Investigation of Bifacial Gain and Albedo of Bifacial Photovoltaic Modules that Operate in a Tropical Site

This paper investigates the impact of ground materials and albedo on the performance of bifacial photovoltaic (PV) modules in tropical regions. This research holds significance as it fills a critical gap in the existing literature, providing a comprehensive exploration of bifacial gain and albedo in tropical regions using an experimental setup. The experimental setup involved the installation of monofacial and bifacial PV modules with standard installation practices commonly employed in Malaysia. Various ground materials-concrete, white gravel, soil, and grass-were placed beneath the panels to analyze their effects on module performance. At the end of the study, the results showed the potential of a bifacial PV system in the tropics. The calculated bifacial gain in this study ranges from 8.7
^%
to 16.5%, depending on the ground materials applied. Compared to other bifacial PV system design research using only simulations, this paper emphasizes the importance of considering albedo variability, which could significantly impact bifacial gain in tropical regions. The results demonstrate a linear relationship between albedo and bifacial gain values. This study provides valuable insights for the PV industry, offering guidance in module selection for cost-effective PV plant installations. The calculated albedo and bifacial gain will serve as the reference range for the PV industry.