Development of a Solar Panel Control Strategy for Tracking Maximum Power Generation / Desenvolvimento de uma estratégia de controlo de painéis solares para rastrear a produção máxima de energia

The solar panel is an essential energy conversion component of photovoltaic (PV) systems, an indispensable key for converting clean and sustainable solar energy into electricity. Over the last few years, there has been a growing demand for renewable sources due to sustainable development and global warming.  Therefore, this work  describes  the  prototype  of an electronic supervision and control system  for  the  orientation  of  a  bench  solar  panel. The developed tracker prototype has as its core an electronic circuit based on a commercial microcontroller model Tennsy 3.0, within which the control algorithm is embedded. In addition to the controller, a supervisory software was developed to monitor solar cells’ status in real-time. The supervisory showed the angle of the solar plate and values of luminosity and acquired power. Simulations results were presented to show that the amount of energy generated can   reach 37 %.

Development of a closed and open loop solar tracker technology

Solar energy is among the renewable energy sources that received greater addition in installed capacity. However, it accounts for a small fraction of the energy matrix of most countries. Electric energy generation by solar systems can be improved through tracking. This work aimed to develop and compare a closed and an open loop solar tracking system. The closed loop system was developed using Light Dependent Resistors. An algorithm was developed for the open loop tracker as a function of the geometric relation between the sun and the photovoltaic module. A simulation was run to compare this algorithm with a system using tracking at fixed time intervals, for clear sky conditions, with different tracking parameters and for five different latitudes. No significant difference was observed between the proposed open loop tracking algorithm and the fixed time interval algorithm for the tracking parameters evaluated. The open and closed loop solar tracking systems were compared experimentally in Rio das Ostras, Brazil (22.49 °S 41.92° W). An average gain of 28.5% was observed for the open loop tracking system over a latitude tilted system and 33.0% for the closed loop tracking system.A energia solar está entre as fontes de energia com maior incremento em sua capacidade instalada, mas ainda representa uma pequena fração da matriz energética mundial. A geração de energia a partir de sistemas fotovoltaicos pode ser melhorada por meio do rastreamento solar. O objetivo deste trabalho foi desenvolver e comparar sistemas de rastreamento solar com controle em malha aberta e malha fechada. O sistema com malha fechada foi desenvolvido utilizando resistores dependentes da luz. Um algoritmo de rastreamento em malha aberta foi desenvolvido com base na relação geométrica entre o sol e o módulo fotovoltaico. Este algoritmo foi comparado com um algoritmo de rastreamento a intervalos fixos de tempo por meio de simulação para condição de céu claro e para cinco latitudes. Não foi observada diferença significativa entre o algoritmo desenvolvido e o rastreamento em intervalos fixos de tempo para os casos avaliados. Os sistemas de rastreamento em malha aberta e malha fechada foram comparados experimentalmente para a cidade de Rio das Ostras, Brasil (22,49oS 41,92oO). Foi observado um aumento médio de 28,5 e 33,0% para os sistemas de rastreamento em malha aberta e malha fechada, respectivamente, em relação a um sistema fixo com inclinação igual à latitude