Solar Photovoltaic Energy Systems Research Articles

Characterization of photovoltaic solar energy systems in a Colombian region

Objective: To establish a baseline about the solar photovoltaic energy systems installed in the department of Caldas, Colombia. Methodology: The solar photovoltaic installations were identified from secondary sources of information, followed by field visits to collect information on the characteristics of these systems. An evaluation instrument was designed consisting of 6 categories which was subsequently evaluated by expert peers. It was applied accompanied by interviews with owners of the identified systems. Results: 41 solar photovoltaic systems were identified and installed in 11 municipalities of Caldas. Data was collected from 28 installations with different characteristics. 50% of the solar photovoltaic systems are in the Central-South region of Caldas. 71% of the systems are mainly installed in the urban area; 64% correspond to small-scale isolated solar photovoltaic energy generation systems, with a maximum power of less than 600W. These installations have become a viable energy alternative for the region and are being used especially for lighting and the operation of household appliances in residences, hotels, restaurants, and educational institutions. Conclusions: Although regulations on solar energy installations had not been established, these systems have already been implemented in the department in a successful, but moderate, manner.

Sustainable Practices Improving the University Campus: Feasibility of A Photovoltaic System

This article aimed to discuss the principles of sustainability applied to the built environment, highlighting the importance of universities as replicators of these practices. To respond to a demand from the campus for more security in the energy supply, the work proposes the implementation of a solar photovoltaic energy system. For this, it carried out an economic viability analysis through bibliographic review activities, characterization of the study area, dimensioning of photovoltaic systems, budgets, cost analysis and payback calculation. The research evaluated the system’s implementation considering two energy demands, for the entire campus and for a smaller building. It was found that the CSL-UFSJ consumes, on average, 27,300.38 kWh, at a cost of US$ 2,736. Thus, an annual savings of US$ 32,833 is calculated. The cost estimate analyzes showed a value of US$ 139,784 for the implementation of the system. The return on investment time was calculated for 4.3 and 4.9 years considering simple and discounted Payback respectively.It is estimated that the consumption of the DECEB building is 13,187.1 kWh with a cost of US$ 1,322 per month, which results in an annual savings of US$ 15,860. The cost estimate analyzes showed a value of US$ 40.601 for the implementation of the system and values of 4.3 and 4.9 years were obtained as return on investment time considering the calculations for simple and discounted Payback, respectively. The research demonstrates that the implementation of the photovoltaic solar energy generation system is feasible for both cases analyzed.

Solar Photovoltaic System in India: Challenges and Barriers

In today’s world we are going towards the major share of renewable energy to reduce the effect Green House Gases (GHG) in the atmosphere. The limitation of energy sources which produces clean energy, the rise in the pollution in the environment, and programs initiated by the Indian Government have encouraged lots of open field researches on Solar Photovoltaic Systems or Solar Energy Systems. As producing the clean and renewable energy is main component of energy sector, solar photovoltaic could be considered as an alternative in various regions. Although Solar Photovoltaic does have different advantages and can be used for various purposes, but also there are several challenges for it. This paper took a whole overview of the advantages and uses of Solar Photovoltaic and barriers in their adaptation/opportunities.

Current State of the Worldwide Renewable Energy Generation: a Review

The purpose of this study is to undertake a global review of the renewable energy generation's current state, specifically in the area of photovoltaic (PV) solar energy, wind energy, bioenergy and hybrid power systems for electricity production. This article presents the most relevant aspects of the progress and the experiences of countries aiming at the construction and implementation of these technologies. It also quotes studies that include the advances of countries seeking to contribute to the decrease of greenhouse gas emission or that due to their geographic and environmental conditions are attempting to improve the access and the quality of the electric energy generation, involving especially remote communities that could hardly connect to the national power grid because of techno-economic reasons. These renewable energy studies could lead off to evaluate the impact of clean energy in the global energy supply and demand. Although in general, these technologies require high investments hardly competitive with traditional energy, with the support of stable policies and government subsidies, these become a choice that grows exponentially every day concerning efficiency and the reduction of costs, which can build trust in new investors.

A Portable Active Photovoltaic Solar Energy System in Treating Wastewaters by Electrocoagulation

Abstract This study presents the effects of adding some provisions to a portable photovoltaic (PV) solar energy system to obtain both DC and ac sources. An efficient ac high-speed fan was powered from this system to cool the PV module for reducing its power loss because of a temperature rise. A DC electrocoagulation (EC) cell was powered from the active PV system to treat real dairy wastewater. The results revealed that about 5 % loss in maximum power output of the PV module at 25°C was avoided by the added provisions while the EC cell efficiently treated the tested wastewater. For this wastewater, the maximum removal efficiencies of turbidity, suspended pollutants, and chemical oxygen demand were 97, 62, and 72.5 %, respectively. The cell effluent complied with the Egyptian requirements for discharge on public sewer system. This work indicates the technical feasibility of raising the efficiency of PV modules while producing both ac and DC sources.

A Cost Model for PV Based Renewable Energy Projects

The energy from renewable sources had always been perceived as free or at least lower-cost energy, with its sourcing from natural sources such as solar radiation and wind energy. In actual the cost breakdown of renewable energy would exceed that of traditional energy sources in almost all cases. This study attempts to produce a cost model for renewable energy systems. The model takes into account different requirements and site variations into account. In this paper, elements of the cost model Renewable Energy System (RES) especially, photo-voltaic solar systems, have been investigated. Cost items are presented alongside a to-do checklist for the new Photo-Voltaic (PV) solar energy system. The goal of this study is to construct a model that would cover the cost sources as well as bring to attention the unexpected sources of cost variations that include all possible cost items of a new solar renewable energy system. The feasibility of the new system is expressed in terms of Total Cost (T.C) and Cost of Energy (COE). The model can evaluate the feasibility of off-grid as well as on-grid systems. The model investigated properly as well as an empirical analysis and verified through results comparison with reviewed case studies. The results revealed that the cost of off-grid systems is higher than the cost of on-grid systems due to the cost of batteries as well as the cost of standby generators. So, it would be more feasible to use an off-grid system only in remote or isolated areas. Risk Cost lists, ranking and success factors of new renewable projects are exhibited.

Modified Levy Flight Optimization for a Maximum Power Point Tracking Algorithm under Partial Shading

This paper presents a novel modified Levy flight optimization for a photovoltaic PV solar energy system. Conventionally, the Perturb and Observe (P&O) algorithm has been widely deployed in most applications due to its simplicity and ease of implementation. However, P&O suffers from steady-state oscillation and stability, besides its failure in tracking the optimum power under partial shading conditions and fast irradiance changes. Therefore, a modified Levy flight optimization is proposed by incorporating a global search of beta parameters, which can significantly improve the tracking capability in local and global searches compared to the conventional methods. The proposed modified Levy flight optimization is verified with simulations and experiments under uniform, non-uniform, and dynamic conditions. All results prove the advantages of the proposed modified Levy flight optimization in extracting the optimal power with a fast response and high efficiency from the PV arrays.

Environmental Impact and Levelised Cost of Energy Analysis of Solar Photovoltaic Systems in Selected Asia Pacific Region: A Cradle-to-Grave Approach

Sustainability has been greatly impacted by the reality of budgets and available resources as a targeted range of carbon emission reduction greatly increases due to climate change. This study analyses the technical and economic feasibility for three types of solar photovoltaic (PV) renewable energy (RE) systems; (i) solar stand-alone, a non-grid-connected building rooftop-mounted structure, (ii) solar rooftop, a grid-connected building rooftop-mounted structure, (iii) solar farm, a grid-connected land-mounted structure in three tropical climate regions. Technical scientific and economic tools, including life cycle assessment (LCA) and life cycle cost assessment (LCCA) with an integrated framework from a Malaysian case study were applied to similar climatic regions, Thailand, and Indonesia. The short-term, future scaled-up scenario was defined using a proxy technology and estimated data. Environmental locations for this scenario were identified, the environmental impacts were compared, and the techno-economic output were analysed. The scope of this study is cradle-to-grave. Levelised cost of energy (LCOE) was greatly affected due to PV performance degradation rate, especially the critical shading issues for large-scale installations. Despite the land use impact, increased CO2 emissions accumulate over time with regard to energy mix of the country, which requires the need for long-term procurement of both carbon and investment return. With regards to profitably, grid-connected roof-mounted systems achieve the lowest LCOE as compared to other types of installation, ranging from 0.0491 USD/kWh to 0.0605 USD/kWh under a 6% discounted rate. A simple payback (SPB) time between 7–10 years on average depends on annual power generated by the system with estimated energy payback of 0.40–0.55 years for common polycrystalline photovoltaic technology. Thus, maintaining the whole system by ensuring a low degradation rate of 0.2% over a long period of time is essential to generate benefits for both investors and the environment. Emerging technologies are progressing at an exponential rate in order to fill the gap of establishing renewable energy as an attractive business plan. Life cycle assessment is considered an excellent tool to assess the environmental impact of renewable energy.

Information management for technological surveillance in companies of the energy sector in the Colombian Guajira

El objetivo del presente trabajo es Identificar el enfoque de la gestión de información para la vigilancia tecnológica en las empresas de energía solar fotovoltaica de uso residencial en el departamento de La Guajira, Colombia. Su fundamento teórico corresponde a Palop & Vicente (1999), Escorsa & Maspons (2001), Hidalgo, León & Pavón (2002), AENOR (2006), Castellanos (2007), en materia de vigilancia tecnológica; y Cepero (2010), Ponjuán (2011), Manso (2008), Rodríguez (2015), Suárez, Cruz & Pérez (2015) en cuanto a gestión de la información. Se considera una investigación descriptiva, diseño no experimental, transeccional; la población está constituida por 187 empresarios y profesionales relacionados con sistemas de energía solar fotovoltaica de La Guajira; la muestra seleccionada de manera probabilística aleatoria simple fue de 126 sujetos. La técnica de recolección de datos empleada fue la encuesta, y como instrumento un cuestionario de 60 ítems bajo una escala tipo Likert, con cinco alternativas de respuesta. Fue validado por 5 expertos y su confiabilidad calculada en 0.86 bajo el método alfa de Cronbach. Los resultados evidencian una moderada presencia de todos los indicadores correspondientes a la dimensión, relacionados con la gestión de información orientada a la toma de decisiones, el contenido y la tecnología. Con estos hallazgos se elabora la base diagnóstica que determina la formulación de la propuesta, permitiendo concluir que los lineamientos propuestos constituyen una estrategia efectiva para fortalecer la gestión de la información como apoyo a los procesos de adquisición tecnológica en sistemas de energía solar fotovoltaica de uso residencial.

Building Solar Capacity in Maine: The Greater Bangor Solarize Case Study

Despite being a mature technology with significantly decreasing costs over the last decade and various financial incentives available periodically, solar photovoltaic energy systems currently generate approximately 1 percent of Maine’s electricity. There have been eight Solarize campaigns in Maine, which aimed to increase residential- and commercial-scale solar adoption through group purchasing. In 2017, the Greater Bangor Solarize campaign increased the number of residential solar installations by 63 percent and solar power capacity by 52 percent in the participating towns compared to the previous seven years. We surveyed the Greater Bangor Solarize participants to better understand the motivations, concerns, and barriers to residential solar adoption in central Maine. We find a significant demographic divide exists between the Solarize participants and the general Maine population. We also observe that environmental stewardship and energy security are the primary motivations for considering solar and that overall cost remains the primary concern.

A Two-Stage Multiple Criteria Decision Making for Site Selection of Solar Photovoltaic (PV) Power Plant: A Case Study in Taiwan

At the heart of Covid-19 responses, the transition from fossil sources to green energy is an urgent issue for nations to address the crisis and secure sustainable economies. As a country in a seismically active zone that relies heavily on imported fossil fuels, Taiwan is vigorously taking the next step in renewable energy development, which is pivotal to securing its position in global supply chains. Solar energy is today the most suitable renewable energy source for Taiwan. However, land prices and policies, and challenges of scale still hinder its development. In this context, identifying optimal sites for solar photovoltaic (PV) construction is a crucial task for major energy stakeholders. In this paper, a two-stage approach, combining the data envelopment analysis (DEA) models and the analytic hierarchy process (AHP), has been done for the first time to identify the most suitable locations among 20 potential cities and counties of Taiwan for constructing solar PV farms. DEA models were applied to filter out the areas with the most potential by measuring their efficiency indices with temperature, wind speed, humidity, precipitation, and air pressure, as inputs, and sunshine hours and insolation, as outputs. The locations with perfect efficiency scores were then ranked with the AHP method. Five selected evaluation criteria (site characteristics, technical, economic, social, and environmental) and sub-criteria of each were utilized to prioritize the locations with solar energy potential. AHP was used to determine the relative weights of the criteria and sub-criteria and the final weights of the areas. For criteria weighting results, “support mechanisms,” “electric power transmission cost,” and “electricity consumption demand” with weights of 0.332, 0.122, and 0.086, respectively, were found as the most significant sub-criteria. The final ranking suggests Tainan, Changhua, and Kaohsiung as the top three most suitable cities for constructing solar PV energy systems.

COMPARATIVE STUDY OF PHOTOVOLTAIC ARRAY OPTIMUM TILT ANGLE AND ORIENTATION WITH MULTI-OBJECTIVE CONSIDERATION

Photovoltaic (PV) solar energy system converts sunlight to electricity and referred as one of promising system for production of a renewable energy resources. Tilt angle and orientation have important effect on PV output. Positioning of PV system using tilt angle and orientation, therefore, according to path of radiation of sunlight is very critical to obtain more efficient energy conversion from PV panels. In this study, determination of optimum tilt angle and orientation studied for a grid-connected hybrid wind-PV-battery system. Firstly, general calculations of PV completed using a numerical method as follow: annual solar radiation (Wh/m2), annual energy production using radiation and temperature (Wh/m2), energy production using radiation, temperature and wind speed (Wh/m2). Secondly, cost of electricity for a grid-connected wind-PV-battery hybrid systems ($/year) depending on solar radiation, weather conditions and electricity market data were obtained using numerical method. It founded that optimum tilt angle varied between 26° - 27° for first three scenario and for the last case is 9°. As for orientation, it changed from south to west for all cases. Moreover, it seems that results of this study might be a reference and preliminary study for scientist and researcher/engineers to simplify designing and evaluating PV system.

Novel Mode Adaptive Artificial Neural Network for Dynamic Learning: Application in Renewable Energy Sources Power Generation Prediction

A reasonable dataset, which is an essential factor of renewable energy forecasting model development, sometimes is not directly available. Waiting for a substantial amount of training data creates a delay for a model to participate in the electricity market. Also, inappropriate selection of dataset size may lead to inaccurate modeling. Besides, in a multivariate environment, the impact of different variables on the output is often neglected or not adequately addressed. Therefore, in this work, a novel Mode Adaptive Artificial Neural Network (MAANN) algorithm has been proposed using Spearman’s rank-order correlation, Artificial Neural Network (ANN), and population-based algorithms for the dynamic learning of renewable energy sources power generation forecasting model. The proposed algorithm has been trained and compared with three population-based algorithms: Advanced Particle Swarm Optimization (APSO), Jaya Algorithm, and Fine-Tuning Metaheuristic Algorithm (FTMA). Also, the gradient descent algorithm is considered as a base case for comparing with the population-based algorithms. The proposed algorithm has been applied in predicting the power output of a Solar Photovoltaic (PV) and Wind Turbine Energy System (WTES). Using the proposed methodology with FTMA, the error was reduced by 71.261% and 80.514% compared to the conventional fixed-sized dataset gradient descent-based training approach for Solar PV and WTES, respectively.

Optimal Operation of Electrified Railways with Renewable Sources and Storage

This paper proposes an approach for the optimal operation of electrified railways by balancing energy flows among energy exchange with the traditional electrical grid, energy consumption by accelerating trains, energy production from decelerating trains, energy from renewable energy resources (RERs) such as wind and solar photovoltaic (PV) energy systems, and energy storage systems. The objective function considered in this work is the minimization of total operating cost of electrified railway system consisting of cost of power generation from the external power system, cost of power obtained from RERs such as wind and solar PV sources, cost of power from storage systems such as battery storage and supercapacitors, and the income obtained by selling excess power back to the main electrical grid. This problem is formulated as an AC optimal power flow problem subjected to various equality and inequality constraints. In this work, the probability distribution functions (PDFs) are used to the uncertainties related to wind and solar PV powers. The proposed optimization problem is solved by using CONOPT solver of generalized algebraic modeling system (GAMS) software, which is a powerful and efficient optimization tool. The simulation results obtained with GAMS/CONOPT solver are also compared with meta-heuristic based differential evolution algorithm (DEA).

A techno-economic comparison between piston steam engines as dispatchable power generation systems for renewable energy with concentrated solar harvesting and thermal storage against solar photovoltaics with battery storage

Given its abundance and distribution, solar electricity is clearly the power source of the future. Solar photovoltaics is currently the favoured electricity production technology but high battery costs limit its use as a truly dispatchable solution. Solar thermal electricity, with higher production costs but lower heat storage costs, is an important alternative. In this work we have compared solar thermal and solar photovoltaic renewable energy systems head to head: using simulations with our own models and the latest information from literature. The solar thermal system uses a Uniflow Piston Steam Engine for electricity production. The analysis incorporates the daily variance in electricity demand in the form of the CAISO duck curve. To supply off grid demand, if natural gas driven engines produce electricity at $0.134/kWh, photovoltaics with battery storage can supply it at 0.159 $/kWh (0.107 $/kWh best case) and solar thermal with piston steam engines can supply at 0.144–0.167 $/kWh at current prices. If solar concentrator prices drop to $75/m2-aperture, as seems promising, solar thermal can supply dispatchable electricity at 0.091–0.103 $/kWh. In view of the declining interest in solar thermal electricity, this is a valuable contribution to the conversation about the relative merits of the two technologies.

Experimental and numerical investigation of a novel photovoltaic thermal (PV/T) collector with the energy and exergy analysis

The high energy costs and environmental factors in energy systems cause pushed researchers to produce both heat and electricity from a single collector. In this context sustainable solar photovoltaic thermal energy system stand out with cleaner heat and electricity production at the same time. In this study, a new type of finned air fluid photovoltaic-thermal collector was designed, manufactured and tested. Numerical and experimental analysis were performed with different mass flow rates. Numerical analysis of the PV/T design was carried out before the experiments were conducted. ANSYS program was used to predict the surface temperature of PV module based numerical simulations validation ensures good agreement between the numerical and experimental results. In this way, the energy efficiency of the collector and the temperature of the outlet hot air were wanted to be estimated without experiment. The experiments were performed in two different mass flow rates [m˙a=0.031087kg/s and m˙b=0.04553kg/s] under similar meteorological conditions by investigating the effect of cooling on the PV module. Thanks to cooling of PV, 0.42% improvement in electrical efficiency was achieved. Energy and exergy analyses were performed to analyze the thermal and electrical efficiency of the PV/T collector. Thanks to the cooling of the PV panel, electrical efficiency increased by 0.42%. The average thermal and electrical efficiency of PV/T were obtained as for m˙a=0.031087kg/s 37.10% and 13.56% and for m˙b=0.04553kg/s 49.5% and 13.98%, respectively. Energy and exergy analyses were performed to analyze the thermal and electrical efficiency of the collector. The average thermal and electrical efficiency of PV/T were obtained as for m˙a=0.031087kg/s 37.10% and 13.56% and for m˙b=0.04553kg/s 49.5% and 13.98%, respectively. This study offers an efficient solution to numerical and experimental aspects air cooled PV/T for industrial producers with energy and exergy perspective.

Transient Stability Analysis of Large-Scale PV Penetration on Power Systems

Due to the growing demand on the electricity and global warming issues, many countries increased their attention to explore in renewable means of energy production to integrated into conventional power systems as an alternative to conventional generation methods. Among the alternative renewable energy sources, the solar PV system today is an established source of renewable energy due to simple, fast developing of PV technology and dramatic drop of the cost. The difference in the characteristics of the power generation between generators and solar photovoltaic energy systems may make changing and affecting regarding to the integrity, reliability, security and stability of the electrical power system. This research will investigate the potential effects and benefits of connecting of large-scale photovoltaic (LSP) systems to the conventional power grid in terms of transient stability analysis under three cases, increasing the system load, compensation of the power shortage from the synchronous generator (SG) with LSP plant and the replacement of SG by LSP plant. The different level of the LSP penetration are considered in some assumed cases to examine the variation of the rotor angle and bus voltage after a three phase fault, This research deals with a representation of a real network (Duba – Wajh grid) as a case study by using the PowerFactory program (DIgSILENT 2019). The thesis will focus on monitoring and observing the bus voltage magnitude, rotor angle, active and reactive power. The results of the transient stability analysis have been plotted and presented in time domain. The simulation results exhibit favorable impacts of increased PV penetration on transient stability performance.

Alternate energy source selection in Gilgit Baltistan Pakistan using geographical information system and analytical hierarchy process

Accessing subsequent use of energy is a keyαα to prosperity and sovereignty. Energy system needs to be transformed from fossil-fuels to renewable energy efficient technologies. It is vital to harness the highest possible amount of solar energy due to long sunshine hours and high insulation levels in Pakistan. The study aims to identify potential sites for solar energy in Gilgit Baltistan Pakistan using Geographical Information System and Analytical Hierarchy process. Three main factors Environmental (distance from residential areas and land use), Economic (aspect, slope, and proximity to transmission lines and roads) and Physical (solar irradiance) were considered and weights were assigned to these factors based on their relative importance. The results reveal that Gilgit Baltistan has potential for solar power development as it receives solar radiation greater than 4 kWh/m2/day from April to September. Land suitability analysis has revealed that 10% (6706 km2) and 9% (5590.08 km2) of the area are very highly suitable for harnessing solar potential sites in Gilgit Baltistan using Pakistan Meteorological Department data and National Renewable Energy Laboratory solar data respectively. While District Diamir has 15% and 13%, Gilgit has 14% and 13%) and Ghizer has 11% and 12% potential for Photo Voltaic solar power systems installation based on both Pakistan Meteorological Department and National Renewable Energy Laboratory solar data. This study supports the decision makers and investors to look into the possibility for installation of Photo Voltaic solar energy systems.

Simulations and dSPACE Real-Time Implementation of Photovoltaic Global Maximum Power Extraction under Partial Shading

Under partial shading conditions (PSCs), solar photovoltaic (PV) energy systems generate multiple peaks; one global peak (GP) and several local peaks (LPs). Thus, tracking the GP of the PV systems under PSCs is necessary to enhance the system reliability and efficiency. Conventional maximum power point tracker (MPPT) algorithms are capable of tracking the unique peak under uniform conditions but they fail to track the GP under PSCs. To the best of our knowledge, this paper represents the first study that introduces a comprehensive comparison of three efficient maximum power point tracker (MPPT) algorithms that are used to extract the GP of the PV system under both uniform and PSCs. These MPPT techniques include two metaheuristic techniques, which are cuckoo search optimization (CSO) and particle swarm optimization (PSO) techniques in addition to one conventional MPPT; perturb and observe (P&O). Although the simulation and dSPACE-based experimental results demonstrated the superiority of CSO and PSO in tracking the GP, CSO requires less tracking time and thus provides a higher efficiency than the PSO. In addition, P&O can be used to follow the first peak, regardless if it is a local peak or global peak with notable oscillation.

Review of Recent Trends in Optimization Techniques for Hybrid Renewable Energy System

Due to non-linear characteristics of renewable energy sources, a Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT) technique is adopted to maximize the output power. In this research article, on the basis of state of art review of renewable energy systems such as solar Photo-voltaic, Wind Turbine, Fuel Cell and Hybrid Renewable Energy System. The investigators have gone through the various MPPT techniques for different renewable energy systems out of which artificial intelligence based hybrid MPPT technique gives better performance as compared to other MPPT techniques.