An international consortium led by the Israel-based Al-Zahrawi Society has announced the first European installations of a multi-year project to test crop-responsive PV systems in combination with carbon dioxide enrichment in greenhouses.
A research consortium led by Israel-based Triangle R&D Center Alzahrawy Society has implemented a new PV tracking system for energy production in greenhouses, as part of a European Union Horizon-funded project known as Regace.
The group is investigating crop-responsive PV tracking systems provided by project partner TriSolar, a PV systems supplier based in Israel, along with CO2 enrichment methods. It uses custom monocrystalline bifacial PV panels with dual 2mm tempered glass, passivated emitter back cell (PERC) solar cells with an efficiency of 25.5%, with dimensions of 105mm * 105mm.
Five different frameless module configurations have been implemented across the six installations of the Regace project. They range from a 65W module of 1100mm x 360mm x 35mm with 24 cells to 145W modules of 1700mm x 530mm x 35mm with 52 cells. The light transmission of the modules varies from 25.3% to 36.2%. There is an intelligent control mechanism to adjust the angle of the PV panels based on the light needs of the crop.
The study spans six sites, including two operational farms, to understand the performance of different crops, latitudes and greenhouse types. The latest test site is at Bio-Gärtnerei Watzkendorf, a German organic farm with experience in using organic carbon dioxide (CO2) enrichment methods.
“The implementation in Germany will allow us to test our technology under authentic conditions,” said Alzahrawy Society project coordinator Ibrahim Yehia. pv magazine. “We are confident that we can demonstrate that agrivoltaics can make an important contribution to the EU clean energy portfolio, while meeting green energy and food security needs.”
The other pilots are at Humbolt University in Germany, the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences in Austria, and one farm in Italy, Fattoria Solidale del Circeo. The next greenhouse system will be located at the University of Thessaly in Greece.
In addition to the above-mentioned organizations, the Regace consortium includes Israel-based Interteam Project Management and Tel Aviv University, along with Italy-based University Tor Vergata and Belgium’s Timelex.
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