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Bifacial solar photovoltaics – A technology review

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  • Guerrero-Lemus, R.
  • Vega, R.
  • Kim, Taehyeon
  • Kimm, Amy
  • Shephard, L.E.

Abstract

Bifacial solar photovoltaics (PV) is a promising mature technology that increases the production of electricity per square meter of PV module through the use of light absorption from the albedo. This review describes current state-of-the-art bifacial solar PV technology based on a comprehensive examination of nearly 400 papers published since 1979 (approximately 40% are referenced in this work) focused on illuminating additional research and development opportunities to enhance and assess performance and expand bifacial technology׳s overall contribution within a rapidly expanding global solar market. Research and development efforts on bifacial PV should continue to emphasize improved efficiency in cells, module reliability and deployment configuration of bifacial arrays in a PV plant to co-optimize front-backside energy production during the entire day for fixed and tracking systems. Research on improved conversion efficiencies associated with monofacial PV cells will also continue to benefit bifacial PV performance. Standardization of certification procedures for bifacial PV technology performance efficiency and expansion of niche applications is required to promote wider deployment worldwide.

Suggested Citation

  • Guerrero-Lemus, R. & Vega, R. & Kim, Taehyeon & Kimm, Amy & Shephard, L.E., 2016. "Bifacial solar photovoltaics – A technology review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 60(C), pages 1533-1549.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:rensus:v:60:y:2016:i:c:p:1533-1549
    DOI: 10.1016/j.rser.2016.03.041
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Martins, Florinda, 2017. "PV sector in the European Union countries – Clusters and efficiency," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 74(C), pages 173-177.
    2. Katsikogiannis, Odysseas Alexandros & Ziar, Hesan & Isabella, Olindo, 2022. "Integration of bifacial photovoltaics in agrivoltaic systems: A synergistic design approach," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 309(C).
    3. Herez, Amal & Ramadan, Mohamad & Khaled, Mahmoud, 2018. "Review on solar cooker systems: Economic and environmental study for different Lebanese scenarios," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 81(P1), pages 421-432.
    4. Baloch, Ahmer A.B. & Hammat, Said & Figgis, Benjamin & Alharbi, Fahhad H. & Tabet, Nouar, 2020. "In-field characterization of key performance parameters for bifacial photovoltaic installation in a desert climate," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 159(C), pages 50-63.
    5. Hua, Zhengcao & Ma, Chao & Lian, Jijian & Pang, Xiulan & Yang, Weichao, 2019. "Optimal capacity allocation of multiple solar trackers and storage capacity for utility-scale photovoltaic plants considering output characteristics and complementary demand," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 238(C), pages 721-733.
    6. Nagaoka, Akira & Ota, Yasuyuki & Sakai, Kentaro & Araki, Kenji & Matsuo, Hideki & Kadota, Naoki & Maeda, Kengo & Nakajima, Akihiko & Nishioka, Kensuke, 2021. "Performance evaluation and spectrum-based analysis of a wall-mounted photovoltaic system for zero-energy building," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 174(C), pages 147-156.
    7. Faisal Masood & Nursyarizal Bin Mohd Nor & Perumal Nallagownden & Irraivan Elamvazuthi & Rahman Saidur & Mohammad Azad Alam & Javed Akhter & Mohammad Yusuf & Mubbashar Mehmood & Mujahid Ali, 2022. "A Review of Recent Developments and Applications of Compound Parabolic Concentrator-Based Hybrid Solar Photovoltaic/Thermal Collectors," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(9), pages 1-30, May.
    8. Jouttijärvi, Sami & Lobaccaro, Gabriele & Kamppinen, Aleksi & Miettunen, Kati, 2022. "Benefits of bifacial solar cells combined with low voltage power grids at high latitudes," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 161(C).
    9. Patel, M. Tahir & Khan, M. Ryyan & Sun, Xingshu & Alam, Muhammad A., 2019. "A worldwide cost-based design and optimization of tilted bifacial solar farms," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 247(C), pages 467-479.
    10. Khan, M. Ryyan & Hanna, Amir & Sun, Xingshu & Alam, Muhammad A., 2017. "Vertical bifacial solar farms: Physics, design, and global optimization," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 206(C), pages 240-248.
    11. Valle, B. & Simonneau, T. & Sourd, F. & Pechier, P. & Hamard, P. & Frisson, T. & Ryckewaert, M. & Christophe, A., 2017. "Increasing the total productivity of a land by combining mobile photovoltaic panels and food crops," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 206(C), pages 1495-1507.
    12. Tina, Giuseppe Marco & Bontempo Scavo, Fausto & Merlo, Leonardo & Bizzarri, Fabrizio, 2021. "Analysis of water environment on the performances of floating photovoltaic plants," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 175(C), pages 281-295.
    13. Gu, Wenbo & Ma, Tao & Li, Meng & Shen, Lu & Zhang, Yijie, 2020. "A coupled optical-electrical-thermal model of the bifacial photovoltaic module," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 258(C).
    14. Sun, Xingshu & Khan, Mohammad Ryyan & Deline, Chris & Alam, Muhammad Ashraful, 2018. "Optimization and performance of bifacial solar modules: A global perspective," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 212(C), pages 1601-1610.
    15. Zhong, Jianmei & Zhang, Wei & Xie, Lingzhi & Zhao, Oufan & Wu, Xin & Zeng, Xiding & Guo, Jiahong, 2023. "Development and challenges of bifacial photovoltaic technology and application in buildings: A review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 187(C).
    16. Guerrero-Lemus, R. & Cañadillas-Ramallo, D. & Reindl, T. & Valle-Feijóo, J.M., 2019. "A simple big data methodology and analysis of the specific yield of all PV power plants in a power system over a long time period," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 107(C), pages 123-132.
    17. Jing Zhang & Xian-Gang Hu & Kangyu Ji & Songru Zhao & Dongtao Liu & Bowei Li & Peng-Xiang Hou & Chang Liu & Lirong Liu & Samuel D. Stranks & Hui-Ming Cheng & S. Ravi P. Silva & Wei Zhang, 2024. "High-performance bifacial perovskite solar cells enabled by single-walled carbon nanotubes," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-12, December.
    18. Subhash C. Singh & Mohamed ElKabbash & Zilong Li & Xiaohan Li & Bhabesh Regmi & Matthew Madsen & Sohail A. Jalil & Zhibing Zhan & Jihua Zhang & Chunlei Guo, 2020. "Solar-trackable super-wicking black metal panel for photothermal water sanitation," Nature Sustainability, Nature, vol. 3(11), pages 938-946, November.
    19. Patel, M. Tahir & Vijayan, Ramachandran A. & Asadpour, Reza & Varadharajaperumal, M. & Khan, M. Ryyan & Alam, Muhammad A., 2020. "Temperature-dependent energy gain of bifacial PV farms: A global perspective," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 276(C).
    20. Carlos Cárdenas-Bravo & Rodrigo Barraza & Antonio Sánchez-Squella & Patricio Valdivia-Lefort & Federico Castillo-Burns, 2021. "Estimation of Single-Diode Photovoltaic Model Using the Differential Evolution Algorithm with Adaptive Boundaries," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(13), pages 1-24, June.

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