Field experimental study on a novel beehive integrated with solar thermal/photovoltaic system

Abstract Bees not only produce honey but also provide the main pollination for most crops, while long maturation cycle, low yield of honey and even mass death of bees are observed in traditional hives due to the unfriendly internal thermal condition. In the present paper, a new beehive system integrated with solar thermal/PV system was introduced to optimize the internal thermal condition of the beehive and then to improve the yield and quality of honey. A local bee farm was selected to evaluate the operating performance of the solar beehive in a real natural environment. Comparative filed testing of the solar hive and traditional hive were carried out under different operating modes depending on the weather conditions all the year round. The variation of hive temperature, the quantity of honey collected, Baume degree and the amount of sugar feed consumption were measured and analyzed. The results showed that the air temperature in solar beehive was higher than that in traditional beehive in winter and transition seasons and lower in summer. The quantity of collected honey in the solar beehive was 15.8% more than that in the traditional beehive. The Baume degree indicated that honey can mature 2 days earlier in solar beehive. As to sugar feed consumption in winter, the corresponding quality in solar beehive was lower than that in traditional hive. These results indicated the feasibility of the conjunctive use of solar thermal/photovoltaic technology with the beehive that enlarges the solar energy applications.