A Study of the Effect of Optical Filters on the Performance of Solar Panel

Abstract

In metropolitan areas, there is an uneven distribution of sunlight due to building structures, pollution, etc. The solar panel can perform optimally under standard testing conditions only. Due to the dynamic solar irradiation and environmental temperature variation, the solar panel can't operate optimally. As a result of temperature changes, solar panels lose up to 10% of their efficiency. This article aims to improve solar panel efficiency by reducing the solar panel’s temperature using acrylic optical filters. In this research, an Experimental investigation was conducted with a 20 W solar panel. Transparent acrylic box filters with a coolant setup are used to increase the efficiency of the solar panel. Transparent colour optical filters reduce the unwanted infrared radiation from solar irradiation. Through the use of optical acrylic filters surmounted on top of the solar panel, the PV panel’s output power increased by reducing the solar panel temperature. As a result, the temperature of the solar panel reduces which enriches its efficiency of the solar panel. A comparative Analysis of solar panel efficiency and power is carried out with and without coolant in the optical acrylic filters. From the experimental results, it can be concluded that the pink-coloured acrylic sheet with water coolant performed most efficiently when compared to other colours There was an approximately 11% increase in the panel efficiency.