Radiation Limits the Yield Potential of Main Crops Under Selected Agrivoltaic Designs—A Case Study of a New Shading Simulation Method
Agrivoltaics (APVs) represent a growing technology in Europe that enables the co-location of energy and food production in the same field. Photosynthesis requires photosynthetic active radiation, which is reduced by the shadows cast on crops by APV panels. The design of the module rows, material, an...
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MDPI AG
2024-10-01
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| Series: | Agronomy |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/14/11/2511 |
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| author | Sabina Thaler Karl Berger Josef Eitzinger Abdollahi Mahnaz Vitore Shala-Mayrhofer Shokufeh Zamini Philipp Weihs |
| author_facet | Sabina Thaler Karl Berger Josef Eitzinger Abdollahi Mahnaz Vitore Shala-Mayrhofer Shokufeh Zamini Philipp Weihs |
| author_sort | Sabina Thaler |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Agrivoltaics (APVs) represent a growing technology in Europe that enables the co-location of energy and food production in the same field. Photosynthesis requires photosynthetic active radiation, which is reduced by the shadows cast on crops by APV panels. The design of the module rows, material, and field orientation significantly influences the radiation distribution on the ground. In this context, we introduce an innovative approach for the effective simulation of the shading effects of various APV designs. We performed an extensive sensitivity analysis of the photovoltaic (PV) geometry influence on the ground-incident radiation and crop growth of selected cultivars. Simulations (2013–2021) for three representative arable crops in eastern Austria (winter wheat, spring barley, and maize) and seven different APV designs that only limited to the shading effect showed that maize and spring barley experienced the greatest annual above-ground biomass and grain yield reduction (up to 25%), with significant differences between the APV design and the weather conditions. While spring barley had similar decreases within the years, maize was characterized by high variability. Winter wheat had only up to a 10% reduction due to shading and a reduced photosynthetic performance. Cold/humid/cloudy weather during the growing season had more negative yield effects under APVs than dry/hot periods, particularly for summer crops such as maize. The lowest grain yield decline was achieved for all three crops in the APV design in which the modules were oriented to the east at a height of 5 m and mounted on trackers with an inclination of +/−50°. This scenario also resulted in the highest land equivalent ratios (<i>LER</i>s), with values above 1.06. The correct use of a tracker on APV fields is crucial for optimizing agricultural yields and electricity production. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-7d4a8e791c134177996eeccb962740b0 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2073-4395 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-10-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Agronomy |
| spelling | doaj-art-7d4a8e791c134177996eeccb962740b02025-08-20T02:26:51ZengMDPI AGAgronomy2073-43952024-10-011411251110.3390/agronomy14112511Radiation Limits the Yield Potential of Main Crops Under Selected Agrivoltaic Designs—A Case Study of a New Shading Simulation MethodSabina Thaler0Karl Berger1Josef Eitzinger2Abdollahi Mahnaz3Vitore Shala-Mayrhofer4Shokufeh Zamini5Philipp Weihs6Institute of Meteorology and Climatology, BOKU University, 1180 Vienna, AustriaAIT Austrian Institute of Technology GmbH, 1210 Vienna, AustriaInstitute of Meteorology and Climatology, BOKU University, 1180 Vienna, AustriaAIT Austrian Institute of Technology GmbH, 1210 Vienna, AustriaAustrian Chamber of Agriculture, 1015 Vienna, AustriaAIT Austrian Institute of Technology GmbH, 1210 Vienna, AustriaInstitute of Meteorology and Climatology, BOKU University, 1180 Vienna, AustriaAgrivoltaics (APVs) represent a growing technology in Europe that enables the co-location of energy and food production in the same field. Photosynthesis requires photosynthetic active radiation, which is reduced by the shadows cast on crops by APV panels. The design of the module rows, material, and field orientation significantly influences the radiation distribution on the ground. In this context, we introduce an innovative approach for the effective simulation of the shading effects of various APV designs. We performed an extensive sensitivity analysis of the photovoltaic (PV) geometry influence on the ground-incident radiation and crop growth of selected cultivars. Simulations (2013–2021) for three representative arable crops in eastern Austria (winter wheat, spring barley, and maize) and seven different APV designs that only limited to the shading effect showed that maize and spring barley experienced the greatest annual above-ground biomass and grain yield reduction (up to 25%), with significant differences between the APV design and the weather conditions. While spring barley had similar decreases within the years, maize was characterized by high variability. Winter wheat had only up to a 10% reduction due to shading and a reduced photosynthetic performance. Cold/humid/cloudy weather during the growing season had more negative yield effects under APVs than dry/hot periods, particularly for summer crops such as maize. The lowest grain yield decline was achieved for all three crops in the APV design in which the modules were oriented to the east at a height of 5 m and mounted on trackers with an inclination of +/−50°. This scenario also resulted in the highest land equivalent ratios (<i>LER</i>s), with values above 1.06. The correct use of a tracker on APV fields is crucial for optimizing agricultural yields and electricity production.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/14/11/2511hemispherical photographsdigital image processingHemiViewcrop growth modelDSSATrenewable energy |
| spellingShingle | Sabina Thaler Karl Berger Josef Eitzinger Abdollahi Mahnaz Vitore Shala-Mayrhofer Shokufeh Zamini Philipp Weihs Radiation Limits the Yield Potential of Main Crops Under Selected Agrivoltaic Designs—A Case Study of a New Shading Simulation Method Agronomy hemispherical photographs digital image processing HemiView crop growth model DSSAT renewable energy |
| title | Radiation Limits the Yield Potential of Main Crops Under Selected Agrivoltaic Designs—A Case Study of a New Shading Simulation Method |
| title_full | Radiation Limits the Yield Potential of Main Crops Under Selected Agrivoltaic Designs—A Case Study of a New Shading Simulation Method |
| title_fullStr | Radiation Limits the Yield Potential of Main Crops Under Selected Agrivoltaic Designs—A Case Study of a New Shading Simulation Method |
| title_full_unstemmed | Radiation Limits the Yield Potential of Main Crops Under Selected Agrivoltaic Designs—A Case Study of a New Shading Simulation Method |
| title_short | Radiation Limits the Yield Potential of Main Crops Under Selected Agrivoltaic Designs—A Case Study of a New Shading Simulation Method |
| title_sort | radiation limits the yield potential of main crops under selected agrivoltaic designs a case study of a new shading simulation method |
| topic | hemispherical photographs digital image processing HemiView crop growth model DSSAT renewable energy |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/14/11/2511 |
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