Agriculture: how to create the perfect microclimate using solar panels

Following an initial phase focusing on fixed panels, the project was extended to include the study of systems fitted with solar trackers, which adjust their angle throughout the day. The continuous variation in shading introduces further complexities into the relationship between energy production and crop conditions.

To address these challenges, the project integrates environmental data, three-dimensional geometric models and computational fluid dynamics simulations using the open-source OpenFoam platform. The aim is to provide designers and operators with a tool to compare different configurations before making changes to the actual plant, identifying solutions that take into account both electricity generation and agronomic requirements.

The potential environmental impacts are significant, particularly in a context where rising temperatures and increasingly erratic rainfall are making crop management more challenging. The shade provided by the panels, if properly designed, can help to limit evapotranspiration, reducing water loss from the soil-plant system and mitigating crops’ exposure to excessive solar radiation. The ability to manage these interactions through digital models paves the way for a more efficient use of water resources and, in the long term, for restoring the productive capacity of land that is increasingly exposed to the effects of global warming.

“Agriculture is becoming more sustainable because, with access to greater amounts of data, we can learn to manage it better: using less water and fewer pesticides, improving productivity and reducing the inputs required, thereby lowering the carbon footprint,” observes Comodi. “We must combine environmental sustainability with economic sustainability; farms today are struggling to remain viable, and the ability to generate energy whilst producing food can help strengthen their economic stability,”

The growing availability of environmental, meteorological and satellite data represents a strategic resource for agriculture, but the ability to collect, integrate and transform this data into useful decision-making tools remains one of the main challenges for businesses. It is in this area that Ifab, a foundation active within the innovation ecosystem of the Bologna Dama Technology Park , plays a key role, with the aim of facilitating the transfer of scientific expertise and advanced technologies to the production sector.

A role set to grow stronger following the recent accession to the National Agritech Centre, the research hub established as part of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR) and coordinated by the University of Naples Federico II, which brings together 28 universities, five research centres and 18 major companies in the agri-food sector within a public-private network. “This partnership will enable us to bring the expertise and solutions developed in Emilia-Romagna – from climate models to digital twins – to a national level, making the most of the supercomputing capabilities at the Dama Technopole and our research and innovation network,” says Marco Becca, Director General of the IFAB Foundation. “The aim is to bring research closer to farmers, transforming advanced technologies into practical and accessible tools for a more sustainable, resilient and competitive agricultural sector.”

Microclimate is an example of this collaborative model. The Akren Group has contributed its industry expertise and a pilot plant, whilst the involvement of the other partners has enabled the integration of different areas of expertise, ranging from modelling to data management. Among these is auticon, a company specialising in technology services and characterised by a model of workplace inclusion for people with autism, whose contribution lies in its expertise in data processing and artificial intelligence.

The collaboration with the National Agritech Centre is, moreover, part of a wider initiative in which IFAB is actively involved across various areas of agricultural innovation. Alongside Microclimate, the Foundation has contributed to the development of SowStain, a project dedicated to precision agriculture that uses a digital twin to integrate environmental and agronomic data and simulate alternative scenarios for crop and water management. Added to this is Tornatura, a free, open-source web app that combines field observations, weather information and official plant health bulletins to estimate the risk of downy mildew in vines and support farmers and agronomists in planning their interventions.

Three different applications, all of which share the ability to transform large amounts of information into decision-support tools, thereby bridging the gap between scientific research and the day-to-day operations of farms.

The digital twin is also a building block in a wider transformation. The integration of agronomic data, energy information and forecasting systems can power decision-support platforms capable of identifying correlations that are difficult to interpret through human observation alone.

The next stage of development concerns the electrification of agricultural activities and the use of autonomous machinery, offering the potential to gradually reduce dependence on fossil fuels used for transport, irrigation and the processing of produce.

However, this approach faces obstacles that are not merely technological. Data sharing between businesses, links with research, the training of new professionals and acceptance of changes to the landscape are all crucial factors in supporting the roll-out of these models.

“We need to bring research closer to businesses and invest in skills, so that innovation can be translated into practical applications even in smaller companies,” concludes Becca.

The challenge of next-generation agrivoltaics therefore lies in the ability to transform dual land use into an integrated system, in which energy, water, crops and information all contribute to improving the overall efficiency of agricultural activity. The aim goes beyond the production of renewable electricity: to make agriculture more resilient to climate change whilst ensuring it remains economically sustainable.