Tilt Sensors: A Widely Used Technology for Solar Tracking

Tilt sensors considerably impact the CSP, i.e. the output of solar power plants and thus, are basically used for solar tracking technology. Although the necessity of solar tracking and the improvement in production because of it is proven, there are many confusions around how these systems actually function and what the predicted profits out of them. So, just read on to know the efficiency of the tilt sensors and its role in solar tracking technology:

Significance of solar tracking system:

The power output relies on the panel orientation in respect of the sun in case of solar power plants. As the incorrect arrangement extends beyond a point, the output begins falling smoothly. To be exact, the output of the solar panels falls with the angle’s cosine between the panel and the incident radiation.

The misconception is that the most of the solar power we get only in the noon times. Even, solar research has shown that the power available amid evenings and early mornings are hardly half of the power available amid noon time. Even, the inclination angle at which optimal power may be predicted also of the function of season and location. Solar tracking’s absence implies most of this power is lost because of incorrect arrangement between the collectors and the sunlight.

In India, solar energy is available abundantly for most of the year. However, in other parts of the universe, because of poor availability of solar energy, not getting solar tracking system causes poor power output and thus large payback periods. Even, the use of Solar Tracker in India can essentially increase the power output resulting in quick recouping of the investments done.

Solar tracking can increase the solar power plants’ output by 10-25% relying on the area and climatic conditions. If there is place constraint, more yield can be accomplished utilising solar tracking systems.

Role of tilt sensors in solar tracking technology:

Although various methods can be utilized for Solar Tracking, tilt sensors are possibly the most widely utilised technology.

What makes tilt sensors the desired option for this application more than other technologies? Few features of tilt sensors mentioned below show them an ideal fit for this application:

1. Tilt sensors are cost-effective, easy-to-install-and-use and compact. Their price is lower than the price advantages one reaps out of them, justifying their utilization for this application. Besides, optical encoders are not easy-to-install and incorrectly arrangement during the installation can make a fixed error in the output unless corrected.
2. Tilt sensors give a digital output which can be fed straight to controllers for controlling the collectors’ orientation. The output stays correct over the period. Since the optical encoders are relative angle sensors, function over the time can make a small error in the output which may slowly maximize.

3. Tilt sensors are weathered, and thus, bear rains, heat and other high weather conditions. While compared to tilt sensors, optical encoders having moving elements and therefore, are subjected to tear and wear. Dirt and dust also impact their functionality.

Solar Trackers in USA: A Way of Unlocking the Complete Potential of Utility-Scale Photovoltaic

Solar trackers are essential to helping the entire solar industry. In the sunny parts of the USA, solar PV projects are coming in at an excellent 4.5-5.5% per KWH. These projects include economies-of-scale benefits in comparison with a rooftop or smaller type PV projects. However, there is another essential technology benefit: since the utility-size systems are ground-mounted, solar trackers in USA can be used to enable the panels for following the sun during the daylight hours.

The benefits of solar trackers are exceptional, sometimes prolonging annual power production 20% in comparison with the fixed-mounted systems. For projects, solar trackers in USA will more than makeup for their general increase in upfront expenses over a system’s lifetime, sometimes leading to the lowest LCOE (Levelised Cost of Electricity) in projects. Not just is annual production maximised, but solar tracking systems also generate more power amid peak demand hours in comparison with the fixed-mounted systems.

Significant benefits of solar tracking:

Large photovoltaic projects which are ground-mounted, present a common question: should the utility go with a solar tracking system or a fixed mounted photovoltaic system amid the daytime? Basic considerations incorporate the entire annual electricity generation and the electricity amount generated amid hours while electricity demand is at its topmost level.

Photovoltaic watts is a helpful tool for testing the agreements involved. The software anticipates the power generated from a photovoltaic system under several configurations. However, a solar tracking system can also generate more energy when a utility most wants it and when the power demands are at their peak.

Solar Tracker basically includes extra upfront expenses of 2-10% on large utility-scale projects. Recovering that added investment, nevertheless, will be area-dependent. Usually speaking, single-axis trackers generate nearly 20% more power in comparison with fixed-mount systems only about everywhere in the USA. Well, the amount of annual energy generated in a cloudy area like Seattle is just around 60% of a sunny place like Albuquerque, which will highly affect the economic survey.

The utility-scale PV market is starting:

With the reduction in solar prices, installations have risen. The solar market of the USA is more than 6 times bigger than it was in only 2010. The great times are predicted to continue, with an expectation of 12GW of photovoltaic installed in 2016 as organisations rush to take benefit of expiring tax credits. The rising development has in big portion been driven by utility-scale systems, of which yearly installations prolonged from near 0 in 2009 to 4GW in 2014, and are predicted to be nearly 7GW in 2016.

Nevertheless, 2017 may bring a high drop in photovoltaic market size. With the help of the better Solar Tracking technology, thankfully solar will continue its downward path in expenses for offsetting the elimination in the federal ITC.

With the constant enhancement in cost and functionality of every prime component including inverters, trackers, and modules, it seems utility-scale solar will stay and is already placed to be a very challenging source of power going forward.

Solar Panel Tracker: An Essential Part of Solar Photovoltaic System

Solar panel trackers are the devices which rotate solar panels towards the sun across the day. The usage of solar panel tracker is in commercial solar farms; nevertheless, they stay creative for residential use as they can be really costly to install. The solar array can be protected by the integrated monitoring systems from unfavourable climatic conditions like heavy snowfall or high winds.

Time tracking appears so easy but it’s a great way of getting the most benefit of your solar panels. A solar panel tracker is a device which follows the sun for capturing its energy. Many devices have been made for tracking the sun but these are costly.

Although solar tracking system has been commercially used for many years, there has always been the requirement of an alternative, as it can be costly. Solar Trackers increase the amount of time solar panels generate power by facing the sun.

Thus, rather than using the device which moves while the sun does, there is also the concept of programming the panel for moving with time, for reducing the costs.

Additional hours of power can be found via an attachment of solar panels. You just need to select times across the day and the panels will be targeted to precisely where the sun is positioned. Solar panel tracker will be waiting there for when the sun comes back out if it is behind the clouds.

Efficiency of solar panel trackers:

Solar Tracking Systems can provide with marginal advantages in the winter and substantial advantages in the summer and total are said to supply up to 40% more electricity than a static array yearly.

Functions of solar trackers:

Active trackers move the panels along 1 or 2 axis using motors and software for turning the array towards the sun. Passive trackers depend on the sun for heating a liquid contained in the canisters on the array’s slides. As the uncovered canisters heat up, the liquid extends into a gas, pushing the rest of the heavier liquid to the covered canister, moving weight to that side of the array leading it to rotate.

Price of solar trackers:

Sometimes, the extra price can’t be balanced by the extended income. In several cases, it could be lesser expensive to easily add more solar panels. Nevertheless, it can be benefit considering tracking for bigger ground-arrays for prolonging output from a provided space, or while the largest power demand happens in the summer; for instance, for heating a swimming pool or powering air conditioning.

Are solar panel trackers relevant for you?

Solar panel trackers are perfectly used on uncovered ground arrays. Nevertheless, additionally, they can be utilised on flat surface of the roofs. As solar panel trackers are more typically utilised in commercial settings as well as homes with large areas of land in more remote areas, you will definitely need to consult the expert installers as to whether a solar tracking system is relevant for your home or not.

The Best Motor for the Solar Tracking System

While it comes to pointing out electric motors for solar tracking applications, environmental protection is a major consideration because of their exposure to the factors. In solar tracking, you can throw in torrid heat, gale winds, hailstorms, blizzards and, for good estimation, include virtual lasting authenticity. Thus, designs of motors for solar power applications should stand up to high in temperature, highly corrosive salt sprays, wind loads, humidity and rough airborne particulate matter.

Use of motors with integral intelligence capacities becomes more essential, as solar power projects become bigger in scope. The motor types drive performance which now can be built into the motor can enable communication among motors over a network, thus, eliminating the cost of the entire system and the TCO (Total Cost of Ownership). The types of motor utilised in solar power applications run the gamut.

1. Stepper motors:

These are not costly but become difficult and lose some economic advantages when elements are included for operating in the closed-loop position control schemes which define solar tracking. These motors’ air gap is a size’s fraction of other types of motors and can cause rotor binding against the stator while there are high-temperature variations between several motor parts, as while the motor’s one side sees direct sunlight and the underside is then shaded. Basic speed range of the stepper motor is also limited on the high side to nearly 400rpm, which is not beneficial while stowing trackers fast when worst storms come nearer.

2. AC induction motors:

These motors have been used in past Solar Tracking Systems as they can draw energy directly from the grid; however, it is hard to control AC motors at slow speeds required in most tracking applications. When induction motors turn on and off in a step function for tracking the sun, it doesn’t allow the most effective continuous collection and tracking of solar power.

3. BLDC (Brushless DC) motors:

Although these motors are the widest application of today in tracking systems, they have a low TCO and are totally maintenance-free. This particular motor has no-prone brushes, is highly effective and hits nearly 3000rpm, a different benefit while a short stowing time is essential.

4. PMDC (Permanent Magnet Brush DC) motors:

These motors are comparatively effective, easy-to-control and if correctly built, can last for long, in spite of the commutator or brush wear which is essential in their design. They also show a large speed range which is beneficial in stowing conditions.

Current growth:

In these day’s PV tracking arrays’ distributed control design, BLDC motors with embedded intelligence can be networked with disordered PLCs having Solar Tracking operation blocks.

Arising trends:

With superior level integral BLDC motor embedded intelligence, a BLDC motor can cater as main control for hosting and running programs during network interference like returning the tracker to a secure position in a power outage.

So, all the above-mentioned motors are the common types of electric motors which can be used in order to track sun power, i.e. solar tracking applications.

Boost The Efficiency Of Your PV System With A Solar Tracker

Solar energy is an excellent renewable energy source, giving sufficient environmental and economic advantages. Nevertheless, it has a significant limitation: a solar panel produces more power when directly facing the sun, but the sun is moving in the sky. That’s why, solar panels turn to be more effective at noon while they get direct sunlight; however, suffer decreased production in the early morning or at the afternoon’s end.

Alongside the daytime, other factors also impact the sun’s position in the sky:

Seasons:

Regularly sun-hours in a provided location change as per the season, and the usual path considered by the sun in the sky likely to rise in summer and fall in winter.

Geographic location:

The sun turns to be lower in the sky for the nations far to the south or north. Besides, in the tropics, the regular path of the sun in the sky is really high and the sun may be located straight upward at noon.

With aforesaid factors, it’s just impossible to capture available solar energy in a provided geographic location with a fixed PV system. Modifying tilt amid the year is possible; however, not practical, and the expenses of continuously modifying the system exceed the advantages.

Luckily, automatic Solar Tracking technology is now commercially available. Solar tracker gets inspired from nature, and usually, operates like a mechanical sunflower: it can tilt and rotate solar panels so that they can always face the sun directly, at every location, from sunrise to sunset, and all over the year. Geographic location is unimportant, as automatic solar tracker is basically equipped with GPS technology which enables them to measure the ultimate tracking path for each single day of the year.

Top advantages of solar tracking technology:

Solar tracking technology can boost the efficiency of the PV cells by up to 30% compare to a ground system and 45% in comparison with a roof-based system. Thus, under the proper conditions, a solar tracking system with 1000W of installed capacity will have the similar output like a fixed roof system with a capacity of 1450W. It has many advantages:

- The first investment is eliminated for a new project, as the target of energy generation can be met with lesser solar panels. The current energy output is increased with an existing PV system. The impact, in either case, is that the solar installation provides a bigger return on investment.

- The PV system needs less space. It can be a great advantage when the place available for the solar system is not unlimited. Especially, a solar tracking system gives more energy per square meter of solar panels. This technology is predesigned for the standard solar cells’ accommodation, which enables it for integrating simply with several commercial solar panels. Every grid tie-in or battery bank just installed can continue working while a PV system is fixed on a solar tracker.

If you want to know more about Solar Tracker or the benefits of solar energy, you can talk to an expert.

Solar PV Panels: Two Basic Types & Their Differences

With the technological advancement, you will find many types of solar PV panels available in today’s market. However, in this article, we will discuss only two basic kinds of solar PV panels which are used extensively.

Two basic types of solar panels:

1) Polycrystalline solar panel and 2) Monocrystalline solar panel

These above-mentioned solar panels are used worldwide; particularly the polycrystalline solar PV panels are broadly used in the installation of the rooftop solar panels.

The differences between the two:

1. Long-term functionality and warranty:

Different manufacturers offer different kinds of warranty for solar modules, as per the quality and expense of the panels. Generally they offer 25 years of warranty for Monocrystalline panels; however, a perfectly built Monocrystalline panel would have more than 25 years of durability. Besides, for the polycrystalline type, they offer up to 15 years of warranty.

Buying polycrystalline panels with long-term warranty is a smart decision because lots of local solar modules lose their efficiency in only 5 years. So, that time you can replace your panel if it comes under warranty.

Even, some panel makers offer the warranty on solar PV panels’ performance which is more helpful for us. Thereby, buy branded solar PV panels only from authentic dealers and enjoy the long-term performance.

2. Need of sun tracking system:

Albeit Monocrystalline solar panels are more energy-efficient than the polycrystalline ones, you need the sun tracking system to get the full capacity of them.

The sun tracking system moves the panels at a right angle as per the sunray’s movement to prolong the power production. Well, this is not budget-friendly and thus, every householder doesn’t invest money on it.

3. Effect of temperature:

Monocrystalline panels work well in high temperature. Besides, polycrystalline ones quit their efficiency at high temperature. However, it’s not a big issue.

4. Size and energy efficiency:

Albeit compared to polycrystalline ones, the Monocrystalline Solar PV Panels are smaller in size, they are more energy efficient. Nevertheless, many people choose the polycrystalline type to eliminate the expense because they can’t afford the more expensive Monocrystalline panels.

Conclusion:

If you want to install more than 1000 watts, then you should choose Monocrystalline PV panels. Well, the polycrystalline ones are a cost-effective solution for rooftop installation from 100 watts to 1000 watts. But it never means that they are not at all fit for bigger installations.

Comparison of energy effectiveness between Monocrystalline and polycrystalline panels is just about 2 percent. However, nowadays, polycrystalline ones are advancing and thus the difference is no more very big. So, if you are thinking to install solar PV panels in your home, then you can go easily with polycrystalline installations.

You need to keep in mind that there are many local brands are now available in the market. You have to be aware and avoid buying them as they are already rejected by the company. Bring home branded panel and install it to enjoy the hassle-free solar energy and also spare money in your electricity bill.

Sun Tracking Solar Panels: The Most Advanced Solar Trackers

Sun tracking systems, fixed with PV panels, enable the panels to precisely track the solar path across the sky and can enhance the solar power installations’ output by up to 40% in comparison with the stationary panels. Since 1980, the sun tracking devices are in the market; however, their advanced use in both domestic and commercial solar power projects has proved their enhanced capacity of capturing sunray. This advancement, although highly driven by commercial-scale solar installations, has transformed into reduced expenses and more genuine sun tracking solar panels for both householders and small businesses.

Stationary PV panels are mounted, either by the householder or the installer, at the ultimate angle for sun-based exposure. At southern regions, the sun declines from 78.5-degree in the summer to 31.5-degree in the winter; however, many rooftop systems depend on an around 52.3-degree declination, enabling for a 22.6-degree roof tilt angle. Sadly, in the northern regions, sunrays’ angle in summer differs from winter by over 60 degree, which implies focusing summer sunray makes winter solar power production slightly uncertain.

Sun-tracking solar panels solve this issue. A single-axis horizontal tracker follows the sunray from morning to evening, enhancing solar functionality amid the days of summer and spring when the sun is higher in the sky. However, this doesn’t work well in the northern regions, and so every setting along the horizontal declines the functionality the other 60% of the year.

Vertical axis trackers work well at higher climes, allowing solar arrays to track the sunray both at winter and summer declinations. Dual-axis trackers solve both the issues at a time, yet can be very costly including $3,500-$6,500 to the solar installation cost, with the smaller amount adaptable about 125 sq. ft. panels and the bigger helping 225 sq. ft.

Some dual-axis trackers depend on both vertical and horizontal pivots followed by a solar controller, same as that utilized for solar telescopes. These are so costly that they are basically used for commercial solar power systems which depend on a parabolic dish with a Stirling engine which generates power onsite, instead of being grid-tied. This exact tracking is also utilized in concentrated solar applications which need perfections for being efficient, in that the focal point on which sunray is controlled in near the reflector’s centre.

Solar Trackers can also be classified into active and passive solar trackers. The active one is operated by an electric motor that is activated by a solar controller and the passive one uses compressed gas which creates an imbalance in a chamber while heated by sunray and leads the tracker to tilt.

Previously, advancing technology was more important than prolonging outputs. However, now solar installations are profitable in growing the number of KWH supplied to the utility grid. But the advantages result in enhanced technologies in just cost-effectiveness.

The requirement of enhanced solar output has driven the solar tracking market from nearly 2%-25% in. In fact, the projections suggest installing more Solar tracking solar panels.

This growing dependence on sun tracking solar panels will also cause in advanced tracking technology, as the developers are still trying to get better ways of improvement.