Bifacial Photo voltaic Panels To Unlock Agrivoltaic Potential

The agrivoltaic discipline is racing alongside at a speedy clip in some components of the globe, the place farmers are keen to mix renewable power from photo voltaic panels with pollinator habitats, grazing lands, and different agricultural actions. The financial case for these dual-use initiatives has but to develop in some areas, however analysis in Chile signifies that new bifacial photo voltaic panels may assist increase the observe all over the world.

Agrivoltaics & Bifacial Photo voltaic Panels

Bifacial photo voltaic panels are a comparatively latest improvement within the photo voltaic trade. The concept is to seize subtle or mirrored daylight that hits the again of the panel, fairly than solely capturing photo voltaic power on the sun-facing aspect.

Because of the extra energy-harvesting supplies on the again aspect, bifacial photo voltaic panels are costlier than their typical photo voltaic counterparts. Researchers additionally want to determine the way to seize extra power from the bottom, with out intruding on the effectivity of frontside supplies.

Bifacial expertise has the potential to offer a extra environment friendly use of accessible house for producing electrical energy, which is a crucial consideration for dual-use initiatives. As well as, prices have been coming down as the bifacial R&D discipline matures (see extra CleanTechnica bifacial protection right here).

The agrivoltaic connection surfaced on the CleanTechnica radar again in 2020, after we famous that the photo voltaic developer BlueWave Photo voltaic was laying plans for a dual-use, solar-plus-farming challenge in Grafton, Massachusetts, consisting of a brand new agrivoltaic array with a complete of 14 acres reserved for livestock grazing and vegetable crops.

“Making the most of yet one more twist within the farm + photo voltaic saga, the photo voltaic panels can be bifacial, that means their again aspect can convert photo voltaic power mirrored from the bottom,” we famous. “Researchers are already exploring methods to reinforce this ‘floor albedo’ impact with several types of floor coverings, together with vegetation. That might result in extra enhancements in photo voltaic cell effectivity on farmland.”

Bifacial Agrivoltaic Arrays Can Preserve Water, Too

Agrivoltaic arrays deploy raised photo voltaic panels and different design options to allow farming actions to happen throughout the array. The extra value of the raised racks is offset by the worth of grazing livestock, rising crops, or cultivating pollinator habitats on the land, along with the broader worth of preserving farmland in opposition to damaging improvement.

Researchers are additionally constructing proof that the mixture of photo voltaic panels and farming shares options with regenerative agriculture, a set of sustainable land administration rules based mostly on the practices of indigenous cultures. Regenerative agriculture prioritizes soil well being, which photo voltaic panels can help by lowering evaporation and lowering windblown soil loss, too. The shade from the panels additionally creates a microclimate that may enhance yields for some crops.

That brings us to some new analysis on the connection between vertical bifacial photo voltaic panels, agrivoltiacs, and water conservation.

The December problem of the journal Sustainable Vitality Applied sciences and Assessments features a shut have a look at the usage of vertical photo voltaic panels beneath the title, “Vertical agrivoltaics and its potential for electrical energy manufacturing and agricultural water demand: A case examine within the space of Chanco, Chile.”

Nevertheless, when CleanTechnica attended the 2023 Ocean Vitality Europe convention final month, we caught wind of a counter-argument effervescent up. On the convention, stakeholders within the wave and tidal power industries made the case that LCOE is only one issue to contemplate, particularly when different power choices are impractical.

An analogous de-emphasizing of LCOE may go to work in Chile, the place beekeepers are dropping hives because of a chronic drought, pesticides, fertilizers, and different elements.

The complementary fields of regenerative agriculture, natural farming and agrivoltaics may assist ease the strain on the nation’s honey trade. Along with the significance of bees to the nation’s agriculture trade, Chilean honey has additionally turn out to be a featured agricultural export for the nation, as CleanTechnica realized throughout a Chilean agriculture occasion in New York hosted by the ProChile promotional department of the nation’s Ministry of Overseas Affairs.

With that in thoughts, let’s check out a analysis challenge that replaces the traditional LCOE calculation with a extra holistic strategy. The examine was offered to a convention of the American Institute of Physics final 12 months beneath the title, “Worth for overlaying cropland with an agrivoltaic system: PV panels changing shading nets in Chilean blueberry cultivation.”

The examine explored the usage of photo voltaic panels as a cost-effective various to the disposable plastic nets sometimes utilized by farmers in Chile to guard their blueberry crops from overexposure to the solar.

“… the only real consideration of PV economics doesn’t do justice to the synergetic results that agrivoltaic can have on agriculture,” the authors emphasised. “Varied researches have acknowledged that agrivoltaic may serve instead for crop safety in (semi)-arid and dry areas.”

The researchers developed new metrics that evaluate the agrivoltaic resolution with the traditional observe, utilizing a blueberry orchard in Ovalle within the Coquimbo Area of Chile as their mannequin.

“…relying on the native value construction of crop safety with plastic cowl, agrivoltaic can create notable synergies when the plastic cowl and thus corresponding prices could be averted,” the researchers concluded. Whereas plastic nets are cheap for a single 12 months, substitute and set up prices proceed over the next years. In distinction, photo voltaic arrays sometimes final for 20-25 years.

“We spotlight the affect of lowering extra CAPEX and conclude that if extra CAPEX could be restricted to about beneath 150 $/kWp, the worth for crop cowl with agrivoltaic techniques can compete with the worth for crop cowl with shading nets,” they affirmed.

The researchers additionally cautioned that additional analysis is warranted. We’ll be maintaining a tally of new developments in Chile, the place Germany’s Frauhofer Institute has been conducting a multi-site examine. Within the meantime, if you recognize of any new developments within the agrivoltaic discipline, drop us a word within the remark thread.

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Picture: Bifacial photovoltaic panels accumulate photo voltaic power on either side, courtesy of NREL.