Search results for: solar photovoltaic system.

Authors: S. Pushkar, O. Verbitsky

Abstract:

Currently, green rating systems are mainly utilized for correctly sizing mechanical and electrical systems, which have short lifetime expectancies. In these systems, passive solar and bio-climatic architecture, which have long lifetime expectancies, are neglected. Urban rating systems consider buildings and services in addition to neighborhoods and public transportation as integral parts of the built environment. The main goal of this study was to develop a more consistent point allocation system for urban building standards by using six different lifetime shearing layers: Site, Structure, Skin, Services, Space, and Stuff, each reflecting distinct environmental damages. This shearing-layer concept was applied to internationally well-known rating systems: Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) for Neighborhood Development, BRE Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM) for Communities and Comprehensive Assessment System for Building Environmental Efficiency (CASBEE) for Urban Development. The results showed that LEED for Neighborhood Development and BREEAM for Communities focused on long-lifetime-expectancy building designs, whereas CASBEE for Urban Development gave equal importance to the Building and Service Layers. Moreover, although this rating system was applied using a building-scale assessment, “Urban Area + Buildings” focuses on a short-lifetime-expectancy system design, neglecting to improve the architectural design by considering bioclimatic and passive solar aspects.

Keywords: Green rating system, passive solar architecture, shearing-layer concept, urban community.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1925

Authors: Hanaa T. El-Madany, Faten H. Fahmy, Ninet M. A. El-Rahman, Hassen T. Dorrah

Abstract:

Advancements in the field of artificial intelligence (AI) made during this decade have forever changed the way we look at automating spacecraft subsystems including the electrical power system. AI have been used to solve complicated practical problems in various areas and are becoming more and more popular nowadays. In this paper, a mathematical modeling and MATLAB–SIMULINK model for the different components of the spacecraft power system is presented. Also, a control system, which includes either the Neural Network Controller (NNC) or the Fuzzy Logic Controller (FLC) is developed for achieving the coordination between the components of spacecraft power system as well as control the energy flows. The performance of the spacecraft power system is evaluated by comparing two control systems using the NNC and the FLC.

Keywords: Spacecraft, Neural network, Fuzzy logic control, Photovoltaic array.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1904

Authors: T. Patcharawit, C. Kansomket, N. Wongnaree, W. Kritsrikan, T. Yingnakorn, S. Khumkoa

Abstract:

Recovery of pure copper and silver from end-of-life photovoltaic (PV) panels was investigated in this paper using an effective hybrid pyro-hydrometallurgical process. In the first step of waste treatment, solar panel waste was first dismantled to obtain a PV sheet to be cut and calcined at 500 °C, to separate out PV ribbon from glass cullet, ash, and volatile while the silicon wafer containing silver finger was collected for recovery. In the second step of metal recovery, copper recovery from PV ribbon was via 1-3 M HCl leaching with SnCl₂ and H₂O₂ additions in order to remove the tin-lead coating on the ribbon. The leached copper band was cleaned and subsequently melted as an anode for the next step of electrorefining. Stainless steel was set as the cathode with CuSO₄ as an electrolyte, and at a potential of 0.2 V, high purity copper of 99.93% was obtained at 96.11% recovery after 24 hours. For silver recovery, the silicon wafer containing silver finger was leached using HNO₃ at 1-4 M in an ultrasonic bath. In the next step of precipitation, silver chloride was then obtained and subsequently reduced by sucrose and NaOH to give silver powder prior to oxy-acetylene melting to finally obtain pure silver metal. The integrated recycling process is considered to be economical, providing effective recovery of high purity metals such as copper and silver while other materials such as aluminum, copper wire, glass cullet can also be recovered to be reused commercially. Compounds such as PbCl₂ and SnO₂ obtained can also be recovered to enter the market.

Keywords: Electrorefining, leaching, calcination, PV ribbon, silver finger, solar panel.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 392

Authors: A. Zaher, A. Traore, F. Thiéry, T. Talbert, B. Shaer

Abstract:

In this paper, an intelligent approach is proposed to optimize the orientation of continuous solar tracking systems on cloudy days. Considering the weather case, the direct sunlight is more important than the diffuse radiation in case of clear sky. Thus, the panel is always pointed towards the sun. In case of an overcast sky, the solar beam is close to zero, and the panel is placed horizontally to receive the maximum of diffuse radiation. Under partly covered conditions, the panel must be pointed towards the source that emits the maximum of solar energy and it may be anywhere in the sky dome. Thus, the idea of our approach is to analyze the images, captured by ground-based sky camera system, in order to detect the zone in the sky dome which is considered as the optimal source of energy under cloudy conditions. The proposed approach is implemented using experimental setup developed at PROMES-CNRS laboratory in Perpignan city (France). Under overcast conditions, the results were very satisfactory, and the intelligent approach has provided efficiency gains of up to 9% relative to conventional continuous sun tracking systems.

Keywords: Clouds detection, fuzzy inference systems, images processing, sun trackers.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1149

Authors: I. Jafari, A. Ershadi, E. Najafpour, N. Hedayat

Abstract:

Energy and exergy study of air-water combined solar collector which is called dual purpose solar collector (DPSC) is investigated. The method of ε - NTU is used. Analysis is performed for triangle channels. Parameters like the air flow rate and water inlet temperature are studied. Results are shown that DPSC has better energy and exergy efficiency than single collector. In addition, the triangle passage with water inlet temperature of 60O C has shown better exergy and energy efficiency.

Keywords: Efficiency, Exergy, Irreversibility, Solar collector.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2586

Authors: R. Ramaprabha

Abstract:

This paper presents an extraction of maximum energy from Solar Photovoltaic Array (SPVA) under partial shaded conditions by optimum selection of array size using Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) technique. In this paper a detailed study on the output reduction of different SPVA configurations under partial shaded conditions have been carried out. A generalized MATLAB M-code based software model has been used for any required array size, configuration, shading patterns and number of bypass diodes. Comparative study has been carried out on different configurations by testing several shading scenarios. While the number of shading patterns and the rate of change are very low for stationary SPVA but these may be quite large for SPVA mounted on a mobile platforms. This paper presents the suitability of PSO technique to select optimum configuration for mobile arrays by calculating the global peak (GP) of different configurations and to transfer maximum power to the load.

Keywords: Global peak, Mobile PV arrays, Partial shading, optimization, PSO.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 4173

Authors: Ana Paula Esteves, Diego S. Caetano, Louise L. B. Lomardo

Abstract:

This paper presents an approach to the performance of the natural lighting, when the use of appropriated solar lighting systems on the roof is applied in cultural buildings such as museums and foundations. The roofs, as a part of contact between the building and the external environment, require special attention in projects that aim at energy efficiency, being an important element for the capture of natural light in greater quantity, but also for being the most important point of generation of photovoltaic solar energy, even semitransparent, allowing the partial passage of light. Transparent elements in roofs, as well as superior protection of the building, can also play other roles, such as: meeting the needs of natural light for the accomplishment of the internal tasks, attending to the visual comfort; to bring benefits to the human perception and about the interior experience in a building. When these resources are well dimensioned, they also contribute to the energy efficiency and consequent character of sustainability of the building. Therefore, when properly designed and executed, a roof light system can bring higher quality natural light to the interior of the building, which is related to the human health and well-being dimension. Furthermore, it can meet the technologic, economic and environmental yearnings, making possible the more efficient use of that primordial resource, which is the light of the Sun. The article presents the analysis of buildings that used zenith light systems in search of better lighting performance in museums and foundations: the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in the United States, the Iberê Camargo Foundation in Brazil, the Museum of Fine Arts in Castellón in Spain and the Pinacoteca of São Paulo.

Keywords: Natural lighting, roof lighting systems, natural lighting in museums, comfort lighting.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1004

Authors: Rami El-Hajj Mohamad, Mahmoud Skafi, Ali Massoud Haidar

Abstract:

Several meteorological parameters were used for the  prediction of monthly average daily global solar radiation on  horizontal using recurrent neural networks (RNNs). Climatological  data and measures, mainly air temperature, humidity, sunshine  duration, and wind speed between 1995 and 2007 were used to design  and validate a feed forward and recurrent neural network based  prediction systems. In this paper we present our reference system  based on a feed-forward multilayer perceptron (MLP) as well as the  proposed approach based on an RNN model. The obtained results  were promising and comparable to those obtained by other existing  empirical and neural models. The experimental results showed the  advantage of RNNs over simple MLPs when we deal with time series  solar radiation predictions based on daily climatological data.

Keywords: Recurrent Neural Networks, Global Solar Radiation, Multi-layer perceptron, gradient, Root Mean Square Error.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2512

Authors: Rawaa H. El-Bidweihy, Hisham M. Abdelsalam, Ihab A. El-Khodary

Abstract:

In an era where machines run and shape our world, the need for a stable, non-ending source of energy emerges. In this study, the focus was on the solar energy in Egypt as a renewable source, the most important factors that could affect the solar energy’s market share throughout its life cycle production were analyzed and filtered, the relationships between them were derived before structuring a Bayesian network. Also, forecasted models were built for multiple factors to predict the states in Egypt by 2035, based on historical data and patterns, to be used as the nodes’ states in the network. 37 factors were found to might have an impact on the use of solar energy and then were deducted to 12 factors that were chosen to be the most effective to the solar energy’s life cycle in Egypt, based on surveying experts and data analysis, some of the factors were found to be recurring in multiple stages. The presented Bayesian network could be used later for scenario and decision analysis of using solar energy in Egypt, as a stable renewable source for generating any type of energy needed.

Keywords: ARIMA, auto correlation, Bayesian network, forecasting models, life cycle, partial correlation, renewable energy, SARIMA, solar energy.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 703

Authors: Gao Xian-Zhong, Hou Zhong-xi, Guo Zheng, Liu Jian-xia

Abstract:

Gliding during night without electric power is an efficient method to enhance endurance performance of solar aircrafts. The properties of maximum gliding endurance path are studied in this paper. The problem is formulated as an optimization problem about maximum endurance can be sustained by certain potential energy storage with dynamic equations and aerodynamic parameter constrains. The optimal gliding path is generated based on gauss pseudo-spectral method. In order to analyse relationship between altitude, velocity of solar UAVs and its endurance performance, the lift coefficient in interval of [0.4, 1.2] and flight envelopes between 0~30km are investigated. Results show that broad range of lift coefficient can improve solar aircrafts- long endurance performance, and it is possible for a solar aircraft to achieve the aim of long endurance during whole night just by potential energy storage.

Keywords: Solar UAVs, Gliding Endurance, gauss pseudo-spectral method, optimization problem

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2882

Authors: Young-Kwan Choi, Gang-Wook Shin, Sung-Taek Hong

Abstract:

Water supply system consumes large amount of power load during water treatment and transportation of purified water. Many energy conserving high efficiency materials such as DC motor and LED light have recently been introduced to water supply system for energy conservation. This paper performed empirical analysis on BLDC and AC motors and comparatively analyzed the change in power according to DC power supply ratio in order to conserve energy of a next-generation water treatment system called vertical water treatment system. In addition, a DC distribution system linked with photovoltaic generation was simulated to analyze the energy conserving effect of DC load.

Keywords: Vertical Water Treatment System, DC Power Supply, Energy Efficiency, BLDC.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2083

Authors: Ali Vaseghi Ardekani, Hamid Reza Forutan, Amir Habibi, Ali Reza Rajabi, Hasan Adloo

Abstract:

Distributed generation units (DGs) are grid-connected or stand-alone electric generation units located within the electric distribution system at or near the end user. It is generally accepted that centralized electric power plants will remain the major source of the electric power supply for the near future. DGs, however, can complement central power by providing incremental capacity to the utility grid or to an end user. This paper presents an efficient power dispatching model for hybrid wind-Solar power generation system, to satisfy some essential requirements, such as dispersed electric power demand, electric power quality and reducing generation cost and so on. In this paper, presented some elements of the main parts in the hybrid system; and then made fundamental dispatching strategies according to different situations; then pointed out four improving measures to improve genetic algorithm, such as: modify the producing way of selection probability, improve the way of crossover, protect excellent chromosomes, and change mutation range and so on. Finally, propose a technique for solving the unit's commitment for dispatching problem based on an improved genetic algorithm.

Keywords: Power Quality, Wind-Solar System, Genetic Algorithm, Hybrid System.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1599

Authors: Abdulrahman M. Homadi

Abstract:

This study focuses on how to control the outlet temperature of a solar air heater in a way simpler than the existing methods. In this work, five cases have been studied by using ANSYS Fluent based on a CFD numerical method. All the cases have been simulated by utilizing the same criteria and conditions like the temperature, materials, areas except the geometry. The case studies are conducted in Little Rock (LR), AR, USA during the winter time supposedly on 15^th of December. A fresh air that is flowing with a velocity of 0.5 m/s and a flow rate of 0.009 m³/s. The results prove the possibility of achieving a controlled temperature just by changing the geometric shape of the heater. This geometry guarantees that the absorber plate always has a normal component of the solar radiation at any time during the day. The heater has a sectarian shape with a radius of 150 mm where the outlet temperature remains almost constant for six hours.

Keywords: Solar energy, air heater, control of temperature, CFD.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1095

Authors: Farid Arya, Trevor Hyde, Paul Henshall, Phillip Eames, Roger Moss, Stan Shire

Abstract:

Vacuum flat plate solar thermal collectors offer several advantages over other collectors namely the excellent optical and thermal characteristics they exhibit due to a combination of their wide surface area and high vacuum thermal insulation. These characteristics can offer a variety of applications for industrial process heat as well as for building integration as they are much thinner than conventional collectors making installation possible in limited spaces. However, many technical challenges which need to be addressed to enable wide scale adoption of the technology still remain. This paper will discuss the challenges, expectations and requirements for the flat-plate vacuum solar collector development. In addition, it will provide an overview of work undertaken in Ulster University, Loughborough University, and the University of Warwick on flat-plate vacuum solar thermal collectors. Finally, this paper will present a detailed experimental investigation on the development of a vacuum panel with a novel sealing method which will be used to accommodate a novel slim hydroformed solar absorber.

Keywords: Hot box calorimeter, infrared thermography, solar thermal collector, vacuum insulation.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2353

Authors: A. A. Abaker Omer, H. B. Mohamed Balh, W. Liu, A. Abas, J. Yu, S. Li, W. Ma, W. El Kolaly, Y. Y. Ahmed Abuker

Abstract:

We have discovered an important technical solution that could make new approaches in the processing of wet silicon etching, especially in the production of photovoltaic cells. During its inferior light-trapping and structural properties, the inverted pyramid structure outperforms the conventional pyramid textures and black silicone. The traditional pyramid textures and black silicon can only be accomplished with more advanced lithography, laser processing, etc. Importantly, our data demonstrate the feasibility of an inverted pyramidal structure of silicon via one-step Cu-catalyzed chemical etching (CCCE) in Cu (NO₃)₂/HF/H₂O₂/H₂O solutions. The effects of etching time and reaction temperature on surface geometry and light trapping were systematically investigated. The conclusion shows that the inverted pyramid structure has ultra-low reflectivity of ~4.2% in the wavelength of 300~1000 nm; introduce of Cu particles can significantly accelerate the dissolution of the silicon wafer. The etching and the inverted pyramid structure formation mechanism are discussed. Inverted pyramid structure with outstanding anti-reflectivity includes useful applications throughout the manufacture of semi-conductive industry-compatible solar cells, and can have significant impacts on industry colleagues and populations.

Keywords: Cu-catalyzed chemical etching, inverted pyramid nanostructured, reflection, solar cells.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 808

Authors: Anésio de Leles F. Filho, Wesley R. de Oliveira, Jéssica S. G. Pena, Jorge A. C. Angarita

Abstract:

The increase in electric power demand in face of environmental issues has intensified the participation of renewable energy sources such as photovoltaics, in the energy matrix of various countries. Due to their operational characteristics, they can generate time-varying harmonic and inter-harmonic distortions. For this reason, the application of methods of measurement based on traditional Fourier analysis, as proposed by IEC 61000-4-7, can provide inaccurate results. Considering the aspects mentioned herein, came the idea of the development of this work which aims to present the results of a comparative evaluation between a methodology arising from the combination of the Prony method with the Kalman filter and another method based on the IEC 61000-4-30 and IEC 61000-4-7 standards. Employed in this study were synthetic signals and data acquired through measurements in a 50kWp photovoltaic installation.

Keywords: Harmonics, inter-harmonics, IEC61000-4-7, parametric estimators, photovoltaic generation.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1976

Authors: Fl. Loury, P. Sablonière

Abstract:

In this paper a stochastic scenario-based model predictive control applied to molten salt storage systems in concentrated solar tower power plant is presented. The main goal of this study is to build up a tool to analyze current and expected future resources for evaluating the weekly power to be advertised on electricity secondary market. This tool will allow plant operator to maximize profits while hedging the impact on the system of stochastic variables such as resources or sunlight shortage.

Solving the problem first requires a mixed logic dynamic modeling of the plant. The two stochastic variables, respectively the sunlight incoming energy and electricity demands from secondary market, are modeled by least square regression. Robustness is achieved by drawing a certain number of random variables realizations and applying the most restrictive one to the system. This scenario approach control technique provides the plant operator a confidence interval containing a given percentage of possible stochastic variable realizations in such a way that robust control is always achieved within its bounds. The results obtained from many trajectory simulations show the existence of a ‘’reliable’’ interval, which experimentally confirms the algorithm robustness.

Keywords: Molten Salt Storage System, Concentrated Solar Tower Power Plant, Robust Stochastic Model Predictive Control.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1879

Authors: Prashant Kumar Soori, Parthasarathy L., Masami Okano, Awet Mana

Abstract:

Off-grid Photovoltaic (PV) systems are empowering technology in underdeveloped countries like Ethiopia where many people live far away from the modern world. Where there is relatively low energy consumption, providing energy from grid systems is not commercially cost-effective. As a result, significant people groups worldwide stay without access to electricity. One remote village in northern Ethiopia was selected by the United Nations for a pilot project to improve its living conditions. As part of this comprehensive project, an intelligent charge controller circuit for Off-grid PV systems was designed for the clinic in that village. In this paper, design aspects of an intelligent charge controller unit and its load driver circuits are discussed for an efficient utilization of PVbased supply systems.

Keywords: Compact Fluorescent Lamp (CFL), FluorescentLamp, Intelligent Charge Controller Unit (ICCU), Light EmittingDiode (LED), Photovoltaic (PV).

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1956

Authors: Hussain H. Al-Kayiem, Ahmed K. Hussein, Toh Seng Peow

Abstract:

The evaluation of the convective heat transfer of flow in passages with rectangular cross section is still of interest for the heat transfer investigators, as in the air heater solar collectors. The aim of this paper is to present investigation results on the natural convection heat transfer in a solar air heater. The effect of the channel length as heat transfer surface and the inclination of the passage were investigated. The results were obtained experimentally and theoretically. For that, an experimental test rig was fabricated with channel lengths of 1m, 1.5m, and 2m. For each length, the air outlet and inlet temperatures, absorber and cover temperatures, solar radiation intensity and air flow rate were measured at 10o, 30o, 50o, 70o, and 90o tilt angles. Measurements were recorded every 2 hours interval to investigate the transient behavior of the system. The experimental and theoretical results are presented in terms of Nu number versus Ra number and discussed. The percentages of differences between experimental and theoretical results are within the margin of 6% to 13%, effectively. It is recommended to extend the investigation to study the same configurations with different artificial surface roughing by ribs or pins.

Keywords: Convective heat transfer, Flat plate, Natural convection, Passage flow, Solar energy.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2017

Authors: Jin-Hong Kim, Joon Sung Park, Jun-Hyuk Choi, In-Soung Jung

Abstract:

With a development of Hybrid Electric Vehicle(HEV), A photovoltaic(PV) generation system is used for charging batteries in many cases. A dc/dc converter using PV power for a battery charger requires a high efficiency. In this paper, A ZVS boost converter using the renewable energies for HEV charger is proposed. Through the theoretical analysis and experimental result, operation modes and characteristics of the proposed topology are verified.

Keywords: HEV, EV, charger, resonant

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1672

Authors: Malinwo Estone Ayikpa

Abstract:

Electric power systems are likely to operate with minimum losses and voltage meeting international standards. This is made possible generally by control actions provide by automatic voltage regulators, capacitors and transformers with on-load tap changer (OLTC). With the development of photovoltaic (PV) systems technology, their integration on distribution networks has increased over the last years to the extent of replacing the above mentioned techniques. The conventional analysis and simulation tools used for electrical networks are no longer able to take into account control actions necessary for studying distributed PV generation impact. This paper presents an unbalanced optimal power flow (OPF) model that minimizes losses with association of active power generation and reactive power control of single-phase and three-phase PV systems. Reactive power can be generated or absorbed using the available capacity and the adjustable power factor of the inverter. The unbalance OPF is formulated by current balance equations and solved by primal-dual interior point method. Several simulation cases have been carried out varying the size and location of PV systems and the results show a detailed view of the impact of PV distributed generation on distribution systems.

Keywords: Distribution system, losses, photovoltaic generation, primal-dual interior point method, reactive power control.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1027

Authors: Azza A. Abou-Arab, Marwa H. Mahmoud, Ferial M. Abu-Salem

Abstract:

The present investigation studied the content of bioactive compounds as ascorbic acid, β-carotene, and flavonoids, and the effect of drying methods (microwave, solar, and air oven drying) on its level in citrus peel. These levels were decreased significantly (p <0.05) due to the dried methods. The percentage of ascorbic acid content loss of orange C. Valencia were 46.64, 52.95 and 68.83% with microwave, solar and air oven methods, respectively comparing to fresh samples. Also, the percentages of β- carotene loss of orange C. Valencia were 38.89, 52.42 and 87.14% with microwave, solar and air oven methods, respectively. Total flavonoid content recorded 453.33, 396.67 and 327.50 mg QE/100g dw, with dried by microwave, solar and oven methods, respectively compared with control in orange, C. valencia. These results revealed that microwave drying procedure was the most effective method which maintained citrus bioactive compounds content (ascorbic acid, β-carotene and flavonoid) followed by solar. On the other hand, air oven drying came in the last order due to direct heat treatment.

Keywords: Ascorbic acid, β-carotene, flavonoids, microwave, solar, air oven drying.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2371

Authors: Daniel Zammit, Cyril Spiteri Staines, Maurice Apap

Abstract:

This paper presents a study on Proportional Resonant (PR) current control with additional PR harmonic compensators for Grid Connected Photovoltaic (PV) Inverters. Both simulation and experimental results will be presented. Testing was carried out on a 3kW Grid-Connected PV Inverter which was designed and constructed for this research.

Keywords: Inverters, Proportional-Resonant Controllers, Harmonic Compensation, Photovoltaic.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 3349

Authors: F.Belhocine-Nemmar; MS.Belkaid D. Hatem, O Boughias

Abstract:

In this work, the influence of temperature on the different parameters of solar cells based on organic semiconductors are studied. The short circuit current Isc increases so monotonous with temperature and then saturates to a maximum value before decreasing at high temperatures. The open circuit voltage Vco decreases linearly with temperature. The fill factor FF and efficiency, which are directly related with Isc and Vco follow the variations of the letters. The phenomena are explained by the behaviour of the mobility which is a temperature activated process.

Keywords: cells parameters, organic materials, solar cells, temperature effect

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2600

Authors: S. Kong Wang

Abstract:

The purpose of this study is to investigate the efficiency of a double-layer roof in collecting solar energy as an application to the areas such as raising high-end temperature of organic Rankine cycle (ORC). The by-product of the solar roof is to reduce building air-conditioning loads. The experimental apparatus are arranged to evaluate the effects of the solar roof in absorbing solar energy. The flow channel is basically formed by an aluminum plate on top of a plywood plate. The geometric configurations in which the effects of absorbing energy is analyzed include: a bare uncovered aluminum plate, a glass-covered aluminum plate, a glass-covered/black-painted aluminum plate, a plate with variable lengths, a flow channel with stuffed material (in an attempt on enhancement of heat conduction), and a flow channel with variable slanted angles. The experimental results show that the efficiency of energy collection varies from 0.6 % to 11 % for the geometric configurations mentioned above. An additional study is carried out using CFD simulation to investigate the effects of fins on the aluminum plate. It shows that due to vastly enhanced heat conduction, the efficiency can reach ~23 % if 50 fins are installed on the aluminum plate. The study shows that a double-layer roof can efficiently absorb solar energy and substantially reduce building air-conditioning loads. On the high end of an organic Rankine cycle, a solar pond is used to replace the warm surface water of the sea as OTEC (ocean thermal energy conversion) is the driving energy for the ORC. The energy collected from the double-layered solar roof can be pumped into the pond and raise the pond temperature as the pond surface area is equivalently increased by nearly one-fourth of the total area of the double-layer solar roof. The effect of raising solar pond temperature is especially prominent if the double-layer solar roofs are installed in a community area.

Keywords: solar energy collection, double-layer solar roof, energy conservation, ORC, OTEC

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2280

Authors: Astiaj Khoramshahi, Hossein Ahmadi Danesh Ashtiani, Ahmad Khoshgard, Hamidreza Damghani, Leila Damghani

Abstract:

Rural electrification rates are generally low in Iran and many parts of the world that lack sustainable renewable energy resources. Many homes are based on polluting solutions such as crude oil and diesel generators for lighting, heating, and charging electrical gadgets. Small-scale portable solar battery packs are accessible to the public; however, they have low capacity and are challenging to be distributed in developing countries. To design a battery-based microgrid power systems, the load profile is one of the key parameters. Additionally, the reliability of the system should be taken into account. A conventional microgrid system can be either AC or coupling DC. Both AC and DC microgrids have advantages and disadvantages depending on their application and can be either connected to the main grid or perform independently. This article proposes a tool for optimal sizing of microgrid-independent systems via respective analysis. To show such an analysis, the type of power generation, number of panels, battery capacity, microgrid size, and group of available consumers should be considered. Therefore, the optimization of different design scenarios is based on number of solar panels and super saving sources, ranges of the depth of discharges, to calculate size and estimate the overall cost. Generally, it is observed that there is an inverse relationship between the depth spectrum of discharge and the solar microgrid costs.

Keywords: Storage, super-storage, grid-independent, economic factors, microgrid.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 247

Authors: Cameron Hamilton, Walter Potter, Gerrit Hoogenboom, Ronald McClendon, Will Hobbs

Abstract:

A model was constructed to predict the amount of solar radiation that will make contact with the surface of the earth in a given location an hour into the future. This project was supported by the Southern Company to determine at what specific times during a given day of the year solar panels could be relied upon to produce energy in sufficient quantities. Due to their ability as universal function approximators, an artificial neural network was used to estimate the nonlinear pattern of solar radiation, which utilized measurements of weather conditions collected at the Griffin, Georgia weather station as inputs. A number of network configurations and training strategies were utilized, though a multilayer perceptron with a variety of hidden nodes trained with the resilient propagation algorithm consistently yielded the most accurate predictions. In addition, a modeled direct normal irradiance field and adjacent weather station data were used to bolster prediction accuracy. In later trials, the solar radiation field was preprocessed with a discrete wavelet transform with the aim of removing noise from the measurements. The current model provides predictions of solar radiation with a mean square error of 0.0042, though ongoing efforts are being made to further improve the model’s accuracy.

Keywords: Artificial Neural Networks, Resilient Propagation, Solar Radiation, Time Series Forecasting.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2703

Authors: Mei Shan Ngan, Chee Wei Tan

Abstract:

Due to the non-linear characteristics of photovoltaic (PV) array, PV systems typically are equipped with the capability of maximum power point tracking (MPPT) feature. Moreover, in the case of PV array under partially shaded conditions, hotspot problem will occur which could damage the PV cells. Partial shading causes multiple peaks in the P-V characteristic curves. This paper presents a hybrid algorithm of Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) and Artificial Neural Network (ANN) MPPT algorithm for the detection of global peak among the multiple peaks in order to extract the true maximum energy from PV panel. The PV system consists of PV array, dc-dc boost converter controlled by the proposed MPPT algorithm and a resistive load. The system was simulated using MATLAB/Simulink package. The simulation results show that the proposed algorithm performs well to detect the true global peak power. The results of the simulations are analyzed and discussed.

Keywords: Photovoltaic (PV), Partial Shading, Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT), Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) and Artificial Neural Network (ANN)

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 3702

Authors: Ahmad Rouhani, Masoud Jabbari, Sima Honarmand

Abstract:

This paper introduces a method to optimal design of a hybrid Wind/Photovoltaic/Fuel cell generation system for a typical domestic load that is not located near the electricity grid. In this configuration the combination of a battery, an electrolyser, and a hydrogen storage tank are used as the energy storage system. The aim of this design is minimization of overall cost of generation scheme over 20 years of operation. The Matlab/Simulink is applied for choosing the appropriate structure and the optimization of system sizing. A teaching learning based optimization is used to optimize the cost function. An overall power management strategy is designed for the proposed system to manage power flows among the different energy sources and the storage unit in the system. The results have been analyzed in terms of technical and economic. The simulation results indicate that the proposed hybrid system would be a feasible solution for stand-alone applications at remote locations.

Keywords: Hybrid energy system, optimum sizing, power management, TLBO.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2514

Authors: Ki-Sung Park, Dae-Hee Lee, Dae-Ho Won, Yeon-Mo Yang

Abstract:

Solar power plants(SPPs) have shown a lot of good outcomes in providing a various functions depending on industrial expectations by deploying ad-hoc networking with helps of light loaded and battery powered sensor nodes. In particular, it is strongly requested to develop an algorithm to deriver the sensing data from the end node of solar power plants to the sink node on time. In this paper, based on the above observation we have proposed an IEEE802.15.4 based self routing scheme for solar power plants. The proposed beacon based priority routing Algorithm (BPRA) scheme utilizes beacon periods in sending message with embedding the high priority data and thus provides high quality of service(QoS) in the given criteria. The performance measures are the packet Throughput, delivery, latency, total energy consumption. Simulation results under TinyOS Simulator(TOSSIM) have shown the proposed scheme outcome the conventional Ad hoc On-Demand Distance Vector(AODV) Routing in solar power plants.

Keywords: Solar Power Plants(SPPs), Self routing, Quality of Service(QoS), WPANs, WSNs, TinyOS, TOSSIM, IEEE802.15.4

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2115