"East-west orientation? Here are two new approaches to designing your solar project"

" \n East-west orientation? Here are two new approaches to designing your solar project \n \n\n \n The\u00a0 Netherlands Organization for Applied Scientific Research (TNO) \u00a0has designed a new approach for building east-west-oriented solar parks which it claims can prevent soil deterioration and offer the same yield as south-oriented PV plants. \n \n\n \n In a dedicated study , the Dutch scientists explained that, although east-west solar parks are becoming increasingly popular in the Netherlands where land constraints and high land costs are pushing developers to build solar plants with a highly packed panel density, these installations present a challenge for the soil, because they are placed so closely together and cover almost all the ground beneath, thus reducing the light reaching it over a 25-year period or more. \n \n\n \n According to the researchers, industry-standard east-west solar parks built in the country have a ground coverage ratio of over 90%, which is highly detrimental for the soil beneath the panels. \n \n\n \n \u201cIt will then take a great deal of time and effort to restore the soil quality that existed before the solar farm was constructed,\u201d the TNO scientists said. \n \n\n \n To combat this, the researchers have developed two variants of their novel design. The first sees module arrays built in portrait orientation that are eight meters long, feature a large gap between the arrays, and have a ground coverage ratio of around 77%. \n \n\n \n Read: The world\u2019s largest solar power stations \n \n\n \n \u201cClearly the irradiance below the bottom gap between an east\u2013\u00a0and a west\u2013facing module is very high but it also allows more light in the immediate region below\u00a0those modules,\u201d the academics said. \u201cAlso the larger top gap allows more light and distributes that light over\u00a0a fairly large region.\u201d \n \n\n \n In the second variant, which has\u00a0the same ground coverage ratio\u00a0as the first, the scientists\u00a0halved the height of the module arrays\u00a0and the size of the gaps and, at the same time, utilized semi-transparent bifacial modules.\u00a0 \n \n\n \n \u201cA 77% coverage design with semi-transparent, bifacial panels scores better in terms of the effect on soil quality than south-facing standard panels with 53% coverage. As a result, almost 100% of the soil receives sufficient sunlight at a higher degree of coverage,\u201d they further explained. \n \n\n \n The TNO said this new research is in line with another study published earlier this year by the Netherlands\u2019 Wageningen University & Research, on the\u00a0 effects of solar parks on biodiversity .\u201c \n \n\n \n The \u201ceducated guess\u201d of the project partners is that well-designed, operated, and maintained solar parks can have a positive impact compared to well-defined reference situations, and especially compared to intensive agricultural monoculture use,\u201d Wim Sinke, principal scientist for solar energy at the energy transition unit of TNO, told\u00a0 pv magazine \u00a0in May 2021. \n "

"East-west orientation? Here are two new approaches to designing your solar project"

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