Performance of Photovoltaic Modules of Different Solar Cells
In this paper, an attempt of performance evaluation of semitransparent and opaque photovoltaic (PV) modules of different generation solar cells, having the maximum efficiencies reported in the literature at standard test conditions (STC), has been carried out particularly for the months of January and June. The outdoor performance is also evaluated for the commercially available semitransparent and opaque PV modules. Annual electrical energy, capitalized cost, annualized uniform cost (unacost), and cost per unit electrical energy for both types of solar modules, namely, semitransparent and opaque have also been computed along with their characteristics curves. Semitransparent PV modules have shown higher efficiencies compared to the opaque ones. Calculations show that for the PV modules made in laboratory, CdTe exhibits the maximum annual electrical energy generation resulting into minimum cost per unit electrical energy, whereas a-Si/nc-Si possesses the maximum annual electrical energy generation giving minimum cost per unit electrical energy when commercially available solar modules are concerned. CIGS has shown the lowest capitalized cost over all other PV technologies.
According to the Annual Energy Review of US Energy Information Administration (EIA) in 2011, industrial, residential and commercial, transportation, and electric power generation are the primary sectors of energy consumption that account for, respectively, ~21%, 11%, 28%, and 40% of the total consumption. Petroleum (37%), natural gas (26%), coal (20%), renewable energy (9%), and nuclear electric power (8%) are the main sources being utilized to run the energy consumption sectors. The large percentage of energy is driven from the fossil fuels. In 2011, the US energy consumption accounted for ~2.84 × 10 13 kWh, whereas the production was just only ~2.28 × 10 13 kWh. And as per the Annual report of European Commission on Energy 2011, transport, industry, household, services, and agriculture account for, respectively, 32%, 25%, 27%, 14%, and 2% of total energy consumption. Petroleum accounts 35.1%, solid fuels account for, and 15.9%, renewable account for, 9.8%, nuclear power and natural gases account for, respectively, the 13.5% and 25.1% for fulfillment of the total energy requirement. Compared to 2009, the gross consumption increased by 3.3% in 2010. In the context of present energy crisis in terms of demand and supply and the bad consequences of fossil fuels on our delicate environment, the development and use of renewable sources of energy has become very important.
Solar photovoltaic (PV) technology is one of the most important renewable sources of energy generation. Since the early realization of PV effect in 1839, there have been steady improvements in the performance of solar cells and the application of advanced materials has given birth to new generations of solar cells. Crystalline silicon (c-Si) was the first material giving practical solar cell [1]; therefore, the solar cells, based on c-Si are known as first generation solar cells. From the cost, performance, and processibility points of view, the application of new advanced materials gave birth to new generations of solar cells. The second and third generation PV cells were based on the thin film materials such as amorphous silicon (a-Si), cadmium telluride (CdTe), copper indium gallium diselenide (CIGS), organic semiconductors and organic dyes. Thin film materials are deposited either in single-junction or multijunction configurations referred to as stacked junction or tandem cells. A brief overview of different solar cells with their latest laboratory efficiencies is given in Table 1. The values have been taken from the website of National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), USA [2].
PV modules have got various applications for electricity generation in remote, rural, and even in urban areas. They have got applications in different sectors ranging from agriculture, household to industry. PV modules can be used in most of the sectors where energy is required. The PV modules can be integrated in buildings to fulfill dual purposes, namely, generation of electricity and harvesting of thermal energy too. Such systems are known as building-integrated photovoltaic thermal (BIPVT) systems. BIPVT systems have got tremendous household and industry applications [4, 5]. The demand of solar PV devices is increasing very fast, and as per the US-EIA report, the US photovoltaic industry hit a record in 2009 by shipping ~1.3 GWp solar cells and solar modules, that is, ~30% more than that in 2008. Out of that ~0.58 GWp was accounted by mono c-Si, ~0.4 GWp by poly c-Si, and ~0.27 was accounted by thin films (a-Si, nc-Si, CdTe, and CIGS) solar cells. From the beginning, the PV modules based on c-Si have continued to dominate the PV market. Application of PV modules can fulfill our long-term energy demand, but they have got some implications too. High cost, cumbersome processing and difficulty in handling are some of the main implications in the present commercial PV technologies. Research is being done to make them more viable and more cost effective. In view of the increasing demand, the understanding of their performance in different environmental conditions becomes of high importance. An analysis of the outdoor performance of PV modules made of different generation solar cells is presented. The PV modules have been considered in the two well-known configurations, for example, semitransparent and opaque as shown in Figure 1, where the PV modules are prepared, respectively, on the glass and tedlar plates. For the PV modules made of c-Si and poly c-Si solar cells, the top encapsulating covered plate is considered to be made of highly transparent glass, whereas the thin films PV modules are considered to be encapsulated by an EVA encapsulant only.
Modeling
The efficiencies and temperature of PV module are calculated using energy balance equations. To write the energy balance equations for PV modules, the following assumptions have been considered: (i) One-dimensional heat conduction, (ii) the encapsulant ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) is purely transparent, (iii) the ohmic losses in solar cells and PV modules are negligible.
2.1. Energy Balance Equations
2.1.1. For Semitransparent Mono c-Si and Poly c-Si PV Modules
The energy balance equation for the semitransparent mono c-Si or poly c-Si PV modules can be written as [10, 11]
Here and can be defined as
From (1), the cell temperature can be expressed as
where. According to Evan [12, 13], the temperature dependence of the cell efficiency can be written as
With the help of (4) and (5), one can get the electrical efficiency of the cell as
and the module efficiency as
2.1.2. For Opaque Mono c-Si and Poly c-Si PV Modules
The energy balance equation for the opaque mono c-Si or poly c-Si PV modules can be written as [10, 11]
From (9), the cell temperature can be written as
where. Therefore, now from (5) and (11) one gets
and the module efficiency
2.1.3. For Thin Film PV Modules
For a thin film PV module, the energy balance equation can be written as
For semitransparent PV module, is written as
) whereas for the opaque PV modules, is given by (effective ). Now from (14), can be written as
where. Now from (5) and (16) the cell efficiency can be given by
and the module efficiency will now be given by
2.2. Annual Electrical Energy
The hourly electrical energy of a PV module can be given by
[12]. And the daily electrical energy in KWh is obtained by
, where is the number of sun shine hours per day. The monthly electrical energy for the clear days (condition (a)) in KWh is calculated by the following expression: where is the number of clear days in a month. Now the annual electrical energy is calculated by
2.3. Cost Analysis
The capitalized cost is defined on the equivalent present value ( ) of the system lasting for years. The present value of the system based on an infinite time period can be represented as shown in Figure 12.
For a system costing and having service lifetime of years, the present value replacing out to infinity is given by [7, 10]
where is the capitalized cost and is the capitalized cost factor. can be calculated from
The annualized uniform cost (Unacost, ) and capitalized cost are related as [7, 10];
The cost for per unit electric energy production by a PV module is evaluated by
Methodology
The climatic data for the solar radiation on horizontal surface, ambient temperature ( ), and the number of days for the weather conditions (a), (b), (c), and (d) for Delhi was obtained from the Indian Metrological Department (IMD), Delhi. The following methodology has been used to evaluate the electrical efficiencies, annual electrical energy, and cost per unit electrical energy for the PV modules.
Step 1. The hourly solar radiation on the PV modules, at the 30° inclination from the horizontal, was calculated using the Liu and Jordan method [14].
Step 2. The designed parameters, for both laboratory made and commercially available PV modules, used for calculations have been tabulated in Table 2. The corresponding references for the values of different parameters have been given in the table, and the values of rest of the parameters have been taken from [11].
Step 3. For the known climatic conditions and designed parameters, the cell temperatures and electrical efficiencies of the PV modules have been evaluated using the modeling given above. Note. The expressions of cell and module efficiencies are valid only for the condition K.
Step 4. The temperature of PV modules has been considered to be equal to that of the solar cells and calculated by the modeling above.
Step 5. The monthly electrical energy for clear days (condition (a)) has been evaluated using (19), and the same process was adopted to calculate the monthly electrical energy for other climatic conditions (b), (c), and (d). The total electrical energy for each month was obtained by adding the energy generations in the climatic conditions (a), (b), (c), and (d) in that month.
Step 6. The Annual electrical energy was calculated using (20).
Step 7. has been calculated by (22). Operational and maintenance costs have been considered to be 10% whereas salvage value has been taken 5% of the initial cost ( ) of the modules.
Step 8. While calculating the electrical energy, the degradation rates per year of individual systems (Table 4) were also taken into account [23].
Step 9. The annualized capitalized cost has been calculated using (21).
Step 10. The unacost has been calculated using (24).
Step 11. Finally, the cost per unit electrical energy was calculated using (25). For the calculations of and. interest rate has been considered to be 8%.
Note. The values of different parameters given in Table 2 have been taken from the websites of different world known institutions/companies. First Solar is the world leading company of USA. in thin film PV module manufacturing. It is world’s leading provider of solar energy solutions. First Solar holds the world record in CdTe module and cell efficiencies and owns mega solar projects in the world. Global Solar, USA, is a leading manufacturer of flexible solar technologies and produces CIGS solar cells at record efficiency. Global Solar is the only manufacturer for full-scale production of flexible CIGS solar cells. Sharp Solar is a world leading solar company of Japan and aims to provide reliable solar power from lighthouses to space satellites to mega solar power plants. Sharp Solar has developed world’s highest power conversion efficiency of 44.4% using a concentrator triple junction solar cell. Sharp has also established its own standards for accelerated tests and endurance tests, which are more demanding than the standards set by IEC and JIS international industrial standards.
Results and Discussion
To solve the mathematical equations, a computer program Mathcad 8 has been used. The calculated hourly variations of at 30° inclination and for typical clear days of January and June are shown in Figure 2. As expected, the solar intensity is maximum at ~13:00 hrs where the intensity in January is greater than that in June. It is important to note that the solar intensity at any surface depends on its declination angle and the solar altitude. The smaller the angle of inclination of the radiation with horizontal surface, the greater will be the path to travel and the lower radiation reaching the surface. The altitude is more in summer compared to that in winter. The altitude is more in summer compared to that in winter for a given inclination of PV module
It is also observed that the angle of incidence in January is less than that is June, leading to higher intensity in January. The higher intensity in January due to small angle of incidence
compared to that in June due to large value of angle of incidence can be understood from the fact that a south facing surface receives higher amount of radiation during winter than during the summer (~1.5 times) for a given inclination. As expected, the ambient temperature in January is smaller than that in the June. Figure 3 shows the variation in module efficiency of commercially available different PV modules with time. The calculations have also been done for PV modules which have been considered to be prepared in the laboratory, with STC cell efficiencies (figure not shown). Among the different PV technologies, c-Si PV technology has shown the maximum efficiency for both the modules, commercially available and prepared in laboratory. However, a-Si PV modules have shown the minimum efficiency in both cases. For all the PV technologies, the module efficiencies first decrease and then increase with time. The minimum efficiency for all the PV modules is observed at ~13:00 hrs. The variation in module efficiencies can be correlated with the module temperatures shown in Figure 4. Because of different temperature coefficients of different materials, the module temperatures are different. The temperature coefficient of OPV modules has been calculated using (5), where the desired parameters were obtained from [24]. a-Si has shown the maximum module temperature whereas c-Si exhibited the minimum module temperature. The module temperatures first increase and then decrease with time and are maximum at ~13:00 hrs which correspond to maximum solar intensity (see Figure 2). Therefore, it can be inferenced that the module efficiencies are minimum for maximum module temperatures, and it is because of the maximum electrical losses due to enhanced collisions of electrons at high temperatures. It is worth mentioning that the electrical resistance in a system is controlled by the electron collisions. For high temperatures the collision will be more that it would result into high resistance, and high resistance would lead to more recombination losses.
Introduction
The most important renewable energy source is solar power. Solar energy harvesting systems, such as rooftop water heating pipes, solar cells, and mirrors, are constantly improving and their efficiency grows with the advancement of technology [1].
Photovoltaic electricity from the sun it is a non-modern technology that is regarded the most effective and is the most widely utilized in solar energy technologies [2]. Solar photovoltaic energy is based on the use of sunlight without the use of heat. In the creation of energy, heat is a negative factor. The lesser the manufacturing efficiency, the higher the temperature of the unit. The ideal temperature for solar PV panel electricity production is 25 °C [3], while in some circumstances; high intensity radiation with a high degree affects the PV panel’s efficiency [4]. Photovoltaic solar panels consist of many solar cells; these cells are made of semiconductors such as silicon, and are designed in two layers, a positive layer and a negative layer, which is what is known as the electric field [5].
The waves that are emitted by the sun stimulate the cell to make energy. When sunlight penetrates the solar cell, it generates a negative and positive voltage inside the p–n junction. Positive electrons travel to the top surface, while negative electrons travel to the lower surface. The two surfaces are connected to a battery to produce energy by drawing negative electrons. Photovoltaic cells are a promising technology and one of the most important alternative energy sources [6]. The major challenge for PV cell producers is the high temperature [7]. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is a hotbed of solar installations and is one of the renewable energy objectives outlined in Vision 2030 [8].
The top conduction layer, the absorbent layer, and the rear layer are the three primary layers in a solar cell. The cell also has two positive and negative electrical layers. The electrical contact layer (positive), also known as p-type [9]. This layer is located on the cell’s face and is made up of a slice taken from silicon monocrystals with some impurities added to it, and the background electrical contact layer (negative), which is made up of pure silicon with some impurities added to it, and both layers work together to transfer electrical current to and from the cell (Fig. 1).
There are three main common types of solar cells available in the market. Monocrystalline solar cells consist of a large mass of silicon and are produced in the form of a chip. Polycrystalline solar cells are made by melting multiple silicon crystals together, then re-merging them into one panel [11]. Polycrystalline solar cells are made by cutting silicon wafers for the ability to be attached to the solar panel [10]. Polycrystalline solar cells are made by melting multiple silicon crystals together, then re-merging them into one panel. The maximum current that can be delivered from the cell’s edges is measured by shorting the cell’s terminals at maximum output [12], and the current output in the solar cell is dependent on the intensity of the light coming from the sun or another source, as well as the angle at which the light is projected. When there is no load in the cell at the time of measurement, the voltage can be measured across the ends of the cell, and the voltage changes from one cell to the next due to differing manufacturing procedures and temperatures. The highest limit of the electrical energy output (Pm) to the radiative energy input can be described as the efficiency of a solar cell (Pin) [13]. The efficiency of a system is measured in terms of its impact on the environment [14]. PV module manufacturers use standard test conditions to measure three primary components: cell temperature, radiation, and air mass. These circumstances vary and mostly affect the power output of the modules [15].
As a result, this work provides a study to improve the efficiency of solar cells by describing the capacity of the cell during the cell cycle and recording the cell‘s characterization, and then studying ways to improve this performance by adding a layer of copper sulfate that absorbs the sun’s heat and allows only sunlight to pass through the cell.
Experimental work
2.1 Investigation methodology
To achieve the purpose of this work, a study was conducted the characteristics of the PV under the different climate conditions at site Mecca (Makkah). The PV panel was installed and oriented to the south at a 21.5° angle to match the site direction of Mecca (Makkah) City, producing the most power. The experiments carried out on the Solar Energy Lab., Mechanical Engineering Department. On several days in June, from 7:00 a.m. to 18:00 p.m., measurements of the ambient temperature, sun intensity, and relative humidity are taken and recorded every hour to track the variation throughout the day. The various measurements are then recorded in the manner prescribed. The output power calculated [7], where
The PV efficiency is determined as following:
Also, the PV fill factor is determined using following equation:
Where \(_\) : PV output power per (W), \(I\) : PV output current per unit ampere (A), \(V\) : PV output voltage per unit volt (V), \(_\) : Light input power (solar radiation) per unit (W/m 2 ), \(A\) : Solar cell area (m 2 ), \(_\) : PV open circuit voltage per unit volt (V), \(_\) : PV short circuit current per unit ampere (A) (Fig. 2).
2.2 Materials
This investigation makes use of the following materials: 10 W resistance, wire connections, copper sulphate powder from SPECIALITY CHEMICALS CO “CuSO4⋅5H2O—M.W 249.68, Assay—not less than 99% maximum contaminant levels iron (Fe)—0.1%, chloride (CI) —0.005%, a plastic layer of size: 365 × 275 mm and thickness of 0.1 mm, distiller water, some rubber in various thicknesses (5, 10, 20 mm), and GP silicone acetic.
2.3 Measurements
The suggested PV’s output voltage and current were measured with a digital multimeter (KEW 1011) with the following accuracy: 0.5% in volts and 1.2% in current. While the ambient temperature and relative humidity are monitored using a “Temperature/Humidity Meter (TM-183) with accuracy: %C in temperature.” All temperature measurements were carried out on panel surface.
The Meteon Irradiance Meter Type (060501) “Sensor CM4” with an operational temperature range of − 40 °C to 150 °C and measurement up to 4000 W/m 2 is used to measure solar radiation.
Results and discussion
Many experiments have been carried out to investigate the characteristics of the PV cell in various weather circumstances such as ambient temperature, solar radiation, and relative humidity. In addition, the performance of the PV is improved employing substrate materials such as copper sulphate solution (CSS) at concentrations (1%) with and without a plastic layer. Furthermore, the upper surface of the PV is covered by a plastic layer without CSS, with the height from the upper surface changing from 0 to 5 mm, 10 mm, and 20 mm. The results presented here study the properties of the PV under various weather circumstances such as ambient temperature, solar radiation, and relative humidity. The results also indicate the performance of the PV employing various plastic layer and copper sulphate solution materials.
3.1 Effect of weather conditions during the daytime
The following results are acquired under various weather circumstances, including solar radiation, ambient temperature, and relative humidity, on the PV’s behaviour. Figures 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 depict the change in solar radiation, ambient temperature, and relative humidity over time. On June 6, 9, 11, 15, 19, and 20, 2021. It is observed from the behaviour of solar radiation on different days that solar radiation has a low value at first and then steadily grows until it reaches its maximum value about 12:00 pm. These numbers also demonstrate that solar radiation has a value greater than 1000 W/m 2 between 9:00 a.m. and 14:00 p.m., and a value greater than 800 W/m 2 between 8:00 a.m. and 15:00 p.m., after which it gradually drops (Table 1).
Figure 12 depicts the output power of two PV without and with a 10 mm air gap during the daytime hours of June 19, 2021. We can see from this graph that the PV output power without reaching (0.016–7.169 W) was 6.751 W at 12:00 pm. Whereas Fig. 13 depicts solar radiation and the PV efficiency of two PV without and with a 10 mm air gap, Fig. 14 depicts ambient temperature, relative humidity, and the PV efficiency of two PV without and with a 10 mm air gap during the day.
Figure 15 depicts the output power of two PVs without and with a 20 mm air gap during the day on June 15, 2021. This figure shows that the PV output power was 7.22 W at 12:00 pm till it reached (0.018–7.37 W). Figure 16 depicts solar radiation and efficiency of two PV without and with a 20 mm air gap, while Fig. 17 depicts ambient temperature, relative humidity, and the PV efficiency of two PV without and with a 20 mm air gap during the day.
Conclusion
Photovoltaic (PV) energy is regarded as one of the most essential options. Renewable energy is free, clean, and available most of the time. The performance of solar cells is externally dependent on environmental conditions, with changes in ambient temperature and solar radiation affecting output parameters such as output voltage, current, power, efficiency, and fill factor. The current thesis portrayed Makkah city’s climate parameters like as sun intensity, ambient temperature, and relative humidity on various days in June. This was done to investigate the features of the PV in various weather conditions. This study suggests that:
- 1. Solar radiation begins low and gradually increases until it reaches its peak at 12:00 p.m. between 9:00 a.m. and 14:00 p.m., solar radiation is greater than 1000 W/m 2. and between 8:00 a.m. and 15:00 p.m., it gradually decreases.
- 2. 2.The ambient temperature has initially small values of around (30–35 °C), then gradually increases to a high of more than 40 °C between 9:00 a.m. and 17:00 p.m., and then gradually lowers again to values of around (33–38 °C) at time 18:00 p.m.
- 3. Relative humidity has initially high values (24–39%) and then steadily drops until it reaches its minimal values (7–16%). The relative humidity drops as the temperature rises.
- 4. The PV output power reaches its peak between 9:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m., and hence the output power drops as solar radiation increases.5. The maximum value of the PV efficiency at the period between 7:30 and 8:30 a.m. and then gradually decreases with increasing of the ambient temperature although increasing in solar radiation.
- 5. In Makkah, relative humidity has no effect on the performance of photovoltaic solar cells.
- 6. Air gaps (5, 10, 20 mm) generated by a plastic layer from the upper surface of the PV diminish the PV output power by 1.52 W, 1.44 W, and 1.62 W, respectively. Furthermore, it affects PV efficiency by 1.4%, 1.36%, and 1.48%, respectively. However, the air gap of 10 mm has the smallest drop in output power and efficiency.
- 7. The obtained results show that using a layer of plastic with a 1% concentration of copper sulphate solution (CSS) leads to a 2.55 W reduction in output power, while the efficiency of the PV with CSS concentrations continues to increase after 8:30 a.m. despite increasing ambient temperature, but CSS leads to a 2.47% reduction in efficiency at the peak time compared to the free PV.
Factors that affect solar panel efficiency
There are several factors can make a solar module more or less efficient.
The type of panel
There are two basic types of solar panels on the market: Monocrystalline and polycrystalline.
Monocrystalline solar cells are cut from a single source of silicon. This makes them more pure and, as a result, more efficient and more expensive. Monocrystalline panels range between 15 and 22.8% efficient and makeup most of the high efficiency solar panels on the list above.
Polycrystalline solar cells are made with silicon blended together from multiple sources, giving them their signature blue color. This leads to imperfections on the surface of the panel that limit efficiency to around 13-16%. However, polycrystalline panels are less wasteful and less expensive.
Environmental Factors Affecting Solar Cell Efficiency
Shade from nearby buildings, trees, or heavy Cloud coverage are the nemeses of efficiency. After all, how can your expertly engineered solar panels produce electricity without sunlight? Though, some light does make it through the clouds.
Significant amounts of dirt and dust can also reduce efficiency. For the most part, solar modules are self-cleaning. A rain shower can reset you panel efficiency in just a few minutes. If you live in a particularly arid region and heavy dust-storms are a problem, you might want to clean the panels off yourself. Here’s how to know if your panels need cleaning and how to go about it.
A common misconception is that winter weather will mean lower efficiency. The opposite is often true. Though solar modules are designed to withstand average temperatures, they’re more inclined to function better when they’re cooler. This is true with most electronic equipment. And since solar panels need light (not heat) from the sun, bright winter days might be some of the most productive.
Snow is another area of confusion with solar panel efficiency. A thin layer of snow won’t hinder solar efficiency much. Read more about snow with solar, and solutions for heavy snowfall with solar here.
Internal factors
Many internal and scientific factors play in the solar cell efficiency equation. But two major components are:
Reflectance efficiency is determined by how much sunlight is reflected back instead of absorbed and put to use. The less reflection in solar cells, the better. Silicon reflectance can be as much as 38 percent, though most solar cells have a slight micro-pyramid shape. This reduces reflectance to about 11 percent.
There are ways to reduce reflectance, such as anti-reflective coatings. Really advanced solar cell construction or, “stacking micro- and nano-sized arrays on top of the larger structures” can bring reflectance down to just 1 or 2 percent.
Thermodynamic efficiency is the maximum efficiency possible. It’s the height at which the sun’s energy could be converted into electricity. This number is right around 86 percent, the thermodynamic efficiency limit.
The way photons interact with solar cells, they can only generate electricity from the sun’s energy up to a certain point. After that point (86 percent) thermal energy, or heat, is created.
One way to improve thermodynamic efficiency is to construct multi-junction or tandem solar cells. This improves efficiency by dividing the solar spectrum into smaller areas, which raises the efficiency limit for each section.
Solar panel efficiency FAQ’s
How efficient are solar panels?
Residential solar panels range from 13% to 22.8% efficient, with most modern models hovering around the 20% mark. This represents remarkable growth from the 6% efficiency of the early solar panels constructed in 1950’s.
What are the most efficient solar panels?
The most efficient residential solar panels are nearly 23% efficient and include the following models:
-SunPower A-series (Up to 22.8%).SunPower X-series (Up to 22.7%).Panasonic EverVolt® Photovoltaic series (Up to 22.2%).SunPower M-series (Up to 22%)
In 2022, researchers at the National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL) created a solar cell with a record 39.5% efficiency, breaking their previous record of 39.2% in 2020. However, these expiremental solar cells have a long way to go before they can be scaled for market applications.
Do solar panels lose efficiency over time?
Solar panel efficiency declines over time through a process called degradation. This is a natural process due to prolonged exposure to sun, heat, ice, wind and other elements.
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Solar Shadings
Solar PV panels are very sensitive to solar shadings. Total or partial shading conditions have a significant impact rate on the capability of delivering energy and may result in lower output and power losses. Cells in a solar panel are usually connected in series to get a higher voltage and therefore an appropriate production of electricity.
But when shading occurs, this structure presents some limitations. In fact, when a single solar cell is shaded, the current of all the units in the string is determined by the unit that produces the least current. When a cell is shaded, the whole series is virtually shaded too. To prevent the loss of energy, the installation usually includes bypass diodes.
Bypass diodes are wired in parallel to the solar cells. When a solar cell is shaded, the bypass diode provides a current path that allows the string of connected solar cells to generate energy at a reduced voltage. Read more.
The Orientation, Inclination, Latitude of the place and Climatic conditions
The installation of the photovoltaic modules must take into account some factors to take full advantage of solar radiation: the orientation, the inclination, the latitude of the place, the climatic conditions. The correct consideration of these variants will help ensure that they produce maximum energy by being exposed to the greatest intensity of solar radiation for the longest period of time. Learn more.
OM services help with the management of the implementation of certain processes to avoid or mitigate potential hazards and to guarantee the optimal return on investment. Operations mainly consist of the remote monitoring and control of the PV power plant conditions and performance. Monitoring software provides access to all data collected, which can be used for different purposes: defect detection, performance analysis, improvement, predictive maintenance, and security. A good monitoring system will provide information on the production, alarms, and analytical data, in a timely, efficient, and precise manner to detect any anomaly of the PV plant. Continue reading.
Maintenance
Solar panels are very durable, main warranties last for 15-25 years. However, cleaning solar panels is important to maximize the amount of light available to turn into electrical power. Making frequent physical inspections can help solar panels absorbing light effectively.
archelios™ Suite is a comprehensive software solution that offers a unique approach. Thanks to its advanced computational technology, archelios™ Suite adds value to the life-cycle of any PV project: feasibility and profitability study, simulation, calculation of producible energy, complete electrical sizing, operation, and monitoring.
The software is an efficient tool for any type of PV project.
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Just read this article and I can say these are awesome great tips on how to take care of your Fort Sill Solar Panel Installation. I will be using this tips for my own clients so that there Fort Sill Solar Panel Installation in Fort Mill, SC go smoothly! Reply
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Because these cookies are strictly necessary to deliver the website, refusing them will have impact how our site functions. You always can block or delete cookies by changing your browser settings and force blocking all cookies on this website. But this will always prompt you to accept/refuse cookies when revisiting our site.
We fully respect if you want to refuse cookies but to avoid asking you again and again kindly allow us to store a cookie for that. You are free to opt out any time or opt in for other cookies to get a better experience. If you refuse cookies we will remove all set cookies in our domain.
We provide you with a list of stored cookies on your computer in our domain so you can check what we stored. Due to security reasons we are not able to show or modify cookies from other domains. You can check these in your browser security settings.
Check to enable permanent hiding of message bar and refuse all cookies if you do not opt in. We need 2 cookies to store this setting. Otherwise you will be prompted again when opening a new browser window or new a tab.
These cookies collect information that is used either in aggregate form to help us understand how our website is being used or how effective our marketing campaigns are, or to help us customize our website and application for you in order to enhance your experience.
If you do not want that we track your visit to our site you can disable tracking in your browser here:
We also use different external services like Google Webfonts, Google Maps, and external Video providers. Since these providers may collect personal data like your IP address we allow you to block them here. Please be aware that this might heavily reduce the functionality and appearance of our site. Changes will take effect once you reload the page.
Google reCaptcha Settings:
Vimeo and YouTube video embeds:
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