SOLAR THERMAL ELECTRIC GENERATOR FOR AGRICULTURE

Abstract

Solar cells convert solar electromagnetic energy into electrical energy. When fully illuminated, one element generates electricity with a voltage of 0.5 volts. For practical use in generating electricity, solar cells are combined into a photo panel. (Research purpose) The research purpose is in developing a functional and technological scheme of a solar thermal electric generator for power supply to remote agricultural facilities using renewable solar energy. (Materials and methods) During the research there were used method of patent search on the websites of the Eurasian Patent Organization, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), Rospatent and Google Patents. The article presents the thermoelectric generator assembly based on Peltier thermoelectric modules and a solar concentrator for generating electricity. (Results and discussion) The article presents the functional and technological scheme of a heliothermoelectric power generator for agricultural power supply using renewable solar energy. The use of thermoelectric modules instead of photovoltaic panels was justified. Based on the dependence of the generated power on the temperatures of the hot and cold circuits of the thermoelectric module, there was chosen the generator type of the thermoelectric module. (Conclusions) The hybrid system with a solar concentrator and a thermoelectric generator can be considered as an alternative to a traditional electric thermal diesel generator power supply system, since thermoelectric modules have recently been increasingly recognized by specialists in various fields of technology. The specific power of 42 thermoelectric modules with the area of 0.23 square meters is 1173 watts, which exceeds the specific power generated by a single-crystal photovoltaic panel with the area of 1.62 square meters, producing 166 Watts per square meter, which makes thermoelectric modules competitive with photovoltaic panels.