This October 2024, the SENS-AR project has officially started, with a budget of €50,000 and a planned duration of two years. The primary aim of the project is to optimise and validate a low-cost, highly integrable multisensor platform for the monitoring of photovoltaic (PV) installations and environmental and soil conditions in agricultural settings. This research is led by Dr. Víctor Izquierdo from the Department of Materials and Systems for Solar Energy at IREC.

SENS-AR aims to address the growing demand for efficient solutions in the emerging field of agrovoltaics. Currently, knowledge of the agronomic and electrical performance of agrovoltaic systems is limited and is mainly based on simulations. Therefore, the project focuses on using smart sensors that allow real-time monitoring of both the conditions of photovoltaic panels and crops, including environmental factors, soil chemistry, and plant health and growth parameters.

The platform to be developed will be modular, customisable, autonomous, and easy to install, thanks to a plug-and-play system. It will include dust sensors for the solar panels, environmental and electrical sensors, and will allow precise monitoring, with a deviation of less than 1% in the measured parameters. The project also plans to install fully functional outdoor prototypes.

The project will be developed in two main phases: a prototyping phase at IREC’s facilities in Sant Adrià de Besòs, and an implementation and validation phase of a demonstrator at Prima’s facilities in Gurb, where the platform will be integrated into a 100 m² agricultural field.

With this project, SENS-AR aims to contribute to the growth of agrovoltaics, promoting the simultaneous production of energy and food in the same space, while offering innovative technological solutions to address current environmental and economic challenges.

Acknowledgements (in Catalan)

Actuació del Pla Estratègic de la PAC 2023-2027 cofinançada per: