesMarket Assessments
Solar Energy Advancements in Agriculture and Food Production Systems
Solar Energy Advancements in Agriculture and Food Production Systems aims to assist society and agricultural communities in different regions and scales to improve their productivity and sustainability. Solar energy, with its rapidly growing technologies and nascent market, has shown promise for integration into a variety of agricultural activities, providing an alternative, sustainable solution to current practices. To meet the future demands of modern sustainable agriculture, this book addresses the major existing problems by providing innovative, effective, and sustainable solutions using environment-friendly, advanced, energy-efficient, and cost-optimized solar energy technologies. This comprehensive book is intended to serve as a practical guide for scientists, engineers, policymakers, and stakeholders involved in agriculture and related primary industries, as well as sustainable energy development, and climate change mitigation projects. By including globally implemented solar-based agriculture projects in each chapter and highlighting the key associated challenges and benefits, it aims to bridge the knowledge gap between the market/real-world applications and research in the field.
Shiva Gorjian, Pietro Elia Campana. 2022. Solar Energy Advancements in Agriculture and Food Production Systems. 1st Edition. Iran: Elsevier Science. 496p.
Reviews/Informational
Solar Energy Development on Farmland: Three Prevalent Perspectives of Conflict, Synergy and Compromise in the United States
As farmland has become a key place for grid-scale, ground-mounted solar energy development, there needs to be more analysis to explore what energy transitions mean for the future of agriculture. This article uses the food–energy–water (FEW) nexus framework to delineate three different perspectives of solar energy development on farmland. The first two perspectives fit into the FEW nexus language of “trade-offs” and “synergies” respectively, arguing that solar energy development either conflicts with agricultural land use and food security or, alternatively, that the two land uses can be co-located appropriately to create agrivoltaic systems. The third perspective is a compromise, arguing that solar energy - neither a complete trade-off to nor completely synergetic with continued agriculture - preserves farmland for future agricultural use. By analyzing these perspectives together, we further understand implications of solar energy development. While each of these perspectives is important, agrivoltaics has the greatest potential to play a positive role across both energy and agricultural transitions. Nonetheless, there are several key barriers to agrivoltaic development, including the need for sufficient access to water, local knowledge and appropriate agricultural resources, and sustained interest from solar energy developers. The development of agrivoltaics, and solar energy in general, should raise important political questions of land access and resource use.
Z. Goldberg. 07/2023. Solar Energy Development on Farmland: Three Prevalent Perspectives of Conflict, Synergy and Compromise in the United States. Energy Research & Social Science. 101:1-8.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
Solar Energy Farming as a Development Innovation for Vulnerable Water Basins
In vulnerable water basins, unregulated access to solar energy and groundwater can threaten water security through increased abstractions. Public and development agencies are therefore exploring options to provide farmers with additional income from solar farming while protecting groundwater resources. Solar energy farming is combined with attractive purchase guarantees in order to encourage farmers to efficiently use solar energy on-farm and sell the energy excess. This article evaluates a project from the Azraq Basin in Jordan, and presents similar international experiences, particularly from India. It assesses solar energy farming as an innovation from a water-energy-food nexus perspective.
M. Al-Saidi, N. Lahham. 04/2019. Solar Energy Farming as a Development Innovation for Vulnerable Water Basins. Development in Practice. 29(5):619-634.
Impact AssessmentsPolicy and Regulatory Issues
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Jordan
Solar Energy Generation Using Agriculture Cultivated Lands
Generation of electricity using solar PV is picking up in India in a big way in recent years. It needs a clear direc- tion such that it can optimally be utilized and the benefits, without being concentrated in a few locations, can reach the majority of poor population as well. Indian farmers, for the last few decades are affected in terms of availability of electrical power. The present study suggests the use of fertile and cultivated land with about 5 m elevated structure with solar panels. It creates shade on the crops. In the present study, the shade effect on the crops below the structure has been examined systematically through modeling studies. Different solar panel de- sign configurations are suggested such that the crops or plants below, on the ground surface, can also be grown without a ny r eduction i n their y ield. T he ef fect of the el evated s tructure on the neighboring l ands i s a lso e x- amined. It is shown that the present concept can easily be implemented in India, perhaps in the world, at all the locations such that power can be generated using farmer’s own land for his own benefit, perhaps with some profit to him. The present concept, if implemented, also reduces the huge cost involved in establishing the net- work of transmission and distribution lines.
T. Harinarayana, K.S.V. Vasavi. 2014. Solar Energy Generation Using Agriculture Cultivated Lands. Smart Grid and Renewable Energy. 5(2):31-42.
MicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
India
Solar Energy Within the Water-Energy-Food Security Nexus: A Systematic Review
Since the Water-Energy-Food Security (WEF) nexus was officially established during the Bonn 2011
Conference, nexus research has grown rapidly. As a result, and due to its interdisciplinary nature, an array of academic literature now engages in the WEF nexus, often in seemingly separate disciplines. Solar energy is one of the most popular renewable energy sources; however, its role within the WEF nexus has only recently gained traction. Through a systematic review, this article examines the current state of knowledge regarding solar energy’s role within the WEF nexus, how solar energy impacts water, energy, and food (in)security, and its potential synergies and trade-offs within the WEF nexus. Accordingly, all the relevant English-language peer-reviewed publications from 2011 and onwards that focus on solar energy’s role within the WEF nexus are reviewed, followed by qualitative conventional content analysis. Four main themes emerge from the review and analysis process: general solar energy deployment, agrivoltaics, aquavoltaics and solar energy greenhouse desalination systems. This article shows that, although the current state of knowledge about solar energy’s role within the WEF nexus is sparse, solar energy creates great synergies regarding improving water, energy, and food security and has an overall positive impact within the WEF nexus. However, threats to local water sources remain a challenge since increased access to unregulated solar energy in areas without or with little previous access to energy can create water overuse, often due to extensive irrigation of food crops. On the other hand, agrivoltaics and aquavoltaics create strong synergies, and both offer water-efficient means of producing energy and food. However, aquavoltaics often undermine food production, while agrivoltaics impact on food production varies depending on what crops are grown and their location. Solar energy greenhouse desalination systems offer a way of creating self-sufficient food production but have only been examined on a small-scale level. All main research areas require more research to identify the full scope of solar energy’s role within the
WEF nexus.Ian Granit. 08/2021. Solar Energy Within the Water-Energy-Food Security Nexus: A Systematic Review. ResearchGate.
(!) .
Reviews/Informational
Solar Energy in Urban Planning: Lesson Learned and Recommendations from Six Italian Case Studies
This paper presents the results of the analysis conducted on six case studies related to solar energy integration in urban and rural environments located on the Italian territory. The analysis has been carried out within the Subtask C—Case Studies and Action Research of the International Energy Agency Solar Heating and Cooling Program Task 51 “Solar Energy in Urban Planning”. Three different environments hosting active and passive solar energy systems (existing urban areas, new urban areas, and agricultural/rural areas) have been investigated to attain lessons learned and recommendations. Findings suggest that (a) it is important to consider solar energy from the early stages of the design process onwards to achieve satisfactory levels of integration; (b) a higher level of awareness regarding solar potential at the beginning of a project permits acting on its morphology, achieving the best solution in terms of active and passive solar gains; (c) when properly designed, photovoltaic systems can act as characterizing elements and as a distinctive architectural material that is able to valorize the aesthetic of the entire urban intervention; (d) further significant outcomes include the importance of supporting the decision strategies with quantitative and qualitative analyses, the institution of coordinating bodies to facilitate the discussion between stakeholders, and the need for deep renovation projects to fully impact existing buildings’ stock; (e) when large solar installations are planned at the ground level, a landscape design approach should be chosen, while the ecological impact should be reduced by carefully planning the adoption of alternative solutions (e.g., agrivoltaics) compatible with the existing land use.
Matteo Formolli, Silvia Croce, Daniele Vettorato, Rossana Paparella, Alessandra Scognamiglio, Andrea Giovanni Mainini, Gabriele Lobaccaro. 2022. Solar Energy in Urban Planning: Lesson Learned and Recommendations from Six Italian Case Studies. Applied Sciences. 12(6):
(!) .
Siting
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Italy
Solar Farms as the Only Power Source for the Entire Country
The presented paper shows a hypothetical large solar farm that would be the only source of electricity for the entire country. The energy crisis in Europe raises the question of whether it is possible to supply an electrical system based only on renewable energy sources. What should the surface area of the solar panels be in a hypothetical large solar farm to power the entire country? In this work, we will show what requirements must be met to make this feasible. Very important differences between the installed power capacity in a coal-fired or nuclear power plant and a solar power plant are discussed. The article presents calculations of the surface area of photovoltaic panels in that solar farm for four exemplary countries in Central Europe: Poland, Germany, the Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic. These studies are particularly important for Poland, whose electrical system is still mainly based on coal-fired power plants. The hypothetical solar farm could, in practice, take the form of dozens of solar power plants located in different parts of the country. Most importantly, the proposed solution will counteract climate change.
A. Manowska, A. Nowrot. 2022. Solar Farms as the Only Power Source for the Entire Country. Energies. 15(14):1-15.
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Czech Republic, Germany, Poland, Slovakia
Solar PV Power Potential is Greatest Over Croplands
Solar energy has the potential to offset a significant fraction of non-renewable electricity demands globally, yet it may occupy extensive areas when deployed at this level. There is growing concern that large renewable energy installations will displace other land uses. Where should future solar power installations be placed to achieve the highest energy production and best use the limited land resource? The premise of this work is that the solar panel efficiency is a function of the location’s microclimate within which it is immersed. Current studies largely ignore many of the environmental factors that influence Photovoltaic (PV) panel function. A model for solar panel efficiency that incorporates the influence of the panel’s microclimate was derived from first principles and validated with field observations. Results confirm that the PV panel efficiency is influenced by the insolation, air temperature, wind speed and relative humidity. The model was applied globally using bias-corrected reanalysis datasets to map solar panel efficiency and the potential for solar power production given local conditions. Solar power production potential was classified based on local land cover classification, with croplands having the greatest median solar potential of approximately 28 W/m2. The potential for dual-use, agrivoltaic systems may alleviate land competition or other spatial constraints for solar power development, creating a significant opportunity for future energy sustainability. Global energy demand would be offset by solar production if even less than 1% of cropland were converted to an agrivoltaic system.
E.H. Adeh, S.P. Good, M. Calaf, C.W. Higgins. 2019. Solar PV Power Potential is Greatest Over Croplands. Scientific Reports. 9(11442):
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SitingMicroclimatologyMarket AssessmentsPV TechnologiesHydrology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Solar Panel Energy Technology for Sustainable Agriculture Farming: A Review
Agriculture is very important to human beings because it is the sole provider of food for human. However, agricultural processes require constant energy resources for machineries operation, irrigation pumps, greenhouse heating. All of these are conventionally operated using fossil fuel. The use of fossil fuel in agricultural farms accelerates climate changes as it emits lots of greenhouse gases. This made scientists, researchers and academicians to find an alternative and sustainable agricultural farming using renewable energy such as solar panel energy technology to mitigate the environmental problems that may result to global warming and climate change. Furthermore, to solve the alarming fear of exhaustion of fossil fuel. The authors present this article by reviewing literatures from various available sources. The article concludes that there is the need to conduct more researches in order to optimize the combination of solar panel energy technology application and agricultural cultivation among the agricultural farmers due to its environmental as well as economic feasibility.
S. Aroonsrimorakot, M. Laiphrakpam, W. Paisantanakij. 2020. Solar Panel Energy Technology for Sustainable Agriculture Farming: A Review. International Journal of Agricultural Technology. 16(3):553-562.
Reviews/Informational
Solar Park Microclimate and Vegetation Management Effects on Grassland Carbon Cycling
Increasing energy demands and the drive towards low carbon (C) energy sources has prompted a rapid increase in ground-mounted solar parks across the world. This represents a significant global land use change with implications for the hosting ecosystems that are poorly understood. In order to investigate the effects of a typical solar park on the microclimate and ecosystem processes, we measured soil and air microclimate, vegetation and greenhouse gas emissions for twelve months under photovoltaic (PV) arrays, in gaps between PV arrays and in control areas at a UK solar park sited on species-rich grassland. Our results show that the PV arrays caused seasonal and diurnal variation in air and soil microclimate. Specifically, during the summer we observed cooling, of up to 5.2 °C, and drying under the PV arrays compared with gap and control areas. In contrast, during the winter gap areas were up to 1.7 °C cooler compared with under the PV arrays and control areas. Further, the diurnal variation in both temperature and humidity during the summer was reduced under the PV arrays. We found microclimate and vegetation management explained differences in the above ground plant biomass and species diversity, with both lower under the PV arrays. Photosynthesis and net ecosystem exchange in spring and winter were also lower under the PV arrays, explained by microclimate, soil and vegetation metrics. These data are a starting point to develop understanding of the effects of solar parks in other climates, and provide evidence to support the optimisation of solar park design and management to maximise the delivery of ecosystem services from this growing land use.
A. Armstrong, N. J Ostle, J. Whitaker. 2016. Solar Park Microclimate and Vegetation Management Effects on Grassland Carbon Cycling. Environmental Research Letters. 11(7):074016.
HydrologySoilPlant ScienceMicroclimatologyImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United Kingdom
Solar Parks: A Review on Impacts, Mitigation, Mechanism Through Agrivoltaics and Technoeconomic Analysis
Solar parks are mega solar projects to fast track renewable energy integration, while avoiding redundancy in electro-mechnical infrastruturing and land acquiring procedures. However these ground-mounted grid-integrated solar photovoltaic projects require vast land banks, which remain covered for the lifetime of the project.. The socio-economic and environmental externalities on at micro level affecting livelihoods often go unaccounted. Earlier works on impact assessment of large solar parks have considered environment, ecology, micro-climate at large while impact on livelihoods and long term externalities on socitial issues were not addressed. The effectivnes of agrivolticas as a mitigation mechanism was primarlity focused on type of crops vis-à-vis height of structures, water management and economic outputs. The current work has a reviewed agrivoltaic projects in India and identified the managaement practices, constraints, cost econmoics and policy framework. A review of works done on solar park impact assessment and mitigation mechanism by agrivoltaics are done in detail. The work has considered agrivoltaics from a social aspect and focused on impacts due to loss of livelihoods and associated externalities under social impact classification. A methodology in which agrivoltaics is taken as a self healing mechanism to environment and society is adopted. A conventional solar plant and an agrivoltaic plant are considered for study and three livelihood mechanisms namely medicinal plants, poultry and bee keeping are considered for techno-commecrcial analysis. It is found that while the medicinal plants in PV plants can improve the income by 8%, while poultry in solar parks bring additional income of 83%, considering one lifecycle, while bee keeping bring additional income of 4%. The economic analysis shows that agrivoltaic without workable business models for a captive power plant with 0.14$/kWh FiT breakeven at 3 years and 9 months while a captive plant with the same FiT without agrivoltaics breaks even in 2 years and 4 months. A captive plant with 0.14 $/kWh FiT with a workable business model will breakeven in 3 years and 3 months. A grid tied solar PV plants with a FiT of 0.03 $/kWh which has a breakeven of 13 years without agrivoltaics, may not breakeven within 25 years (plant life) without a workable business model. However, with a workable business model for agrivoltaics the grid tied solar PV plant with a FiT of 0.03 $/kWh will have a breakeven in 17 years and 8 months.
S. J. Thomas, S. Thomas, S. S. Sahoo, A. K. G, M. M. Awad. 09/2023. Solar Parks: A Review on Impacts, Mitigation, Mechanism Through Agrivoltaics and Technoeconomic Analysis. Energy Nexus. 11:N/A.
Market AssessmentsEconomicsSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
India
Solar Photovoltaic Architecture and Agronomic Management in Agrivoltaic System: A Review
Agrivoltaic systems (AVS) offer a symbiotic strategy for co-location sustainable renewable energy and agricultural production. This is particularly important in densely populated developing and developed countries, where renewable energy development is becoming more important; however, profitable farmland must be preserved. As emphasized in the Food-Energy-Water (FEW) nexus, AVS advancements should not only focus on energy management, but also agronomic management (crop and water management). Thus, we critically review the important factors that influence the decision of energy management (solar PV architecture) and agronomic management in AV systems. The outcomes show that solar PV architecture and agronomic management advancements are reliant on (1) solar radiation qualities in term of light intensity and photosynthetically activate radiation (PAR), (2) AVS categories such as energy-centric, agricultural-centric, and agricultural-energy-centric, and (3) shareholder perspective (especially farmers). Next, several adjustments for crop selection and management are needed due to light limitation, microclimate condition beneath the solar structure, and solar structure constraints. More importantly, a systematic irrigation system is required to prevent damage to the solar panel structure. To summarize, AVS advancements should be carefully planned to ensure the goals of reducing reliance on non-renewable sources, mitigating global warming effects, and meeting the FEW initiatives.
M.A.Z. Abidin, M.N. Mahyuddin, M.A.A.M. Zainuri. 2021. Solar Photovoltaic Architecture and Agronomic Management in Agrivoltaic System: A Review. Sustainability. 13(14):1-27.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Solar Power to the People: A Call to Integrate Agrivoltaics into the Biden Administration’s Plans for Supporting Minority Farmers and Reducing Carbon Emissions
N/A
Colleen Collins. 01/2022. Solar Power to the People: A Call to Integrate Agrivoltaics into the Biden Administration’s Plans for Supporting Minority Farmers and Reducing Carbon Emissions. Environs. 45(2):149-184.
Policy and Regulatory Issues
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production, Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
Arizona, Maryland, Massachusetts
Solar Power to the People: A Call to Integrate Agrivoltaics into the Biden Administration’s Plans for Supporting Minority Farmers and Reducing Carbon Emissions
The Biden administration has set ambitious goals to combat systemic racist
practices against minority farmers and bolster rural energy and food security, while reaching carbon neutrality by 2035. Agrivoltaics has the potential to enable the achievement of many of the Biden administration’s goals while supporting minority communities, clean energy infrastructure, and food security. While more research is warranted to perfect this technique, there is strong support for the colocation of PV modules and agricultural or horticultural production. With so many potential benefits, incentives and clear regulations are needed to allow farmers the opportunity to diversify their income and generate clean energy while maintaining farming practices. The prohibitive up front capital cost is a main hurdle to the achievement of agrivoltaics. As sunsetting incentives and state zoning restrictions obstruct innovation through the application of agrivoltaics, it will be important for the Biden administration to offer additional financial help to struggling farmers, especially Black and Native American farmers who have
historically been discriminated against.Colleen Collins. 2022. Solar Power to the People: A Call to Integrate Agrivoltaics into the Biden Administration’s Plans for Supporting Minority Farmers and Reducing Carbon Emissions. ENVIRONS. 45(2):149-184.
Social PerspectivesPolicy and Regulatory IssuesReviews/Informational
Solar Radiation Distribution Inside a Greenhouse with South-oriented Photovoltaic Roofs and Effects on Crop Productivity
This study assessed the climate conditions inside a greenhouse in which 50% of the roof area was replaced with photovoltaic (PV) modules, describing the solar radiation distribution and the variability of temperature and humidity. The effects of shading from the PV array on crop productivity were described on tomato, also integrating the natural radiation with supplementary lighting powered by PV energy. Experiments were performed inside an east–west oriented greenhouse (total area of 960m2), where the south-oriented roofs were completely covered with multi-crystalline silicon PV modules, with a total rated power of 68kWp. The PV system reduced the availability of solar radiation inside the greenhouse by 64%, compared to the situation without PV system (2684MJm−2 on yearly basis). The solar radiation distribution followed a north–south gradient, with more solar energy on the sidewalls and decreasing towards the center of the span, except in winter, where it was similar in all plant rows. The reduction under the plastic and PV covers was respectively 46% and 82% on yearly basis. Only a 18% reduction was observed on the plant rows farthest from the PV cover of the span. The supplementary lighting, powered without exceeding the energy produced by the PV array, was not enough to affect the crop production, whose revenue was lower than the cost for heating and lighting. The distribution of the solar radiation observed is useful for choosing the most suitable crops and for designing PV greenhouses with the attitude for both energy and crop production.
M. Cossu, L. Murgia, L. Ledda, P.A. Deligios, A. Sirigu, F. Chessa, A. Pazzona. 2014. Solar Radiation Distribution Inside a Greenhouse with South-oriented Photovoltaic Roofs and Effects on Crop Productivity. Applied Energy. 133:89-100.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesEconomics
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Italy
Solar Radiation Distribution Method for a Photovoltaic Greenhouse based on the Maximization of Annual Economic Benefits
A solar radiation distribution method is proposed based on the maximization of economic benefits for photovoltaic power generation and agricultural production in a photovoltaic greenhouse to solve the problem of low overall economic benefits because of an unreasonable solar radiation distribution between photovoltaic power generation and agricultural production in the photovoltaic greenhouse. First, a mathematical model of the solar radiation yield of photovoltaic greenhouse crops is proposed based on a rectangular hyperbolic modified light response model of crops to represent the relationship between solar radiation energy and crop production. Second, a mathematical model of the average annual revenue of a photovoltaic greenhouse is established to determine the maximum annual economic benefit of the photovoltaic greenhouse, and the model is constrained by the requirements of the light intensity of photovoltaic power generation and environmental conditions for the growth of greenhouse crops. Finally, the correctness of the model is verified by actual operation data of a photovoltaic greenhouse in Xinjiang, and the optimal solar radiation distribution proportion is calculated. This study provides theoretical support for the design of photovoltaic greenhouses.
Yi Wang, Tiejun Zhou, Weiji Zhou. 03/2021. Solar Radiation Distribution Method for a Photovoltaic Greenhouse based on the Maximization of Annual Economic Benefits. Research Square.
(!) .
MicroclimatologyMarket Assessments
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Solar Radiation Distribution inside a Greenhouse Prototypal with Photovoltaic Mobile Plant and Effects on Flower Growth
The diffusion of renewable energy requires the search for new technologies useful for
obtaining good energy and production efficiency. Even if the latter is not always easy to obtain, the integration of photovoltaic panels on the roof of greenhouses intended for floriculture can represent an alternative. The present paper evaluates climatic conditions inside a greenhouse, in which 20% of its roof surface has been replaced with mobile photovoltaic (PV) panels. The PV system implemented in this study can vary the light energy collection surface in relation to the degree of insolation. The aim is to observe the shading effects of the PV system on the growth of several varieties of flowers (iberis, mini-cyclamens and petunias) to ensure the use of solar energy as an income integration deriving from floricultural production. In fact, in agronomic terms, it has ensured: (i) to be able to shade the underlying environment in most lighting conditions; and (ii) to let through more light when it is required for the needs of crop plants or in cloudy weather. Results have described the distribution of solar radiation, variability of temperature and humidity and lighting in a solar year and the observed
outcomes on floristic production.Andrea Colantoni, Danilo Monarca, Alvaro Marucci, Massimo Cecchini, Ilaria Zambon, Federico Di Battista, Diego Maccario, Maria Grazia Saporito, Margherita Beruto. 03/2018. Solar Radiation Distribution inside a Greenhouse Prototypal with Photovoltaic Mobile Plant and Effects on Flower Growth. Sustainability. 10(3):
(!) .
System ConfigurationPlant ScienceMicroclimatology
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Solar Sharing for Both Food and Clean Energy Production: Performance of Agrivoltaic Systems for Corn, A Typical Shade-Intolerant Crop
The purpose of this research was to examine the performance of agrivoltaic systems, which produce crops and electricity simultaneously, by installing stilt-mounted photovoltaic (PV) panels on farmland. As PV power stations enjoy remarkable growth, land occupation with the purpose of establishing solar farms will intensify the competition for land resources between food and clean energy production. The results of this research showed, however, that the stilt-mounted agrivoltaic system can mitigate the trade-off between crop production and clean energy generation even when applied to corn, a typical shade-intolerant crop. The research was conducted at a 100-m2 experimental farm with three sub-configurations: no modules (control), low module density, and high module density. In each configuration, 9 stalks/m2 were planted 0.5 m apart. The biomass of corn stover grown in the low-density configuration was larger than that of the control configuration by 4.9%. Also, the corn yield per square meter of the low-density configuration was larger than that of the control by 5.6%. The results of this research should encourage more conventional farmers, clean energy producers, and policy makers to consider adopting stilt-mounted PV systems, particularly in areas where land resources are relatively scarce.
T. Sekiyama, A. Nagashima. 2019. Solar Sharing for Both Food and Clean Energy Production: Performance of Agrivoltaic Systems for Corn, A Typical Shade-Intolerant Crop. Environments. 6(6):65.
Plant ScienceEconomicsPV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Japan
Solar photovoltaic wood racking mechanical design for trellis-based agrivoltaics
Using a trellis to plant vegetables and fruits can double or triple the yield per acre as well as reduce diseases/pests, ease harvesting and make cleaner produce. Cultivars such as cucumbers, grapes, kiwi, melons, peas, passion fruit, pole beans, pumpkins, strawberries, squash, and tomatoes are all grown with trellises. Many of these cultivars showed increased yield with partial shading with semi-transparent solar photovoltaic (PV) systems. To further increase the efficiency of trellis-based growing systems, this study investigates novel low-cost, open-source, sustainable, wood-based PV racking designs for agrivoltaic applications. Design calculations are made to ensure these racks exceed Canadian building code standards, which with snow loads surpass those of most of the world. A complete bill of materials, fabrication instructions, and proof-of-concept prototypes are provided for three system topographies (sloped, T-shaped and inverse Y) along with economic analysis. In addition, to being cost competitive, the designs can act as trellis supports and be used for irrigation/fertigation purposes. The results indicate that these racking structures have enormous promise both agriculturally and energetically. If employed on only grape farms inside Canada, 10 GW of PV potential is made available, which is more than twice the total current installed PV in Canada.
Uzair Jamil, Nicholas Vandewetering, Joshua M. Pearce. 12/2023. Solar photovoltaic wood racking mechanical design for trellis-based agrivoltaics. PLOS One.
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System Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Canada
Solar radiation distribution inside a monospan greenhouse with the roof entirely covered by photovoltaic panels
In the present work the variation over space and time of the amount of the photosynthetic photons flux density, inside a greenhouse entirely covered with photovoltaic panels was investigated experimentally and numerically. The greenhouse had 10.00 m spam width, 50.00 m length, 3.00 m height of the gutter, 6.60 m height of the edge. Data were acquired in the period 18th April-8th June 2014 by one sensor outside and one inside the experimental greenhouse built in Southern Italy. Numeric simulations were performed by means of commercial software Autodesk® Ecotect®. For the investigated greenhouse model, the exposed percentage - the ratio of the calculated insolation at a particular point within an enclosure to the simultaneous unobstructed outdoor insolation under the same sky conditions - was calculated over a three dimensional grid formed by 50x10x15 cells each with 1.00x1.00x0.20 m size. The long-term analysis demonstrated a good capability of the numerical model to predict the shading effect inside a photovoltaic greenhouse combining the daily calculated exposed percentage with measurements of solar radiation. The model was able also to predict the qualitative behaviour of the variation of photons flux during the day even if the measured values showed a higher fluctuation of values.
Sergio Castellano, Pietro Santamaria, Francesco Serio. 2016. Solar radiation distribution inside a monospan greenhouse with the roof entirely covered by photovoltaic panels. Journal of Agricultural Engineering. 47(485):
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Microclimatology
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Italy
Solar radiation inside greenhouses covered with semitransparent photovoltaic film: first experimental results
The southern Italian regions are characterized by climatic conditions with high values of solar radiation and air temperature. This has allowed the spread of protected structures both as a defense against critical winter conditions both for growing off-season. The major energy source for these greenhouses is given by solar energy and artificial energy is used rarely. So the problem in the use of greenhouses in these areas, if anything, is opposite to that of the northern areas. In these places you must try to mitigate often the solar radiation inside the greenhouses with suitable measures or abandon for a few months the cultivation inside these structures. The solar radiation intercepted by passive means can be used for other purposes through the uptake and transformation by the photovoltaic panels whose use however is problematic due to complete opacity of the cells. New photosensitive materials partially transparent to solar radiation onto flexible media, allow to glimpse the possibility of using them to greenhouses cover, getting the dual effect of partially screen the greenhouse and use the surplus to generate electricity. The research was carried out to evaluate the possibility of using a flexible photovoltaic film realized by the University of Rome Tor Vergata (research group of ECOFLECS project coordinated by prof. Andrea Reale) for covering greenhouses. Two greenhouses in small scale were built: one covered with photovoltaic film and one covered with EVA film for test. In both greenhouses during the first research period it was grown a variety of dwarf tomato. The research was carried out comparing the solar radiation that enters into greenhouse in the summer (August 2012) and in winter conditions (December 2012) in both greenhouses. The result show that the average ratio between the daily global solar radiation under the photovoltaic film and outside radiation is about 37%, while between the radiation under EVA film and outside radiation is equal to approximately 63%. These result allow us to assert that during the hot season the use of photovoltaic film might be useful to mitigate the excesses of solar radiation into the greenhouse. During the cold season the use of this film not allows to achieve the minimum indoor climate conditions for the cultivation, however, it is possible to think to remove it in the periods of low solar radiation because it is a very flexible film.
Alvaro Marucci, Adolfo Gusman, Barbara Pagniello, Andrea Cappuccini. 09/2013. Solar radiation inside greenhouses covered with semitransparent photovoltaic film: first experimental results. Journal of Agricultural Engineering. 44(s2):
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Microclimatology
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Italy
Spatial Distribution Model of Solar Radiation for Agrivoltaic Land Use in Fixed PV Plants
Agrivoltaics is currently presented as a possible effective solution to one of society’s greatest challenges: responding to the increasing demand for energy and food in an efficient and sustainable manner. To this end, agrivoltaics proposes to combine agricultural and renewable energy production on the same land using photovoltaic technology. The performance of this new production model strongly depends on the interaction between the two systems, agricultural and photovoltaic. In that sense, one of the most important aspects to consider are the effects of the shadows of the photovoltaic panels on the crop land. Therefore, further study of crop behavior under agrivoltaic conditions requires exhaustive knowledge of the spatial distribution of solar radiation within the portion of land between collectors and crops. This study presents a valid methodology to estimate this distribution of solar irradiance in agrivoltaic installations as a function of the photovoltaic installation geometry and the levels of diffuse and direct solar irradiance incident on the crop land. As an example, this methodology was applied to simulate the radiative capture potential of possible photovoltaic plants located in Cordoba, Spain by systematically varying the design variables of the photovoltaic plants. Based on the results obtained, a model correlating the agrivoltaic potential of a photovoltaic plant with its design variables is proposed. Likewise, for the “Alcolea 1” photovoltaic plant (Cordoba, Spain), the solar radiation decay profiles were simulated in the lanes between the photovoltaic collectors where the crops would be planted in the event of converting this plant into an agrivoltaic facility. Thus, the methodology proposed represents an interesting way to determine the agrivoltaic potential of existing grid-connected photovoltaic installations that could be converted into agrivoltaic installations, contributing to the implementation of this new agricultural production model that is more sustainable and environmentally committed to the future.
J.S. Pulido-Mancebo, R. López-Luque, L.M. Fernández-Ahumada, J.C. Ramírez-Faz, F.J. Gómez-Uceda, M. Varo-Martínez. 12/2022. Spatial Distribution Model of Solar Radiation for Agrivoltaic Land Use in Fixed PV Plants. Agronomy. 12(11):1-18.
Microclimatology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Spain
Spatial and Temporal Variation of Photosynthetic Photon Flux Density within Agrivoltaic System in Hot Arid Region of India
Ground-mounted photovoltaic (PV) arrays of an agrivoltaic system (AVS) creates shade in the interspace areas as well as below PV areas of the AVS. Therefore, availability of photosynthetic photon flux density (PPFD) and daily light integral (DLI) in the AVS is negatively affected, which restricts optimum crop growth and yield. Therefore, in this study, spatial and temporal variation of PPFD and DLI in the AVS (105 kWp) developed at Jodhpur, India were quantified. Among three designs of PV arrays in the AVS, the proportion of shaded area in interspace was found highest in single row design and lowest in triple row design. The amount of PPFD varied widely in the AVS and even within the shaded area. Following semivariogram and kriging approach, spatial variation of PPFD and DLI was quantified within the AVS. Highest amount of PPFD was observed near noon in unshaded areas (1295 μmol m−2 s−1) whereas lowest amount was observed during morning at below PV array (24 μmol m−2 s−1). Based on the maps of PPFD and DLI, three distinct zones in the AVS were identified: (i) below PV array (DLI = 0–5 mol m−2 d−1), (ii) interspace area with partial shade (DLI = 5–20 mol m−2 d−1) and (iii) interspace areas with no shade (DLI = 20–30 mol m−2 d−1). Knowledge of spatial and temporal variation of PPFD and DLI may help in selection of suitable crops for the AVS.
P. Santra, H.M. Meena, O.P. Yadav. 2021. Spatial and Temporal Variation of Photosynthetic Photon Flux Density within Agrivoltaic System in Hot Arid Region of India. Biosystems Engineering. 209:74-93.
MicroclimatologySystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
India
Spatial-Temporal Shading Under Mobile & Fixed Tilt Bifacial Agrivoltaic Panels & Implications for the Cropping Practices
Spatial and temporal behavior of the incident sunlight can have important implications for agrivoltaic (AV) crop yield. We explore the daily and monthly variations of the photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) under various tracking and fixed-tilt agrivoltaic solar panels and propose strategies to minimize the shade-induced crop yield loss. Vertically installed solar panels facing East/West provide the best spatial homogeneity and a higher intensity of net daily incident PAR, while North/South faced fixed tilt panels result in a high spatial contrast, i.e., a significantly lower PAR underneath the panels as compared to the spacing between the adjacent panel rows. The shading behavior for the horizontal single axis tracking panels shows a seasonal dependence, a higher shading below the panels during winters and vice versa for summers. The spatial variation in the crop yield correlates well with that of the net daily PAR pattern in the case of the shade sensitive crops (e.g., tomato) while the spatial yield for the shade tolerant crops (e.g., lettuce) is less affected by PAR variations. We propose an intercropping approach using crops with high and low shade sensitivity to minimize the biomass loss related to PAR heterogeneity and present lettuce/tomato intercropping schemes under various agrivoltaic configurations
Zamen Tahir, Nauman Zafar Butt. 09/2021. Spatial-Temporal Shading Under Mobile & Fixed Tilt Bifacial Agrivoltaic Panels & Implications for the Cropping Practices. SSRN.
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MicroclimatologySystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Pakistan
Spectral engineering of ultrathin germanium solar cells for combined photovoltaic and photosynthesis
In densely populated areas, ground mounted photovoltaic power plants compete with agriculture for cultivable land. Agrivoltaic systems allow the combination of these two forms of land use by deliberately designed light sharing. In this contribution, we present a spectrally selective solar cell, for use in agrivoltaic systems, greenhouses, and photo-bioreactors. Our concept benefits from a solar cell with a transmission spectrum which can be easily tuned for the specific absorption requirements of algae and plants. This is achieved by a Fabry-Perot-type multilayer resonator as a back reflector, which determines the transmission and absorption spectrum of the solar cell. We demonstrate the extent of how this transmission spectrum can be engineered by varying the layer thicknesses of the reflector and we show how the reflecting metal layers in the back reflector influence the transmission and photocurrent generation of the spectrally selective solar cell. Finally, we analyze the optical loss mechanisms of the solar cell layer stack to address further optimization potential. Our work offers a spectrally selective solar cell which can be easily adjusted for the requirements of combining photovoltaic and photosynthesis.
N. Osterthun, N. Neugebohrn, K. Gehrke, M. Vehse, and C. Agert. 01/2021. Spectral engineering of ultrathin germanium solar cells for combined photovoltaic and photosynthesis. Optics Express. 29(2):938-950.
MicroclimatologyPV Technologies
Spectral-Splitting Concentrator Agrivoltaics for Higher Hybrid Solar Energy Conversion Efficiency
By integrating solar cells into agricultural lands, agrivoltaics is a promising route to widely deploy photovoltaics, and it can reduce land competition for food and energy production. Although various agrivoltaics have been proposed, their optical properties and effects on plant growth remain disputed, which largely limits the widespread deployment of agrivoltaics. Here, we present spectral-splitting concentrator agrivoltaics (SCAPV), which can effectively harvest photosynthetically excess light energy for photovoltaic power without compromising crop productivity. This system transmits a selected light spectrum for plant growth while reflecting the remaining spectrum for electricity generation. Field trials show that SCAPV can increase plant biomass by 13% and decrease plant heat dissipation by approximately 50%. Meanwhile, SCAPV has a maximum photovoltaic power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 9.9%. The overall solar energy conversion efficiency is higher than the theoretical limitation of photosynthesis. Economic analysis shows that SCAPV has a levelized cost of energy (LCE) of $0.033/kWh. Our results show that with proper spectral management, only a portion of sunlight is sufficient to support or even enhance plant growth. Compared to other spectral-splitting agrivoltaics, SCAPV is a scalable technology with flexible spectrum and high transparency and can be implemented using low-cost components.
Z. Zhang, F. Zhang, W. Zhang, M. Li, W. Liu, A.A.A. Omer, J. Zheng, X. Zhang, W. Liu. 01/2023. Spectral-Splitting Concentrator Agrivoltaics for Higher Hybrid Solar Energy Conversion Efficiency. Energy Conversion and Management. 276:
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HydrologySoilPlant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesImpact AssessmentsEconomics
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
Spectrally Selective Modules for Agrivoltaics
To combat the existential threat posed by anthropogenic climate change it is generally agreed that
anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions are required to reach ‘net zero’ by 2050 [1]. If this is to be achieved cumulative global installation of photovoltaic (PV) generation will need to grow 100-fold from 0.9 TW today to approximately 70 TW by mid-century [2-4]. It is on land currently dedicated to agriculture that a majority of solar PV will be deployed globally. There are several drivers for this. Agricultural land is generally: already cleared, flat, free from protected status and close to existing transport infrastructure and population centres, allowing deployment and operation costs to be minimised. Most importantly though a large majority of solar PV deployment will occur close to existing electricity grid transmission infrastructure which is located around and between major population centres [4, 5]. The same areas in which the most productive agricultural land is located. This vast expansion of PV deployment into agricultural regions raises the pertinent question of how
best to integrate solar PV with agriculture and as far as possible maximise the benefits to both.I. L. Thomas. 2022. Spectrally Selective Modules for Agrivoltaics. In: Asia-pacific Solar Research Conference; 2022/11/29; Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia. Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia: Asia-pacific Solar Research Conference; p.
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PV TechnologiesMicroclimatology
Status Report on Emerging Photovoltaics
The field of photovoltaic (PV) solar power generation has grown to become a significant component
of the global energy landscape, with ∼4.5% of the world’s electricity being generated and ∼240 GW of new installations in 2022.1,2 However, further acceleration of PVand other renewable energy sources is urgently required to mitigate the impacts of global greenhouse gas emissions. A recent analysis has concluded that PV needs to grow at ∼25% annually with a target of 75 TW of global installations by 2050, a ∼75x increase from current installed capacity.3 While the existing PV landscape is largely dominated by silicon (crystalline and polycrystalline) and CdTe, achieving these long-term goals can be greatly aided by the development of new materials, device concepts, and light management strategies that enable higher efficiencies and more scalable and sustainable manufacturing. This article is intended to provide a snapshot of the current status of emerging PVapproaches that show potential in helping to achieve the above goals. It is intended to be a convenient resource for people within and outside the field, including new researchers, students, technology managers, and program managers, who can play a role in accelerating the global effort. The article is structured in sections covering silicon (Sec. 2), thin film (Sec. 3), III-V (Sec. 4), perovskite (Sec. 5), organic (Sec. 6), and dye-sensitized solar cells (Sec. 7). Each section provides background, a technology status update, and challenges towards commercialization/scalability. Subsequent sections provide an overview of the applications and commercialization of emerging PV (Sec. 8), strategies for exceeding the detailed balance limit (Sec. 9), and concepts in light management (Sec. 10). A final section describes sustainability and environmental impact issues that apply to all the above technologies (Sec. 11). The article concludes with a perspectives section (Sec. 12) that first discusses common themes that appear throughout the article, and then also presents and draws conclusions from a survey of emerging PV, which was completed anonymously
by contributing authors.Annick Anctil, Meghan N. Beattie, Christopher Case, Aditya Chaudhary, Benjamin D. Chrysler, Michael G. Debije, Stephanie Essig, David K. Ferry, Vivian E. Ferry, Marina Freitag, Isaac Gould, Karin Hinzer, Harald Hoppe, Olle Inganäs, Lethy Krishnan Jagadamma, Min Hun Jee, Raymond K. Kostuk, Daniel Kirk, Stephan Kube, Minyoung Lim, Joseph M. Luther, Lorelle Mansfield, Michael D. McGehee, Duong Nguyen Minh, Preeti Nain, Matthew O. Reese, Angèle Reinders, D. W. Samuel, Wilfried van Sark,y Hele Savin, Ian R. Sellers,aa Sean E. Shaheen, Zheng Tang, Fatima Toor, Ville Vähänissi, Ella Wassweiler, Emily L. Warren, Vincent R. Whiteside, Han Young Woo, Gang Xiong, Xitong Zhuw. 12/2023. Status Report on Emerging Photovoltaics. Journal of Photonics for Energy. 13(4):1-51.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Strategic land use analysis for solar energy development in New York State
This study investigates the spatial characteristics of existing utility-scale solar energy (USSE) development in New York State (NYS) and assesses the land-suitability for the future development of USSE
needed to achieve the State’s renewable energy goals using GIS-MCDA techniques. Slope, proximity to electric substations, protected lands, and soil quality were used as criteria to develop land suitability scenarios. 40% of present USSE capacity has been developed on agricultural lands, and 84% of identified land suitable for future USSE development (~140 GW potential) is agricultural. The USSE potential on non-agricultural land is 22.5 GW e just sufficient to accommodate the development of 21.6 GW, which is the estimated USSE capacity that will be required to achieve NYS’s 2030 goal of 70% renewable electricity. Thus, agricultural lands will be the prime target for future USSE development. Exploring the statespecific synergies for solar-agriculture colocation, preventing the spatially-concentrated development of USSE, and incentivizing the use of unproductive agricultural lands will help mitigate negative impacts
of USSE development on agricultural lands.Venktesh V. Katkar, Jeffrey A. Sward, Alex Worsley, K. Max Zhang. 08/2021. Strategic land use analysis for solar energy development in New York State. Renewable Energy. 173:861-875.
Market AssessmentsSitingImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
New York
Studies of Climatic Parameters Under Agrivoltaic Structure
In India, per capita electricity consumption has been continuously increasing over the years andsolar power can be the best solution of this increasing electricity consumption. Agrivoltaic system is codeveloping the same area of land for both solar photovoltaic power as well as for conventional agriculture.In this paper, observations of diurnal variation in environmental parameters i.e. air temperature, relative humidity, light intensity and solar radiation under SPV structure and as for open field are presented. The total rating of SPV power plant was about 7.2 kW occupied over 153.88 m2 area at the field of REE department, College of Agriculture Engineering and Technology, JAU, Junagadh (21.5˚N, 70.1˚E). It was observed that, both minimum and maximum monthly average air temperature remain higher in open field condition as compared to under the SPV structure. Minimum monthly RH for open field was observed lower than that for under SPV structure during winter months. both average and maximum monthly light intensity remains higher in open field condition as compared to under the SPV structure during the experimental period whereas monthly average highest solar radiation in open field condition was observed almost at par with open area and higher as compared to shadow area under SPV structure.
U.R. Patel, P.M. Chauhan. 2009. Studies of Climatic Parameters Under Agrivoltaic Structure. Renewable and Sustainable Energy: An International Journal (RSEJ). 1(1):87-97.
Microclimatology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
India
[hhttps:airccse.com/rsej/papers/1119rsej04.pdf Reference]
Study of agrivoltaic system to optimize arable land use for energy production in Rwanda
Rwanda is a small mountainous country, one of the most densely populated countries in the world, population growth has led to a pressure on food security and land use, over the past 10 years there has been a decline in agricultural land, which has been significantly replaced by housing. High mountains that make up a large part of the country makes electricity expansion very expansive. The most common energy sources in Rwanda are fuel wood biomass, most rural areas in Rwanda do not access electricity from national grid. The purpose of this study is to investigate the feasibility of agrivoltaic system to address the issue of food and energy shortage and optimize land use, a rural area in Nyanza district, Gahondo village located at -2.3690 latitude and 29,7714 longitude was taken as a case study to analyze the feasibility of the system based on the fact that this district was found to have high solar radiation in Rwanda. The performance of the system was analyzed using PVsyst software tools. The solar radiation data used retrieved from meteo data included in the PVsyst software where the horizontal solar radiation of 5.4 kWh / m2 / day was measured at the selected area in western province. With the simulation in the PVsyst of an off-grid solar plant, consisting of 2907 solar panels of 320 Wp per solar panel, and 2 inverters of 420kWac rated power unit, the spacing between the PV rows is 6.4 m were considered where in the simulation this spacing resulted in allow incident radiation of 70% reaching the crop yield, the total power produced by the system was approximately 1419 MWh / year with 85.23% annual performance ratio (PR)
Blaise Pascal. 11/2021. Study of agrivoltaic system to optimize arable land use for energy production in Rwanda [Dissertation]. [Rwanda]: University of Rwanda.
Market Assessments
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production
Document type
Thesis/Dissertation
Country
Rwanda
Study on Photovoltaic Modules on Greenhouse Roof for Energy and Strawberry Production
The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of PV modules mounted on top of a greenhouse, on the growth of strawberries and microclimate conditions as well as to estimate the generated energy. In this study, two greenhouses with the same volume were established. One greenhouse was equipped with the opaque photovoltaic (OPV) modules which accounted for 25.9% of the roof area, and the other was equipped with the semi-transparent photovoltaic (STPV) modules which accounted for 20% of the roof area. The maximum annual power generation of OPV and STPV modules was 880 and 388 kWh with 30° tilt angle, respectively, by simulating different tilt angles. The temperature under the OPV and STPV modules was 2.9 and 1.1 °C lower than the unshaded part in the greenhouses, respectively, at noon in clear weather, and had little effect on relative humidity. The photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) under OPV and STPV modules was reduced by 43.5% and 31.7%, respectively, under the PE film greenhouse. The contents of soluble solids in strawberries in OPV and STPV greenhouses were 16.4 and 15.7 mg/g respectively, which were higher than those in unshaded samples. The quality and yield of the strawberry samples under the shade of OPV were better than those of the STPV shade.
Y. Tang, M. Li, X. Ma. 2019. Study on Photovoltaic Modules on Greenhouse Roof for Energy and Strawberry Production. In: 4th International Conference on Advances in Energy and Environment Research; 2019/08/16; China. China: E3S Web of Conferences; p. 1-7
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
China
Study on the Feasibility of Agrivoltaics in the Kansai Region of Japan
As the climate crisis intensifies, the urgency for sustainable, agroecological farming practices has never been greater. This study explores the potential of agrivoltaic systems (AVSs) to meet these needs efficiently. Utilizing geographic information systems for quantitative analysis, this research assesses the electricity generation, agricultural output, job creation, and economic impact of implementing AVS in Japan’s Kansai region. The study identifies an ample generation potential, including up to 14,041 GWh/year of electricity generation, suggesting that AVSs could be instrumental in shaping effective policies for both decarbonization and food security.
Hideki Nakata, Seiichi Ogata. 2023. Study on the Feasibility of Agrivoltaics in the Kansai Region of Japan. In: Gianni Bellocchi, Juan A. Fernandez, Paul Kwan, Javier Gonzalez, Daniel Real, Thorsten Kraska, Mario Cunha, Louis Kouadio, Georgia Ntatsi, Yang Gao, Jitka Kumhalova, editors. the Proceedings of The 3rd International Electronic Conference on Agronomy. The 3rd International Electronic Conference on Agronomy; 2023/10/30; Online. Basel, Switzerland: MDPI; p.
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EconomicsSiting
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Japan
Studying the Impact of Agrivoltaic Systems Across the Water-Energy-Food (WEF) Nexus
The main objective of this thesis is to study the growth of crops under agrivoltaic system and their response in terms of productivity, morphology, physiology and on energy conversion throughout field activity and model simulations to support food security and sustainable agriculture worldwide across the water-energy-food nexus. In order to study how the crops growing under an agrivoltaic system are affected by the shading conditions generated by the PV modules, it is important to understand how crops are influenced by the microclimatic conditions under an AV system and how crops can contribute to the energy conversion, this can be studied by setting up field experiments and through modelling activities.
E. Potenza. 2022. Studying the Impact of Agrivoltaic Systems Across the Water-Energy-Food (WEF) Nexus [Thesis]. [Sede di Piacenza]: Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyToolsImpact AssessmentsReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Thesis/Dissertation
Country
Italy
Survey on the social acceptance of the productive façade concept integrating photovoltaic and farming systems in high-rise public housing blocks in Singapore
Vesna Kosoric, Huajing Huang, Abel Tablada, Siu-Kit Lau, Hugh T.W. Tan. 09/2019. Survey on the social acceptance of the productive façade concept integrating photovoltaic and farming systems in high-rise public housing blocks in Singapore. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. 111:197-214.
Social Perspectives
Development Strategy
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Singapore
Survey on the social acceptance of the productive façade concept integrating photovoltaic and farming systems in high-rise public housing blocks in Singapore
Productive façades (PFs) that integrate photovoltaic (PV) panels and vertical farming (VF) planters are designed to act as sustainable, multi-functional, modular building envelope systems. Singapore is the second most densely populated country in the world and its high-rise buildings play a critical role in the urban context offering a significantly larger surface area of walls than roofs. PFs represent an appropriate, novel technological response to a number of issues Singapore is facing such as a high dependence on imported energy and food, scarcity of land, planned reduction of greenhouse gases (GHGs) and the increase of high-rise greenery coverage. The potential of PFs in harvesting solar energy, which is currently the most viable renewable energy source (RES), and in utilizing the characteristics of the urban context, is promising. The study analyses the acceptance of the developed PF concept by its potential future users—residents of high-rise public housing blocks. A door-to-door survey was conducted among the residents of the Housing & Development Board (HDB) buildings (consisting of apartments or flats) with two main purposes: examining whether the residents accept or are positively inclined towards the PF concept and its implementation and secondly, identifying their preferences related to aesthetical qualities, use and maintenance of PF designs. The results indicate a highly affirmative response among a very high percentage of respondents towards gardening. They also indicate that PF concepts promoting small-scale VF adequately fit the needs of HDB residents. The preferences of the potential future users regarding PF types are further presented and discussed. The insights obtained will help further the knowledge on PFs and directly assist planners, architects, contractors and decision makers (DMs) as guidelines in the design of PFs in the tropics, enabling such systems to meet the needs, expectations and preferences of users and to address their concerns.
Vesna Kosorića, Huajing Huanga, Abel Tabladaa, Siu-Kit Laua, Hugh T.W. Tan. 09/2019. Survey on the social acceptance of the productive façade concept integrating photovoltaic and farming systems in high-rise public housing blocks in Singapore. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. 111:197-214.
Social PerspectivesMarket AssessmentsSystem ConfigurationSiting
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
Sustainability Evaluation of Modern Photovoltaic Agriculture Based on Interval Type-2 Fuzzy AHP-TOPSIS and Least Squares Support Vector Machine Optimized by Fireworks Algorithm
Photovoltaics (PV) has been combined with many other industries, such as agriculture. But there are many problems for the sustainability of PV agriculture. Timely and accurate sustainability evaluation of modern photovoltaic agriculture is of great significance for accelerating the sustainable development of modern photovoltaic agriculture. In order to improve the timeliness and accuracy of evaluation, this paper proposes an evaluation model based on interval type-2 Fuzzy AHP-TOPSIS and least squares support vector machine optimized by fireworks algorithm. Firstly, the criteria system of modern photovoltaic agriculture sustainability is constructed from three dimensions including technology sustainability, economic sustainability and social sustainability. Then, analytic hierarchy process (AHP) and technique for order preference by similarity to an ideal solution (TOPSIS) methods are improved by using interval type-2 fuzzy theory, and the traditional evaluation model based on interval type-2 Fuzzy AHP-TOPSIS is obtained, and the improved model is used for comprehensive evaluation. After that, the optimal parameters of least squares support vector machine (LSSVM) model are obtained by Fireworks algorithm (FWA) training, and the intelligent evaluation model for the sustainability of modern photovoltaic agriculture is constructed to realize fast and intelligent calculation. Finally, an empirical analysis is conducted to demonstrate the scientificity and accuracy of the proposed model. This study is conducive to the comprehensive evaluation of the sustainability of modern photovoltaic agriculture, and can provide decision-making support for more reasonable development model in the future of modern photovoltaic agriculture.
Yi Liang, Haichao Wang, Wei-Chiang Hong. 11/2021. Sustainability Evaluation of Modern Photovoltaic Agriculture Based on Interval Type-2 Fuzzy AHP-TOPSIS and Least Squares Support Vector Machine Optimized by Fireworks Algorithm. Energy Engineering. 119(1):163-188.
Market Assessments
Development Strategy
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Taiwan
Sustainable Co-Production of Food and Solar Power to Relax Land-Use Constraints
Renewable energy could often be land constrained by the diffuse nature of renewable resources. To relax land constraints, we propose the concept of ‘aglectric’ farming, where agricultural land will be sustainably shared for food and energy co-production. While wind turbines on agricultural land are already put into practice, solar power production on agricultural land is still under research. Here, we propose photovoltaic systems that are suitable for installation on agricultural land. Adjusting the intensity, spectral distribution and duration of shading allows innovative photovoltaic systems to achieve significant power generation without potentially diminishing agricultural output. The feasibility of solar aglectric farms has been proven through shadow modelling. The proposed solar aglectric farms—used alone or in combination with regular solar parks or wind plants—could be a solution for a sustainable renewable economy that supports the ‘full Earth’ of over 10 billion people.
C.K. Miskin, Y.Li, A. Perna, R.G. Ellis, E.K. Grubbs, P. Bermel, R. Agrawal. 2019. Sustainable Co-Production of Food and Solar Power to Relax Land-Use Constraints. Nature Sustainability. 2:972–980.
Plant ScienceMarket AssessmentsPV TechnologiesImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Sustainable Food and Agriculture: Employment of Renewable Energy Technologies
Purposeof Review According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), a large portion of the various activities in the agriculture and food supply chain (AFSC) are extremely dependent on fossil fuels and contribute to 24% of the total global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
Recent Findings There are several strategies to reduce GHG emissions and mitigate the associated destructive impacts. Among them, substituting fossil fuels with alternative low-carbon energy sources has received remarkable attention. Summary The core concept of this study is to explore the relationship between food security, sustainable development, and renewable energy. Renewable energy has shown promising potential for integration into a wide range of agricultural activi- ties and offers an alternative sustainable solution to current practices. In modern agriculture, the need for electrification has increased, with electric tractors and agricultural robots accounting for a large share, which represents a great opportunity for the use of renewable technologies in this sector. As new technologies emerge, investors need to familiarize themselves with them. Further technical improvements, cost reductions, and government incentives can facilitate the real-world deployment of sustainable renewable technologies in agriculture and food production.
Shiva Gorjian, Omid Fakhraei, Alireza Gorjian, Amin Sharafkhani, Amirhossein Aziznejad. 2022. Sustainable Food and Agriculture: Employment of Renewable Energy Technologies. Current Robotics Reports. 3:153-163.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Sustainable and Intelligent Phytoprotection in Photovoltaic Agriculture: New Challenges and Opportunities
Photovoltaic Agriculture (PA) is a new management system combining industry with modern agriculture that can effectively reduce the competition for limited land resource usage between electric power production and agricultural production. However, PA has been facing the challenge of managing plant protection measures because it is difficult to monitor plants grown under the photovoltaic panels by remote sensing satellites and pesticide applications using drones. To overcome this challenge, Solar Insecticidal Lamps (SILs) can be used for phytoprotection in PA. However, to effectively use SILs in PA, it is important to identify a suitable field location to maintain strong wireless communication signals. In this paper, two testbeds were designed and a series of experiments in PA was performed. The results indicate that there is considerable interference exists around the confluence box. A higher interference seriously reduces the Packet Reception Rate (PRR) of the nearby node, which is an important constraint for deploying wireless sensors in PA. Finally, new challenges and future research opportunities are proposed.
Kai Huang, Lei Shu, Kailiang Li, Yuejie Chen, Yan Zhu, Ravi Valluru. 03/2023. Sustainable and Intelligent Phytoprotection in Photovoltaic Agriculture: New Challenges and Opportunities. Electronics. 12(5):1-21.
Standardization and Best Practices
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
Synergy between Photovoltaic Panels and Green Roofs
To reduce the impact of climate change in the form of low-carbon developments, innovations
in sustainable building strategies are imperative. In this regard, the performance of a double-roof house consisting of a photovoltaic panel roof (PV) and green roof (GR) was compared to traditional solar-roof buildings. The synergy between both the PV and GR systems was analysed by numerical simulations and physical modelling across the four seasons. The performance of the systems was assessed on three dimensions: indoor thermal comfort, photovoltaic temperature, and energy yield. The synergy of photovoltaic roofs with green roofs kept the indoor environment 6% more comfortable than solar roofs. The synergy also reduced the photovoltaic temperature by up to 8 C, extending the
PV life span and increasing the energy yield by 18%.Fernando Alonso-Marroquin, Ghulam Qadir. 2023. Synergy between Photovoltaic Panels and Green Roofs. Energies. 16(13):5184.
PV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Australia
Synthesis of a Halogenated Low Bandgap Polymeric Donor for Semi-Transparent and Near-Infrared Organic Solar Cells
Semi-transparent organic solar cells (ST-OSCs) have garnered significant interest because of their potential in
aesthetic and space-saving solar energy systems such as multi-colored semitransparent building-integrated photovoltaic or grow light transparent agrivoltaic systems. As visibly semitransparent photoactive materials, the low bandgap (LBG) donor polymer and acceptor present new opportunities for the realization of ST-OSCs because they can facilitate photovoltaic generation of electricity from near-infrared (NIR) light without signif- icant absorption of visible light. However, while various LBG non-fullerene acceptors have been recently developed to realize highly efficient ST-OSCs, there are only a few reports on LBG donor polymers that achieve efficient photo-induced charge generation from NIR light as well as allow the propagation of visible light. In this study, LBG donor polymers consisting of BD-F and BD-Cl as the halogenated derivatives of poly{2,6′ -4,8-di(5- ethylhexylthienyl)benzo[1,2-b; 3,4-b]dithiophene-alt-5-dibutyloctyl-3,6-bis(5-bromothiophen-2-yl)pyrrolo[3,4- c]pyrrole-1,4-dione} (BD-H) were synthesized. The BD-F:Y6 and BD-Cl:Y6 OSCs showed higher open-circuit voltages and fill factors than BD-H:Y6 due to their downshifted energy level and efficient charge extraction characteristics. Consequently, the BD-Cl:Y6 OSCs achieved a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 5.62%. Furthermore, with the introduction of a metal oxide/metal/metal oxide transparent electrode, the BD-Cl:Y6 ST- OSC demonstrated a high average visible transmittance of 35.1% and PCE of 3.69%. This approach contributes to
enhancing the potential of ST-OSCs.B. Park, H. Bae, J.W. Ha, C. Lee, J. Lee, Y. Heo, B.S. Kim, S.C. Yoon, H. Choi, S.J. Ko. 02/2023. Synthesis of a Halogenated Low Bandgap Polymeric Donor for Semi-Transparent and Near-Infrared Organic Solar Cells. Organic Electronics. 113:1-9.
PV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
System Dynamics of a Photovoltaic Integrated Greenhouse
Natural resources such as water, land, and energy are increasingly diminished as the human population increases past seven billion. Approximately fifty percent of the world’s population subsides on less than $ 2.50 per a day and 1.6 billion people live without electricity. Thus, it is vital to increase the productivity and efficiency of resource usage in agricultural, residential and commercial sectors. Communities all over the world are interested in growing safe, local and fresh produce. However, this is more difficult to do in regions with harsh climates that have limited access to electricity, fertilizers and quality water. Because of this, low-cost and sustainable food production systems are a necessity. A solar photovoltaic integrated high tunnel green-house system can have the potential to alleviate food and energy problems without having to connect to a grid system. This study aimed to evaluate system dynamics of an off-grid greenhouse in an arid environment. The current paper presents key findings on resource inputs and system outputs.
P. Juang, M. Kacira. 05/2014. System Dynamics of a Photovoltaic Integrated Greenhouse. Acta Horticulturae. 1037:107-112.
Tools
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
THE EFFECT OF SOLAR AND AGRIVOLTAIC ARRAYS ON LOCAL TEMPERATURES
Renewable energy, specifically solar power, has witnessed significant growth
globally, emerging as a dominant energy source. While solar energy is praised for its emissions-reducing potential, it raises environmental concerns related to land use. One important consideration is the local temperature impact of photovoltaic arrays, referred to as the photovoltaic heat island effect (PVHI). This potential effect has halted many proposed solar developments and has significant implications in urban planning. This paper investigates multiple solar sites in the southwest region of the United States measuring the distance to drop-off (the furthest distance in where the panels significantly affect land surface temperature), and the average increase in temperature within the system from a natural non developed state. Secondarily, this paper will investigate the effects of nontraditional array types such as Agrivoltaics—which integrates crop and energy production within the same space. Analysis is conducted using raster data from the United States Geological Survey's (USGS) Natural Earth Portal, utilizing Landsat 8 and Landsat 9 Collection 2 Level 2 Surface Temperature data. Seasonal temperature variations are normalized by creating an urban heat island index. Temperature drop-off is examined by using transects which extend from edge of arrays outwards to create scatter plot graphs for each solar site. The implications for the water, food, energy nexus is examined and informs policymakers and stakeholders facilitating sustainable development and potential PVHI mitigation strategies.
Caleb Ortega. 2023. THE EFFECT OF SOLAR AND AGRIVOLTAIC ARRAYS ON LOCAL TEMPERATURES [Thesis]. [University of Arizona Campus Repository]: University of Arizona.
Microclimatology
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Thesis/Dissertation
Country
United States
State
Arizona, Colorado
THE POSSIBLE OPTIMIZATION OF SWEDISH AGRIVOLTAIC ELECTRICITY PRODUCTION: An analysis of optimization electricity production in agrivoltaic system
In order to meet future electricity demand, Sweden needs to increase its electricity production, particularly through renewable energy sources. By the end of 2022, solar power production reached 2 TWh, an increase of 75 percent over 2021. Over the past few years, solar power has grown significantly, and it is predicted to continue to grow in the future. Furthermore, by 2045, the Swedish government aims to provide 100% of its energy needs from renewable sources and reduce greenhouse gas emissions to zero.
This study investigates whether agrivoltaic is feasible in Sweden, where solar power is coupled with agriculture. There is great potential in this technology, even though it is new. By testing different parameters, such as height and row distance, this study has also examined different agrivoltaic system designs and various geographic locations to estimate their true potential in optimizing electricity production. Using PVSyst simulations, we can then investigate how to optimize electricity and evaluate the economic feasibility based on levelized cost of energy (LCOE) and payback period of the best system. For a better understanding of this study, an extensive literature review was conducted. Although the modeling of bifacial modules is still relatively new research topic.
This study simulated three different cases using PVsyst software. Case A with a row distance of 5 meters and a system capacity of 222 kWp; case B with a row distance of 10 meters and a system capacity of 111 kWh; and case C with a row distance of 15 meters and a system capacity of 77,7 kWp. In addition, heights ranging from 0,5 to 1,5 meters were investigated, using bifacial modules. Irradiation data from PVsyst shows that the yearly global horizontal irradiance GHI in Västerås is 1004,6 [kWh/m^2] while the GHI in Trelleborg is 1023,4 [kWh/m^2]. According to the results, the most efficient system is the one-axis tracker, which produces approximately 25% more electricity than unlimited vertical sheds. It was also found that the maximum electricity was produced at 45° azimuth. The result also found a five percent increase in electricity production in Västerås over Trelleborg. Furthermore, the optimal row distance and optimal height were found to be 10 [m] and 0,5 [m]. Lastly, the most effective system was one-axis tracker system in Västerås with LCOE of 0,09 [Euro/kWh] and payback periods of 10,6 [Years].Abdinasir Yussuf. 06/2023. THE POSSIBLE OPTIMIZATION OF SWEDISH AGRIVOLTAIC ELECTRICITY PRODUCTION: An analysis of optimization electricity production in agrivoltaic system [Thesis]. [Västerås, Sweden]: Mälardalen University.
Market AssessmentsEconomicsReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production
Document type
Thesis/Dissertation
Country
Sweden
Tackling Efficiency Challenges and Exploring Greenhouse-Integrated Organic Photovoltaics
Organic solar cells offer benefits such as transparent characteristics, affordability in manufacturing, and the ability to tailor light absorption properties according to specific needs. This review discusses challenges and recent strategies to enhance the power conversion efficiency of organic solar cells, such as bandgap tuning, molecular orbital alignment, active layer morphology engineering, electron-donating and -withdrawing group incorporation, side chain length engineering, a third additive’s insertion, and control of the solubility of materials. The good transparency of organic solar cells makes them ideal for greenhouse-integrated photovoltaics applications. By efficiently absorbing sunlight for photosynthesis and clean energy production, transparent organic solar cells optimize light management, enhance energy efficiency, and minimize overheating risks, resulting in more sustainable and efficient greenhouse operations. This review also evaluates organic solar cell integration in the greenhouse. The implementation of the strategies explored in this review can significantly impact a wide range of performance parameters in organic solar cells. These parameters include the optoelectronic properties, absorption spectrum, open circuit voltage, exciton dissociation, charge transport, molecular packing, solubility, phase separation, crystallinity, nanoscale morphology, and device stability. An optimized organic solar cell design is particularly beneficial for greenhouse-integrated photovoltaics, as it ensures efficient energy conversion and energy management, which are crucial factors in maximizing the performance of the greenhouse.
Muhammad Azhar Ansari, Giovanni Ciampi, Sergio Sibilio. 08/2023. Tackling Efficiency Challenges and Exploring Greenhouse-Integrated Organic Photovoltaics. energies. 16(16):
(!) .
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Technical–Economic Potential of Agrivoltaic for the Production of Clean Energy and Industrial Cassava in the Colombian Intertropical Zone
A dispute is being created in the countries between the use of land for photovoltaic generation purposes and agriculture to satisfy food demand. Therefore, the agrivoltaic concept is presented as a dual-purpose land-use solution. A technical–economic analysis is carried out to install photovoltaic systems elevated to a considerable height from the ground, and under them, industrial cassava is grown. A mixed-integer linear optimization model is developed to store energy in a battery bank, reduce the energy absorbed from the electrical grid, and export it for sale in case of surplus. The results show that the producer will obtain a double benefit: the sale of energy and the profit generated by industrial cassava, preserving food security and meeting the growing electricity demand.
A.S.G. Hernández, L.V.R. de Arruda. 2021. Technical–Economic Potential of Agrivoltaic for the Production of Clean Energy and Industrial Cassava in the Colombian Intertropical Zone. Environmental Quality Management. 31(3):267-281.
Economics
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Colombia
Techno Economic Modeling for Agrivoltaics: Can Agrivoltaics Be More Profitable Than Ground Mounted PV?
Agrivoltaics (AV) is a dual land-use approach to collocate solar energy generation with agriculture for preserving the terrestrial ecosystem and enabling food-energy-water synergies. Here, we present a systematic approach to model the economic performance of AV relative to standalone ground-mounted PV (GMPV) and explore how the module design configuration can affect the dual food-energy economic performance. A remarkably simple criterion for economic feasibility is quantified that relates the land preservation cost to dual food-energy profit. We explore case studies including both high and low value crops under fixed tilt bifacial modules oriented either along the conventional North/South (N/S) facings or vertical East/West (E/W) facings. For each module configuration, the array density is varied to explore an economically feasible design space relative to GMPV for a range of module to land cost ratio (M_L) - a location-specific indicator relating the module technology (hardware and installation) costs to the soft (land acquisition, tax, overheads, etc.) costs. To offset a typically higher AV module cost needed to preserve the cropland, both E/W and N/S orientated modules favor high value crops, reduced (<60%) module density, and higher M_L (>25). In contrast, higher module density and an increased feed-in-tariff (FIT) relative to GMPV are desirable at lower M_L. The economic trends vary sharply for M_L< 10 but tend to saturate for M_L> 20. For low value crops, ~15% additional FIT can enable economic equivalence to GMPV at standard module density. The proposed modeling framework can provide a valuable tool for AV stakeholders to assess, predict, and optimize the techno-economic design for AV
Habeel Alam, Muhammad Ashraful Alam, Nauman Zafar Butt. 06/2022. Techno Economic Modeling for Agrivoltaics: Can Agrivoltaics Be More Profitable Than Ground Mounted PV?. IEEE Journal of Photovoltaics. 1:
(!) .
Economics
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Techno economics feasibility study on agrivoltaic electriciy generation in Sri Lanka
A feasibility analysis for generating Photovoltaic Solar Electricity from agricultural areas as a sustainable solution for the increasing power demand in Sri Lanka. PV solar panels will be installed above the existing cultivated areas while maintaining spaces among rows of PV solar panels to provide the required solar radiation for the crops. Shading level is a critical parameter for the crop yield of a plantation and it was analyzed using DSSAT crop simulation software. DSSAT is a widely used software in agricultural researches for simulating crop growth under various environmental conditions. It takes crop models, soil profile data and annual weather data including solar radiation to simulate and predict the yield per hectare for a selected crop. Required Sri Lankan monthly weather data for DSSAT software simulation was obtained from Solar and Wind Energy Resource Assessment (SWERA) databases while Soil profile data were obtained from high resolution (10km grids) soil data file of International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). Both Mono-crystalline and Poly-crystalline panels were used for the evaluation and the annual energy generation was obtained using RET Screen software which is a widely used Canadian software. RET Screen has inbuilt databases of climate data for selected locations including Sri Lanka. Fixed angle solar arrays with south inclination of 8° and solar tracking with single axis rotation was considered for the evaluation. There were two different mathematical models which were used to obtain the relevant solar shading under the PV array for a given inter row spacing. Shading portions for diffusive solar radiation and direct solar radiation was obtained separately by considering panel tilts and the sun’s location with respect to the considered point under shading. Finally, the percentage of the shading was compared with pre obtained crop yield and shading relationship data to predict the feasible yield and to evaluate the technical and financial feasibility of the agrivoltaic system. An excel based software tool was developed based on the collected databases and simulations to use as a preliminary decision making tool for selecting a crop, PV solar technology and arrangements for an appropriate area.
Dayananda, SRJSB. 02/2018. Techno economics feasibility study on agrivoltaic electriciy generation in Sri Lanka [Thesis]. [Sri Lanka]: University of Moratuwa Sri Lanka.
Economics
Techno-Economic Evaluation of Different Agri-Voltaic Designs for the Hot Arid Ecosystem India
The rising trend of solar PV generation from ground based installations has led to competition for land between agriculture and PV generation. The solution to this challenge lies in the agri-voltaic system (AVS). The AVS systems allows agricultural activities on land while provides opportunity for PV generation and thus returns additional income from land. Therefore, the Governments of many countries e.g. Japan, France, USA, South Korea, and China have already introduced policies for installation of AVS on agricultural land. Following this trend, policy to install AVS in farmers field has also been launched in India under the national level scheme called KUSUM (Kisan Urja Suraksha evam Utthan Mahaabhiyan) targeting for energy security and upliftment campaign for farmers. Under the scheme, subsidy is gurranted for installation of PV power plants in farmers field with a capacity between 0.5 and 2 MWp and on-grid net metering connection of the PV power plant. After announcement of the scheme, there has been increasing interests for installation of AVS by farmers, however, limited knowledge on techno-economic performance of the system, field scale installations of it has been hindered. In the present study, techno-economic analysis of different designs of AVS systems (105 kWp) established at ICAR-Central Arid Zone Research Institute has been evaluated with several combinations of rainfed and irrigated crops. Field performance of the AVS system of 105 kWp has been used to extrapolate cost and returns for 520 kWp system, which lies in the range of KUSUM target. Five AVS designs were considered in the study: extrapolated into 520 kWp AVS and compared theoretically with the price and returns of a photo-voltaic ground-mounted (PV-GM) plant the same capacity. Among five designs of PV arrays in the AVS, the one-row full density photovoltaic array with irrigated brinjal recorded the highest combined net returns of PV + crop components followed by rainfed snap melon. Based on the highest returns per hectare basis, the economic analysis of AVS design for rainfed and irrigated crops is compared to PV-GM. The higher values of life cycle benefit (LCB) could lead to higher net present worth (NPW) of AVS over PV-GM. The higher values of internal rate of return (IRR) in AVS lead to quicker repayment of investment cost as indicated by the pay-back period (PBP), which is shorter by 0.5 and 1.14 years in AVS one row PV array in rainfed and irrigated as compared to PV-GM (8.61 years). Moreover, the one row PV array with irrigated had the lowest Levelized cost of electricity generation (LCOE) (INR 3.17 kWh−1), which is much lower than the prevailing electricity tariff (INR 5.0 kWh−1). Hence, it is inferred that crop production can be very economical for an AVS. AVS technology shows flexibility up to 6% escalation in cost with no escalation in returns, as is indicated by sensitivity analysis. One row full density with irrigated is found the best system based on sensitivity analysis and economic feasibility. The economic analysis of AVS designs in this study is similar to the cost of other PV systems worldwide. Therefore, all PV systems analyzed represent a relatively safe investment.
S. Poonia, N.K. Jat, P. Santra, A.K. Singh, D. Jain, H.M. Meena. 2022. Techno-Economic Evaluation of Different Agri-Voltaic Designs for the Hot Arid Ecosystem India. Renewable Energy. 184:149-163.
Plant ScienceEconomicsPV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Country
India
Techno-Economic Study of Agrovoltaic Systems Focusing on Orchard Crops
His paper presents a novel 3D agrovoltaic modelling tool developed in python which enables technical and economical evaluation of potential agrovoltaic designs. It has been designed and applied for fruitcrops which typically have a crucial flowering period.To illustrate the potential of this tool, a case study for pear trees in Bierbeek, Belgium is shown. While manygeometrical parameters of agrovoltaic systems are fixed in practice, however, there is also the need to model the impact ofPV modules on the tree light interception.The results of themodellingshow that the amount of solar radiation depends on the modulesused, with semi-transparent modules offering better light distribution and reduced crop loss. Based on the modelling, a prototype agrovoltaic set-up with pear trees and semi-transparent modules has been built in Bierbeek, Belgium.
Brecht Willockx, Bert Herteleer, Jan Cappelle. 2020. Techno-Economic Study of Agrovoltaic Systems Focusing on Orchard Crops. In: 37th EU PVSEC; 2020/09/07; Virtual. Leuven, Belgium: WIP; p.
(!)
Plant ScienceEconomicsMicroclimatology
Techno-Economic Viability of Agro-Photovoltaic Irrigated Arable Lands in the EU-Med Region: A Case-Study in Southwestern Spain
Solar photovoltaic (PV) energy is positioned to play a major role in the electricity generation
mix of Mediterranean countries. Nonetheless, substantial increase in ground-mounted PV installed capacity could lead to competition with the agricultural use of land. A way to avert the peril is the electricity-food dual use of land or agro-photovoltaics (APV). Here, the profitability of a hypothetical APV system deployed on irrigated arable lands of southwestern Spain is analyzed. The basic generator design, comprised of fixed-tilt opaque monofacial PV modules on a 5 m groundclearance substructure, featured 555.5 kWp/ha. Two APV shed orientations, due south and due southwest, were compared. Two 4-year annual-crop rotations, cultivated beneath the heightened PV modules and with each rotation spanning 24 ha, were studied. One crop rotation was headed by early potato, while the other was headed by processing tomato. All 9 crops involved fulfilled the two-fold condition of being usually cultivated in the area and compatible with APV shed intermitent shading. Crop revenues under the partial shading of PV modules were derived from official average yields in the area, through the use of two alternative sets of coefficients generated for low and high crop-yield shade-induced penalty. Likewise, two irrigation water sources, surface and underground, were compared. Crop total production costs, PV system investment and operating costs and revenues from the sale of electricity, were calculated. The internal rates of return (IRRs) obtained ranged from a minimum of 3.8% for the combination of southwest orientation, early-potato rotation, groundwater and high shade-induced crop-yield penalty, to a maximum of 5.6% for the combination of south
orientation, processing-tomato rotation, surface water and low shade-induced crop-yield penalty.Guillermo P. Moreda, Miguel A. Muñoz-García, M. Carmen Alonso-García, Luis Hernández-Callejo. 2021. Techno-Economic Viability of Agro-Photovoltaic Irrigated Arable Lands in the EU-Med Region: A Case-Study in Southwestern Spain. Agronomy. 11(3):
(!) .
Plant ScienceEconomics
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Spain
Technologic, Biological and Economic Analysis of a Dynamic Agrivoltaic System in the Dutch Agriculture Sector
Agrivoltaic systems combine agricultural land and the generation of photovoltaic energy. Currently only static agrivoltaic systems are investigated. However, these static systems offer less freedom for farmers to carry out their daily working activities. This research looks at a dynamic agrivoltaic system which moves across the crop plot. The movement of this system is modelled in 3D software on 50x100m field. The 3D-modelling software provides the possibility to simulate the insolation for photosynthesis for 5 different PV-scenarios. The PV-scenarios vary in size from 10% of the plot to 50% which results in an annual average decrease in insolation in the range of 6.81% – 31.1 % respectively. Potato, Sugar Beet and Wheat have been selected because these are widely cultivated in the Netherlands. Additionally, lettuce is added for comparison to static systems because existing agrivoltaic literature primarily included this crop. The accompanied yield of these 4 crops are addressed by the RUE method and qualitatively by incorporating other research which included the combination of shading scenarios and crop yield. In all cases, it seems that the RUE method results in the lowest crop revenues. The more qualitative approach seemed more in line with the actual crop yield and the literature. Lettuce proved to be the most shade tolerant of the crops. However, in nearly all cases the crops are little affected by the PV-scenarios. This ensured that the combination of electricity and crop revenues resulted in a higher Land Equivalent Ratio (1.1 – 1.6) and positive NPVs . Future research should focus on 3D-simulation software which combines movement and insolation. Furthermore, the crop yield under a dynamic system should also be further investigated to increase the reliability data for the Netherlands. Nevertheless, the results suggest that a dynamic agrivoltaic system can enhance land efficiency, increase revenues of both electricity and crops while the farmer can carry out its daily activities. With an increasing pressure on fertile land and relatively high revenues from photovoltaic energy, dynamic agrivoltaics can offer a viable solution.
N. Loots. 2018. Technologic, Biological and Economic Analysis of a Dynamic Agrivoltaic System in the Dutch Agriculture Sector [Thesis]. [ResearchGate]: Utrecht University.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyEconomicsSystem ConfigurationImpact Assessments
Technological Advancements and Research Prospects of Innovative Concentrating Agrivoltaics
Agrivoltaic is a strategic and innovative approach that combines photovoltaic (PV) energy conversion with agricultural production, enabling synergies in the production of food, energy, and water, as well as the preservation of the ecological landscape. Shading management, intensity adjustment, and spectral distribution allow innovative PV systems to generate significant amounts of electricity without affecting agricultural production. Demonstration projects have already been developed around the world and there is a wealth of experience with various design solutions for commercial use. One of these new technologies is concentrator photovoltaics (CPV). The CPV has excellent spectral processing capabilities and highly concentrated power generation efficiency, which makes it a perfect solution for integrating with photosynthesis. This study aims to present the working principle of CPV modules considering agricultural applications and discuss the recent advancements in concentrating agrivoltaics. In this method, the problem of shading is mitigated by two main strategies: (i) parabolic glasses covered with a multilayer dichroic polymer film that reflects near-infrared (NIR) radiation onto the solar cells installed at the focal area and transmits photons in the range of photosynthetically active radiation (PAR), and (ii) highly transparent sun-tracking louvers or Fresnel lenses that concentrate direct sunlight onto the solar cells to generate electricity. In the latter solution, the remaining diffuse sunlight is directed to the ground for use by growing plants. Although the CPV development trend has been slow due to the lower cost of crystalline silicon, the development of CPV for agriculture with accurate spectral separation could revitalize this industry. In this regard, more research and development are needed to evaluate the suitability of materials that split solar radiation and their impacts on the electrical performance of CPV modules, taking into account the physiology of plants.
S. Gorjian, F. J. Jamshidian, A. Gorjian, H. Faridi, M. Vafaei, F. Zhang, P. E. Campana. 05/2023. Technological Advancements and Research Prospects of Innovative Concentrating Agrivoltaics. Applied Energy. 337:120799.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Techno–Ecological Synergies of Solar Energy for Global Sustainability
The strategic engineering of solar energy technologies—from individual rooftop modules to large solar energy power plants—can confer significant synergistic outcomes across industrial and ecological boundaries. Here, we propose techno–ecological synergy (TES), a framework for engineering mutually beneficial relationships between technological and ecological systems, as an approach to augment the sustainability of solar energy across a diverse suite of recipient environments, including land, food, water, and built-up systems. We provide a conceptual model and framework to describe 16 TESs of solar energy and characterize 20 potential techno–ecological synergistic outcomes of their use. For each solar energy TES, we also introduce metrics and illustrative assessments to demonstrate techno–ecological potential across multiple dimensions. The numerous applications of TES to solar energy technologies are unique among energy systems and represent a powerful frontier in sustainable engineering to minimize unintended consequences on nature associated with a rapid energy transition.
R.R. Hernandez, A. Armstrong, J. Burney, G. Ryan, K. Moore-O’Leary, I. Diédhiou, S.M. Grodsky, L. Saul-Gershenz, R. Davis, J. Macknick, D. Mulvaney, G.A. Heath, S.B. Easter, M.K. Hoffacker, M.F. Allen, D.M. Kammen. 2019. Techno–Ecological Synergies of Solar Energy for Global Sustainability. Nature Sustainability. 2:560–568.
Reviews/InformationalPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production, Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Testing organic photovoltaic modules for application as greenhouse cover or shading element
This study examines the feasibility of using semi-transparent, flexible organic photovoltaic
(OPV) modules as greenhouse shading material. By using such modules, it may be possible to utilise existing greenhouse-based agricultural areas for electricity production. Using OPV modules to shade greenhouses and reduce excess solar energy may result in reduced heat load on the crop on the one hand, and use of renewable energy on the other. We examined the radiometric and thermal properties of an OPV module. Module transmissivity was measured under outdoor conditions at four different angles of radiation incidence: 0, 21, 41 and 46. Simultaneously, the open-circuit voltage, and short-circuit current of the module were recorded for power and efficiency calculations. Supplementary laboratory measurements of transmissivity, reflectivity and absorptivity were performed with a spectroradiometer. To further characterise the OPV module, its overall heat-transfer coefficient (U value) was determined. The examined module had about 20% transmissivity, 15% reflectivity and 65% absorptance in the photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) range. The mean daily power conversion efficiency of the module was about 0.8% and the overall heat transfer coefficient U, was about 6.0 Wm2 K1 . The temperature of a module placed on the polyethylene cover of a greenhouse high tunnel was about 50e55 C at midday. Thermal images of the module revealed non-uniform heat distribution, with temperature differences between regions reaching up to 7.5 C. OPV modules appear to be suitable for greenhouse shading and electricity generation but currently they are too expensive and
their life duration is relatively short.Maayan Friman Peretz, Farhad Geoola, Ibrahim Yehia, Shay Ozer, Asher Levi, Esther Magadley, Roman Brikman, Lavi Rosenfeld, Avi Levy, Murat Kacira, Meir Teitel. 08/2019. Testing organic photovoltaic modules for application as greenhouse cover or shading element. Biosystems Engineering. 24-36.
MicroclimatologyPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
The 5 Cs of Agrivoltaic Success Factors in the United States: Lessons from the InSPIRE Research Study
The concept of agrivoltaics (combining agriculture and solar photovoltaics technologies on the same land in novel configurations) has emerged as an approach to mitigate conflicts between solar and agricultural activities by providing mutual benefits and added values to each sector. The U.S. Department of Energy has supported agrivoltaics research since 2015 through its Innovative Solar Practices Integrated with Rural Economies and Ecosystems (InSPIRE) research project (National Renewable Energy Laboratory 2022). The InSPIRE project is the most comprehensive coordinated research effort on agrivoltaics in the United States and has examined opportunities and tradeoffs at over 25 sites across the country that span crop production, pollinator habitat, ecosystem services, animal husbandry, and d. Integrating research sites with active commercial agricultural operations can introduce unique challenges for conducting research. This synthesis aims to highlight the technical and non-technical insights from InSPIRE agrivoltaic field research sites from 2015-2021 to support i) appropriate deployment of agrivoltaic projects; ii) more successful research on agrivoltaics; and iii) more effective partnerships on agrivoltaic projects. The synthesized lessons discussed here are focused less on specific case study outcomes (i.e., the percent change in crop yield in an agrivoltaics configuration), and instead more on the elements that enable and facilitate agrivoltaics projects to be installed and operated along with research to be conducted at those sites. We find that there are some insights that are applicable across all types of agrivoltaic projects, while ecosystem service projects and crop production agrivoltaic projects can often have other unique considerations.
J. Macknick, H. Hartmann, G. Barron-Gafford, B. Beatty, R. Burton, C.S. Choi, M. Davis, R. Davis, J. Figueroa, A. Garrett, L. Hain, S. Herbert, J. Janski, A. Kinzer, A. Knapp, M. Lehan, J. Losey, J. Marley, J. MacDonald, J. McCall, L. Nebert, S. Ravi, J. Schmidt, B. Staie, L. Walston (National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL)). 2022. The 5 Cs of Agrivoltaic Success Factors in the United States: Lessons from the InSPIRE Research Study. United States: U.S. Department of Energy Office of Scientific and Technical Information. Report No.: NREL/TP-6A20-83566. Contract No.: AC36-08GO28308.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production, Greenhouse, Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Report
Country
United States
The Agrivoltaic Potential of Canada
Canada has committed to reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by increasing the non-emitting share of electricity generation to 90% by 2030. As solar energy costs have plummeted, agrivoltaics (the co-development of solar photovoltaic (PV) systems and agriculture) provide an economic path to these goals. This study quantifies agrivoltaic potential in Canada by province using geographical information system analysis of agricultural areas and numerical simulations. The systems modeled would enable the conventional farming of field crops to continue (and potentially increase yield) by using bifacial PV for single-axis tracking and vertical system configurations. Between a quarter (vertical) and more than one third (single-axis tracking) of Canada’s electrical energy needs can be provided solely by agrivoltaics using only 1% of current agricultural lands. These results show that agrivoltaics could be a major contributor to sustainable electricity generation and provide Canada with the ability to render the power generation sector net zero/GHG emission free. It is clear that the potential of agrivoltaic-based solar energy production in Canada far outstrips current electric demand and can, thus, be used to electrify and decarbonize transportation and heating, expand economic opportunities by powering the burgeoning computing sector, and export green electricity to the U.S. to help eliminate their dependence on fossil fuels.
U. Jamil, A. Bonnington, J. M. Pearce. 02/2023. The Agrivoltaic Potential of Canada. Sustainability. 15(4):1-26.
Market Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Canada
The Agrivoltaic System Development in Baron Technopark, Yogyakarta, Indonesia
This paper is a mini-review of the development of the agrivoltaic system, with the case study at the pilot plant site of Baron Technopark, located in the coastal area of southern java island, Indonesia. It is important to understand the agricultural practice, photovoltaic (PV) performance, and microclimate interrelation to formulate the optimum crop yield and energy outcome. This study's objective is to develop a preliminary design of an agrivoltaic system. The study method performed were literature study and focus group discussion with the experts. The results are as follows: the agrivoltaic system consists of both agriculture and fishery practices; eggplant crops will be cultivated with drip irrigation; parameters of PV cell temperature, solar radiation, ambient temperature, humidity, and, current and voltage of the PV array. This design will be further applied in the future to study crop productivity, water productivity, PV performance, and energy yield from the PV system.
K. Ahmad, Y. Wijayanti, A. Subandriya, T. Setyorini, S. Mukhid, R.B. Prasetyo. 2022. The Agrivoltaic System Development in Baron Technopark, Yogyakarta, Indonesia. In: 2022 5th Asia Conference on Energy and Electrical Engineering (ACEEE). 2022 5th Asia Conference on Energy and Electrical Engineering (ACEEE); 2022/07/08; Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. IEEE: IEEE; p. 147-151
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Indonesia
The Concept of Agricultural Complex Based on Agrivoltaics and Precision Agriculture
The article presents the concept of an agricultural complex that combines elements of agrivoltaics and precision farming. The purpose of the development of this complex is the ability to implement the principle of multipurpose use of sown areas for basic agricultural crops production (wheat, corn, etc.). The design of this complex and the operation of individual elements are described. In terms of agrivoltaics, it is proposed to use rotating photovoltaic panels; for precision farming - the natural division of the structure of the complex into separate areas. The information is collected by sensors for each site. It includes the required characteristics of air, soil, plants, etc. The collection, storage and processing of measured data are carried out in the control center, where all elements of the complex are also remotely controlled. The complex is supplied with electrical energy due to the energy produced by photovoltaic panels. To smooth the unevenness of production and consumption of energy, including in the absence of agricultural work period, the complex includes the electrical energy storage.
A. Shcherbakov, M. Baramykov. 2022. The Concept of Agricultural Complex Based on Agrivoltaics and Precision Agriculture. In: IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science. DAICRA 2021; 2021/10/15; Russia. IOP Science: IOP Publishing; p. 1-9
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
The Development Status and Countermeasures of Photovoltaic-ecological Agriculture in China
An analysis of the current status of China’s photovoltaic ecological agriculture indicates a small agricultural economy in the overall scale. Moreover, photovoltaic projects are not closely connected to agricultural production, power is wasted, and technology is immature. Corresponding measures are proposed in this paper. This paper analyzes pilot photovoltaic ecological agriculture projects of three areas and proves that good use of photovoltaic agricultural economy can promote the longterm development of China’s agricultural economy. The annual growth rate of agricultural economy in Shouguang, Shandong, and Zhongwei, Ningxia, has reached more than 20%, thereby providing decision making guidance for the development of the agricultural economy. © 2016, LLC Editorial of Journal "Light Technik". All rights reserved.
Y. Liu. 11/2016. The Development Status and Countermeasures of Photovoltaic-ecological Agriculture in China. Light and Engineering. 24(3):91-94.
EconomicsReviews/Informational
The Economic Potential for Rainfed Agrivoltaics in Groundwater Stressed Regions
Agrivoltaics co-locate crops with solar photovoltaics (PV) to provide sustainability benefits across land, energy, and water systems. Policies supporting a switch from irrigated farming to rainfed, grid-connected agrivoltaics in regions experiencing groundwater stress can mitigate both groundwater depletion and CO2 from electricity generation. Here, hydrology, crop, PV, and financial models are integrated to assess the economic potential for rainfed agrivoltaics in groundwater-stressed regions. The analysis reveals 11.2–37.6 PWh/yr of power generation potential, equivalent to 40%–135% of the global electricity supply in 2018. Almost 90% of groundwater depletion in 2010 (∼150 km3) occurred where the levelized cost for grid-connected rainfed agrivoltaic generation is 50–100 USD/MWh. Potential revenue losses following the switch from irrigated to rainfed crops represent 0%–34% of the levelized generation cost. Future cost–benefit analysis must value the avoided groundwater stress from the perspective of long-term freshwater availability.
Simon Parkinson, Julian Hunt. 2020. The Economic Potential for Rainfed Agrivoltaics in Groundwater Stressed Regions. Environmental Science and Technology Letters. 7(7):525-531.
Market AssessmentsEconomicsImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
The Economic and Social Performance of Integrated Photovoltaic and Agricultural Greenhouses Systems: Case Study in China
Integrated photovoltaic (PV) and agricultural greenhouses (PVGs) have seen a rapid expansion in recent years in China. However, declining Feed-in Tariffs and underutilization of PV greenhouses also cause public concern regarding their actual economic performance. In this study, we address the economic and social performance of five PVGs based on a case study. The conclusions show that PVGs could achieve a good economic performance. Their Annual Return on Investment (AROI) varies from about 9% to 20% with a discounted payback period of 4–8 years depending on the different crops produced in PV greenhouses. Furthermore, PVGs also bring considerable social benefits, such as providing new jobs, raising taxes and avoiding substantial CO2 emissions. Sensitivity and uncertainty analysis reveals that crop price is the most sensitive influencing factor. The importance of the electricity feed-in tariff is much less than what we expected. This implies that PV agricultural companies should pay more attention to crop planting and that policy-makers should also shift the focus of incentives from PV power generation to agricultural crop production.
C. Li, H. Wang, H. Miao, B. Ye. 2017. The Economic and Social Performance of Integrated Photovoltaic and Agricultural Greenhouses Systems: Case Study in China. Applied Energy. 190:204-212.
EconomicsSystem ConfigurationMarket AssessmentsImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
The Effect of Different Levels of Shading in a Photovoltaic Greenhouse with a North–South Orientation
Photovoltaic greenhouses have been claimed to be a solution to cover the energy demand of the protected crops sector. Thus, there is a need to know what is the maximum percentage of shading produced by roof-top photovoltaic panels that does not affect crop yields. The present study analyzes the effects of increasing percentages of shading in a greenhouse tomato crop located in the southeast of Spain. For this study, photovoltaic panels have been simulated with opaque sheets located in the roof-top of a north–south oriented greenhouse. Three treatments of top roof shading percentage (15%, 30% and 50%) where studied and compared with the control treatment without shading (0%). During the study, parameters registered were radiation, temperature, pH and electric conductivity of the substrate, crop yields and fruit quality. Results of the analysis show that higher percentages of shading in the roof-top of greenhouses reduce so much available radiation for the crop causing a reduction in the yield and fruit quality, even in Mediterranean areas where radiation is not a limiting factor.
Guadalupe López-Díaz, Angel Carreño-Ortega, Hicham Fatnassi, Christine Poncet, Manuel Díaz-Pérez. 01/2020. The Effect of Different Levels of Shading in a Photovoltaic Greenhouse with a North–South Orientation. Applied Sciences. 10(3):
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Plant ScienceMicroclimatology
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Spain
The Effect of Gap Spacing Between Solar Panel Clusters on Crop Biomass Yields, Nutrients, and the Microenvironment in a Dual-Use Agrivoltaic System
Agrivoltaic (AV) systems are dual-use land systems that consist of elevated solar panels with crops grown underneath. They offer a solution to the increasing demand for food production and clean renewable energy. The main concern regarding AV systems is the reduced availability of light to crops below the panels. Research to date shows that AV systems are quite productive with total energy and crop production exceeding the outputs of either solar farms or crop production alone. Research also shows that solar panels affect the microenvironment below the panels. The research on AV systems so far considers altering panel density to increase radiation to the crops by varying the distance between rows of panels in an AV solar array. This study examines the crop outputs for Swiss chard, kale, pepper, and broccoli in an AV system with different gap spacings of 2, 3, 4, or 5 feet (AV plots) between panel clusters within rows to determine how much spacing between solar panels is optimal for crop production by comparing these system yields to full sun crop production. This study also examines the effect of the AV system on crop nutrient levels, on soil water content, and crop leaf temperature below the panels. Ultimately, the biomass crop yields of AV plots are restricted significantly for Swiss chard, kale, or pepper compared against the full sun control plot yields but not for broccoli stem + leaf yields. The 4-ft or 5-ft gap distances between panels yield the highest crop biomass of the AV shaded plots. Nutrient levels tend to increase with more shade but the trend is only significant for Swiss chard nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations, pepper potassium concentrations, and broccoli phosphorus concentrations. For soil water content it is found that panels have some effect on evapotranspiration and rainfall redistribution at the soil level. Leaf temperatures in the AV plots are lower than leaf temperatures in the control plots on sunny days but not on cloudy days.
Kristen Oleskewicz. 04/2020. The Effect of Gap Spacing Between Solar Panel Clusters on Crop Biomass Yields, Nutrients, and the Microenvironment in a Dual-Use Agrivoltaic System [Thesis]. [Amherst, Massachusetts]: University of Massachusetts Amherst.
Plant ScienceHydrology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Thesis/Dissertation
Country
United States
State
Massachusetts
The Effect of Photovoltaic Panels on the Microclimate and on the Tomato Production under Photovoltaic Canarian Greenhouses
Photovoltaic greenhouses are mixed systems, combining electricity and agricultural production in the same area. Moreover, this type of greenhouse conserves all the properties of a conventional greenhouse, as well as offering the possibility of producing and selling electricity. The aim of the present study is to assess both the impact of the shade caused by the photovoltaic panels on the microclimate and the quality of fruits in the greenhouse. Measurements were carried out in an experimental Canary type greenhouse covered with flexible photovoltaic panels on 10% of its total roof area. Results illustrate that this occupancy rate of the photovoltaic panels arranged in checkerboard pattern does not have a significant effect on the agronomic parameters e.g. height, stem diameter and tomato yield, and climatic parameters under the greenhouse cover. Additionally, the presence of photovoltaic panels has a negative effect on the development of the population of Tuta absoluta.
K. Ezzaeri, H. Fatnassi, R. Bouharroud, L. Gourdo, A. Bazgaou, A. Wifaya, H. Demrati, A. Bekkaoui, A. Aharoune, C. Poncet, L. Bouirden. 2018. The Effect of Photovoltaic Panels on the Microclimate and on the Tomato Production under Photovoltaic Canarian Greenhouses. Solar Energy. 173:1126-1134.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatology
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Morocco
The Effect of the Novel Agricultural Photovoltaic System on Water Evaporation Reduction and Sweet Potato Yield
Agricultural photovoltaic (APV) was proposed to combine food and energy production simultaneously on the same farmland. The shadow of photovoltaic panels (PVs) effects on plants' growth has been challenging for achieving food, energy, and water nexuses. We proposed a novel agricultural photovoltaic called Spectrum Splitting and Concentrated APV (SCAPV) based on splitting sunlight using curve glass covered with Multilayer Polymer Films (MPF). This paper aims to investigate the effects of SCAPV on the reduction of water evaporation and evapotranspiration (ET); and the impacts of SCAPV on soil nutrients, sweet potato quality, and yield. We placed evaporation containers and pans and planted sweet potatoes under SCAPV and open-air (CK). Our results showed that cumulative water soil evaporation of SCAPV and CK for 45 days was 63.38 mm and 80.53 mm. Cumulative water soil evaporation of SCAPV compared to CK was reduced by 21%. Soil pH and organic matter were increased than before planting. The anthocyanin content of sweet potatoes increased by 11.99%. Fresh and dry sweet potato yields increased by 56.13% and 56.64%. Water evaporation from the pan surface and ET were reduced by 32% and 31%. Using SCAPV could provide food and energy production while conserving water resources on farmland.
Altyeb Ali Abaker Omer, Ming Li, Xin-liang Liu, Wen-jun Liu, Yang Liu, Yasir M. F. Mukhtar, Jan Ingenhoff, Wen Liu. 05/2023. The Effect of the Novel Agricultural Photovoltaic System on Water Evaporation Reduction and Sweet Potato Yield. In: International Petroleum and Petrochemical Technology Conference; 2022/03/21; Beijing, China. Beijing, China: Springer Link; p. 567–578
Plant ScienceSoilHydrologyPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
China
The Effects of Placement and Ground Cover on Solar Panel Temperatures
As the world turns its attention to renewable energy resources, questions about the
viability of a land-intensive resource like solar panels have arisen. Competition with agricultural land is a major concern, and one that research is attempting to solve with the combination of photovoltaics and agriculture, termed agrivoltaics. Investigations into possible combinations of crops and panels is ongoing but thus far focuses on plant performance and panel density. More research is needed on the impacts of agricultural practices on solar panel operation and efficiency. This paper addresses this relationship by investigating two effects on solar panels: the ambient temperature around a solar panel based on its location in a large-scale array, and the impact of different ground cover type on solar panel operating temperature in small-scale arrays. To investigate the impact of ground cover on panel temperature, small scale arrays were constructed and placed over three land cover types: irrigated agriculture with black landscape fabric, barren land, and grassland. To investigate variations in panel temperature based on panel location, five sensors were placed at the North, South, West, East, and Center of a large-scale array to record hourly temperature data for the summer of 2021. Irrigated agriculture with black landscape fabric was found to be significantly hotter than barren and grassland ground cover types, while grassland was found to have some cooling effects. This finding demonstrates that solar panels and grasslands can be beneficially co-located, which would provide significant relief to the land use challenges of food and energy. Temperatures across an array experienced differences based on the north-south transect. It is unclear if this was due to the specific environment surrounding the site, or systemic across solar arrays. Regardless of the cause, solar arrays can experience temperature differences across a 1 MW scale, demonstrating the need for further research if these dynamics are to be understood
and incorporated into future siting for solar arrays.Haley Brewer. 2022. The Effects of Placement and Ground Cover on Solar Panel Temperatures [Thesis]. [Colorado]: University of Colorado.
Plant SciencePV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Habitat/Ecovoltaics, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Thesis/Dissertation
Country
United States
State
Colorado
The Energizer Bunny: Dual-Use Photovoltaic and Pasture-Raised Rabbit Farms
This case study project lays the groundwork for the broader realization of agrivoltaics by considering the techno-economic, environmental, and social aspects of system development and assessing a novel rabbit-based concept. Research on the social and political barriers to agrivoltaic development is sparse, which emphasizes the importance of this project as it provides key insight into the consequential socio-political challenges that may hinder the diffusion of agrivoltaic technology. Additionally, the rabbit agrivoltaic concept is novel and has not been applied in experimental or commercial applications to date. This project advances our understanding of the viability of this co-location scheme through empirical assessment of integrating grazing rabbits with solar. A total of five manuscripts (3 published in peer-reviewed journals, 2 under review) have resulted from this project. The techno-economic component of the project included a) a pilot test study investigating the feasibility of the rabbit agrivoltaic concept and b) an economic analysis of the advantages available to solar operators who leverage grazing animals for lawn maintenance and a dual-revenue stream. Our calculations indicate that the co-location of solar and rabbit farms is a viable form of agrivoltaics, increasing overall site revenue by 2.5%-24.0% above projected electricity revenue. The environmental component of the project entailed an ISO 14040 and 14044 compliant life cycle assessment to quantify the impacts of the rabbit agrivoltaic concept. The results indicate pasture-based agrivoltaic systems provide a dual synergy that produces 69.3% less emissions and demands 82.9% less fossil energy per functional unit of cumulative MWh output of electricity and cumulative kg of meat compared to non-integrated production. The social component of the project included conducting two separate interview studies with agriculture and solar industry professionals and the distribution of a public survey. The interview findings identify the key socio-political opportunities for agrivoltaics include: the retention of agricultural land and rural interests, and increased local level acceptance of solar development. The key barriers to agrivoltaics include: ensuring long term agricultural productivity is not compromised, and subnational zoning strategies. The survey results indicate that support for local solar projects increase by 10% when an agricultural function is incorporated. Survey respondents prefer agrivoltaic projects that are a) designed to provide economic opportunities for farmers and the local community b) located on private property or existing agricultural land, and c) do not threaten local interests. Cumulatively, this project can inform agrivoltaic decision making, solar development practices, rabbit-based applications, land use management, and policy making in a way that supports the furtherance of the renewable energy transition, conserves arable land, and utilizes innovative solar photovoltaic technologies.
Joshua Pearce (Michigan Technological University). 07/2021. The Energizer Bunny: Dual-Use Photovoltaic and Pasture-Raised Rabbit Farms. Michigan: OSTI.
Market AssessmentsEconomicsImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Report
Country
United States
State
Michigan
The Financial Impact of Co-locating Agricultural Production and Solar Power Generation
Farms across the US have been consolidating in the face of shrinking margins while experiencing increasing competition for land use. The co-location of solar power production and agriculture, known as agrivoltaic systems, may be an effective compromise, as it can both supplement farmers' incomes and stabilize revenues.
A model is developed to stochastically generate weather variables and commodity prices to conduct an analysis comparing net revenues for a solar only plot, a farm only plot, and an AVS plot. In the case studies considered (Oregon/North Carolina, alfalfa/soybeans/strawberries), co-location substantially increases farmers’ annual net revenues (~250-5,500%). In the case of more financially variable crops (e.g., strawberries), co-location can reduce variability and improve 5th percentile net revenues by 49-55%. Compared to federal crop insurance, co-location provides larger revenue support but smaller risk management benefits. Regardless, co-location shows promise in benefiting farmers’ net revenues while also contributing to a low carbon future.
R.I. Cuppari. 2020. The Financial Impact of Co-locating Agricultural Production and Solar Power Generation [Thesis]. [Carolina Digital Repository]: University of North Carolina.
Plant ScienceEconomicsPV TechnologiesMarket Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Thesis/Dissertation
Country
United States
State
North Carolina, Oregon
The Impact of Agrivoltaic Systems on Tomato Crop: A Case Study in Southern Italy
Agrivoltaics, a system combining the production of agricultural crops and solar energy on the same land area, offers a potential solution to land use competition between different sectors. However, concerns have been raised regarding the impact of shade on plant growth under Agrivoltaic Systems (AVSs). Numerous studies have explored the effects of AVSs shading on agricultural crops. However, most of these studies focused on shade-tolerant crops, leaving a gap in the understanding of how these systems affect shade-intolerant crops. To this end, this study was conducted in Bari, southern Italy, using two types of AVSs: conventional (Con) and semi-transparent (ST) panels. The objective was to assess the impacts of the different levels of shading on the tomato yield and fruit quality. Tomato cultivation occurred between May and August under various conditions: Con panels, ST panels, and Open Field. The results revealed that soil temperature decreased under both AVSs compared to in the open field conditions. However, the significant reduction in photosynthetically active radiation (PAR), up to 43% in ST and 67% in Con, led to yield reductions ranging between 28% and 58% in ST and Con, respectively. Nonetheless, AVSs demonstrated their potential to reduce irrigation water demand by over 15% in ST and more than 20% in Con. Interestingly, the AVSs reduced fruit size but improved certain fruit quality attributes, such as titratable acidity, which is closely correlated with fruit flavour. These findings highlight the challenges of cultivating shade-intolerant crops under AVSs in a Mediterranean climate, while temperate, dry conditions may offer more favourable prospects for agricultural production.
Serine Mohammedi, Giovanna Dragonetti, Naouel Admane, Abdelouahid Fouial. 2023. The Impact of Agrivoltaic Systems on Tomato Crop: A Case Study in Southern Italy. Journal of Processes.
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Plant ScienceMicroclimatologySoilHydrology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Italy
The Importance of 3D models to Calculate Shading Ratios
(!) . 2022. The Importance of 3D models to Calculate Shading Ratios. In: AgriVoltaics 2021 Conference; 2021/06/14; Freiburg, Germany. Freiburg, Germany: AIP; p.
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MicroclimatologySystem ConfigurationTools
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
France
The Influence of Greenhouse-integrated Photovoltaics on Crop Production
Photovoltaics (PVs) have been particularly successful in many domestic and industrial settings where opaque PV-covered roofs provide renewable electricity. Modern farming, for an ever growing population, employs vast areas of greenhouses consuming considerable amounts of energy. The majority of greenhouses are not suited to coverage by opaque PVs. Herein, we describe the current-state-of-the-art in greenhouse-integrated opaque PVs and their limitations, particularly with respect to the compatibility with certain plant cultivars. We propose semi-transparent PVs (Dye-Sensitized solar Cells, DSCs) as alternative greenhouse glazing that, compared to conventional greenhouse glazing and currently marketed greenhouse integrated opaque PV materials, offers advantages including enhanced thermal stabilisation and similar or improved edible biomass yields. Large-scale validation of DSCs in solar sharing for crop production (yield, appearance and nutritional content) is now in progress.
C. S. Allardyce, C. Fankhauser, S. M. Zakeeruddin, M. Grätzel, P. J. Dysona. 2017. The Influence of Greenhouse-integrated Photovoltaics on Crop Production. Solar Energy. 155:517-522.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
The Integration of Semi-transparent Photovoltaics on Greenhouse Roof for Energy and Plant Production
The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of semi-transparent building integrated photovoltaics
(BIPV) mounted on top of a greenhouse, on the growth of tomatoes and microclimate conditions as well as to estimate the generated energy and the payback period of this system. Three modules were settled at 20% of the greenhouse roof area at a tilt angle of 30° facing south at a distance of 0.08 m between the plastic cover and the BIPV. Each module has a peak power of 170 Wp and efficiency of 8.25%. Results revealed that the annual generated electric energy of the BIPV was 637 kWh. Furthermore, there were no significant differences (P < .05) in the growth of tomatoes between shaded greenhouse by the BIPV and the un-shaded greenhouse. The reduction of solar radiation under the BIPV was 35%-40% more than the Polyethylene covers on clear days. The BIPV shading decreases the air temperature by (1°C-3°C) on clear days and has no effect on relative humidity. The payback period was found to be 9 years. Moreover, this system can provide most of the annual energy demands for the greenhouse environmental control
systems.Reda Hassanien, Emam Hassanien, Ming Li, Fang Yin. 06/2018. The Integration of Semi-transparent Photovoltaics on Greenhouse Roof for Energy and Plant Production. Renewable Energy. 121:377-388.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyMarket AssessmentsPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
The Investigation of Energy Production and Mushroom Yield in Greenhouse Production Based on Mono Photovoltaic Cells Effect
The purpose of this study is to present the potentiality of an innovative cooling system and mono passivated emitter rear contact photovoltaic cells (Mono PERC PV) with shading to optimize energy production, the microclimatic conditions and Pleurotus mushrooms (Pleurotus ostreatus)production. The off-grid PV system consisted of 12 modules (6 mono bifacial PERC PV (Mono BPERC PV) modules and 6 Mono PERC PV modules) which provide higher efficiency, absorb more light, and the high performances lead to lower system costs. Three Mono PERC PV panels were installed facing south and at a tilt angle of 30°, covering 20% of the roof area. Each module had a peak power of 365 Wp and an efficiency of 18.8%. The results revealed that the annual generated electric energy by the off-grid PV system was around 6288 kWh/year and it is enough to supply the greenhouse’s energy needs 3164.0 kWh/year. The highest mushroom productivity 1600 g was recorded with the cooling system in the PV area at 1.0 m height treatment. The reduction in solar radiation in the Mono PERC PV area was 31.9%–38.25% higher than that in the control area on clear days. The cooling system ensured that the environmental conditions were suitable for mushroom growth. The optimum temperature and relative humidity for growing Pleurotus mushrooms ranged from 18 °C to 25 °C and 80%–95%, respectively under controlled conditions.
Wael El Kolaly, Wenhui Ma, Ming Li, Mohammed Darwesh. 10/2020. The Investigation of Energy Production and Mushroom Yield in Greenhouse Production Based on Mono Photovoltaic Cells Effect. Renewable Energy. 159:506-518.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
The Multifaceted Potential Applications of Organic Photovoltaics
Among renewable energy sources, photovoltaics is particularly promising. Photovoltaic cells are quiet and safe, can be integrated unobtrusively in different settings, need minimal maintenance and deliver a relatively predictable energy output. In particular, photovoltaics based on inorganic semiconductors has been widely used in different sectors. For example, commercial silicon-based photovoltaics is used in solar power plants, and gallium arsenide-based photovoltaics usually serves as the energy source of satellites and space stations. Photovoltaic energy supplies that are compatible with various surfaces and are easy to use anytime and anywhere could find application in different fields, such as agriculture, architecture, wearable electronics and health science. For these applications, the heavy, rigid and opaque traditional inorganic photovoltaic devices are impractical, and organic photovoltaic (OPV)1 devices are attractive candidates to fill the gap.
Yingyue Hu, Jiayu Wang, Cenqi Yan, Pei Cheng. 09/2022. The Multifaceted Potential Applications of Organic Photovoltaics. Nature Reviews Materials. 7:836–838.
PV TechnologiesReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
The Need for AI to Optimize Dual-Use PV Installations to Extract Maximum Value
There has been increasing application of solar when combined with shared land use. Current examples are PV systems floating on water, and also dual-use land where agriculture is interwoven with PV panels. There are clearly challenges with these types of implementations in that either the geography makes the installation more difficult, or the activity requires a need to share both the land and the light "harvesting" of photons. Because of these challenges, it is necessary to optimize the implementation of the PV and other land-use to extract meaningful value beyond just a demonstration project. But the diversity and complexity of the configurations do not lend themselves to simple analysis. Given this complexity, it is necessary to develop flexible algorithms which can take multiple variables into account where the data may be from multiple complex sources. This is the very configuration where Advanced Neural Net applications can assist and guide the installation and management of the combined land-use activities.This paper will describe the following: (1) the key advantages of AI/ML, along with the current issues, (2) the need for transferrable algorithms development, and (3) the overall methodology for implementation and extension to the broader PV dual-land use segment. Specific data will be presented on the novel AI/ML proposed. A key attribute with this novel AI/ML is one can scale and transfer the template developed without re-customization. The key point of the paper is that – as with any niche application of PV and especially in a dual-use mode, there are substantial challenges which must be overcome, and the use of AI/ML will be a useful tool to exploit the advantages and elevate the application to a more broadly used mode of PV.
(!) . 2021. The Need for AI to Optimize Dual-Use PV Installations to Extract Maximum Value. In: IEEE 48th Photovoltaic Specialists Conference. IEEE 48th Photovoltaic Specialists Conference; 2021/06/20; Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Fort Lauderdale, Florida: IEEE; p.
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Market AssessmentsTools
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Conference Paper
The Optimization of Vertical Bifacial Photovoltaic Farms for Efficient Agrivoltaic Systems
An unprecedented demand for Food, Energy, and Water (FEW) resources over coming decades and the rising climate concerns require integrated FEW innovations with least environmental footprint. Collocating photovoltaic (PV) technology with agriculture is a promising approach towards dual land productivity that could locally fulfill growing food and energy demands particularly in rural areas. This ‘agrivoltaic’ (AV) solution can be highly suitable for hot and arid climates where an optimized solar panel coverage could prevent excessive thermal stress during harsh weather thereby increasing the crop yield and lowering the water budget. One of the concerns with using standard fixed tilt solar array structure that faces North/South (𝑁∕𝑆) direction for AV farming is the spatial heterogeneity in the daily sunlight distribution for crops and soil water contents, both of which could affect crop yield. Dynamic tilt control through a tracking system can eliminate this problem but could increase the system cost and complexity. Here we present the investigation of vertically tilted bifacial AV farms which can be especially attractive for climates where PV losses due to dust are high. The relative food-energy performance for the vertical East/West faced bifacial panel (bi-𝐸∕𝑊 ) scheme is compared with the standard monofacial tilted panels facing North/South (mono-𝑁∕𝑆) through integrated models for energy conversion, spatial/temporal shade patterns, and the crop yield that is benchmarked against the reported field experiments for lettuce. We show that both schemes have similar food-energy yields for shade-sensitive crops which require a relatively low array density (i.e. ⩽ 1∕2 of that for the standard ground mounted PV systems). On the other hand, the two PV schemes have remarkably different food-energy yields for denser PV array configuration for which bi-𝐸∕𝑊 provides higher crop yield and mono-𝑁∕𝑆 exhibits higher energy yield. To preserve ⩾ 80% of lettuce yield, the maximum array density is limited from half to twice of the standard PV systems corresponding to the varying shade response for the crop. Similarly, to preserve 80% of the energy yield, the lettuce yield is predicted to vary from 65% (shade-sensitive) to 100% (shade-tolerant). The vertical bi-𝐸∕𝑊 scheme is although not superior in terms of the combined food-energy performance, it could be attractive for its distinct advantages such as spatial homogeneity for shades and rainfall under panels, convenient architecture for farm machinery mobility, and an inherent resilience to soiling.
M.H. Riaza, H. Imrana, R. Younas, N.Z. Butt. 2021. The Optimization of Vertical Bifacial Photovoltaic Farms for Efficient Agrivoltaic Systems. Solar Energy. 230:1004-1012.
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologySystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Pakistan
The Photovoltaic Greenhouse as Energy Hub for a More Sustainable Agriculture
This work introduces the concept of the greenhouse as an energy hub in agriculture thanks to the addition of roof-mounted photovoltaic systems integrated into the structure of the greenhouse. The results of a project comprising the design, construction, and evaluation of the energy production of two photovoltaic greenhouses over two years are presented. One greenhouse is equipped with conventional PV panels (PVG), and the other with semi-transparent panels (ST-PVG). For the PVG, the upper half of the roof is covered with 22 conventional PV panels, resulting in overall roof transparency of 50%. For the ST-PVG, the entire roof of the greenhouse was covered with 48 semi-transparent PV panels with nominal transparency of 20%. The analysis methodology consisted of the following steps: obtain data stored on the web platforms of PV systems providers, compare the actual annual production of each greenhouse with the theoretical annual production estimated with the solar explorer web tool, quantify the difference between the actual data and the theoretical estimate, quantify the loss of energy production of the existing system. It was empirically verified that both installed PVGs would tend to produce less energy than theoretically expected every year, with an average production loss of 7.85%. This result represents a realistic Figure for estimating the production of a PVG operating under actual conditions and without considering the cleaning of PV panels.
Miguel Torres, Claudio Burgos, Daniel Casagrande, Diego Muñoz, Manuel Pinto, Guido Candia, Hernán Reyes, and Benjamín Acuña. 2023. The Photovoltaic Greenhouse as Energy Hub for a More Sustainable Agriculture. In: IEEE International Conference on Automation/XXV Congress of the Chilean Association of Automatic Control (ICA-ACCA); 2022/10/24; Chile. Curicó, Chile: IEEE; p. 1-6
Plant SciencePV Technologies
Development Strategy
Greenhouse, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Chile
The Photovoltaic Greenhouses- a Challenge for Republic of Moldova
The photovoltaic greenhouses that emerged at the beginning of the century as a way of arable land preservation through the concordance between electricity generation and crop growth have shown a number of advantages for both economic branches. As solid electricity consumer, greenhouses are using a considerable or even the entire amount of the produced energy on the spot without any costs nor losses related to electrical network distribution. The availability of electricity allows application of artificial lighting in PV greenhouses, as a result extending the duration of the photosynthesis process up to 16 ÷ 17 hours that subsequently significantly reduces plants growth time.
I. Bostan, A. Guțu, C. Guțu-Chetruşca. 2019. The Photovoltaic Greenhouses- a Challenge for Republic of Moldova. In: 2019 International Conference on Electromechanical and Energy Systems; 2019/10/09; Craiova, Romania. IEEE: IEEE; p. 1-4
System Configuration
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Moldova
The Photovoltaic Heat Island Effect: Larger Solar Power Plants Increase Local Temperatures
While photovoltaic (PV) renewable energy production has surged, concerns remain about whether or not PV power plants induce a “heat island” (PVHI) effect, much like the increase in ambient temperatures relative to wildlands generates an Urban Heat Island effect in cities. Transitions to PV plants alter the way that incoming energy is reflected back to the atmosphere or absorbed, stored, and reradiated because PV plants change the albedo, vegetation, and structure of the terrain. Prior work on the PVHI has been mostly theoretical or based upon simulated models. Furthermore, past empirical work has been limited in scope to a single biome. Because there are still large uncertainties surrounding the potential for a PHVI effect, we examined the PVHI empirically with experiments that spanned three biomes. We found temperatures over a PV plant were regularly 3–4 °C warmer than wildlands at night, which is in direct contrast to other studies based on models that suggested that PV systems should decrease ambient temperatures. Deducing the underlying cause and scale of the PVHI effect and identifying mitigation strategies are key in supporting decision-making regarding PV development, particularly in semiarid landscapes, which are among the most likely for large-scale PV installations.
G.A. Barron-Gafford, R.L. Minor, N.A. Allen, A.D. Cronin, A.E. Brooks, M.A. Pavao-Zuckerman. 2016. The Photovoltaic Heat Island Effect: Larger Solar Power Plants Increase Local Temperatures. Scientific Reports. 6:35070.
Human HealthMicroclimatologyPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
Arizona
The Potential for Agrivoltaics to Enhance Solar Farm Cooling
Human society is at a critical point where rapid adoption of renewable energy alternatives is necessary to mitigate climate change effects while meeting global energy demands. At the same time, agricultural production must increase significantly by midcentury to feed an anticipated 10 billion people worldwide. These impending food-energy needs create land-use competition between crops and energy production, particularly with solar photovoltaics (PV). Co-locating agriculture and solar PV (agrivoltaics) is one attractive solution, but its widespread adoption is hindered by the perception that co-located sites will see major tradeoffs between food and energy production. Here we investigate the potential for agrivoltaic design features to influence the solar farm microclimate and surface temperature of solar PV modules. We develop a CFD-based microclimate model, evaluated against extensive experimental data, to investigate the effects of panel height, ground albedo, and evapotranspiration in a solar PV site. We show that an agrivoltaic solar farm mounted at 4 m with soybeans underneath exhibits solar module temperature reductions of up to 10 °C compared to a solar farm mounted at 0.5 m over bare soil. These results indicate that ground conditions and panel height play important roles in solar farm cooling, and that agrivoltaic systems can potentially help to resolve the global food-energy crisis by improving solar PV conversion efficiency while enabling agricultural production on the same land.
H.J. Williams, K. Hashad, H. Wang, K.M. Zhang. 02/2023. The Potential for Agrivoltaics to Enhance Solar Farm Cooling. Applied Energy. 332:1-11.
HydrologyMicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Canada
The Potential for Fencing to Be Used as Low-Cost Solar Photovoltaic Racking
Popular agrivoltaic systems use photovoltaic (PV) farms for pasture grazing animals. In general, these agrivoltaic systems do not reduce the capital cost of a PV farm and in some cases can increase it. To overcome this challenge this study investigates the potential for retrofitting existing animal fencing on farms to have dual use for vertical-mounted monofacial PV racking. Specifically, this study catalogs types of fences and wind load calculations classified under Risk Category I are run through a new python-based Open Source Wind Load Calculator to determine the viability of fence-based racking throughout the U.S. The base shear force for all the fences are calculated for a range of wind loads from 80mph to 150mph (129 km/h to 241 km/h) and the results are mapped to indicate the number of PV modules between the vertical fence poles a fence can tolerate in a specific location. The results show the required fence type including post and battens in a given area for sheep, goats, pigs, cows, and alpaca to be used for agrivoltaics. Overall, at least one PV module between posts is acceptable indicating a new agrivoltaic system potential that as little as $0.035/kWh for racking on existing fencing. Although the yield for a vertical PV can range from 20 to 76 % of an optimized tilt angle depending on azimuth, the racking cost savings enable fence-retrofit agrivoltaics to often produce lower levelized cost electricity. Future work is necessary to determine the full scope of benefits of vertical PV agricultural fencing on a global scale.
Sudhachandra Masna, Stephen M. Morse, Koami Soulemane Hayibo, Joshua M. Pearce. 03/2023. The Potential for Fencing to Be Used as Low-Cost Solar Photovoltaic Racking. Solar Energy. 253:30-46.
Market AssessmentsSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
The Potential of Agrivoltaic Systems
In order to meet global energy demands with clean renewable energy such as with solar photovoltaic (PV) systems, large surface areas are needed because of the relatively diffuse nature of solar energy. Much of this demand can be matched with aggressive building integrated PV and rooftop PV, but the remainder can be met with land-based PV farms. Using large tracts of land for solar farms will increase competition for land resources as food production demand and energy demand are both growing and vie for the limited land resources. This land competition is exacerbated by the increasing population. These coupled land challenges can be ameliorated using the concept of agrivoltaics or co-developing the same area of land for both solar PV power as well as for conventional agriculture. In this paper, the agrivoltaic experiments to date are reviewed and summarized. A coupled simulation model is developed for both PV production (PVSyst) and agricultural production (Simulateur mulTIdisciplinaire les Cultures Standard (STICS) crop model), to gauge the technical potential of scaling agrivoltaic systems. The results showed that the value of solar generated electricity coupled to shade-tolerant crop production created an over 30% increase in economic value from farms deploying agrivoltaic systems instead of conventional agriculture. Utilizing shade tolerant crops enables crop yield losses to be minimized and thus maintain crop price stability. In addition, this dual use of agricultural land can have a significant effect on national PV production. The results showed an increase in PV power between over 40 and 70 GW if lettuce cultivation alone is converted to agrivoltaic systems in the U.S. It is clear, further work is warranted in this area and that the outputs for different crops and geographic areas should be explored to ascertain the potential of agrivoltaic farming throughout the globe.
H. Dinesh, J.M. Pearce. 2016. The Potential of Agrivoltaic Systems. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. 54:299-308.
Plant ScienceEconomicsPV TechnologiesMarket Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
Missouri
The Potential of Agrivoltaic Systems in Turkey
Turkey is located in unique geographic position and it is like a bridge between the continents of Asia and Europe. Besides this, it lying partly between 36°–42° NL and 26°–45° EL in the Northern Hemisphere. Turkey has total surface area 780,043 km2 and its land use areas’ 31.1% is agricultural lands. Turkey Statistical Institute (TUIK) state that Turkey’s population is 83.155 million in 2020. Population growth rate of country is 13.9% as annually. On account of Turkey’ vary topographical characteristics, it has available many climate zones. These are Mediterranean Climate that is hot, dry summers and rainy, mild winters, the Black Sea Climate that is although in the coastal area cool summer and warm winters, snowy the higher parts climate is snowy and cold, also the Terrestrial Climate have high temperature differences between day and night-summer and winter. In addition to the Marmara Climate shows all of above side climate characteristics due to transition between the Terrestrial, Black Sea and Mediterranean climates. Turkey is situated in a geography quite lucky in terms of solar energy. Although it is geographically well located, it is limited in terms of agricultural land. Agrivoltaic systems are a good concept in terms of expanding the agricultural lands and increasing the efficiency of the produced electricity from solar systems. Agrivoltaic system is a kind of term or method which is combination of growing crops and producing electricity on the same land. In solar plant, to produce 1 MW electricity requires approximately 20.000 land. The total installed capacity is 6493 MW of Solar Power Plants in 2019, in Turkey. When calculated require area to total produce capacity in Turkey, it is obtained that approximately 130 k area is needed. In addition, in term of the suitable agricultural products to be grown are vegetables between the PV panel arrays and 25% of agricultural crops produced in Turkey are vegetables. This study aims that presentation to the potential of Agrivoltaic system especially considering three cities in Turkey.
A. E. Coşgun. 2021. The Potential of Agrivoltaic Systems in Turkey. In: 6th International Conference on Advances on Clean Energy Research, ICACER 2021. 6th International Conference on Advances on Clean Energy Research, ICACER 2021; 2021/04/15; Barcelona, Spain. Amsterdam, Netherlands: Energy Reports; p. 105-111
Market AssessmentsImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Turkey
The Potential of Agrivoltaic Systems in the Conditions of Southern Regions of Russian Federation
The aim of this research is to analyze the potential of agrivoltaic systems (AV) on the territory of Russian Federation. Two configurations of AV systems with 3.2m and 6,4m spacing between photovoltaic (PV) arrays were investigated and on the 4m distance above the crop field. The simulation was performed on the 1 ha of sugar beetroot/lettuce crop field as the most suitable vegetables for shading conditions. The simulation was performed in the conditions of Krasnodar region with average annual solar insolation at 4,20 kWh/m2. Net Present Cost of the agrivoltaic system with minimal 3,2m spacing between the arrays is 558277 $US and cost of energy of this configuration is 0.7$US/kWh. Net Present Cost of the agrivoltaic system with 6,4 m spacing between the arrays is 424216$US and Cost of energy is 0,723$US/kWh. Assuming the reduction of sunlight by 30% from 3,2m spacing and by 10%-20% from 6,4 spacing, expected yield of crops is supposed to be 70%-80% of normal yield. Using agrivoltaics for combined use of land allows increasing the productivity of agricultural land by 45%-70% according to Land Equivalent Ratio. With creation comfortable conditions of agrivoltaic development, such systems can have huge impact on the rural off-grid electrification, creating autonomous renewable source of energy.
N. Kostik, A. Bobyl, V. Rud, I. Salamov. 2020. The Potential of Agrivoltaic Systems in the Conditions of Southern Regions of Russian Federation. In: XVII-th INTERNATIONAL YOUTH SCIENCE AND ENVIRONMENTAL BALTIC REGION COUNTRIES FORUM "ECOBALTICA". IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science; 2020/12/02; Online.
(!) : IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science; p. 1-9
EconomicsPV TechnologiesSystem ConfigurationImpact AssessmentsPlant Science
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Russia
The Potential of Renewable Electricity in Isolated Grids: The Case of Israel in 2050
Power generation is one of the main resources for emissions of pollutants and greenhouse gases. Thus, emissions can be seriously regulated if the electricity sector could be driven by renewables. Of special interest are cases with an isolated grid such as Israel, with extensive work already carried out in the past on the evaluation of renewable electricity in this country. Yet, it appears that the methods adopted previously were not rigorous enough to reflect the true potential. The current work is an attempt to deal with this challenge by implementing comprehensive input data collection, as well as detailed performance and energy management modeling. The main goal of the current study is to evaluate the energy mix, together with the required storage capacity, that would allow maximum penetration of renewables into the Israeli grid in 2050. The total electric demand in 2050 is evaluated as 183.3 TWh. The resources of interest are fossils, solar energy (both photovoltaics and agrivoltaics), onshore and offshore wind, sea waves, and organic waste. The total installed power from renewables is evaluated as 180.6 GW. The energy storage capacity is mostly relying on the technology of Vehicle to Grid (V2G), and with the help of additional stationary batteries and several pumped hydroelectric plants, the total capacity is estimated as 216 GWh. However, owing to the uncertainty in future storage technologies, larger capacities are considered as well. The performance model (PM) used in the analysis of solar and wind plants is the System Advisor Model (SAM). To match the electric generation and demand, an energy management system (EMS) model was developed. The EMS is controlling the hourly fossil power to maximize the renewable share on an annual basis while ensuring full supply to consumers (no power outage). Economic evaluation is excluded in the current analysis. It was obtained that renewables share between 80.1% and 99.5% may be achieved, depending on the scenario. The annual energy dumping is between 4.9% and 46.1% and the fossil plants’ annual capacity factor is between 0.4% and 13.6%.
G. Mittelman, R. Eran, L. Zhivin, O. Eisenhändler, , Y. Luzon, M. Tshuva. 11/2023. The Potential of Renewable Electricity in Isolated Grids: The Case of Israel in 2050. Applied Energy. 349:N/A.
ToolsImpact AssessmentsMarket Assessments
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV, Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Israel
The SWOC Analysis of Brightfields and Agrivoltaics
Decades of successful solar photovoltaic (PV) projects in Pacific Rim nations and around the world have proven it to be a viable renewable energy solution with numerous benefits. In addition to providing productive land use, public opinion toward solar energy is, in general, very positive (Dupraz et al., 2011; Elamri et al., 2018; Lobaccaro et al., 2019). However, some weaknesses and challenges remain as PV continues to be viewed and implemented as a solitary land-use type. More robust analyses are needed to consider the broader strengths and opportunities in co-locating renewable energy with synergistic land uses that may allow us to strike a balance within the triple-bottom-line of sustainability, including economic, social, and environmental factors. This chapter offers insight into leveraging the potential for enhanced benefits from an emerging field of research through cases that seek to co-locate solar with other land uses.
Thomas J. Fiorelli, Yeongseo Yu, Yekang Ko, Kirk Dimond, Makena Coffman. 03/2022. The SWOC Analysis of Brightfields and Agrivoltaics. London, United Kingdom: Routledge. 449p.
Reviews/Informational
The Semitransparent Photovoltaic Films for Mediterranean Greenhouse: A New Sustainable Technology
Mediterranean countries offer very favorable climatic conditions for growing plants in a protected environment: as a matter of fact, the high solar radiation allows the use of greenhouses with simple structures, covered with plastic film and without fixed installations for winter heating. They are called “Mediterranean greenhouses” and are totally different from those in Central and Northern Europe. In the photovoltaic greenhouses, the cover on the pitch facing south is usually replaced by very opaque panels. However, this solution compromises the possibility to grow plants in covered and protected environments since solar radiation availability is limited and strongly nonuniform. In order to overcome this problem, semitransparent photovoltaic materials can be used to let the solar energy, necessary for plant growth, pass into the green house. The aim of this research is to analyze the radiometric properties of innovative semitransparent flexible photovoltaic materials in order to evaluate their performances in comparison with materials commonly used in the coverage of the greenhouses. Particular attention is paid to the transmittance of these materials in the visible range and in the long wave infrared for the achievement of greenhouse effect.
Danilo Monarca, Massimo Cecchini, Andrea Colantoni, Alberto Manzo, Andrea Cappuccini1. 01/2012. The Semitransparent Photovoltaic Films for Mediterranean Greenhouse: A New Sustainable Technology. Mathematical Problems in Sustainable Energy and Environment. 2012:1-15.
MicroclimatologyPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
The Social Dimensions of a Technological Innovation: Agrivoltaics in the U.S
This thesis lays the groundwork for the broader realization of agrivoltaics by identifying the socio-political opportunities and barriers to development. Combining theoretical frameworks on technology diffusion and social acceptance of renewable energy with expert perspectives, this work seeks to understand, address, and accommodate the role of society and policy in combining solar energy and food systems. Three empirical studies are presented that first investigate the impediments to farmer adoption of the technology, then explore the challenges to development from the perspective of solar industry professionals, and conclude by outlining a comprehensive legal framework for agrivoltaics in the U.S. The findings identify the key socio-political opportunities for agrivoltaics include: the retention of agricultural land and rural interests, and increased local level acceptance of solar development. The key barriers include: ensuring long term agricultural productivity is not compromised, and subnational localized zoning strategies. This thesis can inform agrivoltaic decision making, solar development practices, land use management, and policy making in a way that supports the furtherance of the renewable energy transition, conserves arable land, and utilizes innovative solar photovoltaic technologies.
A. S. Pascaris. 2021. The Social Dimensions of a Technological Innovation: Agrivoltaics in the U.S [Thesis]. [ProQuest]: Michigan Technological University.
Social PerspectivesPolicy and Regulatory Issues
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Thesis/Dissertation
Country
United States
The agricultural, economic and environmental potential of co-locating utility scale solar with grazing sheep
This report summarizes the results of a Rapid Response Fund project "Have Your Cake and Eat It Too
Can grazing sheep on solar farms evolve to a profitable and climate resilient agrivoltaic strategy?"
funded by the Cornell University David R. Atkinson Center for a Sustainable FutureNikola Kochendoerfer, Lexie Hain, Michael L. Thonney (Cornell University). 04/2022. The agricultural, economic and environmental potential of co-locating utility scale solar with grazing sheep. Ithaca, New York: Cornell University.
LivestockSoilEconomics
The development of utility-scale solar projects on US agricultural land: Opportunities and obstacles
By 2050, solar energy is expected to provide 45 percent of the electricity consumed in the USA. Most of this solar electricity is expected to come from utility-scale solar projects that each cover anywhere from 10 to thousands of hectares. In all, solar panels could cover as many as four million hectares. Where those panels would be located is uncertain, but predictions are that most of these solar projects would likely occur on agricultural land. Several opportunities and obstacles exist for solar development. The USA has abundant farmland to support solar projects, and the federal government is offering attractive investment tax credits for solar developers over the following 12 years. Yet there is a critical need to expand transmission lines and upgrade the electrical grid to connect new solar projects. Moreover, local governments currently hold the power to decide whether to allow large solar projects, and, if so, where and at what size. Agrivoltaics, which combine in-ground solar panels with the growing of crops, pollinators, and livestock, offer some potential for producing both food and solar electricity. How these many opportunities and obstacles play out will determine the pace and extent of utility-scale solar deployment in the USA.
Thomas L. Daniels. 06/2023. The development of utility-scale solar projects on US agricultural land: Opportunities and obstacles. Socio-Ecological Practice Research. 205–213.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
The effect of establishment method and shade zone within solar arrays on pasture production in an agrivoltaic production system
Animal grazing to control understory herbage growth in photovoltaics sites presents a substantial opportunity for animal and energy production within the same site. However, there is a paucity of information on the effect of field preparation method within solar arrays on the establishment and productivity of pastures. Thus, the current study investigated the effects of field preparation and shade within solar arrays on plant germination and subsequent herbage yield in an agrivoltaic system. The treatments were (i) tillage and plastic cover (TP), (ii) plastic cover only (P), and (iii) herbicide application prior to sowing (H). A diverse pasture mixture, comprised of perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.), orchardgrass (Dactylis glomerata L.), white clover (Trifolium repens L.), birdsfoot trefoil (Lotus corniculatus L.), chicory (Cichorium intybus L.), and plantain (Plantago lanceolata L.) was direct drilled within solar arrays in spring 2020. The experiment layout was a completely randomized plot design with three replicates. The pastures were harvested in fully shaded, partially shaded and non-shaded zones within solar arrays in each plot in July and October 2020. The average across the treatments herbage dry matter (DM) yield was 1127 kg DM ha−1 and 1305 kg DM ha−1 in July and October 2020, respectively. While the effect of establishment method was significant with plastic cover and tillage application resulting in the highest DM yield of 1547 kg DM ha−1, the herbage yield in three shade zones within the solar arrays did not differ in July 2020. The herbicide application alone had the lowest DM yield at the establishment stage in summer. The effect of establishment method on forage DM yield was not significant in October 2020. However, a treatment×shade zone interaction was detected as the non-shaded, middle zone in herbicide only treatment had substantially lower DM yield than other two shade zones.
(!) . 12/2022. The effect of establishment method and shade zone within solar arrays on pasture production in an agrivoltaic production system. In: AIP; 2021/06/14; Freiberg, Germany. Freiberg, Germany: AIP; p.
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Plant ScienceSoil
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
United States
State
Oregon
Theoretical Potential of Agrovoltaic Systems in Europe: A Preliminary Study With Winter Wheat
This study presents an evaluation of the potential of agrovoltaic (combined use of photovoltaic systems and crop production) systems in Europe, using a python-based agrovoltaic simulation tool. The evaluation is based on three criteria: the PV energy yield, potential crop yield, and the agronomic impact of the agrovoltaic system on the biomass yield. Results confirm that the potential of PV energy increases with decreasing latitude, i.e. higher solar insolation levels. In contrast, the potential agricultural yield of winter wheat mainly depends on the variety of the crop and its ability to absorb light in shaded conditions. The leaf area index will be a crucial parameter in order to evaluate the performance in agrovoltaic conditions. It is concluded that the biggest potential in Europe for agrovoltaic systems with winter wheat is situated around the Mediterranean region, with a high PV performance, limited grain yield losses and a high potential of additional protection against heat stress and drought by agrovoltaic structures.
B. Willockx, B. Herteleer, J. Cappelle. 2021. Theoretical Potential of Agrovoltaic Systems in Europe: A Preliminary Study With Winter Wheat. In: 47th IEEE Photovoltaic Specialists Conference (PVSC)47th IEEE Photovoltaic Specialists Conference (PVSC); 2020/06/15; Calgary, AB, Canada. IEEE: IEEE; p. 0996-1001
Plant SciencePV TechnologiesMicroclimatologyMarket Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Thermo-Environomic Assessment of an Integrated Greenhouse With an Adjustable Solar Photovoltaic Blind System
Optimum energy consumption and renewable energy utilization reduce environmental impacts and are cost-effective. They are the key aspects of achieving sustainable energy management, such as in the agricultural industry. The contribution of the horticultural section in the global energy demand is approximately 2%, and among its various sections, greenhouses are one of the main systems in modern agriculture that have a great share on energy consumption. In this study, a rose greenhouse is examined and modeled in EnergyPlus as a greenhouse reference (GR). Validation of the developed greenhouse model is carried out with a site experimental measurement. Using the GR as the basic model, 14 various configurations of greenhouses have been assessed by considering a solar photovoltaic blind system (SPBS) in checkerboard arrays 1 m above the greenhouse roof. These modified greenhouses called solar-blind greenhouses (SBGs) have different shading rates and SPBS sizes. To perform a Thermo-environomic assessment, the effects of various parameters, including temperature, relative humidity, natural gas consumption, electricity consumption, and carbon dioxide (CO2) emission reduction, are studied. Results indicate that covering 19.2% of the roof, with no significant change in the illumination level on the plant canopy, will annually reduce natural gas consumption, electricity demand, and CO2 emission by 3.57%, 45.5%, and 30.56 kg/m2, respectively. Moreover, with the SPBS, the annual electricity production is approximated at 42.7 kWh/m2.
T. Alinejad, M. Yaghoubi, A. Vadiee. 2020. Thermo-Environomic Assessment of an Integrated Greenhouse With an Adjustable Solar Photovoltaic Blind System. Renewable Energy. 156:1-13.
MicroclimatologyMarket AssessmentsPV TechnologiesSystem ConfigurationImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Iran
Tinted Semi‐Transparent Solar Panels Allow Concurrent Production of Crops and Electricity on the Same Cropland
Agrivoltaics describes concurrent agricultural production of crops and photovoltaic generation of electricity on the same cropland. By using tinted semi‐transparent solar panels, this study introduces a novel element to transform the concept of agrivoltaics from just solar‐sharing to selective utilization of different light wavelengths. Agrivoltaic growth of basil and spinach is tested. When compared with classical agriculture, and based on the feed‐in‐tariff of the experimental location, agrivoltaic co‐generation of biomass and electricity is calculated to result in an estimated financial gross gain up to +2.5% for basil and +35% for spinach. Marketable biomass yields do not change significantly for basil, while a statistically significant loss is observed for spinach. This is accompanied by a relative increase in the protein content for both plants grown under agrivoltaic conditions. Agrivoltaics implemented with tinted solar panels improve the biomass production per unit amount of solar radiation up to 68%, with up to 63% increase in the ratio of leaf and stem biomass to root. Agrivoltaics can enrich the portfolio of farmers, mitigate risks associated with climate, and vastly enhance global photovoltaics capacity without compromising agricultural production.
E.P. Thompson, E.L. Bombelli, S. Shubham, H. Watson, A. Everard, V. D’Ardes, A.a Schievano, S. Bocchi, N. Zand, C.J. Howe, P. Bombell. 2020. Tinted Semi‐Transparent Solar Panels Allow Concurrent Production of Crops and Electricity on the Same Cropland. Advanced Energy Materials. 2001189:1-9.
Plant ScienceEconomicsPV TechnologiesMarket Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Italy
To Mix or Not to Mix: Evidences for the Unexpected High Productivity of New Complex Agrivoltaic And Agroforestry Systems
Canola has become an increasingly important component of Western Australian Mediterranean farming systems in the past decade, with
1.031 million tonnes produced from 981,000 ha in 2010 (ABS 2011). It has a reputation among growers of being sensitive to drought and high temperature during grain filling, and of requiring early sowing for best results. Annual crops in Western Australia‘s wheatbelt grow predominantly on rainfall received during the growing season (Anderson and Garlinge 2000) and usually the sowing time depends on the first rains of the season (termed the break of the season). The break can occur at any time from mid April until the end of June in Western Australia and is the cause of considerable anxiety among farmers when it has not occurred by mid to late May. Deciding when it is too late to sow canola is therefore an important decision growers must make. Unfortunately canola sowing time response varies between locations, and between seasons and soil types at a location. In addition, dwindling resources for research means that there is not a substantial body of time of sowing trial data to inform this decision at most locations. Farré et al. (2007) modelled the sowing time response of canola at three locations in Western Australia using APSIM (Keating et al. 2003, Farré et al. 2002). They concluded that canola was most risky in low rainfall environments, and that it could be profitably planted later in high and medium rainfall than in a low rainfall environment. However, all their analyses were based on crops grown with luxury levels of N, and none of their locations were in the northern wheatbelt. Here we present model runs for a high and low rainfall location in the
northern wheatbelt at a range of N application levels that were designed to help farmers making canola sowing time decisions.Dupraz C, Talbot G, Marrou H, Wery J, Roux S, Liagre F, Ferard Y, Nogier A. 01/2011. To Mix or Not to Mix: Evidences for the Unexpected High Productivity of New Complex Agrivoltaic And Agroforestry Systems. In: 5th World Congress of Conservation Agriculture; 2011/01/14; Australia. Philippines: ISAAA; p. 203-204
Plant ScienceMicroclimatologySystem ConfigurationImpact Assessments
Toward Assessing Photovoltaic Trackers Effects on Annual Crops Growth and Building Optimized Agrivoltaics Systems Based on Annual Crops
The growing need for producing renewable energy such as photovoltaic electricity, and the increasing occurrences of heatwaves and drought affecting annual crops, could be addressed by the development of agrivoltaïc systems. Among photovoltaic installations, trackers, if well installed in crop fields, can fit with all types of agricultural systems, including passages of large crop sprayers, or with high solar needs plants, thanks to their highness, their small anchoring surface and their biaxial moving capacity. Modelling was used to test the effects of various trackers implementation configurations on radiations received by plants at the field scale and their spatial distribution. Simulations showed relatively high radiations received by crop fields, with field averages greater than 89%, and also rather homogeneous, with field standard deviations lower than 12%. Fields areas concerned by low levels of received radiations were quite limited, and, fields areas receiving slightly decreased radiations were higher in the tested configurations with higher concentrations of trackers. These results should be crossed with crop model in order to integrate all factors of crop growth and their temporal dynamic, and directly observe results of crop yields.
Paul-Emile Noirot-Cosson, Tanguy Riou, Yoran Bugny. 2022. Toward Assessing Photovoltaic Trackers Effects on Annual Crops Growth and Building Optimized Agrivoltaics Systems Based on Annual Crops. In: AGRIVOLTAICS2021 CONFERENCE: Connecting Agrivoltaics Worldwide; 2021/06/14; Freiburg, Germany. Daegu, Korea (Republic): AIP Publishing; p.
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MicroclimatologySystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
France
Toward Future Photovoltaic-Based Agriculture in Sea
To meet the challenges of climate change and water shortages, combining solar energy-based seawater desalination technologies with floating agriculture stations in one innovative hybrid system would be worthy of investigation for dry and sunny regions for seawater desalination and crop production within the same platform. Here, I discuss the feasibility of such a ‘floating farm’ or ‘bluehouse’ in the sea, by comparing it with the use of terrestrial greenhouses. I also debate the potential advantages and shortcomings of such a system.
Khaled Moustafa. 04/2016. Toward Future Photovoltaic-Based Agriculture in Sea. Trends in Biotechnology. 34(4):257-259.
System ConfigurationReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Towards Solar Extractivism? A Political Ecology Understanding of the Solar Energy and Agriculture Boom in Rural China
Contemporary global climate change imperative has stimulated innovative technological systems to combine renewable energy production and other socioeconomic functions, which offer promising solutions to materialize both climate change mitigation and developmental targets. Agrivoltaics—an array of colocation models of solar photovoltaic (PV) infrastructure and agriculture—are becoming increasingly popular across the world and are widely considered a laudable green development model. Since circa 2013, agrivoltaics have started to diffuse across China, with promises of multiple socioeconomic and ecological benefits. Different from existent studies that mostly took apolitical innovation diffusion frameworks, this article draws on an in-depth case study and multiple secondary sources including information on 421 agrivoltaic projects to approach the proliferation of agrivoltaics in China through a political ecology lens. It finds that the diffusion of agrivoltaics in China has been driven neither by technological superiority nor by market-business viability but by a salient logic of solar extractivism in the name of green development. The solar extractivism is featured by: large-scale (agricultural) land acquisition, prioritization of solar electricity production, domination of renewable industries, deep engagement from local state, discourses of green transition and inclusive development, exclusionary enforcement techniques, and neglect of local socioecological systems. The stark contrast between discourses and realities reveals that the deployment of agrivoltaics embodies solar extractivism and the implicated “green agenda” served rather as a legitimation strategy for resource extraction. The solar extractivism perspective cautions against the fetishism of renewables and relevant green infrastructures in popular green development discourses and calls for critical examination of renewable integrative technical models through social justice lenses.
Z. Hu. 2023. Towards Solar Extractivism? A Political Ecology Understanding of the Solar Energy and Agriculture Boom in Rural China. Energy Research & Social Science. 98:N/A.
Social PerspectivesImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
Towards a Data-Driven Symbiosis of Agriculture and Photovoltaics
The naive combination of agriculture and photovoltaics could have several adverse effects with varying severity, such as affecting the daylighting of both, which is not conducive to crop growth as well as energy generation efficiency. In addition, the integration of these two separate but interrelated systems introduces a large number of new elements, so that it imposes great technical challenges to optimize system performance by means of traditional approaches. Thanks to recent developments in Internet of Things and Big Data analytics, they can provide the tools to better understand the features of each subsystem and to reveal the intrinsic link between agriculture and photovoltaics. Based on factors, such as, plant characteristics, this paper overviews a mechanism used to optimize the use of photovoltaics in agriculture to create more balanced strategies that allows for the use of land for both crop and energy production.
Mingxin Wang, Yiqiang Zhang, Carter Sun, Wei Li, Albert Zomay, Yaojie Sun. 2019. Towards a Data-Driven Symbiosis of Agriculture and Photovoltaics. In: IEEE/ACM Int'l Conference on & Int'l Conference on Cyber, Physical and Social Computing (CPSCom) Green Computing and Communications (GreenCom); 2019/07/14; Australia. Australia: IEEE; p. 903-906
Microclimatology
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
China
Towards a Standardized Protocol to Assess Natural Capital and Ecosystem Services in Solar Parks
1. Natural capital and ecosystem services have emerged as fundamental concepts of ecosystem management strategies in the past two decades, particularly within major international land assessment frameworks, including the UN's Millennium Ecosystem Assessment and the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services' Global Assessment Report.
2. Despite the recent development of several analytical methods and models to quantify changes in natural capital and ecosystem services resulting from land use change, incorporating them into the land planning process can be challenging from a practical point of view without guidance on standard methods. 3. In an attempt to decarbonize energy supply systems to meet internationally agreed targets on climate change, solar energy production, in the form of ground-mounted solar parks, is emerging as one of the dominant forms of temporary land use for renewable energies globally. 4. We propose 19 directly measurable indicators associated with 16 ecosystem services within three major stocks of natural capital (biodiversity, soil and water) that are most likely to be impacted by the development of solar parks. Indicators are supported by well-established methods that have been widely used in pure and applied land use research within terrestrial ecosystems. Moreover, they can be implemented flexibly according to interest or land management objectives.
5. Whilst not intended as a precise recipe for how to assess the effects of solar park development on hosting ecosystems, the protocol will guide the solar energy industry and all actors involved, be they researchers, practitioners, ecological consultancies or statutory bodies, to implement a standardized approach to evaluate temporal and spatial changes in natural capital and ecosystem services resulting from solar park development and operation, with the ultimate aim of generating comparable and reproducible data on ecosystem impact assessment across the solar energy sector.Fabio Carvalho, Lucy Treasure, Samuel J. B. Robinson, Hollie Blaydes, Giles Exley, Rachel Hayes, Belinda Howell, Aidan Keith, Hannah Montag, Guy Parker, Stuart P. Sharp, Cameron Witten, Alona Armstrong. 03/2023. Towards a Standardized Protocol to Assess Natural Capital and Ecosystem Services in Solar Parks. Applied Ecology Resources. 4(1):
(!) .
EntomologyWildlifeSoilStandardization and Best PracticesImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Towards a Typology of Solar Energy Landscapes: Mixed-Production, Nature Based and Landscape Inclusive Solar Power Transitions
Development of ground-mounted solar power plants (SPP) is no longer limited to remote and low population density areas, but arrives in urban and rural landscapes where people live, work and recreate. Societal considerations are starting to change the physical appearance of SPPs, leading to so-called multifunctional SPPs. In addition to electricity production, multifunctional SPP produce food, deliver benefits for flora and fauna, mitigate visual impact or preserve cultural heritage. In this paper, we systematically examine the different spatial configurations of multifunctional SPPs that reflect a range of contemporary societal considerations. The purpose of this research is to create and test an SPP typology that can support evidence-based and transparent decision-making processes, from location finding to implementation. Comparative case analysis, expert interviews and questionnaires are used to distinguish different types of SPP. We propose a typology that consists of four dimensions: energy, economic, nature and landscape. These dimensions lead to three main types of multifunctional SPP: mixed-production, nature-inclusive, landscape-inclusive, and their combinations. This typology supports decision-making processes on solar power plants and adds to the existing (solar) energy landscape vocabulary. In doing so, the research supports the transformation of energy systems in a way that meets both the quantitative goals and qualitative considerations by society.
D. Oudes, A. van den Brink, S. Stremke. 09/2022. Towards a Typology of Solar Energy Landscapes: Mixed-Production, Nature Based and Landscape Inclusive Solar Power Transitions. Energy Research & Social Science. 91:
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Social Perspectives
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Germany, Italy, Netherlands, United Kingdom
Towards the Photovoltaic Farm
It is suggested that the possibility of obtaining significant profit from so-called PV farming of barren lands would be a sufficient socio-economic argument for moving towards a development model of solar electric energy production dispersed over a given territory. In addition, the requirement of reducing carbon dioxide pollution due to thermoelectric energy generation is another strong argument in favor of PV power system dissemination. The analogy with agriculture suggests PV energy production in PV farms, allowing PV farmers to live as traditional farmers do. Application on barren lands on small Italian islands is considered as an example.
D. Coiante. 08/2022. Towards the Photovoltaic Farm. In: IEEE Conference on Photovoltaic Specialists; 1990/05/21; Kissimmee, Florida. Florida: IEEE; p. 1095-1098
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Italy
Tracking Optimization in Agrivoltaic Systems: A Comparative Study for Apple Orchards
Agrivoltaic (APV) systems, based on the co-location of solar panels and crops, are an innovative solution to land-use conflicts that often arise between agriculture and energy production. Their optimal functioning starts with efficient management and sharing of light between solar panels and underlying plants. This is where tracking systems come into play, as they offer the flexibility needed to strike a balance between energy production and crop growth. This thesis presents several tracking optimization techniques that focus on the availability and distribution of light.
To simulate and analyze the performance of these strategies, a simulation model was created, with reference to a Fraunhofer ISE research project in Bavendorf, Germany where semi-transparent solar panels are installed over an apple orchard. The chosen developmental environment was Simtool, a Fraunhofer Python package based on the ray-tracing tool Radiance. Considering the computational cost of the simulation, a Bayesian black-box optimization algorithm was leveraged to relieve the latter from such a computational burden.
For the first scenario, the goal was to maximise the radiation reaching solar panels. The algorithm developed, Diffuse-Track Optimization, proved particularly effective during overcast days, allowing daily energy gains of up to 9%. Plants were prioritized in the second scenario, Trees-Track Optimization with the goal of minimising their shading rates, which were seen to fall below 10% despite the presence of the tracking system.
Lastly, a compromise between the two objectives was achieved in the final scenario through an overall optimization approach, called APV-Track Optimization. By assigning equal importance to the irradiation reaching trees and that which reaches photovoltaic panels, shading rates of less than 40% can be guaranteed throughout the year, with a reduction of the electrical yield by only 8% compared to backtracking conditions.
The study showcased the potential of the proposed methodology, representing a good starting point to develop holistic optimisations methods that are still lacking in the literature. Future developments will reduce runtime costs, integrate weather forecasts and validate results by means of accurate field measurements.Maddalena Bruno. 07/2023. Tracking Optimization in Agrivoltaic Systems: A Comparative Study for Apple Orchards [Thesis]. [Stockholm, Sweden]: KTH Royal Institute of Technology.
PV TechnologiesSystem ConfigurationMethodological ComparisonsReviews/InformationalTools
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Thesis/Dissertation
Country
Germany, Italy, Sweden
Trade-off Between Photovoltaic Systems Installation and Agricultural Practices on Arable Lands: An Environmental and Socio-Economic Impact Analysis for Italy
The paper introduces and discusses an open-source spatial-based model (called r.green.solar) able to quantify the energy production from solar photovoltaic (PV) ground-mounted panels. Socio-economic and environmental impacts can be evaluated by the model. The model starts from the theoretical quantity of solar PV potential energy and estimates a reduction of total amount of energy based on legal, technical, recommended and economic constraints. Model outputs were used for a trade-off analysis between energy production and traditional crops for food/feed cultivation on not irrigated arable land. The model was tested at regional level for a Mediterranean context (Italy). The results confirm that the economic profitability of PV systems follows a north-south gradient, but the main impacts are related to local peculiarities – such as the disposal of not irrigated arable land and the presence of constraints, in particular the landscape maintenance, the morphological variables and the specialization index – and crop yields.
S. Sacchelli, G. Garegnani, F. Geri, G. Grilli, A. Paletto, P. Zambelli, M. Ciolli, D. Vettorato. 11/2016. Trade-off Between Photovoltaic Systems Installation and Agricultural Practices on Arable Lands: An Environmental and Socio-Economic Impact Analysis for Italy. Land Use Policy. 56:90-99.
Market AssessmentsEconomics
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Italy
Tradeoffs and Synergies between Biofuel Production and Large Solar Infrastructure in Deserts
Solar energy installations in deserts are on the rise, fueled by technological advances and policy changes. Deserts, with a combination of high solar radiation and availability of large areas unusable for crop production are ideal locations for large solar installations. However, for efficient power generation, solar infrastructures use large amounts of water for construction and operation. We investigated the water use and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions associated with solar installations in North American deserts in comparison to agave-based biofuel production, another widely promoted potential energy source from arid systems. We determined the uncertainty in our analysis by a Monte Carlo approach that varied the most important parameters, as determined by sensitivity analysis. We considered the uncertainty in our estimates as a result of variations in the number of solar modules ha–1, module efficiency, number of agave plants ha–1, and overall sugar conversion efficiency for agave. Further, we considered the uncertainty in revenue and returns as a result of variations in the wholesale price of electricity and installation cost of solar photovoltaic (PV), wholesale price of agave ethanol, and cost of agave cultivation and ethanol processing. The life-cycle analyses show that energy outputs and GHG offsets from solar PV systems, mean energy output of 2405 GJ ha–1 year–1 (5 and 95% quantile values of 1940–2920) and mean GHG offsets of 464 Mg of CO2 equiv ha–1 year–1 (375–562), are much larger than agave, mean energy output from 206 (171–243) to 61 (50–71) GJ ha–1 year–1 and mean GHG offsets from 18 (14–22) to 4.6 (3.7–5.5) Mg of CO2 equiv ha–1 year–1, depending upon the yield scenario of agave. Importantly though, water inputs for cleaning solar panels and dust suppression are similar to amounts required for annual agave growth, suggesting the possibility of integrating the two systems to maximize the efficiency of land and water use to produce both electricity and liquid fuel. A life-cycle analysis of a hypothetical colocation indicated higher returns per m3 of water used than either system alone. Water requirements for energy production were 0.22 L MJ–1 (0.28–0.19) and 0.42 L MJ–1 (0.52–0.35) for solar PV–agave (baseline yield) and solar PV–agave (high yield), respectively. Even though colocation may not be practical in all locations, in some water-limited areas, colocated solar PV–agave systems may provide attractive economic incentives in addition to efficient land and water use.
S. Ravi, D.B. Lobell, C.B. Field. 2014. Tradeoffs and Synergies between Biofuel Production and Large Solar Infrastructure in Deserts. Environmental Science and Technology. 48(5):3021–3030.
EconomicsImpact AssessmentsMarket Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
California
Transforming Rooftops Into Productive Urban Spaces in the Mediterranean. An LCA Comparison of Agri-Urban Production and Photovoltaic Energy Generation
A key strategy towards sustainable urban development is designing cities for increased circular metabolism. The transformation of areas underused, such as urban rooftops, into productive spaces is being increasingly implemented as a result of associated multiple benefits. Rooftop greenhouses (RTGs) are an interesting option for exploiting urban rooftops with direct exposure to sunlight, reducing food miles and creating new agricultural spaces, while building-applied solar photovoltaic (BAPV) panels provide clean energy and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. However, a proper assessment of environmental costs and benefits related to both systems is vital for a successful implementation. By means of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) method, modelled in the professional software SimaPro, this paper aims at comparing the environmental performance of different productive uses of rooftops under Mediterranean climatic conditions. The results showed that both systems are favourable and contribute to decreasing the environmental impacts thanks to the production of resources on-site. BAPV system shows the highest avoided burdens in comparison with RTG: for instance, the impacts generated by BAPV on climate change and fossil depletion categories, corresponding to - 430 kg CO2 eq/m2 and - 110 kg oil eq/m2 respectively (versus - 22 kg CO2 eq/m2 and - 4.7 kg oil eq/m2 in the RTG system), are around 20 times lower than RTG. Furthermore, a sensitivity analysis was performed through different scenarios, based on reductions or substitution of the most sensitive input flows, thus providing some useful tools for improved environmental performances. Attention to additional energy and material efficiency, in favour of the more environmentally sustainable choice, should remain a main point of investigation.
F. Corcellia, G. Fiorentinoa, A. Petit-Boixb, J. Rieradevallb, X. Gabarrell. 05/2019. Transforming Rooftops Into Productive Urban Spaces in the Mediterranean. An LCA Comparison of Agri-Urban Production and Photovoltaic Energy Generation. Resources, Conservation and Recycling. 144:321-336.
Impact AssessmentsMarket Assessments
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Spain
Transition to Agriphotovoltaics Applying a Systems Level Approach
Utility-scale solar systems occupy a large amount of land space and it is estimated that there is going to be a gradual rise in the production of solar panels soon due to the high Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) goals put forward by states in the United States. We are already witnessing the rapid conversion of agricultural land into ground-mounted utility-scale solar parks. Therefore, we must transition to agrivoltaics in order to avoid conflict in land space in the future. Agrivoltataics not only adds value to the land but also leads to dual use of land. Our research focuses on the transition to agrivoltaics from a systems-level perspective. Till date, there is not much literature about the transitions to agrivoltaics, our study fills in that gap by providing a new interdisciplinary framework that promotes transition to agrivoltaics from a business, technology, economic, policy and, social perspective. There are a lot of complexities involved in the transition process and our research addresses those complexities from a multidimensional perspective. We have not only created a new framework from established theories but also tested the framework in the context of agrivoltaic transitions. Due to the inter-disciplinary nature of our framework, our systems-level approach could be a beneficial decision-making tool to a diverse number of stakeholders such as innovators, entrepreneurs, farmers, electricity generators, engineers, and policymakers. In addition, it will add value to the literature of agrivoltaics, agribusiness, energy economics, and management as well as efficient policy making.
(!) . 2022. Transition to Agriphotovoltaics Applying a Systems Level Approach. In: AGRIVOLTAICS2021 CONFERENCE: Connecting Agrivoltaics Worldwide; 2021/06/14; Freiburg, Germany. Freiburg, Germany: AIP; p.
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Social PerspectivesEconomicsImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
United States
Transmission Windows of Charge Transport Layers and Electrodes in Highly Transparent Organic Solar Cells for Agrivoltaic Application
Organic semiconducting materials provide only narrow absorption bands, in contrast to classical, inorganic semiconductors. Concerning photovoltaic applications this is considered as a drawback; however, in combination with plant cultivation the narrow-band absorption provides a unique advantage: Organic solar cell devices with high transparency between 1.75 and 3.5 eV can be designed, being translucent exactly in the spectral range where chlorophyll is predominantly active in natural photosynthesis. These organic photovoltaic-based agrivoltaics are called "AgrOPV". Common active layer materials already fulfill the requirements for AgrOPV application; the suitability of the other materials used in the photovoltaic layer stack, instead, is hardly investigated and widely uncertain. In order to provide guidance for future developments, we will discuss the suitability of charge transport and electrode materials for AgrOPV applications, mainly on the basis of their absorptance.
R. Meitzner, A.S. Djoumessi, A. Anand, C. Ugokwe, A. Sichwardt, Z. Xu, D. Miliaieva, J. Čermák, T. Pflug, A.M. Anton, S. Alam, Š. Stehlík, A. Horn, U.S. Schubert, H.Hoppe. 12/2022. Transmission Windows of Charge Transport Layers and Electrodes in Highly Transparent Organic Solar Cells for Agrivoltaic Application. In: AGRIVOLTAICS2021 CONFERENCE: Connecting Agrivoltaics Worldwide; 2021/06/14; Freiburg, Germany. Germany: AIP Conference Proceedings; p. 1-10
PV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Conference Paper
Transparent Polymer Photovoltaics for Solar Energy Harvesting and Beyond
Polymer photovoltaics are a promising alternative energy for visible-spectrum applications because the absorption spectra of organic semiconductors, including polymer and small-molecule types, are not continuous as in inorganic semiconductors. As a result, the design of organic materials is able to pass visible light and absorb non-visible light such as the infrared. According to the energy distribution of the solar spectrum, more than a half of solar light is distributed within the infrared region. The theoretical efficiency of polymer photovoltaics with only infrared absorption therefore can be as high as a device with only visible absorption. Accordingly, we present a perspective that concisely reviews the developments in transparent polymer photovoltaics and their potential applications in order to engender new ideas on achieving superior transparency, power conversion efficiency, and more practical utilities.
Sheng-Yung Chang, Pei Cheng, Gang Li, Yang Yang. 06/2018. Transparent Polymer Photovoltaics for Solar Energy Harvesting and Beyond. Joule. 2(6):1039-1054.
MicroclimatologyPV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Trend of Energy Generation Efficiency in Agrivoltaic Systems Research
Despite widespread public support for solar energy, finding suitable locations to build large PV
systems can be difficult because solar PV systems require significantly more space than wind power and fossil fuels. Integrating PV systems into various human activity areas, such as agricultural lands, is one recommended approach to solving this issue due to its significant reduction in land use. This new technology referred, to as Agrivoltaics (APV) systems, have sparked concerns in the last decade due to their dual purpose of land use efficiency and sustainable energy generation. To determine the trends in energy efficiency of APV modules installed for energy generation through the APV systems research, an intensive literature survey was conducted in this study to figure out relevant factors influencing the energy efficiency of APV systems from the year 2014 to 2022. The studies were found to be focused on energy generation efficiency (31%), crop growth/synergetic effects (14%), review articles (14%), optimization, modeling, and simulation (21%), and feasibility studies (17%). The years saw an exponential increase in APV research, with 2017 showing a fall and a positive wake from 2018. The energy efficiency trend in the APV research was observed to be small in percentage terms, around 1-3%, with a few deviations. Although these increases are not a considerable improvement throughout the life of the APV modules, it could result in a significant quantity of solar energy generation. Factors discovered to influence the energy generation efficiency in APVs include design parameters (module width, row distance and azimuth angle), module orientation, type of the APV system and temperature variation due to synergetic effects. Future designs are recommended to take
serious consideration of the said factors to tap maximally the clean solar energy through APVs.Masud Kabir, Zeynep Bala Duranay, Sami Ekici. 2022. Trend of Energy Generation Efficiency in Agrivoltaic Systems Research. In: TREND OF ENERGY GENERATION EFFICIENCY IN AGRIVOLTAIC SYSTEMS RESEARCH; 2022/12/16; Tashkent. Uzbekistan: Science Uzbekistan; p. 668-675
EconomicsReviews/Informational
Tropical Field Assessment on Pests for Misai Kucing Cultivation Under Agrivoltaics Farming System
Herbal plants have good potential of virtually untapped reservoir of bioactive chemical compounds with many potential application in pharmaceuticals and agrochemicals. Currently, photovoltaic (PV) project landscapes are transformed to a new transdisciplinary design of land used and extended to ecological performances and beneficial impacts to the surroundings. Malaysia has been actively promoting the adaptation of PV technology as an alternative energy mix with agri-based activities. Agrivoltaics concept combines the PV technology adaptation with crops plantation with respect to the space and wiring constraints. Nevertheless, there is limited study on the potential risk of pests which would evolve under the agrivoltaics condition. This study provides some insights of tropical field assessments of potential pests attacking Misai Kucing herbal crops under PV array structure especially during the monsoon season. It is observed that few species of pests emerged due to the wet and humid condition despite the dissipated heat during energy conversion. It is observed that high humidity level due to water evaporation process with PV shading features provides a good attraction for pests which increases the risk of attack to Misai Kucing plants.
N. Fadzlinda Othman, S. Jamian, A. S. Mat Su, M. E. Ya’acob. 2019. Tropical Field Assessment on Pests for Misai Kucing Cultivation Under Agrivoltaics Farming System. In: 5TH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON GREEN DESIGN AND MANUFACTURE (IConGDM 2019); 2019/04/29; Jawa Barat, Indonesia. Indonesia: AIP; p.
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EntomologyPlant ScienceMicroclimatology
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Indonesia
Tropical Field Observation of Weed Permanent Shading on Solar PV Surface
Solar Photovoltaic (PV) largely depends on the sun irradiation or insolation level (in W/m2) on its
surface for electricity conversion process. Cloud movement especially thick cloud near to earth surface creates a non-permanent shading on solar PV farms top surface which significantly reduce the electricity yield. Improper weed management in large scale solarfarms would create a permanent shading to the PV surface especially with creeping plants. Thus, this work implies freely available application namely Pl@ntNet and Canopeo to analyse the impacts of weed surface cover in Solarfarms. Images of specified weed growing above the solar PV surface are captured and identified using Pl@ntNet application to determine the type of weed. Weed identification is the first stage of efficient weed management to aid in a fundamental understanding of the life cycle and biology of the weeds for proper control measures. The same images are used in Canopeo application to determine the surface coverage by means of Quadrat sampling. This information will be invaluable to solarfarm operators showing the significant energy
reduction when the solar PV surface are covered by weeds.Mohammad Effendy Ya’acob, Noor Fadzlinda Othman, Wan Amirah Wan Mansor, Mohammad Amirul Faiz Zulkiply. 03/2023. Tropical Field Observation of Weed Permanent Shading on Solar PV Surface. International Journal of Smart Grid and Clean Energy. 12(1):11-18.
PV TechnologiesTools
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Malaysia
Unlock the Hidden Potential of Urban Rooftop Agrivoltaics Energy-Food-Nexus
Climate change and population growth pose fundamental challenges to urban food and energy resilience and intensify the land-use competition. By co-locating photovoltaic with vegetation on urban rooftops offers an Agrivoltaics solution to achieve sustainable cities with clean energy supply and ‘zero food mile’ vegetable production. However, the first and foremost question is on how much food and energy can the Agrivoltaics nexus produce. This study proposes a multi-disciplinary assessment framework to unlock the potential of urban rooftop Agrivoltaics by integrating Geographic Information System (GIS), biogeochemical simulation, and solar power simulation. A case study in Shenzhen, China, reveals that bringing the Agrivoltaics (e.g., planting lettuce under photovoltaic panels) on the 854,000 number of rooftops (i.e., 105 km2 identified) can yield 9.84 × 105 tonnes/year lettuce to fulfil the whole city's demand. Meanwhile, the solar PV installed capacity is 2106 MW on average with 1899 GWh/year generated electricity, which is equivalent to 0.2% of the whole city's electricity demand. Besides, 4.11 × 106 tonnes/year extra freshwater is needed for irrigation. Overall, the Agrivoltaics indicates greater contribution to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the proposed integrated framework provides an overall picture and assessment tool to explore the urban Agrivoltaics as a key multifunctional land-use mechanism for urban sustainability.
R. Jing, J. Liu, H. Zhang, F. Zhong, Y. Liu, J. Lin. 2022. Unlock the Hidden Potential of Urban Rooftop Agrivoltaics Energy-Food-Nexus. Energy. 256:124626.
SitingPlant SciencePV TechnologiesMarket Assessments
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
Unlocking the Potential of Agrivoltaics
Agrivoltaics is a concept that combines photovoltaic electricity generation and agricultural production, providing the opportunity for a more efficient land use and contributing overall to the integration of food, energy and water systems. This can be particularly interesting for countries in the Global South, where rural electrification rates are often low and food security needs to be improved. A research project in Mali and The Gambia is to explore the potential of the system, with a focus on community integration and integrative funding.
Henriette Stehr, Nora Adelhardt, Brendon Bingwa, Susanne Wolf. 2023. Unlocking the Potential of Agrivoltaics. Rural 21. 57(1):28-30.
Reviews/Informational
Use of Agrivoltaics to Enhance Cucumber Production in the Hot and Arid Climate of UAE: A Sustainable Approach for Food and Clean Energy Security
The rapid growth of the world population is fueling the transition to sustainable approaches to ensure energy, water, and food security. Agrivoltaics allows the dual use of land by integrating photovoltaic (PV) systems and crops. In hot and arid climates, the solar panels provide shade to the crops, and the water used for cleaning the panels can be used for irrigation. In this work, we investigated an agrivoltaic system with mono-facial PV modules to assess shade-tolerant cucumbers' growth under and outside PV s in October, when it is hard to grow crops under direct sunlight in the hot arid climate of the UAE. The tilt of the module was 25°, and the height of the module was 1.5 m. Our results showed that all growth and fruit production parameters were significantly greater in the shaded area and significantly less mortality than in the site exposed to sunlight. A negative correlation was observed between the growth and production parameters and the distance from the center of the panels. The results show that the development of agrivoltaics is a very promising approach to ensuring the sustainable security of energy and food in the hot arid lands of the UAE.
Amna Al Ali, Ali El-Keblawy, Di Zhang, Nouar Tabet. 2024. Use of Agrivoltaics to Enhance Cucumber Production in the Hot and Arid Climate of UAE: A Sustainable Approach for Food and Clean Energy Security. In: 2023 Middle East and North Africa Solar Conference (MENA-SC). Middle East and North Africa Solar Conference (MENA-SC); 2023/11/15; Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Dubai, United Arab Emirates: IEEE; p.
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Plant SciencePV Technologies
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
United Arab Emirates
Utility Scale Agrivoltaics Development Proximate to Michigan Communities With 100% Renewable Energy Goals
This report aims to assess the potential of agrivoltaics (combined solar and agricultural systems) for development geographically proximate to the six Michigan (MI) communities that have set 100% renewable energy (RE) goals. I focus on one major research question: What is the total acreage of low-impact sites available for utility-scale (USS) agrivoltaics development proximate (within county boundaries) to MI communities with 100% RE goals? SAM is used to estimate land acreage required for a 10 MW agrivoltaic system development. ArcGIS Pro is used to determine the total acreage of low-impact sites proximate to MI communities with 100% RE goals.
Proximate low-impact sites are defined as agricultural land with minimal environmental and land use impacts, having access to transmission and distribution infrastructure, and are located within the same county as the community with the RE goal. This study finds that USS agrivoltaics development is possible in all six counties. On the premise that the benefits and ills of an energy technology should be distributed equitably within society regardless of social and economic factors, USS agrivoltaic systems could provide a source of revenue for farmers and promote local employment within the county. In addition, such systems can help support the state of MI to achieve its current RPS of 15% and carbon neutrality by 2050. This report provides a first step in assessing the potential of agrivoltaic development in Michigan, which can inform future work that integrates other considerations relevant to solar development.
Kabanda Herve Christian Sheja. 2022. Utility Scale Agrivoltaics Development Proximate to Michigan Communities With 100% Renewable Energy Goals [Thesis]. [Houghton County, Michigan]: Michigan Technological University.
Social PerspectivesPolicy and Regulatory IssuesEconomicsSiting
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production
Document type
Thesis/Dissertation
Country
United States
State
Michigan
Utilizing Combination of K-Means Clustering and Particle Swarm Optimization to Identify Suitable Areas for Agrivoltaics and Electric Tractor Deployment
– Food shortages, droughts, and energy crises are the three biggest challenges that humanity will
face in the near future due to global warming, population growth, and urbanization. These issues are closely interconnected and the causal link between them prompts states, researchers, and all people to search for new, sustainable, and green solutions. Agrivoltaics, electric tractors, and robots in agriculture show great promise. Agrivoltaics, which can produce two assets in the same area, may be a good solution for feeding a growing population and meeting the energy demand resulting from urbanization. The goal of this study was to create an algorithm that could identify the the best area for installing PV system on agricultural land using K-means and PSO, based on a cost function that would meet the energy needs of an electric tractor according to the selected crop. The algorithm was tested using real parcel data from three different villages in Konya, and it generated results that were consistent with expectations. The study concludes that planning is the most critical process in agriculture, even for energy consumption and
production, because the energy needs of fields will change depending on the crop being produced.S. Pekdemir, I. Kocaarslan. 2023. Utilizing Combination of K-Means Clustering and Particle Swarm Optimization to Identify Suitable Areas for Agrivoltaics and Electric Tractor Deployment. In: Utilizing Combination of K-Means Clustering and Particle Swarm Optimization to Identify Suitable Areas for Agrivoltaics and Electric Tractor Deployment. 3rd International Conference on Engineering and Applied Natural Sciences; 2023/01/14; Karatay - KONYA, Turkey. Energy Science and Technologies/Energy Institute, Istanbul Technical University, Turkey: ICEANS; p. 1-5
ToolsReviews/Informational
Validation of an Agrivoltaic System by Energreen
The production of green energy is becoming increasingly important across various industries; however, it is still not sufficiently explored in the agriculture industry since farmers often do not have the time and financial possibilities to implement innovative techniques. AVC systems provide a dual usage of land through energy production, enabling farmers to use and monetize clean and green energy while not interfering with their daily business activities. Energreen demonstrates this business opportunity by implementing two pilot projects in farms, which serve as a base for future growth and provide a vision and outlook for the venture.
Lezama, Fabiana Isabel Jimenez. 01/2023. Validation of an Agrivoltaic System by Energreen [Dissertation]. [Carcavelos, Portugal]: Nova School of Business and Economics.
Social PerspectivesPolicy and Regulatory IssuesMarket AssessmentsEconomics
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Thesis/Dissertation
Country
Portugal
Vegetation Management Cost and Maintenance Implications of Different Ground Covers at Utility-Scale Solar Sites
Utility-scale solar photovoltaics (PV) is the largest and fastest-growing sector of the solar energy market, and plays an important role in ensuring that state and local jurisdictions can meet renewable energy targets. Potential adverse environmental impacts of utility-scale solar PV are well-documented, and the effects of diverse mitigation and dual land use strategies under the banner of ’low-impact solar’ are justly receiving more attention; this article seeks to contribute to improving understanding of this topic. Capital costs for different PV configurations are well-documented; however, operation and maintenance (O&M) costs for vegetation management at low-impact utility-scale solar PV sites are not as well-understood, particularly as they compare to costs for sites that use more conventional ground cover practices, such as turfgrass or gravel. After a literature review of different vegetation strategies and O&M cost considerations, we collected data from utility-scale solar PV O&M stakeholders, including site owners/operators, O&M service providers, vegetation maintenance companies, and solar graziers, on costs and activities associated with vegetation management at low-impact, agrivoltaic, and conventional PV sites. In this paper, we perform data analysis to detail the per-activity and total O&M costs for vegetation management at PV sites with different ground covers and management practices, providing the most comprehensive and detailed assessment of PV vegetation O&M costs to date. For the 54 sites included in our analysis, we found that while the per-acre and per-kilowattdc (kWdc) costs for individual activities, such as mowing, trimming, and herbicide application at native or pollinator friendly ground covers, were lower than at turfgrass sites, the total combined vegetation O&M costs were slightly higher; this is presumably because more individual activities are required for the first 3–5 years of vegetation establishment. Qualitative results include recommendations from data providers for site and system design, and ongoing vegetation management operations.
J. McCall, J. Macdonald, R. Burton, J. Macknick. 2023. Vegetation Management Cost and Maintenance Implications of Different Ground Covers at Utility-Scale Solar Sites. Sustainability. 15(7):5895.
LivestockEconomicsReviews/InformationalEntomology
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV, Animal Grazing, Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Vertical Agrivoltaics and Its Potential for Electricity Production and Agricultural Water Demand: A Case Study in the Area of Chanco, Chile
This paper presents a cross-sector analysis of a 100 kWp vertical agrivoltaic (AV) case study in Chanco, Maule, Chile. Maule is an agricultural region facing recurring droughts, which put pressure on irrigated lands. The study investigates the potential of vertical AV in two ways: comparing the energy yield prediction of the photovoltaic component with a typical north-tilted PV plant and comparing the water demand of a reference crop in vertical AV with open field conditions. A PVLib and PVFactors python tools were used to evaluate energy production, while spatial evapotranspiration prediction incorporates wind speed and solar irradiation heterogeneities. Results for the climatic year 2021 indicate that a north-tilted power plant produced more energy than a bi-facial vertical AV plant, but the latter represents a significantly less impact on agricultural activities. The analyzed vertical AV presents a lower impact to the grid due to the two peaks in daily power production that spread the generation over the day and does not contribute to the overproduction in the midday that is currently being curtailed when high solar irradiance is present in Chile. Water savings of up to 1410 m3/ha were found in the study with the vertical AV installation mainly due to the reduced irradiation combined with windbreak effects.
Roxane Bruhwyler, Hugo Sánchez, Carlos Meza, Frédéric Lebeau, Pascal Brunet, Gabriel Dabadie, Sebastian Dittmann, Ralph Gottschalg, Juan Jose Negroni. 2023. Vertical Agrivoltaics and Its Potential for Electricity Production and Agricultural Water Demand: A Case Study in the Area of Chanco, Chile. Sustainable Energy Technologies and Assessments. 60:
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MicroclimatologyHydrologySystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Chile
Vertical Free-Swinging Photovoltaic Racking Energy Modeling: A Novel Approach to Agrivoltaics
To enable lower-cost building materials, a free-swinging bifacial vertical solar photovoltaic (PV) rack has been proposed, which complies with Canadian building codes and is the lowest capital-cost agrivoltaics rack. The wind force applied to the free-swinging PV, however, causes it to have varying tilt angles depending on the wind speed and direction. No energy performance model accurately describes such a system. To provide a simulation model for the free-swinging PV, where wind speed and direction govern the array tilt angle, this study builds upon the open-source System Advisor Model (SAM) using Python. After the SAM python model is validated, a geometrical analysis is performed to determine the view factors of the swinging bifacial PV, which are then used to calculate the solar irradiation incident on the front and back faces of the bifacial PV modules. The findings reveal that free-swinging PV generates 12% more energy than vertical fixed-tilt PV systems. Free-swinging PV offers the lowest capital cost and the racking levelized cost is over 30% lower than the LCOE of other agrivoltaics racks including the LCOE of commercial fixed-tilt metal racking, optimized fixed-tilt wood racking PV, and seasonally adjusted wood racking PV.
Koami Soulemane Hayibo, Joshua M. Pearce. 12/2023. Vertical Free-Swinging Photovoltaic Racking Energy Modeling: A Novel Approach to Agrivoltaics. Renewable Energy. 218:1-11.
MicroclimatologyMarket AssessmentsPV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Canada
Vertical Panel Agri-Photovoltaic System Design for Efficient and Productive Crop Production
Solar photovoltaics are a leading candidate to decarbonize our energy supply, but widespread adoption will require installations on agricultural land. However, conventional photovoltaic installations on agricultural land do not allow much agricultural production and are not maximally conducive to efficient contemporary mechanized crop production. A promising alternative is to utilize vertical bifacial photovoltaic panels in north-south rows with the panels facing east-west. These panels will maximize electricity production in late mornings and late afternoon, being complementary to conventional installations in meeting electricity usage demands.
Some characteristics of such integrated agricultural vertical photovoltaic installations are discussed. Details of a 0.4 hectare experimental installation near Dresden, Germany are presented. The installation has crop cultivation widths of 10 and 12 meters between the rows of panels. The wide variance in working widths of contemporary agricultural field equipment and the need for efficient operation in such installations are discussed. Some of the many areas of needed further knowledge, including agronomic and microclimate effects, are presented.
Co-locating and integrating rows of vertical east-west facing solar panels with contemporary crop production may produce land equivalent ratios or performance indices greater than one, indicating more productivity than if the photovoltaics and agriculture are located separately.Karl J. Wild, John K. Schueller. 2023. Vertical Panel Agri-Photovoltaic System Design for Efficient and Productive Crop Production. American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers.
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MicroclimatologyMarket AssessmentsEconomicsPV TechnologiesSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
Germany
Viewpoints on the Theory of Agricultural Energy Internet
The industrial mode of cross-border integration of agriculture and new energy has brought synergistic economic benefits. Through the cross-border integration of new energy and agriculture, an agricultural energy internet (AEI) can not only realize the double income generation of electricity and agriculture, but also can use one land twice to save land lease costs (Fu et al., 2021). Hot topics in the area of rural vitalization in China include realizing the in-depth coupling and optimization of new energy and agriculture; improving energy utilization, grain yield and quality; reducing carbon pollution. However, the electrical engineering scholars do not conduct in-depth research on agricultural engineering, while the Chinese agricultural engineers do not conduct in-depth research on electrical engineering. The technical barriers in the two fields limit the coordinated development of agriculture and energy. In addition, the models in the respective fields of agricultural engineering and electrical engineering are rarely applied across borders. One of the great challenges is to propose a unified modeling framework in the fields of meteorology, agriculture and energy, so as to realize the integrated simulation of environment in facility agriculture, crop production and energy networks. The application values of developing the theory of AEI are mainly reflected through: A. Benefits of carbon cycle. Agrivoltaic systems can reduce the carbon emissions via efficiently utilizing of photosynthesis and photovoltaic (PV) panels on the greenhouse roof. B. Secure supply of electricity. The modern agricultural industrial parks adopt a clustered development mode with high load factor and high load density. Thus, a multi-source power supply is adopted to ensure a secure power supply in the AEI (Fu et al., 2020a). AEI breaks the segmentation of agriculture and energy systems, and strengthens the coupling interaction between the ubiquitous power internet of things and the agriculture internet of things. The comprehensive perception of environment in facility agriculture and energy networks maintain security of electricity supply in an agricultural region. C. Complementarity between agriculture and industry. The primary object of this study is to break down the barriers between electric power industry and agricultural industry. Promoting the win-win coexistence of electric power industry and agricultural industry is an important measure to promote the large-scale and economic development of AEI.
Xueqian Fu, Feifei Yang. 03/2022. Viewpoints on the Theory of Agricultural Energy Internet. Frontiers Energy Research. 10:1-4.
EconomicsImpact Assessments
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Country
China
Water Budget and Crop Modelling for Agrivoltaic Systems: Application to Irrigated Lettuces
The installation of tilting-angle solar panels above agricultural plots provides renewable energy and means of action to dampen some of the effects and hazards of climate change. When the panels are properly operated, their drop shadow reduces water consumption by the plants, as a consequence of alternating shade and sun bands with a short-term impact on the stomatal conductance and a global decrease of gas exchanges. This urged the development of a new model for crop growth and water budget, adapted here from existing literature to handle such transient conditions, characterized by short-term (infra-day) fluctuations. The main difficulty was to combine short-term fluctuations in the climatic forcings (radiation interception and rain redistribution by the panels) and long-term agronomic evaluation, hence the coexistence of several calculation time steps in model structure. All field experiments were conducted on purpose in the agrivoltaic plot of Lavalette (Montpellier, France). Specific adaptations consisted in describing the stomatal behavior of the plants for fluctuating solar radiations and varied water status, aiming at improving both the piloting of the solar panels and water management, i.e. the choice of irrigation amounts. Model simulations have been able to reproduce the expected benefits from agrivoltaic installations, for example showing that it is possible to improve land use efficiency and water productivity at once, by reducing irrigation amounts by 20%, when tolerating a decrease of 10% in yield or, alternatively, a slight extension of the cropping cycle. Agrivoltaism appears a solution for the future when facing climate change and the food and energy challenges, typically in the rural areas and the developing countries and especially if the procedure presented here proves relevant for other crops and contexts.
Y. Elamri, B. Cheviron, J.-M. Lopez, C. Dejean, G. Belaud. 2018. Water Budget and Crop Modelling for Agrivoltaic Systems: Application to Irrigated Lettuces. Agricultural Water Management. 208:440-453.
HydrologyPlant ScienceMicroclimatologySystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Country
France
Water Evaporation Reduction by the Agrivoltaic Systems Development
The triple benefits of the AgriVoltaic Systems Development (AVSD) have been well demonstrated, not only for the PV electricity generation but also for reduced water evaporation, enhancing further the benefits of simultaneously crop growth on the same land area. However, the reduction rate of the water evaporation of AVSD has not been investigated in a quantitative way. Therefore, this study conducted experiments to measure water evaporation reduction under the Concentrated-lighting Agrivoltaic System (CAS) and the Even-lighting Agrivoltaic System (EAS). Evaporation containers and pans were placed in the bare soil (CK) under the CAS and the EAS. Our results showed a significant reduction in water evaporation under CAS and EAS. Cumulative soil surface evaporation of CK, CAS, and EAS for 45 days was 80.53 mm, 63.38 mm, and 54.14 mm. The cumulative water evaporation from soil and pan surfaces decreased by 21 % and 14 % (under CAS), 33 %, and 19 % (under EAS), respectively. The slope β1 ≠ 0 of simple linear regression showed a significant positive relationship between evaporation time and cumulative water evaporation. The correlation coefficient in all treatments was more than 0.91, suggesting a robust linear relationship. The feasibility of AVSD could significantly reduce irrigation water, enhance crop growth, and generate electricity simultaneously on the same agricultural land.
A.A.A. Omer, W. Liu, M. Li, J. Zheng, F. Zhang, X. Zhang, S. O.H. Mohammed, L. Fan, Z. Liu, F. Chen, Y. Chen, J. Ingenhoff. 11/2022. Water Evaporation Reduction by the Agrivoltaic Systems Development. Solar Energy. 247:13-23.
HydrologyPV TechnologiesMicroclimatologySoilSystem Configuration
Development Strategy
Crop Production
Document type
Journal Article
Waveguide Concentrator Photovoltaic with Spectral Splitting for Dual Land Use
This research presents a highly transparent concentrator photovoltaic system with solar
spectral splitting for dual land use applications. The system includes a freeform lens array and a planar waveguide. Sunlight is first concentrated by the lens array and then reaches a flat waveguide. The dichroic mirror with coated prisms is located at each focused area at the bottom of a planar waveguide to split the sunlight spectrum into two spectral bands. The red and blue light, in which photosynthesis occurs at its maximum, passes through the dichroic mirror and is used for agriculture. The remaining spectrums are reflected at the dichroic mirror with coated prisms and collected by the long solar cell attached at one end of the planar waveguide by total internal reflection. Meanwhile, most of the diffused sunlight is transmitted through the system to the ground for agriculture. The system was designed using the commercial optic simulation software LightTools™ (Synopsys Inc., Mountain View, CA, USA). The results show that the proposed system with 200× concentration can achieve optical efficiency above 82.1% for the transmission of blue and red light, 94.5% for diffused sunlight, which is used for agricultural, and 81.5% optical efficiency for planar waveguides used for power generation. This system is suitable for both high Direct Normal Irradiance (DNI) and low DNI areas to provide light for agriculture and electricity generation at the same time on the same land
with high efficiencyHoang Vu, Tran Quoc Tien, Jongbin Park, Meeryoung Cho, Ngoc Hai Vu, Seoyong Shin. 2022. Waveguide Concentrator Photovoltaic with Spectral Splitting for Dual Land Use. Energies. 15(6):1-14.
MicroclimatologyPV TechnologiesTools
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
South Korea, Vietnam
[file:Users/hfields/Desktop/energies-15-02217.pdf Reference]
Wavelength‐Selective Solar Photovoltaic Systems: Powering Greenhouses for Plant Growth at the Food‐Energy‐Water Nexus
Global renewable electricity generation capacity has rapidly increased in the past decade. Increasing the sustainability of electricity generation and the market share of solar photovoltaics (PV) will require continued cost reductions or higher efficiencies. Wavelength‐Selective Photovoltaic Systems (WSPVs) combine luminescent solar cell technology with conventional silicon‐based PV, thereby increasing efficiency and lowering the cost of electricity generation. WSPVs absorb some of the blue and green wavelengths of the solar spectrum but transmit the remaining wavelengths that can be utilized by photosynthesis for plants growing below. WSPVs are ideal for integrating electricity generation with glasshouse production, but it is not clear how they may affect plant development and physiological processes. The effects of tomato photosynthesis under WSPVs showed a small decrease in water use, whereas there were minimal effects on the number and fresh weight of fruit for a number of commercial species. Although more research is required on the impacts of WSPVs, they are a promising technology for greater integration of distributed electricity generation with food production operations, for reducing water loss in crops grown in controlled environments, as building‐integrated solar facilities, or as alternatives to high‐impact PV for energy generation over agricultural or natural ecosystems.
M.E. Loik, S.A. Carter, G. Alers, C.E. Wade, D. Shugar, C. Corrado, D. Jokerst, C. Kitayama. 2017. Wavelength‐Selective Solar Photovoltaic Systems: Powering Greenhouses for Plant Growth at the Food‐Energy‐Water Nexus. Earth's Future. 5(10):1044-1053.
Plant SciencePV Technologies
Development Strategy
Greenhouse, Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
California
Wildlife Conservation and Solar Energy Development in the Desert Southwest, United States
Large areas of public land are currently being permitted or evaluated for utility-scale solar energy development (USSED) in the southwestern United States, including areas with high biodiversity and protected species. However, peer-reviewed studies of the effects of USSED on wildlife are lacking. The potential effects of the construction and the eventual decommissioning of solar energy facilities include the direct mortality of wildlife; environmental impacts of fugitive dust and dust suppressants; destruction and modification of habitat, including the impacts of roads; and off-site impacts related to construction material acquisition, processing, and transportation. The potential effects of the operation and maintenance of the facilities include habitat fragmentation and barriers to gene flow, increased noise, electromagnetic field generation, microclimate alteration, pollution, water consumption, and fire. Facility design effects, the efficacy of site-selection criteria, and the cumulative effects of USSED on regional wildlife populations are unknown. Currently available peer-reviewed data are insufficient to allow a rigorous assessment of the impact of USSED on wildlife.
J.E. Lovich, J.R. Ennen. 2011. Wildlife Conservation and Solar Energy Development in the Desert Southwest, United States. BioScience. 61(12):982–992.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
Country
United States
State
Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah
Wind Farm and Solar Park Effects on Plant–Soil Carbon Cycling: Uncertain Impacts of Changes in Ground‐level Microclimate
Global energy demand is increasing as greenhouse gas driven climate change progresses, making renewable energy sources critical to future sustainable power provision. Land-based wind and solar electricity generation technologies are rapidly expanding, yet our understanding of their operational effects on biological carbon cycling in hosting ecosystems is limited. Wind turbines and photovoltaic panels can significantly change local ground-level climate by a magnitude that could affect the fundamental plant-soil processes that govern carbon dynamics. We believe that understanding the possible effects of changes in ground-level microclimates on these phenomena is crucial to reducing uncertainty of the true renewable energy carbon cost and to maximize beneficial effects. In this Opinions article, we examine the potential for the microclimatic effects of these land-based renewable energy sources to alter plant-soil carbon cycling, hypothesize likely effects and identify critical knowledge gaps for future carbon research.
A. Armstrong, S. Waldron, J. Whitaker, N.J. Ostle. 2014. Wind Farm and Solar Park Effects on Plant–Soil Carbon Cycling: Uncertain Impacts of Changes in Ground‐level Microclimate. Global Change Biology. 20(6):1699-1706.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Habitat/Ecovoltaics
Document type
Journal Article
Worldwide Research Trends in Agrivoltaic Systems—A Bibliometric Review
An agrovoltaic system combines agricultural crop production and energy production in the same place, emphasizing the dual use of land. This article provides a bibliometric analysis of agrivoltaic topics based on publications indexed in SCOPUS, in which either economic assessments of agrivoltaics, agrivoltaic systems for crops and livestock animals, photovoltaic greenhouse and agrivoltaics with open field are discussed, or its ideas are used to analyze certain locations. A bibliometric analysis was conducted using the SCOPUS database. Multiple bibliometric tools, such as R Studio and Biblioshiny, were applied to analyze data for this study. Finally, 121 relevant articles were obtained and reviewed. The results show that the focus topic is a brand-new research area, with the majority of relevant scientific publications concentrated in the last three years, and with much ongoing research. This is why AV-specialized scientific conferences might be the best place to get relevant and up-to-date information, with the highest number being offered in the USA and China. A typical trend in recent years has been researched, focusing on different agricultural aspects. The research results show that scientific publications in recent years mainly focus on short-term predictions, there is no recognized evaluation standard for various prediction analyses, and it is difficult to evaluate various prediction methods so far.
A. Chalgynbayeva, Z. Gabnai, P. Lengyel, A. Pestisha, A. Bai. 2023. Worldwide Research Trends in Agrivoltaic Systems—A Bibliometric Review. Energies. 16(2):1-25.
Reviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Animal Grazing, Crop Production, Greenhouse
Document type
Journal Article
Yield Optimization Through Control Strategies in Tracked Agrivoltaic Systems
The rediscovered concept of agrivoltaics attempts to find a compromise for land-use scenarios where agriculture and power generation compete for the same areas. In the approach both domains are combined in the same plot, resulting in significant increase in land-use efficiency as measured by the so-called land equivalent ratio [1]. In realizing such dual-use systems, the fundamental question arises how the available light should be distributed to photosynthetic and photovoltaic purposes to maximize the output of both yields. Solar tracking systems provide unique solutions to this question in that they are capable of dynamically varying how much light passes the modules. In the present work, different tracking strategies were proposed, simulated, and their performances were compared to each other as well as to a static experimental system designed for light homogeneity. Three strategies were investigated that placed a focus on 1. photovoltaic production, 2. photosynthetic production, and 3. dual-use production.
L. Gfüllner, O. Muller, M.M. Grüll, C. Jedmowski, M. Berwind. 2022. Yield Optimization Through Control Strategies in Tracked Agrivoltaic Systems. In: AgriVoltaics Conference; 2022/06/16; Online. Sunnyside APV Summit 2022: N/A; p. 1-2
Plant ScienceSystem ConfigurationMicroclimatologyImpact Assessments
Yield and Quality of Lettuce in Response to the Plant Position in Photovoltaic Greenhouse
In recent years there has been an increasing spread of photovoltaic greenhouses, especially in southern European countries, due to the higher incentives recognized to solar photovoltaic (PV) panels integrated on the greenhouse roofs and/or to local laws which limit the photovoltaic systems on the ground. To maximize the income from the production of electricity, often solar panels cover 50% or more of the roof, but the shading caused by these elements on the growing surface seriously limits the productivity and affects crop development. In order to assess the effects of the spatial distribution of the solar radiation inside these structures on yield and quality of leaf vegetable crops, the response of lettuce, grown in two cycles (autumn and winter-spring), in an east-west oriented photovoltaic greenhouse with the 50% of the roof covered by PV modules was analysed. The influence of span orientation, plant position (under plastic or PV roof) and cultivar were analysed as experimental treatments in a split-split plot design with two replications. Total and marketable yield of the lettuce heads and some quality parameters (dry matter and nitrate content) were evaluated. A significant variability of the total and marketable yield due to the plant position and as consequence to the solar radiation distribution inside the structure during the growing cycle was observed. Furthermore, ranges and variability of the nitrate content of lettuce (expressed as NO3 mg kg‑1 of fresh weight) were affected by the plant position and harvest season. In order to maximize yield and quality of the crops, the arrangement of plant rows and transit areas, as well as the management of nutrition, should be optimized in relation to the shading caused by the PV roof during the growing cycle.
III International Symposium on Horticulture in Europe - SHE2016. 2016. Yield and Quality of Lettuce in Response to the Plant Position in Photovoltaic Greenhouse. In: A. Sirigu, G.R. Urracci, G. Carboni, F. Chessa, M. Maxia, P.A. Deligios, M. Cossu, L. Ledda, editors. III International Symposium on Horticulture in Europe - SHE2016; 2016/10/17; Crete, Greece. Greece: ISHS Acta Horticulturae; p.
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Plant ScienceMicroclimatology
Development Strategy
Greenhouse
Document type
Conference Paper
Country
Greece
‘Photovoltaic landscapes’: Design and assessment. A critical review for a new transdisciplinary design vision
Ground-mounted large photovoltaic (PV) arrays are the least-cost design solution for installing PV, they account for the majority of the solar power installed today. With the increase of both the number and size of installations, the attention to their impacts in terms of land-use and land-transformation is growing, as well as concerns about landscape preservation and possible losses of ecosystem services. The community acceptance is often a barrier.
The current design is generally straight-forward and is aimed to the maximize energy generation given a certain land area.
This paper brings forward the idea that PV systems should be designed as an element of the landscape they belong to, according to an ׳inclusive׳ design approach that does not focus only on the overall energy efficiency of the system, but extends to other additional ecological and landscape objectives.
An original energy-design vision for on-ground PV is advanced, rooted in an original concept of ׳photovoltaic landscape׳. An understanding of PV landscapes in terms of patterns is given, and new patterns for PV are investigated. Based on literature new patterns for PV are assessed quantitatively in terms of land use energy intensity; and qualitatively in terms of perception-esthetics related aspects. Design domain freedom and boundary restrictions have been investigated with reference to possible negative and positive overall ecological performances; the weight of each design parameter has been qualitatively assessed, so that some first design guidelines could be formulated. Furthermore, a first quantitative approach for calculating the life cycle costs of the energy generated from PV landscapes, focusing on land use, has been proposed.
The study argues that new patterns would help in allowing a better ecological performance of the PV landscape, and opens many research questions, such as the quantitative assessment of the ecological beneficial impacts generated by new PV patterns.Alessandra Scognamiglio. 03/2016. ‘Photovoltaic landscapes’: Design and assessment. A critical review for a new transdisciplinary design vision. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. 55:629-661.
System ConfigurationSitingImpact AssessmentsReviews/Informational
Development Strategy
Crosscutting PV
Document type
Journal Article
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