Sustainability

A China-based research team conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of 147 studies on how solar PV systems alter land surface processes, covering 609 installations worldwide and 11 key climate variables. The results show mixed but mostly significant environmental effects, including reduced wind speed, albedo, and land surface or soil temperatures, alongside increased soil moisture, while air temperature changes remained largely non-significant.

A study from China shows rooftop PV systems on dairy barns can significantly reduce roof heat flux and improve indoor thermal conditions. Field measurements and simulations found up to a 2.3 C reduction in indoor temperature during peak afternoon heat stress periods.

Researchers in Canada designed an air-source heat pump integrated with an air-based solar collector and radiant floor heating for cold climates, showing that the proposed system configuratuon could improve the coefficient of performance from 2–4 to 2–6 and reduce significantly annual energy consumption.

Spanish researchers found that combining agrivoltaics with regulated deficit irrigation (RDI) can cut tomato irrigation water use by about 50%, while improving land-use efficiency through simultaneous crop and solar energy production.

A two-year field study in a 100 MW photovoltaic plant in semi-arid Inner Mongolia combined ground-based sensors, radiation measurements, and UAV thermal imaging to quantify how large-scale PV installations alter local air temperature, surface temperature, and energy balance compared with nearby non-PV areas. Results show consistent site-scale warming of 0.8 C.

Researchers in the United States reviewed claims about PFAS in solar panels and found that while fluoropolymers may be used in limited components like backsheets or coatings, there is no confirmed evidence of PFAS leaching from commercially deployed modules. The study highlights widespread confusion between different PFAS types and emphasizes the need for clearer communication and transparency around fluoropolymer use in PV technologies.

Researchers have analyzed the biomass and nutritional value of grasses and legumes for grazing dairy cattle, growing in agrivoltaics fields. The results showed that forage quality may be maintained or even enhanced in agrivoltaic environments.

Researchers in China found that PV plants in arid regions create a measurable cool island effect that varies strongly with season, location, and plant design, influencing surrounding vegetation in complex and spatially uneven ways. They showed that cooling intensity and distance differ widely across sites, are driven mainly by plant morphology,

A research team has developed a solvent-free method using ultrasonic cavitation to delaminate end-of-life crystalline-silicon PV modules, fully separating the glass and front EVA layer while partially releasing c-Si fragments. The proposed approach achieved an 82.2% mass-based delamination efficiency, highlighting ultrasonic cavitation as a sustainable alternative for PV module recycling.

A study of 20 solar parks in southern France found that soil biodiversity and respiration drop significantly under panels, especially in mown areas, while plant traits like height and leaf area can increase under grazing. The researchers highlighted that climate, management type, and solar shading all shape soil and plant responses.