Vertical Bifacial Photovoltaic Testbed and Ground Irradiance Measurements

A collection of ground irradiance data collected for validating optical models of vertically-oriented bifacial photovoltaic systems, particularly in agrivoltaic applications. It was compiled by researchers for a study on vertical PV system model validation across various orientations and latitudes. The data is provided as open source by the Department of Energy.

Use Cases

• Validate optical models for vertically-oriented bifacial photovoltaic systems using ground irradiance data.
• Study the performance of vertical PV arrays in agrivoltaic settings by analyzing ground irradiance measurements.
• Compare model predictions against field data for bifacial PV systems under high albedo conditions.
• Analyze ground irradiance patterns for vertical PV systems to inform system design and placement.

Strengths

• Data is provided by the U.S. Department of Energy, an authoritative source for energy research.
• Dataset is openly licensed under CC-BY, allowing for broad reuse and distribution.
• Focuses on vertical bifacial PV systems and agrivoltaics, which are specific and relevant research areas.

Limitations

• The dataset is provided in BIN file format, which may require specialized tools or libraries for access and processing.
• No column definitions or sample data are provided, making initial exploration and understanding of the data structure difficult.
• The total size and number of data points (rows) are unknown, limiting assessment of its scale and completeness.

Provenance

Source

Department of Energy

Collection Method

Field data collection for model validation, as described in the associated study by Tonita et al.

Freshness

The dataset was last updated in March 2026, indicating it is current.

Geography

Golden, Colorado, USA