Resource potential mapping of bifacial photovoltaic systems in India

Bifacial photovoltaic is one of the technologies that can spearhead Indian ambitions to achieve the 7th United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and Nationally Determined Contributions of COP 26. But, like all emerging technology, the lack of awareness and unavailability of extensive data, like technol-ogy potential maps that could aid people in identifying the advantages of newer technologies, has led to sluggish growth in the Indian market. To expedite the growth of bifacial PV in the Indian market, opti-mized resource potential maps of bifacial PV were developed from an experimentally validated view fac-tor-based bifacial PV model. The annual average bifacial gain was found to vary between 2.5% and 22% at various locations in India. The effect of ground albedo and height of installation was also studied. Further-more, the annual and seasonal power out of bifacial PV was higher than monofacial PV at any location in India.

Automated summary

The study shows that promoting bifacial photovoltaic in the Indian market can accelerate its growth and support the achievement of sustainable development goals. Optimized resource potential maps of bifacial PV have been developed, and the impact of ground albedo and installation height has been studied. It is found that the annual and seasonal power output of bifacial PV is higher than monofacial PV at any location in India.