Vertical agrivoltaics in a temperate climate: Exploring technical, agricultural, meteorological, and social dimensions

Abstract

The combined use of land for agriculture and photovoltaic electricity production (agrivoltaics) could be a strategy to capture benefits for both crops and solar panels. Here, we investigated an 89-kW pilot system comprising vertically mounted and south-oriented tilted bifacial solar panels in Denmark (latitude 56.5⁰). Variables including microclimate and electricity production were measured for one year, together with the yield of wheat and grass-clover mixture grown between the rows of solar panels. Both vertical and tilted agrivoltaic systems result in a positive land equivalent ratio, that is, for the same output they use less land area than would be required if the crops and the solar panels were on different lands. The vertical solar panels acted as wind shelters and their daily profile for electricity generation matches electricity demand better. In addition, our social acceptance study highlights that vertical agrivoltaic systems were perceived more positively than conventional solar panels. Our results offer a strategy for the sustainable integration of solar electricity generation and agriculture in temperate climates.