We all know that solar energy needs a lot of land. But who has got a lot of land to have solar systems on? Why farmers of course. Farmers have acre upon acre upon acre of land which they cultivate. But wouldn’t placing solar panels over plants deprive them of sunlight? Yes and no!
Not every plant needs bright sunshine to thrive. Many vegetables grow in shady places. These include Spinach, Potatoes, Radish, Green onions, Cabbages, Cauliflower, Carrots, Beetroot, Chinese cabbage, Lettuce, Giant red mustard, Mustard greens etc.
So one can place solar panels in agricultural fields over plants, right?
Yes! In fact this whole business of placing panels over agricultural fields is legitimate and is called agrivoltaics. Wikipedia describes Agrivoltaics as such.
“Agrivoltaics, agrophotovoltaics, agrisolar, or dual-use solar is the simultaneous use of areas of land for both solar photovoltaic power generation and agriculture.[1] The coexistence of solar panels and crops implies a sharing of light between these two types of production,[2] so the design of agrivoltaic facilities may require trading off such objectives as optimizing crop yield, crop quality, and energy production. However, in some cases crop yield increases due to the shade of the solar panels mitigating some of the stress on plants caused by high temperatures and UV damage.[3 ]”
In other words those plants which do not need intense sunlight and may prosper in shade are ideal plants to have solar panels over them.
Solar arrays over agricultural field are the most efficient
It is surprising to know that solar panel arrays over agricultural lands are more efficient than panels placed over any other land. Most power per panel is generated by these. Why it is so?
Contrary to popular opinion, solar systems generally work best in moderate temperature. As the temperature rises their efficiency goes down. Most of the farmlands are in areas where there is a great deal of moisture in the atmosphere. This helps to keep the temperature relatively moderate thus helping to increase panel efficiency.
The Origin of Agrivoltaics
The concept of Agrivoltaics was first presented by German physicist Adolf Goetzberger and Armin Zastrow in 1981. But the term was actually coined in 2011.
How the system works
It goes without saying that panels could not be directly erected on the ground, otherwise how will you do the farming? To keep the land farmable, solar arrays are mounted five metres above the ground. This allows normal farming of the land, with tractors and other machineries going to and fro easily.
The present state
Two of the most innovative countries in the world, China and Japan are also the leaders in Agrovoltaics solar power. Commercially viable agrovoltaic farms have been successfully operating in these countries for some time. Rest of the world is still in the experimental stage of this efficient renewable energy.
Some experts are of the view that increasing popularity of agrivoltaics will increase the value of farmlands. And will give these farmers and additional source of income as they can sell the electricity generated on their farms.
If you have any query regarding this topic or solar power in general feel free to call our rep at 0331-2445869 for a chat.
