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Abstract
Bifacial photovoltaic (PV) modules capture solar radiation on both the front and rear surfaces, with the rear-side contribution strongly dependent on ground albedo. This study investigates the electrical performance of a bifacial solar photovoltaic (BFSV) module installed at Federal Polytechnic, Oko, Anambra State, Nigeria, under three ground surfaces: bare natural soil (albedo 0.19), dry sand (0.34–0.36), and white gravel (0.50–0.51). Front- and rear-side irradiance, short-circuit current (Isc), open-circuit voltage (Voc), maximum power (Pmax), fill factor, and bifacial gain were measured from July to September 2026. Raising ground albedo from 0.19 to 0.51 increased rear-side irradiance from 132 W/m² to 274 W/m² and raised module power from 418.3 W to 466.2 W. Bifacial gain increased from 6.8% under bare soil to 14.2% under white gravel and followed BG(%) = 24.1ρ + 2.1 (R² = 0.968). Ground-surface selection is therefore a low-cost lever for bifacial arrays in south-eastern Nigeria and at comparable tropical campuses.