CME365 RENEWABLE ENERGY TECHNOLOGIES

UNIT II

SOLAR ENERGY

Solar radiation – Measurements of solar radiation and sunshine – Solar spectrum - Solar
thermal collectors – Flat plate and concentrating collectors – Solar thermal applications –
Solar thermal energy storage – Fundamentals of solar photo voltaic conversion – Solar cells –
Solar PV Systems – Solar PV applications.

Solar radiation

The sun is a hydrodynamic spherical body of extremely hot ionized gases (plasma),
generating energy by the process of thermonuclear fusion. The temperature of the interior of
the sun is estimated at 8 × 106 K to 40 × 106 K, where energy is released by fusion of
hydrogen to helium.

Energy radiated from the sun is electromagnetic waves reaching the planet earth in
three spectral regions, ultraviolet 6.4% (λ < 0.38 mm), visible 48% (0.38 mm < λ< 0.78 mm)
and infrared 45.6% (λ > 0.78 mm) of total energy. Due to the large distance between the sun
and the earth (1.495×108 km) the beam radiation received from the sun on the earth is almost
parallel.

Solar constant: The solar constant measures the amount of energy received by a given area
one astronomical unit away from the Sun. The solar constant (Isc) is the energy from the sun
received on a unit area perpendicular to the solar rays at the mean distance from the sun
outside the atmosphere. Solar Constant = 1.4kW/m².

Beam radiation (Ib): Solar radiation received on the earth’s surface without change in
direction, is called beam or direct radiation.

Diffuse radiation (Id): The radiation received on a terrestrial surface (scattered by aerosols
and dust) from all parts of the sky dome, is known as diffuse radiation.

Total radiation (IT): The sum of beam and diffuse radiations (Ib + Id) is referred to as total
radiation. When measured at a location on the earth’s surface, it is called solar insolation at
the place. When measured on a horizontal surface, it is called global radiation (Ig).
Measurements of solar radiation and sunshine

The solar radiation data bank is required for many purposes, e.g. solar energy appliances,
hydrology and weather forecast.

Pyranometer

The pyranometer measures global or diffuse radiation on a horizontal surface. It

covers total hemispherical solar radiation with a view angle of 2π steradians. The
pyranometer designed by the Eppley laboratories, USA, operates on the principle of
thermopile. It consists of a black surface which heats up when exposed to solar radiation. Its
temperature rises until the rate of heat gain from solar radiation equals the heat loss by
conduction, convection and radiation. On the black surface the hot junctions of a thermopile
are attached, while the cold junctions are placed in a position such that they do not receive the
radiation. An electrical output voltage (0 to 10 mV range) generated by the temperature
difference between the black and the white surfaces indicates the intensity of solar radiation.
The output can be obtained on a strip chart or on a digital printout over a period of time. This
is a measure of global radiation.

The working principle of the pyranometer mainly depends on the difference in

temperature measurement between two surfaces like dark and clear. The solar radiation can
be absorbed by the black surface on the thermopile whereas the clear surface reproduces it, so
less heat can be absorbed. The thermopile plays a key role in measuring the difference in
temperature. The potential difference formed within the thermopile is due to the gradient of
temperature between the two surfaces. These are used to measure the sum of solar radiation.
But, the voltage which is generated from the thermopile is calculated with the help of a
potentiometer. The information of radiation needs to be included through planimetry or an
electronic integrator . A continuous record can be obtained either on an electronic chart or on
an integrated digital printout system. As the shading ring blocks a certain amount of diffuse
sky radiation besides direct radiation, a correction factor is applied to the measured value.
Pyrheliometer

A pyrheliometer is an instrument which measures beam radiation on a surface normal

to the sun’s rays. The sensor is a thermopile and its disc is located at the base of a tube whose
axis is aligned in the direction of the sun’s rays. Thus, diffuse radiation is blocked from the
sensor surface. The pyrheliometer designed by Eppley Laboratories, USA, consists of
bismuth silver thermopile, with 15 temperature-compensated junctions connected in series. It
is mounted at the end of a cylindrical tube, with a series of diaphragms (the aperture is
limited to an angle of 5.42°). The instrument is mounted on a motor-driven heliostat which is
adjusted every week to cover changes in the sun’s declination. The output of the
pyreheliometer can either be recorded on a strip chart recorder or integrated over a suitable
time period. The pyrheliometer readings give data for atmospheric turbidity and provide a
clearness index.

Sunshine recorder

The duration in hours of bright sunshine in a day is measured by a sunshine recorder.

It consists of a glass sphere installed in a section of spherical metal bowl, having grooves for
holding a recorder card strip. The glass sphere is adjusted to focus sun rays to a point on the
card strip. On a bright sunshine day, the focused image burns a trace on the card. Through the
day the sun moves across the sky, the image moves along the strip. The length of the image is
a direct measure of the duration of bright sunshine.
Solar spectrum

The solar spectrum is the range of electromagnetic radiation emitted by the sun, extending
from the ultraviolet to the infrared region. It is composed of photons with various
wavelengths, which define the spectrum's shape and intensity. It can be defined in terms of
solar radiation or solar irradiance. The solar spectrum constitutes three main regions.

1. Ultraviolet region (λ < 0.4 mm); 9% irradiance

2. Visible region (0.4 mm < λ < 0.7 mm); 45% irradiance
3. Infrared region (λ > 0.7 mm); 46% irradiance

Solar thermal collectors

A solar thermal energy collector is an equipment in which solar energy is collected by

absorbing radiation in an absorber and then transferring to a fluid. In general, there are two
types of collectors:

1. Flat-plate solar collector

2. Concentrating-type solar collector

Flat-plate solar collector

It consists of five major parts as mentioned below:

(i) An absorber plate: It intercepts and absorbs solar radiation. This plate is usually metallic
(Copper, aluminium or steel), although plastics have been used in some low temperature
applications. In most cases it is coated with a material to enhance the absorption of solar
radiation. The coating may also be tailored to minimise the amount of infrared radiation
emitted. A heat transport fluid (usually air or water) is used to extract the energy collected
and passes over, under or through passages which form an integral part of the plate. Absorber
plate has high thermal conductivity and made of copper, steel, or aluminium, and having
black surface. The thickness of the metal sheet ranges from 0.5 mm to 1 mm.

(ii) Tubes or channels are soldered to the absorber plate. Water flowing through these tubes
takes away the heat from the absorber plate. The diameter of tubes is around 1.25 cm, while
that of the header pipe which leads water in and out of the collector and distributes it to
absorber tubes, is 2.5 cm.

(iii) Transparent covers: These are one or more sheets of solar radiation transmitting
materials and are placed above the absorber plate. They allow solar energy to reach the
absorber plate while reducing convection, conduction and re-radiation heat losses.

(iv) Insulation beneath the absorber plate: It minimises and protects the absorbing surface
from heat losses.

(v) Box like structure. It contains the above components and keeps them in position. A
container encloses the whole assembly in a box made of metallic sheet or fibre glass.

Working:

The working of a flat plate collector (FPC) involves the transfer of heat or thermal energy.
The operating medium exchanges heat from the sun’s rays. The heat-absorbing plate of the
collector is exposed to sunlight. As the sun rays hit the flat plate surface, a portion of their
energy is transformed into heat. This leads to a rise in the temperature of the flat plate solar
collector. When a fluid is passed inside the collector, the temperature of the fluid increases as
the heat from the absorbing plate heat is transmitted to the fluid. Eventually, the fluid
transmits the thermal energy from collectors to the functioning energy systems for different
uses.

Advantages of a Flat Plate Collector

 A Flat plate collector facilitates the collection of direct energy from all directions and
diffuses thermal radiation.
 It is a clean, pollution-free system of energy generation.
 The power utilised by FPCs is natural & renewable.
 Flat plate collector devices have relatively low maintenance costs and longer working
life.
 It is easy to fabricate and economical.
 It can be installed effortlessly.
Concentrating-type solar collector

If solar radiation falling over a large surface is concentrated to a smaller area of the absorber
plate or receiver, the temperature can be enhanced up to 500°C. Concentration is achieved by
an optical system either from the reflecting mirrors or from the refracting lenses. The main
types of focusing or concentrating collectors are as follows:

1. Parabolic trough collector

2. Mirror strip collector
3. Fresnel less collector
4. Flat plate collector with adjustable mirrors
5. Compound parabolic concentrator.

Parabolic trough collector

Solar radiation coming from the particular direction is collected over the area of reflecting
surface and is concentrated at the focus of the parabola, if the reflector is in the form of a
trough with parabolic cross-section, the solar radiation is focused along a line. Mostly
cylindrical parabolic concentrators are used in which absorber is placed along focus axis.

Mirror strip collector

In this kind of focusing collector, a number

of plane or slightly curved (concave) mirror
strips are mounted on a flat base. The angles of
the individual mirrors are such that they reflect
solar radiation from a specific direction on to the
same focal line. The angles of the mirrors must
be adjusted to allow for changes in the sun's
elevation, while the focal line (for collector
pipe) remains in a fixed position.
Solar thermal applications

Solar Water Heating

Solar water heating is one of the most common applications of solar energy. A simple
solar water heater with natural circulation is shown in Figure. The system consists of a flat-
plate solar collector, normally single glazed, and a storage tank kept at a height. It is installed
on a roof with the collector facing the sun and connected to a continuous water supply. The
collector comprises copper tubes welded to a copper sheet (both coated with a highly
absorbing black coating) with a toughened glass sheet on top and insulting material on the
rear.

Water flows through the tubes, absorbs solar heat and is stored in a tank. Water
circulation is entirely based on the density difference between the solar-heated water in the
collector and the cold water in the storage tank. Hot water for use is taken out from the top of
the tank. An auxiliary heating system is provided for use on cloudy and rainy days. When a
large quantity of hot water is required, natural circulation is not feasible; forced circulation
with a water pump is used.

Solar Distillation

Safe drinking water is scarce in arid, semiarid and coastal areas, though an essential
requirement for supporting life. At such places, saline water is available underground or in
the ocean. This water can be distilled utilising abundant solar insolation available in that area.
A device which produces potable water by utilizing solar heat energy, is called ‘solar water
still’.

A ‘solar still’ consists of a basin with black bottom having trays for saline water with
shallow depth. A transparent air-tight glass or a plastic slanting cover encloses completely the
space above the basin. Incident solar radiation passes through the transparent cover and is
absorbed by the black surface of the still. Brakish water is then heated and water vapours
condense over the cool interior surface of the transparent cover. The condensate flows down
the glass and gets collected in troughs installed as outer frame of the solar still. Distilled
water then is transferred into a storage tank.
 This system is capable of purifying sea water with salinity of about 30,000 mg/litre.
The production rate is about 3 litres/m²/day in a well-designed still on a good sunny day. The
cost of water comes to about 50 paise per litre.

Solar thermal energy storage:

Solar energy is available only during the sunshine hours. Consumer energy demands
follow their own time pattern and the solar energy does not fully match the demand. As a
result, energy storage is a must to meet the consumer requirement. There are three important
methods for storing solar thermal energy. They are

1. Sensible Heat Storage

2. Latent Heat Storage
3. Thermochemical Storage

Sensible Heat Storage

For a sensible heat storage system, energy is stored by heating a liquid or a solid.
Materials that are used in such a system include liquids like water, inorganic molten salts and
solids like rock, gravel and refractories. The choice of the material used depends on the
temperature level of its utilization. Water is used for temperature below 100°C whereas
refractory bricks can be used for temperature up to 1000°C. 300 kg to 500 kg of rock per
square metre of collector area is sufficient for space heating applications. Refractory
materials like magnesium oxide bricks, silicon oxide and aluminium oxide, are used in
storage devices to operate up to 600°C.

Latent Heat Storage

In this system, heat is stored in a material when it melts, and heat is extracted from the
material when it freezes. Heat can also be stored when a liquid changes to gaseous state, but
as the volume change is large, such a system is not economical. A few such materials which
melt on heating have been experimented for their suitability for solar energy applications.
These are organic materials like paraffin wax and fatty acids; hydrated salts such as calcium
chloride hexohydrate (CaCl2 . 6H2O) and sodium sulphate deca hydrate (Na2SO4. 10H2O);
and inorganic materials like ice (H2O), sodium nitrate (NaNO3) and sodium hydroxide
(NaOH).

Thermochemical Storage

With a thermochemical storage system, solar heat energy can start an endothermic chemical
reaction and new products of reactions remain intact. To extract energy, a reverse exothermic
reaction is allowed to take place. Actually, the thermochemical thermal energy is the binding
energy of reversible chemical reactions.

Schematic representation of thermochemical storage reaction is shown in Figure. Chemicals

A and B react with solar heat and through forward reaction are converted into products C and
D. The new products are stored at ambient temperature. When energy is required, the reverse
reaction is allowed to take place at a lower temperature where products C and D react to form
A and B. During the reaction, heat is released and utilized.
Fundamentals of solar photo voltaic conversion

Photovoltaic power generation is a method of producing electricity using solar cells.

A solar cell converts solar optical energy directly into electrical energy. A solar cell is
essentially a semiconductor device fabricated in a manner which generates a voltage when
solar radiation falls on it.

In semiconductors, atoms carry four electrons in the outer valence shell, some of
which can be dislodged to move freely in the materials if extra energy is supplied. Then, a
semiconductor attains the property to conduct the current. This is the basic principle on which
the solar cell works and generates power.

A few semiconductor materials such as silicon (Si), cadmium sulphide (CdS) and
gallium arsenide (GaAs) can be used to fabricate solar cells. Semiconductors are divided into
two categories—intrinsic (pure) and extrinsic. An intrinsic semiconductor has negligible
conductivity, which is of little use. To increase the conductivity of an intrinsic
semiconductor, a controlled quantity of selected impurity atoms is added to it to obtain an
extrinsic semiconductor. The process of adding the impurity atoms is called doping.

Photovoltaic effect: The photovoltaic effect is the generation of voltage and electric current
in a material upon exposure to light.

Solar cells

A solar cell or photovoltaic cell (PV cell) is an electronic device that converts the
energy of light directly into electricity by means of the photovoltaic effect.

Maximum efficiency of a solar cell is defined as the ratio of maximum electric power output
to the incident solar radiation.
Solar PV (photovoltaic) Systems:

The smallest, basic Photovoltaic device that generates electricity when exposed to
light is solar cell. A photovoltaic cell is the basic device that converts solar radiation into
electricity. PV Module is Series and parallel connected solar cells. PV Array is Series and
parallel connected PV modules (generally consisting of 5 modules). A solar cell delivers
different amount of current depending on the irradiation to the cell.

In photovoltaic conversion, solar radiation falls on semi-conductor devices called

solar cells which convert the sunlight directly into electricity. A schematic diagram of a
photovoltaic cell (PV-cell) or solar cell is given below. It relies on the effect that light has on
the junction between two types of semiconductors called p-type and n-type. N-type has an
excess of electrons and p-type has a shortage of electrons. When a bright light shines on a
cell, energy from the light (photons) enables electrons to break free from the junction
between them. This is called the photoelectric effect. For single-crystal silicon (4 valence
electrons), 'p' is obtained by doping silicon with boron (3 valence electrons) and is typically 1
μm thick; 'n' is obtained by doping with arsenic or phosphorous (5 valence electrons) and is
typically 800 μm thick. The sun's photons strike the cell on the microthin p-side and penetrate
to the junction to generate electron-hole pairs. When the cell is connected to a load, as shown,
the electrons will diffuse from n to p. The direction of the current / is in the opposite direction
of electrons.

Advantages:

 They have no moving parts.

 Maintenance is less.
 Highly reliable.
 Zero fuel cost.
 Does not cause pollution.
Solar PV applications:

1. Solar street light

2. Home lighting system
3. SPV Water Pumping System
4. SPV Cell for Communication Equipment in Snow-bound Areas
5. Sea Water Desalination System Powered by Photovoltaic Power
6. SPV system in satellites