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Researchers and project developers around the world are increasingly looking at agrovoltaic installations with vertically oriented solar panels.
Agrovoltaics - the practice of locating solar installations next to farmland - is being increasingly adopted around the world as a way to introduce distributed clean energy without compromising land use.
According to research from Oregon State University, the co-location of solar and agricultural power could provide 20% of total electricity generation in the United States. According to the researchers, the large-scale installation of agrivoltaics could mean an annual reduction of 330,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions with a "minimal" impact on crop yields.
According to the study, an area the size of Maryland would be needed for agrovoltaics to cover 20% of the electricity generation in the United States. That equates to about 13,000 square miles, or 1% of the current agricultural area of ??the United States. Globally, it is estimated that 1% of all cropland could produce the energy the world needs if converted to solar PV.
There are many ways to install agrovoltaic panels. One of the most common methods is to raise the facility to allow room for farm equipment or livestock to move freely underneath. Another trendy design is to orient PV panels vertically, leaving wide open spaces between rows of panels.
USA
In Somerset, California, German-designed Sunzaun vertical solar panels were installed on a vineyard. The installer Sunstall developed the installation, consisting of 43 450 W modules connected to a microinverter and two batteries.
The minimalist design used holes in the module frames for easy fixing to two stilts, avoiding the need for a heavy racking system. Bifacial solar modules produce power on both sides of the vertically oriented array.
In traditional systems designed in a landscape orientation, the rails used to mount the panels to the shelving system are often cut to fit the intended size of the panel. If the panel size changes after all other component procurement is complete, the project may experience delays while the rails are redesigned to accommodate the updated panel size. Sunzauns design allows for a change in panel size to be easily accommodated by adjusting the distance between each stack. It is also possible to adjust the height of the panels from the ground if necessary.
Germany
Scientists from the Leipzig University of Applied Sciences have studied the potential impact of the mass deployment of west-east oriented vertical PV systems on the German energy market. They have found that these installations could have a beneficial effect on stabilizing the countrys grid, while allowing for greater integration with agricultural activities than conventional ground-mounted PV plants.
The scientists found that vertical PV systems can shift solar yield toward peak electricity demand hours and more electrical supply in the winter months, thereby reducing solar constraint.
“If an electricity storage of 1 TW of charge and discharge power and 1 TWh of capacity is integrated into the energy system model, the effect is reduced to a CO2 saving of up to 2.1 Mt/a with 70% of vertical modules oriented from east to west and 30% inclined towards the south”, they pointed out. “Finally, while it may seem unrealistic to some to achieve a 70% rate of vertical power plants, even a lower rate has a beneficial impact.”
Japan
In Japan, Luxor Solar KK, a subsidiary of German module manufacturer Luxor Solar, built an 8.3 kW vertical PV system in the parking lot of a rice processing factory owned by Eco Rice Niigata.
“The cars will be parked between the vertical systems,” Uwe Liebscher, managing director of Luxor Solar KK, explained to pv magazine. "The aim of this system is to show the durability during the winter and the additional energy yield due to the reflection of the snow." Niigata, on the other hand, is known to be a heavy snow load area, with up to 2-3 meters of snow in winter.”
The south-facing system features Luxor Solars own heterojunction solar modules, as well as mounting systems from German vertical PV specialist Next2Sun and inverters from Japans Omron. The vertical array will supply electricity to a rice processing factory located next to the system. The city of Nagaoka financed the project with 2 million yen ($14,390).
“A vertical installation uses only minimal space on the farmland, while keeping more than 85% of the light reaching the crops, ensuring an optimal balance between solar and agriculture, which is crucial in Japan,” Explain. “This allows us to build agrivoltaic systems on public utility farmland, such as for wheat, potatoes or rice, on a large scale.”
France
In France, TotalEnergies and InVivo, a specialist in agrovoltaics, have launched a 111 kW vertical agrivoltaic demonstrator. TotalEnergies said the pilot installation will investigate the impact of solar panels on agricultural yields, as well as the sites biodiversity, carbon storage and water quality.
“We are convinced that the synergies developed between the production of green electricity, biogas and agriculture are one of the answers to guarantee our energy and food independence”, declared Thierry Muller, CEO of TotalEnergies Renouvelables France.
Sweden
Scientists from the University of Mälardalen (Sweden) have developed a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model that facilitates the analysis of microclimates in vertical photovoltaic projects. CFD simulations are used to solve complex equations for the flow of solids and gases through and around bodies, which can be used to analyze microclimates within agrivoltaic systems.
“Agrivoltaic (AV) system models will be frequently used for new AV system design as well as decision-making, as microclimatic changes can be analysed/predicted based on location and AV system solution ”, declared the researcher Sebastian Zainalli to the magazine pv.w
The study observed a 38% decrease in the intensity of solar radiation in the ground areas shaded by the vertical photovoltaic modules.
key principles
The US National Renewable Energy Laboratory offered five principles for agrivoltaics success, including:
Climate, soil and environmental conditions: The environmental conditions of a place must be adequate for both solar generation and the desired crops or vegetation cover.
Configurations, solar technologies, and layouts: The choice of solar technology, site layout, and other infrastructure can affect everything from the amount of light reaching solar panels to whether a tractor can, if necessary, drive under it of the panels. “This infrastructure will be in the ground for the next 25 years, so it has to be done right for its intended use. The success of the project will depend on that,” says James McCall, an NREL researcher working on InSPIRE.
Crop Selection and Growing Methods, Seed and Vegetation Designs, and Management Approaches: Agrivoltaic projects must select crops or groundcovers that will thrive under the panels in their local climate and are profitable in local markets.
Compatibility and flexibility: Agrovoltaics must be designed to accommodate the competing needs of solar facility owners, solar operators and farmers/landowners to enable efficient farming activities.
Collaboration and partnerships: For any project to be successful, communication and understanding between groups is crucial. |
