Agrivoltaics, saving farms

[Old Rocks]

I didn't say i was Old one......yet there's a dif betwixt pollution 4 miles out in the atmosphere vs. 4 feet above a 'food supply' .......which are you ok with?

~S~

Silly ass, the pollution from a coal fired plant is not four mile up in the atmosphere. Most of the time, it is less than 1000 ft above the source. And the ability of water to leach out the metals in the silicon panel is rather limited. You fellows are still standing in the horse turds by the highway, screaming "Get a horse". Renewables are the future, while gas and nuclear get increasingly expensive every year, solar and wind, plus storage, are getting less costly every year.

 

[Moonglow]

Another estimate, with a rather good EROI;

"Solar farms use photovoltaic (PV) technology to convert sunlight into electricity, generating power through multiple solar panels or arrays. The energy output of a solar farm depends on factors such as capacity, solar irradiance, and weather conditions. An acre of solar panels can produce around 250 KWs of solar power with ideal terrain and set-up. On average, an acre of PV solar panel arrays can produce around 5, 000 to 12, 000 kWH of electricity per year.

The amount of land required for a solar power operation is conservatively estimated to be 10 acres. The amount of electricity produced by an acre of solar panels depends on the type of panels used, geographical location, and installation efficiency. On average, an acre of solar panels can produce around 350-450 MWh of electricity per year. Assuming the solar panels receive an average of 5 peak sunlight hours per day, 1 acre of solar panels could potentially produce around 4, 225. 5 kWh of electricity per year.

A commercial solar farm can produce up to 5 MW on approximately 25 acres of land, enough to power 10, 000 homes. A conservative estimate for the footprint of solar development is that it takes 10 acres to produce one MW of electricity. A 1-acre solar farm with 4, 050 panels, each 250 watts, might produce 90, 000-110, 000 kilowatt-hours of power yearly. Solar produces 447 MWh/acre, and the net EROI for solar is about 90 or higher, resulting in a net energy production from solar of 400 MWh/acre or so."

How Much Power Can A Solar Farm Produce Per Acre

The amount of land required for a solar power operation is conservatively estimated to be 10 acres. The amount of electricity produced by an acre of solar panels depends on the type of panels used, geographical location, and installation efficiency.

greenbusinessbarbados.com

Sign me up. I have 43 acres.

 

[Maxdeath]

We export food because we have an oversupply of food.

Oh wow that took some real thought. Almost as much as tying your shoe

 

[Toddsterpatriot]

Well, well.
The average wholesale price of electricity in the US varies by region and market. For example, prices in the Midwest and Louisiana reached as high as $161.00/MWh and $166.00/MWh, respectively, towards the end of July 2025. In the first half of 2025, average wholesale electricity prices rose year-on-year in various regions, including the US, amid higher gas prices. However, specific average prices for the entire year are not provided in the available data.
https://www.bing.com/ck/a?!&&p=2e99...L3VwZGF0ZS93aG9sZXNhbGUtbWFya2V0cy5waHA&ntb=1
U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA)+1

This output implies that a solar farm can produce between 250-300 kilowatt-hours (kWh) daily per acre. To estimate energy production, one can multiply the number of panels, their respective power output, and the daily sunlight hours.
https://www.bing.com/ck/a?!&&p=2e99...L3VwZGF0ZS93aG9sZXNhbGUtbWFya2V0cy5waHA&ntb=1
So, 250 kw x 365 = 91,250 kw per year, or 91 Mw. 91 Mw at $161 = $14,650. Yep, should have checked their math. Apparently looked at the total yield for farm products and electricity. However, for a 3000 acre farm, Rainy Days number, that would be about $44,000,000. Apparently these numbers add up to profitability because they are putting up solar farms in Texas as fast as they can build them. https://www.bing.com/ck/a?!&&p=2e99...L3VwZGF0ZS93aG9sZXNhbGUtbWFya2V0cy5waHA&ntb=1

Thanks for the links.

So, 250 kw x 365 = 91,250 kw per year, or 91 Mw. 91 Mw at $161 = $14,650.

$14,650 of revenue, not $50,000 of profit?

Wow!

That is an enormous difference, don't you think?

Now, how much did it cost to buy and install the acre of solar panels?

 

[ding]

Apparently you did not read the article. They are growing food under those panels. Agrivoltaics is using the land both to grow food and generate electricity. Quite often, they produce more food under the panels than they would otherwise because of the effect of preserving soil moisture.

Who knew that converting solar radiation into electricity that would have otherwise warmed the surface of the planet would cause a localized cooling effect thereby preserving more moisture? Shocking.

 

[toobfreak]

Who knew that converting solar radiation into electricity that would have otherwise warmed the surface of the planet would cause a localized cooling effect thereby preserving more moisture? Shocking.

Actually, don't physical laws pretty much demand that happen? You are taking energy from one place and transforming it into a different form elsewhere! So of course there is a localized cooling, you have robbed the Earth of energy it used to receive as heating. Anything less and you'd actually be violating the fundamental laws of the universe, you would be /creating/ energy.

 

[Toddsterpatriot]

Actually, don't physical laws pretty much demand that happen? You are taking energy from one place and transforming it into a different form elsewhere! So of course there is a localized cooling, you have robbed the Earth of energy it used to receive as heating. Anything less and you'd actually be violating the fundamental laws of the universe, you would be /creating/ energy.

And it heats the location where the electricity is used.

 

[ding]

Actually, don't physical laws pretty much demand that happen? You are taking energy from one place and transforming it into a different form elsewhere! So of course there is a localized cooling, you have robbed the Earth of energy it used to receive as heating. Anything less and you'd actually be violating the fundamental laws of the universe, you would be /creating/ energy.

Yes. Now consider that generating electricity from fossil fuels doesn't create a localized cooling effect and has waste heat of 40% to 60% that solar doesn't have.

 

[ding]

And it heats the location where the electricity is used.

Just like electricity from fossil fuels does but without the waste heat from generating it.

Waste heat from fossil fuel power plants is significantly higher than from solar power because fossil fuels generate heat to turn turbines, but much of the energy is lost as heat and only a portion becomes electricity. Solar panels directly convert sunlight into electricity and have a much lower rate of waste heat, with a small amount released from the panel's physical components. For a single kilowatt-hour of useful electricity generated, fossil fuels release far more waste heat than solar power, while also producing greenhouse gas emissions.

Fossil fuel power plants

• Mechanism: These plants burn fossil fuels to create heat, which boils water to create steam that spins a turbine connected to a generator.
• Waste heat: A large amount of the energy from the fuel is lost as waste heat during this process, with the majority of the original energy wasted before it even reaches your outlet. In some cases, for every kilowatt-hour of electricity produced, a fossil fuel plant can release around two kilowatt-hours of waste heat.
• Other emissions: Besides waste heat, they also release harmful greenhouse gases and other pollutants into the atmosphere.

Solar power

• Mechanism: Solar panels, or photovoltaic cells, directly convert sunlight into electricity through the photovoltaic effect.
• Waste heat: The waste heat comes from the physical components of the panel itself as it converts light into electricity. This is a much smaller amount compared to the thermal process in a fossil fuel plant, and for a 1kWh output, it produces a tiny fraction of the waste heat that a fossil fuel plant does.
• Other emissions: The process of converting sunlight into electricity is essentially emission-free, with no greenhouse gases or other pollutants being released.

 

[sparky]

If we took a average common solar panel installed in the last 15 years, smashed it up in a big bucket of water, the contents would likely include the following:

Organized alphabetically:

- Aluminum (Al)

- Aluminum-doped Zinc Oxide (AZO)

- Boron (B)

- Cadmium Sulfide (CdS)

- Cadmium Telluride (CdTe)

- Copper (Cu)

- Ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA)

- Gallium (Ga)

- Glass

- Hydrogen (H)

- Indium (In)

- Indium Tin Oxide (ITO)

- Lead (Pb)

- Molybdenum (Mo)

- Phosphorus (P)

- Plastic and Polymers

- Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET)

- Polyvinyl Butyral (PVB)

- Selenium (Se)

- Silicon (Si)

- Silicon dioxide (SiO2)

- Silver (Ag)

- Sodium (Na)

- Tedlar (PVF)

- Water (H20)

- Zinc Oxide (ZnO)

Which of these chemicals and constituents are you fine with in your garden?

~S~

 

[CrusaderFrank]

If we took a average common solar panel installed in the last 15 years, smashed it up in a big bucket of water, the contents would likely include the following:

Organized alphabetically:

- Aluminum (Al)

- Aluminum-doped Zinc Oxide (AZO)

- Boron (B)

- Cadmium Sulfide (CdS)

- Cadmium Telluride (CdTe)

- Copper (Cu)

- Ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA)

- Gallium (Ga)

- Glass

- Hydrogen (H)

- Indium (In)

- Indium Tin Oxide (ITO)

- Lead (Pb)

- Molybdenum (Mo)

- Phosphorus (P)

- Plastic and Polymers

- Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET)

- Polyvinyl Butyral (PVB)

- Selenium (Se)

- Silicon (Si)

- Silicon dioxide (SiO2)

- Silver (Ag)

- Sodium (Na)

- Tedlar (PVF)

- Water (H20)

- Zinc Oxide (ZnO)

Which of these chemicals and constituents are you fine with over your commercial food supply?

~S~

Me personally, I think that crops do better with all that modern chemistry

 

[Toddsterpatriot]

Just like electricity from fossil fuels does but without the waste heat from generating it.

Waste heat from fossil fuel power plants is significantly higher than from solar power because fossil fuels generate heat to turn turbines, but much of the energy is lost as heat and only a portion becomes electricity. Solar panels directly convert sunlight into electricity and have a much lower rate of waste heat, with a small amount released from the panel's physical components. For a single kilowatt-hour of useful electricity generated, fossil fuels release far more waste heat than solar power, while also producing greenhouse gas emissions.

Fossil fuel power plants

• Mechanism: These plants burn fossil fuels to create heat, which boils water to create steam that spins a turbine connected to a generator.
• Waste heat: A large amount of the energy from the fuel is lost as waste heat during this process, with the majority of the original energy wasted before it even reaches your outlet. In some cases, for every kilowatt-hour of electricity produced, a fossil fuel plant can release around two kilowatt-hours of waste heat.
• Other emissions: Besides waste heat, they also release harmful greenhouse gases and other pollutants into the atmosphere.

Solar power

• Mechanism: Solar panels, or photovoltaic cells, directly convert sunlight into electricity through the photovoltaic effect.
• Waste heat: The waste heat comes from the physical components of the panel itself as it converts light into electricity. This is a much smaller amount compared to the thermal process in a fossil fuel plant, and for a 1kWh output, it produces a tiny fraction of the waste heat that a fossil fuel plant does.
• Other emissions: The process of converting sunlight into electricity is essentially emission-free, with no greenhouse gases or other pollutants being released.

If we stop burning fossil fuels, there will be less waste heat?

Alert the media!

 

[Dekster]

If you happen to be near a substation, you can often rent a smaller portion of your land to host a battery farm if you so desire. There are companies out there that do them just to charge when prices are low and sell during peak hours.

 

[ding]

If we stop burning fossil fuels, there will be less waste heat?

Alert the media!

If you replace fossil fuels with solar power, yes. And you will also be reducing the solar radiation that warms the surface of the planet by converting it into electricity instead.

I can't think of a better way to usher in the next glacial period other than the widespread use of solar.

 

[ReinyDays]

Actually, don't physical laws pretty much demand that happen? You are taking energy from one place and transforming it into a different form elsewhere! So of course there is a localized cooling, you have robbed the Earth of energy it used to receive as heating. Anything less and you'd actually be violating the fundamental laws of the universe, you would be /creating/ energy.

We should also see the same effect with just a sheet of plywood painted black ... this is regulation air temperature, thermometers are kept in the shade ... temperature measurements in direct sunlight are ruled by Stefan/Boltzmann ... the only question is how non-ideal is the typical $10 Walmart thermometer that NOAA uses ...

With an embarrassing amount of assumptions, I come up with 5ºC cooler ... and that would be the surface of the solar panel ... not the air 50 feet above the farm ... especially on windy days ... oh, I didn't multiply by the cosine of latitude ... so 5ºC is at the Equator ... on the equinox ... and at local noon ... maximum sunlight ...

 

[ding]

We should also see the same effect with just a sheet of plywood painted black ... this is regulation air temperature, thermometers are kept in the shade ... temperature measurements in direct sunlight are ruled by Stefan/Boltzmann ... the only question is how non-ideal is the typical $10 Walmart thermometer that NOAA uses ...

With an embarrassing amount of assumptions, I come up with 5ºC cooler ... and that would be the surface of the solar panel ... not the air 50 feet above the farm ... especially on windy days ... oh, I didn't multiply by the cosine of latitude ... so 5ºC is at the Equator ... on the equinox ... and at local noon ... maximum sunlight ...

So you don't believe that converting photons into electricity that would have otherwise warmed the surface of the planet, has any effect on temperature?

 

[ReinyDays]

If we took a average common solar panel installed in the last 15 years, smashed it up in a big bucket of water, the contents would likely include the following:

Organized alphabetically:

- Aluminum (Al)

- Aluminum-doped Zinc Oxide (AZO)

- Boron (B)

- Cadmium Sulfide (CdS)

- Cadmium Telluride (CdTe)

- Copper (Cu)

- Ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA)

- Gallium (Ga)

- Glass

- Hydrogen (H)

- Indium (In)

- Indium Tin Oxide (ITO)

- Lead (Pb)

- Molybdenum (Mo)

- Phosphorus (P)

- Plastic and Polymers

- Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET)

- Polyvinyl Butyral (PVB)

- Selenium (Se)

- Silicon (Si)

- Silicon dioxide (SiO2)

- Silver (Ag)

- Sodium (Na)

- Tedlar (PVF)

- Water (H20)

- Zinc Oxide (ZnO)

Which of these chemicals and constituents are you fine with in your garden?

~S~

The cement used at footings has a nine page MSDS ...

The only known cure for concrete poisoning is beer ... keep a few six-packs handy if you ever pour a slab ...

 

[ding]

Instead of the solar energy being converted entirely to heat at the land surface, a portion of the incoming solar radiation (around 15-20%) is converted into electricity by the panels. This energy is exported away from the site, rather than remaining in the local environment as heat.

 

[ReinyDays]

If you replace fossil fuels with solar power, yes. And you will also be reducing the solar radiation that warms the surface of the planet by converting it into electricity instead.

I thought you said this was only a local effect ...

I can't think of a better way to usher in the next glacial period other than the widespread use of solar.

I really don't think the next glaciation needs humans to usher her in ... she coming whether we like it or not ... to stop her, we'll need to close off the Atlantic Ocean ... we'll just have to figure something out over these next 250 generations ...

 

[ReinyDays]

Instead of the solar energy being converted entirely to heat at the land surface, a portion of the incoming solar radiation (around 15-20%) is converted into electricity by the panels. This energy is exported away from the site, rather than remaining in the local environment as heat.

Citation? ... the Solar Constant is 1,360 W/m^2 ... the name plate rating on the typical Chinese panel is 200 W/m^2 ... American is only 20 W/m^2 ...

Are you multiplying by the cosine of latitude? ... that really messes up these quantitative values ...