• New & Renewable Energy
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.41-46
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• 2020

The share of agrophotovoltaics in the "renewable energy 3020", which is the Korean government policy for revitalizing new and renewable energy, is increasing gradually. In this study, the distribution of solar radiation received by crops growing on virtual farmland under a range of conditions, such as module height, module angle, shading ratio, and module type, was quantified and analyzed using an Ecotect program, which allows insolation analysis during the period from spring to fall. As the module angle increases, transmissive modules increase the amount of solar radiation delivered to the lower farmland. In addition, the difference between 3x12 Cell Type and 4x9 Cells Type, which are types of photovoltaic modules used in practice, was found to be small. The analysis results can be used as a design standard for the future establishment of agrophotovoltaic systems.

• The Journal of Information Systems
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.115-132
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• 2019

Purpose The purpose of this study is to explain the agrophotovolatic system built by the Korea South-East Power Company and to propose methods to activate the agrophotovolatic system for the development of the renewable energy industry. Design/methodology/approach We conducted a three-step simulation in order to design a photovoltaic module, and we built the agrophotovolatic system based on the results of the simulation. Then, we analyzed the monthly generation of power and the rice harvests produced on farmland using the photovoltaic module. Based on the results of the analysis, we proposed institutional improvements to increase the use of the agrophotovolatic system, and we proposed new business models to increase the participation of farmers and business persons. Findings When we compared the agrophotovolastic system with the general photovoltaic system, we found that the agrophotovoltaic system had higher utilization rates and power generation. An analysis of rice produced on farmland using the photovoltaic module showed that more than 80% of the rice produced on general farmland was harvested. We suggested activation plans that involved the revision of the farmland law and the introduction of renewable energy certificate (REC). We also proposed a land lease model and a farmer participation model as two new business models, and we conducted economic evaluations and sensitivity analyses for both models.

• Current Photovoltaic Research
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.45-50
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• 2021

Agrovoltaic system is a concept that combines agriculture and photovoltaic (PV) system by applying a PV system to the upper part of farmland. In this study, we developed a folding drive system for an agrophotovoltaic (agroPV) module (150 Wp/4×9 cell) exclusively for pear farming with 10 kW capacity. The system was installed in 2018, and the growth characteristics and quantity of pears under the agroPV folding system have been investigated for 2 years. We found that thare is no differences of the characteristics of pears grown under the agroPV system compared to the pears grown without the system (control) except the percutaneous color L of pear. However, the weight and sugar content of the pear grown under the agroPV system were decreased by 4.5% and 1.3°Bx compared to that of the control, respectively. We assume that this is mainly due to the influenced of the delay in flowering as upper PV module block some of sunlight. However, interestingly, when we deleyed the pear harvesting by 2 weeks, the weight of pears increased by 8.5% and they became nearly the sample as the control pears harvested 2 week earlier. In addition, we also found that the agroPV modules decrease the fall rate of pear when the typoon struck, also it mitigates cold damage by 38% during April by protecting from frost. In conclusion, it can be said that the agroPV system help to protect target crops from the environmental conditions and the quality of the crops are similar to the that of control.

• Journal of Korean Society of Industrial and Systems Engineering
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• v.45 no.4
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• pp.180-186
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• 2022

Agrophotovoltaic (APV) system is an integrated system producing crops as well as solar energy. Because crop production underneath Photovoltaic (PV) modules requires delicate management of crops, smart farming equipment such as real-time remote monitoring sensors (e.g., soil moisture sensors) and micro-climate monitoring sensors (e.g., thermometers and irradiance sensors) is installed in the APV system. This study aims at introducing a decision support system (DSS) for smart farming in an APV system. The proposed DSS is devised to provide a mobile application service, satellite image processing, real-time data monitoring, and performance estimation. Particularly, the real-time monitoring data is used as an input of the DSS system for performance estimation of an APV system in terms of production yields of crops and monetary benefit so that a data-driven function is implemented in the proposed system. The proposed DSS is validated with field data collected from an actual APV system at the Jeollanamdo Agricultural Research and Extension Services in South Korea. As a result, farmers and engineers enable to efficiently produce solar energy without causing harmful impact on regular crop production underneath PV modules. In addition, the proposed system will contribute to enhancement of the smart farming technology in the field of agriculture.