Testing a Hybrid Solar Panel
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University of Massachusetts, Lowell *
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Course
4030
Subject
Mechanical Engineering
Date
Feb 20, 2024
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docx
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8
Uploaded by jidewand83
University of Massachusetts Lowell
James B. Francis College of Engineering
Department of Mechanical Engineering
MECH4030 Thermo-Fluids Laboratory
Section number: 806 C
Group Letter:
C
Experiment Number and Title: Testing a Hybrid Solar Panel
Date of Experiment: December 5
th
, 2017
Group Names:
1. J. Didier Wandi
2. Chris Mautino
3. James Bremic
________________________________________________________________________________
Instructor’s Comments:
Date of submission:
December 5
th
, 2017
Grade:
…………………
Testing a Hybrid Solar Panel
UMass Lowell
The
optimal azimuth that the modules should be directed towards would be true south, since this is the direction that the northeastern United States that receives the most energy from the sun. The azimuth can be approximated by using Figure 1
, with the knowledge that Lowell, MA, is located at approximately 42.6334
o
N. Figure 1: Azimuth of Solar Panel vs Latitude of Test Site, take latitude and follow it to as close to 100%,
then read azimuth http://www.renewable-energy-concepts.com/solarenergy/solar-basics/orientation-
azimuth-angle.html
The angle (amount of tilt) that the solar collectors should be mounted at depends on the latitude of the test location. The optimal tilt angle can then be found using Table 1
.
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Testing a Hybrid Solar Panel
UMass Lowell
Table 1: Optimal Tilt Angles for Solar Collectors Based on Latitude
http://www.solarpaneltilt.com/
Latitude
Summer
angle
Spring/autumn
angle
Winter
angle
25°
-1.3
22.2
46.3
30°
3.3
27.1
50.7
35°
7.9
32.0
55.2
40°
12.5
36.9
59.6
45°
17.1
41.8
64.1
50°
21.7
46.7
68.5
The optimal tilt angle was interpolated to be approximately 14.9
o
, assuming that the experiment would be carried out during the summer months. This is shown in Figure 2.
Figure 2: Azimuth and Tilt Angle of Solar Panels
The thermocouples would be located on top of the solar panels, in a configuration such as shown in Figure 3. They would be divided evenly among each panel (15 each).
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Testing a Hybrid Solar Panel
UMass Lowell
Figure 3: Location of Thermocouples on Solar Panel
One of the panels is a standalone system which would be used as the control for the experiment. The other panel would be hooked up to the SunDrum system. Both systems
would then feed the voltage and current data taken from their respective thermocouples,
through the selector switch, to the multi-meter where it can be verified by the experimenter. It will then be fed into the software program where it can be further analyzed. Figure 4
shows the overall setup of the experiment.
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Testing a Hybrid Solar Panel
UMass Lowell
Figure 4: Experiment Layout
The data collected would consist of the voltage, current, and temperature of each of the solar panels taken at every hour.
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Testing a Hybrid Solar Panel
UMass Lowell
Test
5:0
0
AM
6:0
0
AM
7:00
AM
8:0
0
AM
9:0
0
AM
10:0
0 AM
11:0
0 AM
12:0
0 AM
1:0
0
PM
2:00
PM
3:0
0
PM
4:0
0
PM
5:0
0
PM
6:0
0
PM
7:0
0
PM
Power
Power
Amps
Angle
TC 1
T
1
T
2
TC 2
T
1
T
2
TC 3
T
1
T
2
TC 4
T
1
T
2
TC 5
T
1
T
2
TC 6
T
1
T
2
TC 7
T
1
T
2
TC 8
T
1
T
2
TC 9
T
1
T
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Testing a Hybrid Solar Panel
UMass Lowell
2
TC 10
T
1
T
2
TC 11
T
1
T
2
TC 12
T
1
T
2
TC 13
T
1
T
2
TC 14
T
1
T
2
TC 15
T
1
T
2
** TC represents Thermocouple
** Extended all to TC 15
The results of the experiment can be used to prove the claim made by Sundrum. A flash of power was made in the lab setting to understand how sunlight can heat up the solar panel. A P-I chart was generated that represented how the solar panel will achieve a certain point where the voltage drops off. This is important to understand how the solar panel will behave in an outdoor setting. The experiment shows the voltage at 50°C drops off significantly earlier than the 25°C panel for 1,000 W/m
2
power. The sun has a power of 1,000 W/m
2
, but the power will change according to the suns position throughout the day. Power, voltage, angle and temperature of the thermocouples will be measured every hour the sun is in the sky. It was decided that significant sun positions occur hourly. The temperature and voltage drops can be used to create a similar plot to
the lab experimentation. Comparing the real life solar panel temperature, which is presumably higher than the ambient temperature of 25°C, will result in showing voltage drop offs occur due to higher temperatures. The Testing a Hybrid Solar Panel
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Information Recorded to Test Efficiency of Sun Drum Solar Panel
Testing a Hybrid Solar Panel
UMass Lowell
efficiency can be calculated based on this voltage percent difference. The laboratory results show that the voltage drops off is significant at 50°C; however, this is not a likely outside temperature on a daily basis. The surface temperature of the solar panel will be tested resulting with voltage outputs that can be compared in graphs. This can prove or disprove the claim of 3-4% more efficiency. The voltage and current temperature coefficients could easily be calculated after data collection. The results will
be very predictable assuming the solar panel does not degrade with use. Depending on the number of clouds, trees blocking, and position to the sun, the voltage and current relations can be calculated using simple relations of P
=
IV
and P
A
=
e σT
4
. Assuming the sun is a perfect blackbody the coefficients can be predicted. Testing a Hybrid Solar Panel
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