Life cycle assessment of ground mounted photovoltaic panels

Abstract. Nowadays, the problem of carbon emission attracts a lot of attention from people in the world. To solve this problem, many solutions are proposed to get the target of Greenhouse Gas emission reduction. Among of all, the increase of the share of renewable energy is known as a feasible and promising approach for achieving this goal. Solar power and wind power is considered as two dominant renewable sources having a significant contribution to the power generation as well as reducing CO₂ emissions. In this study, ground mounted photovoltaic plant is taken as a approach for achieving this target. The objective of the study was to answer three research questions: (1) What are the life-cycle environmental impacts of ground-mounted photovoltaic (GMPV) systems; (2) What are the missing data to perform life cycle assessment (LCA) of GMPV? and (3)What are the future development projections for GMPV and how would they impact on their LCA? Furthermore, the state of the art of GMPV technology is also reviewed. The thesis is based on the data of Ecoinvent v3.3, available in open LCA, associating with six cases studies on GMPV, will give an evaluation about the state of the art of technology, the data gap of GMPV in Ecoinvent v3.3. The LCA method is known as a quantitative approach which is utilized to make an evaluation of whole process of a product. The four steps of LCA are goal and scope definition, inventory analysis, impact assessment and interpretation. Based on the six case studies from literature, the data gaps were recognized regarding the power output, number of modules, performance module and degradation rate, and the materials in the mounting system. These data gaps are very important because they have the significant impacts on the implementation of LCA approach. If these data gaps were filled, operators would be likely to have a more precise evaluation of GMPV systems. It was concluded that multicrystalline silicon module is the commercially available material with highest efficiency but, because of their high cost, the development is shifted towards CdTe thin film materials. CdTe thin film is gradually proving its position in the photovoltaic (PV) commercial market because of growing efficiency and reasonable cost, which are very important when applying in the large scale of GMPV systems. Finally, it was suggested that the third generation technology, which is the combination between Generation 1 technology and Generation II technology with the feature of high efficiency and reasonable cost, has the highest potential for applying in GMPV

OPTIMUM TILT ANGLE AND NEAR SHADING ANALYSIS FOR 1000 WATT PEAK PHOTOVOLTAIC APPLICATION SYSTEM

Teknologi pemanfaatan energi matahari mengalami peningkatan dan berperan peran penting dalam mendukung kebutuhan energi di masa depan sehingga mampu didistribusikan secara luas. Dalam tulisan ini penentuan sudut kemiringan atau tilt angle yang optimal dan sudut azimuth optimal panel photovoltaic, menggunakan PVSyst simulation software. Studi ini didasarkan nilai radiasi matahari global dan temperatur permukaan horizontal. Sudut kemiringan optimal untuk setiap bulan memungkinkan kita untuk mengumpulkan energi matahari maksimum pertahun. Hasil pemodelan yang dilakukan pada sistem PLTS 1000 Wp di lintang 6˚53'2.69"S dan bujur 107˚32'28.69", menghasilkan kerugian rata-rata 0.6%, dan global irradiance yang mampu diserap oleh panel surya adalah 1747 kWh/m2 pertahun dengan sudut kemiringan panel surya 15˚. Hasil simulasi faktor near shading menunjukkan faktor bayangan pada luas daerah yang diarsir setiap modul surya adalah 0.68 m2

The Impact of Urban Context and Configuration on the Solar Energy Potential of Urban Areas

The aim of this thesis is to simplify buildings of similar morphological styles used in urban planning based on the factors of street grid rotation, building height, intermittent spacing between buildings, and angle of sunlight for a given season to determine the solar potential of a given area. Literary research is applied to examinations of relevant regulations that could influence the potential implementation large scale solar developments in urban areas. Limited case studies of existing building areas in densities of mid-rise and high-rise construction investigate the impact these factors have on the solar energy potential of building skins. The goal was to develop a simplified method of calculating approximate solar potential for building skins that can be applied over an area of multiple city blocks using the location’s latitude, street grid rotation, average height, and average street width. The purpose of these findings is to showcase the possible applications of planning strategies for transforming existing districts and building new districts into nearly zero energy or energy positive areas with solar installations

Solar Energy Generation Forecasting and Power Output Optimization of Utility Scale Solar Field

The optimization of photovoltaic (PV) power generation system requires an accurate system performance model capable of validating the PV system optimization design. Currently, many commercial PV system modeling programs are available, but those programs are not able to model PV systems on a distorted ground level. Furthermore, they were not designed to optimize PV systems that are already installed. To solve these types of problems, this thesis proposes an optimization method using model simulations and a MATLAB-based PV system performance model. The optimization method is particularly designed to address partial shading issues often encountered in PV system installed on distorted ground. The MATLAB-based model was validated using the data collected from the Cal Poly Gold Tree Solar Field. It was able to predict the system performance with 96.4 to 99.6 percent accuracy. The optimization method utilizes the backtracking algorithm already installed in the system and the pitch distance to control the angle of the tracker and reduces solar panels partial shading on the adjacent row to improve system output. With pitch distances reduced in the backtracking algorithm between 2.5 meters and 3 meters, the inverter with inter-row shading can expect a 10.4 percent to 28.9 percent increase in power production. The implementation and calibration of this optimization method in the field this spring was delayed due to COVID-19. The field implementation is now expected to start this summer

Terrestrial central station array life-cycle analysis support study

Plant elements evaluated included designs for module, panel and array structures, as well as balance-of-plant systems. Installation and maintenance procedures and the impact of site environment were also evaluated. In terms of the cost of energy produced, the horizontal array configuration was found to be less expensive than the tandem array at latitudes less than 40 deg. Both of these configurations are less expensive than the rack design. However, the costs of energy for all three configurations are within approximately ?10 percent of each other. For flat plate panels, the seasonally adjusted and tracking array configurations are not economically attractive when compared to the three other designs. Balance-of-plant costs are approximately equal to (goal) module costs. The array structures and foundations are the most expensive items in the balance-of-plant costs

Master\u27s Project - Solar Farming in Vermont - What\u27s the Harvest?

An operational research project to investigate net economic, environmental and public policy benefits from converting land from agriculture to solar electricity generation was undertaken on a 15-acre farm in Proctor, Vermont. Two solar arrays (66 KW AC and 500 KW AC) were established. The net after-tax financial return on cash equity of the 66 KW AC solar project was calculated to be 21% for the investor over a 25-year period (less than 1% average annual rate of return), while the financial return for the 500 KW AC solar project was 145% over a similar period (5.8% average annual rate of return). Economies of scale and researcher mistakes developing the small-scale array explain most of the difference in results. The net environmental impact of both solar projects is positive: avoided carbon emissions are more than 75% greater than the combined (i) loss of carbon sequestration/absorption from tree clearing required for those projects, and (ii) carbon emissions from solar panel manufacture, transportation and installation. Public policies promoting solar electricity are major factors in generating positive economic returns; they may in fact be more generous than necessary to stimulate solar investment given cost declines. However, some subsidization of solar electricity generation is justified until at least 2020, when the costs of producing solar electricity are expected to reach near parity with those of fossil-fuel generated electricity. Public subsidization is further justified given the large social global benefits of avoiding carbon emissions and mitigating climate change

Energy Planning in Selected European Regions - Methods for Evaluating the Potential of Renewable Energy Sources

Given their potentially positive impact on climate protection and the preservation of fossil resources, alternative energy sources have become increasingly important for the energy supply over the past years. However, the questions arises what economic and ecological impacts and potential conflicts over land use resources are associated with the promotion of renewable energy production. Using the examples of three selected European Regions in Poland, France and German, the dissertation discusses these questions and examines the potential and consequences of an intensified usage of renewable energy sources

Energy Planning in Selected European Regions - Methods for Evaluating the Potential of Renewable Energy Sources

Alternative Energien gewinnen zunehmend an der Bedeutung aufgrund der positiven Beiträge zum Klima- und fossilen Ressourcenschutz. Es stellt sich jedoch auch die Frage, welche Wirkungen auf die ökonomischen und ökologischen Systeme der Regionen dies hat und welche Landnutzungskonflikte mit erneuerbarer Energiennutzung verbunden sind. Die Dissertation greift diese Fragestellungen auf und untersucht die Potenziale und Konsequenzen einer Intensivierung der regenerativen Energienutzung

Application of Natural Convection for Photovoltaic Cooling and Photocatalytic Disinfection

Two investigations for improving renewable technologies are engaged. First is the examination of the enhancement of heat transfer at the rear of a hot photovoltaic panel by natural convection using various configurations and the other is analyzing a new photocatalytic collector for water heating and cleaning. A 20 Watt polycrystalline panel is exposed to indoor simulated solar light, under constant ambient temperature and stagnant wind conditions. Three configurations are considered: a partial heat sink, a water cavity and a water channel. The experimentally obtained convective heat transfer coefficients are 4.4 W•m-2•K-1 at the rear of the bare panel, 1.1 W•m-2•K-1 with the heat sink, 26.6 W•m-2•K-1 with the water cavity and 177 W•m-2•K-1 with the water channel. The channel is attached to a cold reservoir and thermosyphoning is forcing flow through it. This is an efficient method for cooling. In the second part of this study, an integrated solar photocatalytic collector is fabricated and tested. Methylene blue dye and photo-activated catalyst were mixed with the testing fluid. The results show that the system was able to disinfect 1.2 ppm of the dye in water by 80% in the presence of 127 mg•L-1 of AEROXIDE® TiO2 P90 with the thermal efficiency of ηth = 0.67 under the laboratory conditions. It was analyzed under stagnant wind conditions and the heat losses were assessed

Integrated residential photovoltaic array development

An advanced, universally-mountable, integrated residential photovoltaic array concept was defined based upon an in-depth formulation and evaluation of three candidate approaches which were synthesized from existing or proposed residential array concepts. The impact of module circuitry and process sequence is considered and technology gaps and performance drivers associated with residential photovoltaic array concepts are identified. The actual learning experience gained from the comparison of the problem areas of the hexagonal shingle design with the rectangular module design led to what is considered an advanced array concept. Building the laboratory mockup provided actual experience and the opportunity to uncover additional technology gaps