Maximum Efficiency Trajectories of a Two-Axis Sun Tracking System Determined Considering Tracking System Consumption

Abstract

This paper deals with the two-axis sun tracking system for a photovoltaic system. The trajectories of the sun tracking system are determined in an optimization procedure. The optimization goal is maximization of an electric energy production in the photovoltaic system considering the tracking system consumption. Determination of the tilt angle and azimuth angle trajectories is described as a nonlinear and bounded optimization problem, where the objective function is not available in the explicit form. A stochastic search algorithm called Differential Evolution is used as an optimization tool. In the optimization procedure, the objective function is evaluated by using the models of available solar radiation, tracking system consumption, and the efficiency of solar cells with the appropriate dc/dc converters. The problem bounds are given in the form of lower and upper bounds for both angles and time and angle quantization. The results presented in the paper show, that the optimal trajectories for the tilt and azimuth angle depend on the available solar radiation, solar cell efficiency, tracking system consumption and the optimization bounds.

Experimental measurements of a prototype high-concentration Fresnel lens and sun-tracking method for photovoltaic panel’s efficiency enhancement

“…Their trajectories can be accurately determined because the relative position of the sun can be precisely calculated at any time for any location on the earth. The hybrid control systems combine the openloop tracking trajectories based on the solar movement models and the closed-loop control, using dynamic feedback controllers [14].…”

“…Seme et al [14] proposed a new method for prediction of the time-dependent solar radiation on a tilted surface for the two-axis sun-tracking system for a PV system. The trajectories of the sun-tracking system are determined in an optimization procedure.…”

Application of swarm based optimization algorithms to maximize output energy of photovoltaic panels

“…Additionally, the best tilt angle should be determined based on the geographical location of the panel [2]. The total instantaneous solar radiation on a horizontal surface (I h ) is the sum of the direct (I bh ) and the diffuse solar radiation (I dh ) on a horizontal surface [1].…”

“…The amount of it will be highest when the surface of the PV module is aligned with the direction of the sunbeams. This can be achieved by control of the electric drives in the sun tracking system [1]. There are many tracking system designs available including passive and active systems with one or two axes of freedom.…”

“…Due to permanent changes for positioning, these systems can spend more energy. The open-loop systems are based on the mathematical algorithms that can provide predefined trajectories for the tracking systems [1,3,4].…”