Conceptual design and multidisciplinary optimisation of power device for solar powered aircraft

Solar-powered aircraft is propelled by a photovoltaic cell that converts solar energy into electrical energy. The extra energy is stored in a rechargeable battery for later use when solar energy is not available. The performance of solar-powered aircraft is limited to solar radiation availability, low efficiency of the photovoltaic cell, and low energy density of the rechargeable battery. The research aims to improve the power device sizing, reduce the aircraft's mass, and improve the flight duration for sustainable flight operations for solar-powered aircraft (CLOUD 1). This was achieved using a multidisciplinary optimisation tool, a commercial package ModeFrontier software. Photovoltaic Geographic information system (PVGIS) software was used to obtain a solar radiation model for Malaysia. The model was used to develop both the energy balance and mission path for Malaysia to facilitate the availability and utilisation of solar energy for successful flight operations. Airfoil analysis was conducted. WE.3.55.9.3 airfoil was the best-chosen airfoil used for the wing design, while the empennage design, NACA 0008, was the most suitable. Hence, the latter was used for horizontal and vertical tail design with XFLR5 v6 software's aid. A novel methodology for the power device sizing was developed on MS Excel with 435.48Wh, 540.96Wh, 32, and 70 as the total required electrical energy, available solar energy, number of solar cells required, and the number of batteries required, respectively. The optimisation strategy embraced ModeFrontier software with the goal set to; minimise total electrical energy required, minimise the total mass, and maximise the available solar energy. The optimisation results show that available solar energy was 283.56Wh, the total electrical power required was 228.32Wh, the number of solar cells was 16, and the number of batteries was 36. The total mass of the aircraft was 2.05 Kg, respectively. The optimisation results achieved 53%, 51%, and 26% reductions in the number of solar cells, the number of batteries, and the aircraft's mass. Also, the flight duration was improved by 33%. The optimal configuration was used to design the solar-powered aircraft (CLOUD I)

Design of power device sizing and integration for solar-powered aircraft application

The power device constitutes the PV cell, rechargeable battery, and maximum power point tracker. Solar aircraft lack proper power device sizing to provide adequate energy to sustain low and high altitude and long endurance flight. This paper conducts the power device sizing and integration for solar-powered aircraft applications (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle). The solar radiation model, the aerodynamic model, the energy and mass balance model, and the adopted aircraft configuration were used to determine the power device sizing, integration, and application. The input variables were aircraft mass 3 kg, wingspan 3.2 m, chord 0.3 m, aspect ratio 11.25, solar radiation 825 W/m2 , lift coefficient 0.913, total drag coefficient 0.047, day time 12 hour, night time 12 hours, respectively. The input variables were incorporated into the MS Excel program to determine the output variables. The output variables are; the power required 10.92 W, the total electrical power 19.47 W, the total electrical energy 465.5 Wh, the daily solar energy 578.33 Wh, the solar cell area 0.62 m, the number of PV cell 32, and the number of the Rechargeable battery 74 respectively. The power device was developed with the PV cell Maxeon Gen III for high efficiency, the rechargeable battery sulfur-lithium battery for high energy density, and the Maximum power point tracker neural network algorithm for smart and efficient response. The PD sizing was validated with three existing designs. The validation results show that 20% reduction of the required number of PV cells and RB and a 30% increase in flight durations

Design Construction and Performance Evaluation of Solar Still for Rural Dwellers

This paper is aimed at designing, constructing and performance evaluation of a solar still. The solar still is design and constructed with locally source materials for rural dwellers. The still absorber plate is constructed with 2 mm galvanised plate painted black with an area of 2 m2 to absorb solar radiation effectively. The side wall and the base is constructed with concrete. Sawdust and felt is used between the retaining wall and base to resist heat transfer from the system to the surrounding vice-versa. The top cover of the still is constructed with transparent glass pane of 4 mm housed in an aluminium frame. The catch basin that collects the condensate is constructed with PVC pipe channel of 50 mm. The performance of the still was evaluated with; Overall yield (sum of daily yield and over-night yield) at a different water depth of (20, 40, 60 mm), (5127 ml/m2/hr, 4558 ml/m2/hr, and 3852 ml/m2/hr). The efficiency of the system at different water depth (20, 40, 60 mm) 51.27 %, 45.58 %, and 38.52 %. The water analysis before and after distillation was certified safe and portable for human consumption

Aerodynamic Design Consideration for Stability of a Lightweight Solar-Powered Aircraft

Aerodynamic design analysis was conducted for the stability of a lightweight solar aircraft weighing 3 kg and a wingspan of 3.2 m. Airfoil analysis was conducted on four selected airfoils. The following factors were considered: good aerodynamic characteristics, low Reynolds number, high lift, low drag, high lift-to-drag ratio, quiet moment coefficient, moderate thickness, and camber curvature. WE-3.55.93 airfoil was selected as best and used to design the wing, and NACA 0008 was used to develop the empennage. The fuselage was designed with two compartments 1.9 m long, and the second compartment is made of aluminium or carbon fibre to reduce weight. The first compartment was 0.95 m long and 0.4 m in diameter. The centre of gravity was determined for the importance of the various aircraft components to ensure aerodynamic stability and balance. The complete assembly was designed using XFLR5 v6 software

Analysis of Solar Distillation System for Clean Water Distribution : A Review

Different solar stills technologies is widely reviewed to digest their pros and cons. Solar still is a natural phenomenon of purifying sea and brackish water to provide affordable and reliable potable water. For the technology to be sustainable and utilized on a large scale, productivity needs to be improved. The factors that contribute to the performance of a still were highlighted and analyzed. And the energy and mass balance that takes place in solar still was expressed and defined by different researchers. The efficiency of a still is determined by the temperature variation of the evaporated water in the basin and the outside temperature of the glass cover. The insulation material plays a vital role in the prevention of heat loss and conservation of heat energy to increase the overnight yield when solar energy is not available

Design Construction and Performance Evaluation of Solar Still for Rural Dwellers

This paper is aimed at designing, constructing and performance evaluation of a solar still. The solar still is design and constructed with locally source materials for rural dwellers. The still absorber plate is constructed with 2 mm galvanised plate painted black with an area of 2 m2 to absorb solar radiation effectively. The side wall and the base is constructed with concrete. Sawdust and felt is used between the retaining wall and base to resist heat transfer from the system to the surrounding vice-versa. The top cover of the still is constructed with transparent glass pane of 4 mm housed in an aluminium frame. The catch basin that collects the condensate is constructed with PVC pipe channel of 50 mm. The performance of the still was evaluated with; Overall yield (sum of daily yield and over-night yield) at a different water depth of (20, 40, 60 mm), (5127 ml/m2/hr, 4558 ml/m2/hr, and 3852 ml/m2/hr). The efficiency of the system at different water depth (20, 40, 60 mm) 51.27 %, 45.58 %, and 38.52 %. The water analysis before and after distillation was certified safe and portable for human consumption