A $2.4 million state grant funds research into dual-purpose solar panels that could prevent fruit damage while powering farm equipment in Washington orchards.
WASHINGTON, USA — Researchers at Washington State University are testing solar panels in Northwest orchards to evaluate their effectiveness and economic viability for both power generation and crop protection.
The Institute for Northwest Energy Futures in Tri-Cities hopes to demonstrate that the panels can provide clean energy for farm equipment while protecting high-value fruit from sun damage.
The research project received $2.4 million in grant money from Washington’s Department of Commerce to implement the dual-purpose solar panels, including a 1-acre demonstration system at a research orchard in Wenatchee, in partnership with European solar system company Sun’Agri.
The team believes installing protective solar panels at Washington’s highest-value orchards could prevent sunburn among popular apple varieties, including Cosmic Crisp, Honeycrisp and Granny Smith.
“When it gets really hot, the sunlight actually will heat up the surface temperatures of the apples and cause physiological defects that most people would look at and say, ‘it looks like rot,'” said Chad Kruger, assistant director of Agriculture, Extension and Outreach at INEF.
Horticulture specialists say up to 50% of the crop could be affected by sunburn if steps aren’t taken to mitigate the risk.
“You harvest the fruit, you spend all the money, you put in cold storage, six months later you pull it out and the fruit is damaged and unmarketable,” Kruger said.
The solar panels — which are already in use in Europe — help with more than just apples.
“There are quite a bit over wine grapes and some over vegetable production. This is probably the biggest installation over apples,” Kruger said.
Researchers say growers also benefit from the solar-generated power to operate their electric tractors, wind machines and irrigation pumps. The panels don’t take up additional land space when placed over crops.
Covering 10,000 acres of orchards with these dynamic “agrivoltaic” systems could provide more than 6,000 megawatts of installed power generation capacity, according to the team.
“We’re very high tech,” Kruger said. “Our apple industry is amongst the most high-tech apple industry in the world. The most high-tech agriculture industry in the world.”
If these solar panels prove effective and economical, researchers say they may play a significant role in meeting future clean-energy demands.
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