Lessons Learned from Three Agrivoltaic Installations in New Jersey
Agrivoltaics is a new technology that has the potential to positively impact commercial farming by combining agricultural practices with the generation of solar energy. While some yield reduction is to be expected, resulting from less sunlight reaching the plant canopy and ground occupied by suppor...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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TIB Open Publishing
2025-05-01
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| Series: | AgriVoltaics Conference Proceedings |
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| Online Access: | https://www.tib-op.org/ojs/index.php/agripv/article/view/1357 |
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| author | A.J. Both Bill Bamka Thierry Besancon Dunbar Birnie Clint Burgher Daniel Gimenez Serpil Guran Michael Kornitas Pete Nitzsche David Robinson W. Ross Rucker Ethan Schoolman David Specca Kevin Sullivan Daniel Ward Mike Westendorf Christian Wyenandt |
| author_facet | A.J. Both Bill Bamka Thierry Besancon Dunbar Birnie Clint Burgher Daniel Gimenez Serpil Guran Michael Kornitas Pete Nitzsche David Robinson W. Ross Rucker Ethan Schoolman David Specca Kevin Sullivan Daniel Ward Mike Westendorf Christian Wyenandt |
| author_sort | A.J. Both |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description |
Agrivoltaics is a new technology that has the potential to positively impact commercial farming by combining agricultural practices with the generation of solar energy. While some yield reduction is to be expected, resulting from less sunlight reaching the plant canopy and ground occupied by support structures, the generated electricity provides a low-risk supplemental income to farmers. In order to combine farming with electricity generation, agrivoltaic systems use a lower ground coverage ratio compared to normal solar farms and the PV panels are often mounted higher above the ground in order to facilitate the movement of agricultural equipment and to reduce the contrast between shaded and non-shaded areas.
With funding provided from the state of New Jersey and the New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station (NJAES), we designed and installed three unique agrivoltaic research systems at Rutgers/NJAES farms. These projects were recently completed and are generating electricity that is exported to the grid. This paper discusses the lessons we have learned along the way, including all the steps necessary to see an agrivoltaic project through to completion.
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| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-b446c90aa6e348a9b8ecf23adefda41e |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2751-6172 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-05-01 |
| publisher | TIB Open Publishing |
| record_format | Article |
| series | AgriVoltaics Conference Proceedings |
| spelling | doaj-art-b446c90aa6e348a9b8ecf23adefda41e2025-08-20T03:52:56ZengTIB Open PublishingAgriVoltaics Conference Proceedings2751-61722025-05-01310.52825/agripv.v3i.1357Lessons Learned from Three Agrivoltaic Installations in New JerseyA.J. Both0https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5084-5296Bill Bamka1Thierry Besancon2Dunbar Birnie3https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6044-2300Clint Burgher4https://orcid.org/0009-0004-7652-1387Daniel Gimenez5Serpil Guran6Michael Kornitas7Pete Nitzsche8David Robinson9W. Ross Rucker10Ethan Schoolman11https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4745-1362David Specca12https://orcid.org/0009-0000-6682-3569Kevin Sullivan13Daniel Ward14Mike Westendorf15Christian Wyenandt16Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey Agrivoltaics is a new technology that has the potential to positively impact commercial farming by combining agricultural practices with the generation of solar energy. While some yield reduction is to be expected, resulting from less sunlight reaching the plant canopy and ground occupied by support structures, the generated electricity provides a low-risk supplemental income to farmers. In order to combine farming with electricity generation, agrivoltaic systems use a lower ground coverage ratio compared to normal solar farms and the PV panels are often mounted higher above the ground in order to facilitate the movement of agricultural equipment and to reduce the contrast between shaded and non-shaded areas. With funding provided from the state of New Jersey and the New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station (NJAES), we designed and installed three unique agrivoltaic research systems at Rutgers/NJAES farms. These projects were recently completed and are generating electricity that is exported to the grid. This paper discusses the lessons we have learned along the way, including all the steps necessary to see an agrivoltaic project through to completion. https://www.tib-op.org/ojs/index.php/agripv/article/view/1357AgricultureConstructionPhotovoltaicsRenewable Energy |
| spellingShingle | A.J. Both Bill Bamka Thierry Besancon Dunbar Birnie Clint Burgher Daniel Gimenez Serpil Guran Michael Kornitas Pete Nitzsche David Robinson W. Ross Rucker Ethan Schoolman David Specca Kevin Sullivan Daniel Ward Mike Westendorf Christian Wyenandt Lessons Learned from Three Agrivoltaic Installations in New Jersey AgriVoltaics Conference Proceedings Agriculture Construction Photovoltaics Renewable Energy |
| title | Lessons Learned from Three Agrivoltaic Installations in New Jersey |
| title_full | Lessons Learned from Three Agrivoltaic Installations in New Jersey |
| title_fullStr | Lessons Learned from Three Agrivoltaic Installations in New Jersey |
| title_full_unstemmed | Lessons Learned from Three Agrivoltaic Installations in New Jersey |
| title_short | Lessons Learned from Three Agrivoltaic Installations in New Jersey |
| title_sort | lessons learned from three agrivoltaic installations in new jersey |
| topic | Agriculture Construction Photovoltaics Renewable Energy |
| url | https://www.tib-op.org/ojs/index.php/agripv/article/view/1357 |
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