German renewable energy company , the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE and their partners have built a kW research system for apples in the north of the state of Rhineland-Palatinate to test whether such systems can provide protection plants against harmful environmental influences. The five-yea research project is funded by the Rhineland-Palatinate State Ministry for Climate Protection, Environment, Energy and Land Mobility and the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture. The project occupies an area of square meters and the system covers a third of the plot. First research facility Over the next five years, researchers will explore the effect of a variety of solar modules on the cultivation of eight varieties of apples at the organic fruit farm in.
Experts say that apples are currently grown in the same place under four different crop protection systems : sheet roof (blocks rain), hail protection nets (does not block rain), APV with permanent photovoltaic modules and light permeable (blocks rain), and tracking of photovoltaic modules (blocks rain if necessary). Two different types of modules are used, with solar cells arranged in strips or a block pattern. The Phone Number List energy generated by the system can be used in upstream and downstream applications related to apple production. The Fraunhofer ISE explains that the tests aim to determine to what extent systems protect plants and fruits from harmful environmental influences such as hail, heavy rain, sunburn, frost or extreme temperatures.
Another objective of the project is to investigate to what extent different approaches to light management using different configurations of photovoltaic modules influence plant growth and crop yield. The researchers also want to analyze other aspects of the system related to landscape aesthetics, economic viability, social compatibility and plant cultivation parameters. BayWa re has already gained experience with . This includes a berry growing project at Agri-PV in the Netherlands. The company sees considerable potential in the combination of photovoltaic modules and permanent crops such as apples, pears, cherries, kiwis and others. “We believe that agrivoltaics research is a long-term solution that helps farmers adapt to the consequences of climate change.