Abstract
The determination of the levels of solar radiation incident on the terrestrial surface (W·m−2) is essential for several areas such as architecture, agriculture, health, power generation, telecommunications, and climate forecasting models. The high cost of acquiring and maintaining radiometric equipment makes it difficult to create and expand monitoring networks. It contributes to the limited Brazilian radiometric network and affects the understanding and availability of this variable. This paper presents the development of a new surface solar radiation measurement system based on silicon photodiodes (Si) with a spectral range between 300 nm and 1400 nm incorporating Internet of Things (IoT) technology with an estimated cost of USD 200. The proposed system can provide instantaneous surface solar radiation levels, connectivity to wireless networks and an exclusive web system for monitoring data. For the sake of comparison, the results were compared with those provided by a government meteorology station (INMet). The prototype validation resulted in determination coefficients (R2) greater than 0.95 while the statistical analysis referred to the results and uncertainties for the range of ±500 kJ·m−2, less than 4.0% for the developed prototypes. The proposed system operates similarly to pyranometers based on thermopiles providing reliable readings, a low acquisition and maintenance cost, autonomous operation, and applicability in the most varied climatological and energy research types. The developed system is pending a patent at the National Institute of Industrial Property under registration BR1020200199846.
Highlights
Solar radiation per unit area (W·m−2), or irradiance, is an essential variable for several applications including renewable energies, agriculture, health, engineering, and architecture
The two types of pyranometers differ in spectral sensitivity, time response and implementation cost [2,3,4]
Pyranometers based on thermopiles have a spectral sensitivity of between 300 nm and 2800 nm with a time response higher than 10 s and a cost that can surpass USD 10,000
Summary
Solar radiation per unit area (W·m−2), or irradiance, is an essential variable for several applications including renewable energies, agriculture, health, engineering, and architecture. The developed system was aimed at photovoltaic applications, measuring the diffuse and global components of solar radiation This system utilized low-cost microcontrollers to obtain global solar radiation values from sensors and transmit them to cloud-based data. Balan et al [12] developed a system to monitor solar radiation based on a microcontroller and data transmission via a wireless network. Commercial solutions that combine measurement irradiation with wireless data transfer technology are scarce and expensive, leading to the development of systems that combine the continuous monitoring of surface solar irradiation with the IoT, reducing cost and uncertainty [13,14]. It comprises an irradiation sensor, an indicator for status/alert messages, a signal conditioning circuit, and a low-consuming energy microcontroller.
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