THERMAL AND ENERGY BALANCE ANALYSIS OF SEMI-TRANSPARENT PV GREENHOUSES IN ARID CLIMATE CONDITIONS

Greenhouse cultivation in arid and semi-arid climates faces critical challenges due to excessive solar heat gain, high cooling demand, and non-uniform light distribution. Integrating semi-transparent photovoltaic panels into greenhouse roofs enables simultaneous power generation and solar-energy management, providing a viable path toward energy-autonomous food production systems. This paper presents a thermal and energy balance analysis of a monocrystalline STPV-integrated greenhouse designed for the arid climate of Samarkand Region, Uzbekistan (39.789° N, 60.7° E). The approach combines experimental spectral and electrical measurements with numerical heat-balance modeling, validated under real climatic conditions and benchmarked against previously reported greenhouse energy models in arid regions. Spectrophotometric analysis (190–900 nm) showed 85–95 % transmittance in the PAR range (400–700 nm) with complete UV blocking and high near-infrared transmission, ensuring sufficient photosynthetic light while preventing overheating. The canopy temperature inside the STPV greenhouse was observed to be 2–3 °C lower than that in conventional glass structures. The total optical transmittance (~54 %) provided a Daily Light Integral (DLI) of approximately 21 mol m⁻² day⁻¹, suitable for tomato, cucumber, and bell-pepper cultivation. Electrical testing using a WUHAN OOI OTMT-A solar module analyzer revealed an effective bifacial efficiency of 28.2 %, corresponding to 210–230 W m⁻² power o