A novel technique of schedule tracker for parabolic dish concentrator.

Abstract

Tracking is important in a system that harnesses solar energy. Single axis tracking mechanism is cheaper and simple to develop but because of the limitation of tracking axis, this system is less efficient than dual axis. Dual-axis tracking systems necessitate a large number of equipment, sensors, motors, and a lengthy computer program to function properly. Therefore, in the present study, a novel method of solar tracking has been discussed where each tracking point has the impact of both the azimuth and altitude angle at a single point. This method is an average axis tracking method (AATM). HelioScope software was used to extract the hourly solar altitude and azimuth angles for each day and month for the site of Bhopal, India. The average method was then used to get the hourly average solar tracking angle (ASTA) for each month. The parabolic dish concentrator was designed in SolidWorks to apply and simulate the newly developed tracking points on SolTrace software. The graphical analysis was presented along with proper validation of the proposed method, and the single and dual axes were compared with AATM. The graphical study shows that the average axis tracking points have a smoother slop of wave than the single axis. From June to September, the proposed method's error was estimated between 0.85 and 0.95. It can be concluded that by making slight adjustments to the seasonal angle, this error could be minimized and the concept could be successfully applied to a parabolic dish or a solar PV system.