Simplified Analytical Model for Investigating the Output Power of Solar Array on Stratospheric Airship

Abstract

Solar energy is the ideal power choice for long-endurance stratospheric airships. The output performance of solar array on stratospheric airship is affected by several major factors: flying latitude, flight date, airship's attitude and the temperature of solar cell, but the research on the effect of these factors on output performance is rare. This paper establishes a new simplified analytical model with thermal effects to analyze the output performance of the solar array. This model consisting of the geometric model of stratospheric airship, solar radiation model and incident solar radiation model is developed using MATLAB computer program. Based on this model, the effects of the major factors on the output performance of the solar array are investigated expediently and easily. In the course of the research, the output power of solar array is calculated for five airship's latitudes of 0°, 15°, 30°, 45° and 60°, four special dates and different attitudes of five pitch angles and four yaw angles. The effect of these factors on output performance is discussed in detail. The results are helpful for solving the energy problem of the long endurance airship and planning the airline.

Multidisciplinary Optimization and Analysis of Stratospheric Airships Powered by Solar Arrays

“…To achieve the long-endurance station-keeping task, renewable energy systems are generally used, which is mainly composed of energy-generating cells, energystorage batteries and energy management devices [7]. Many studies have been conducted to investigate the feasibility of stratospheric solar-powered airships [8][9][10][11][12]. Generally, flexible solar arrays are placed on the surface of the airship envelope [13].…”

Bulletin of the Polish Academy of Sciences: Technical Sciences

“…The above studies show that the thermal performance of airships is closely related to its own structure and material, but also strongly influenced by the surrounding environment [20][21][22]. In particular, the effects of solar radiation cannot be ignored [23][24][25]. However, the studies are limited to stratospheric airships, the limitations or weaknesses of the above-mentioned literature refer mainly to the following: (1) The difference in altitude between high-altitude airships and manned airships implies that they are subject to completely different environments; (2) the nacelle, as a manned structure, is subject to the vagaries of the environment during flight.…”