COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS ON THE EFFECTIVENESS OF SOLAR PANEL USING A SINGLE-AXIS SUN TRACKING SYSTEM VS CONVENTIONAL STATIC PLATFORM
No Thumbnail Available
Views
...
Downloads
...
Date
2024
Authors
Dan Lemuel C. Calubaquib and Cheenie Mae A. Sagun
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Abstract
Solar energy is one of the abundant renewable energy sources in the Philippines, which can be generated through solar photovoltaic technology system. This technology employs solar panels to capture the sun’s light by photoconductivity and convert the sun’s energy into a sustainable and clean source of electricity. With this, solar energy generation has gained prominence, laying the foundations for improving ways of producing energy.
In this study, a single-axis sun tracking system and a conventional fixed system were designed and constructed to investigate their power output and energy efficiency, shedding light on how this tracking system addressed the constraints of the fixed panel. The solar tracking system’s design consist of components such as microcontroller, two light-dependent resistors (LDRs), a DC motor, solar pv panels and sensors. Both systems we inclined to 12 degrees due south and were set to gather data for 10 hours on five consecutive days. Based on the result, the performance comparison between the static solar panel and solar tracking system showed that the solar panels with tracking mechanisms could generate more power with 213.34W than fixed solar panels with 148.09W. Additionally, data on light intensity every hour daily were recorded to compute for the solar irradiance directing towards the both systems. Data on solar irradiance from day 1 to day 4 obtained results of 10.59.79 w/m2, 759.59 w/m2, 945.63 w/m2, 1082.22 w/m2, respectively. As a result, the solar panel’s overall efficacy increased following the integration of the tracking system.
Additionally, the expenses associated with implementing a single-axis tracking mechanism in a solar PV system had an investment cost of Php 29,830.00 with an annual operating cost of Php 9,484.75 and a return period of 10.48 years of continuous 9-hr operation everyday.