Solar-biomass hybrid renewable energy system for controlled environment agriculture in developing regions: A systematic review and research direction

¹ Department of Electrical & Electronics Engineering, Federal University of Technology, Minna P.M.B 65, Niger State, Nigeria ;
² Department of Electrical & Electronics Engineering Science, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg 2006, South Africa ;
³ Department of Horticulture, Federal University of Technology, Minna P.M.B 65, Niger State, Nigeria.

^* Corresponding author: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Abstract

In tropical underdeveloped countries, inadequate and unreliable electricity hinders the adoption of controlled environment agriculture (CEA) greenhouse farming, which could increase farm produce and reduce food insecurity. To meet the power supply challenge, countries with abundant renewable energy resources should embrace viable sustainable energy solution, such as a solar-biomass hybrid energy system. This study presents a Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA)-guided review of fifteen peer-reviewed studies to show that the deployment of solar-biomass hybrid systems for CEA-greenhouse farming is scarce in tropical regions. Furthermore, the regular simulation-based and metaheuristic algorithms - such as genetic algorithms and particle swarm optimisation - commonly used to resolve hybrid renewable energy systems (HRES) do not account for the dynamic nature of greenhouse loads, integration of reliability factors, joint optimisation of system sizing and dispatch, solutions tailored for tropical conditions, and validation of optimisation outcomes. In view of these gaps, a five-layer framework comprising contextual resource modelling, component realism, joint optimisation, resilience engineering and prototype validation is proposed. This review charts a pathway from heavy simulation-based studies to resilient, site-specific applications for tropical greenhouse farming, explicitly linking methodological advances with practical deployment to strengthen energy access and sustainable food production goals.