Evaluation of the Performance of Polycrystalline and Monocrystalline PV Technologies in a Hot and Arid Region: An Experimental Analysis

Abstract

In arid regions, the behavior of solar panels changes significantly compared to the datasheets provided by the manufacturer. Therefore, the objective of this study is to determine the performance of both polycrystalline and monocrystalline solar modules in an arid region characterized by a large potential for solar irradiation and high temperatures. The influence of environmental parameters, such as temperature and dust, on the output power of solar modules with different technologies (monocrystalline and polycrystalline) has been investigated. The Artificial Hummingbirds Algorithm (AHA) has been used to extract parameters for PV modules. As a result, it has been demonstrated that for high solar irradiation, the polycrystalline PV module experiences a smaller decrease in output power than the monocrystalline PV module as the module temperature increases. The percentage drop in output power is approximately 14% for the polycrystalline PV module and nearly 16% for the monocrystalline PV module. However, for low solar irradiation, it is advisable to use monocrystalline modules, as a 21% decrease in power was observed for polycrystalline modules compared to a 9% decrease for monocrystalline modules. Additionally, the monocrystalline PV module was more affected by dust than the polycrystalline PV module under high solar irradiation conditions, while under low incident solar radiation, the polycrystalline PV module was more affected by dust than the monocrystalline PV module. The power drop of the monocrystalline PV module was greater than that of the polycrystalline PV module for high solar radiation (>500 W/m2). Therefore, the advantage of this proposed work is to recommend the use of polycrystalline solar panels in regions characterized by high solar irradiation and high temperatures instead of monocrystalline solar panels, which are more efficient in regions worldwide characterized by low solar irradiation and low temperatures.