Paper ID: CERIE – 198 Field of Work: Electrical and Electronic Engineering

Proceedings of the
Conference on Engineering Research, Innovation and Education 2011
CERIE 2011, 11-13 January 2011, Sylhet, Bangladesh

INCREASING EFFICIENCY OF POLYCRYSTALLINE

PHOTOVOLTAIC PANELS

Mahmudul Hasan Rosen*, Md. Shakiluzzaman

Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering
University of Information Technology and Sciences, Dhaka, Bangladesh

Shuza Binzaid, PhD

Founder and Director, Solar Enhanced Renewable Energy Systems (SERES), Bangladesh
Web Address: seres-usa.com

An extensive research work is completed to increase efficiency of polycrystalline photovoltaic (PV) panels
for cost saving purposes in Bangladesh. Various experiments have been completed including double axis
tracker, luminous optimization and dual-mode optimization techniques. A 10-watt polycrystalline PV panel
collected 50 watts under normal operation setup during a normal day. Another panel collected 53 watts
during the same day, concluding a 6% variation of panels available in the Bangladesh market. The
concerned, lower-powered panel was also found to have improved performance at various optimizing setups.
All experiments were completed in the same day for both normal and optimized operation setup,
simultaneously, within 2 minutes to expose equal solar energy on the same solar panel. This process enabled
all collected data to compare very accurately. It was determined from all tests that this panel collected 55, 57
and 63 watts with the optimized setup by using the panel that initially collected 50 watts. The Dual-mode
optimizing setup improved the best and found to have 26% improvement. A cost saving analysis is also
completed on various power PV panels on Bangladesh market perspectives. Detailed information on setup to
improve panel’s performance is presented in this paper.

Key words: Photovoltaic; Solar Energy; Photoelectronic Semiconductor; Polycrystalline; Efficiency

1. INTRODUCTION from fossil fuel in a long run. Also consumers can

be self-independent of generating their required
Today most of the electric energy is produced by electrical power by using solar panels. Most of the
fossil fuels. These fuels produce large amount of developed countries like USA is promoting at
toxic gasses into the atmosphere. Figure 1 shows government level to use renewable energy sources,
global carbon emission by fossil fuel plant. The even they sufficient power plants.
global carbon emission by fossil fuel plants in 1980
was above 200 billion metric tons [1].

Dependence on fossil fuel needs to be reduced.

There are few know technologies today that can
produce environmentally safe green energy. They
are also called renewable energy, as these
technologies do not use destructive transformation
of energy like burning fossil fuel. Solar power is
one of the technologies. It is one of the most
available and cost effective energy producing
system to individual consumers. It can free a
consumer from the national power grid and thus
free environment from toxic carbon emission. Also
it frees the consumer from paying bills regularly.
Renewable energy becomes cheaper than energy Fig. 1: Global carbon emission by fossil fuel plants

*
Corresponding Author: Mahmudul Hasan Rosen,
E-mail: [email protected]
A solar panel is a light sensitive semiconductor junctions. Figure 4 shows the bang-gap diagram of
device. It is a photovoltaic material, which consists the hetero-junction cell showing band-gaps of EG1
of p-n junctions for producing current and thus and EG2.
power is generated. Figure 2 shows a generalized
diagram how a solar cell works. When energetic
photon from sunlight strikes at the junction, exited
electrons are freed creating current towards p-type
materials through external path. Releasing electrons
by photons depends on the amount of light
absorbed by the junction cell’s surface. Also figure
3 shows the electrical circuit representation of solar
cell. In this figure the cell consists of a p-n device,
which is a diode. A solar panel can never produce
infinite amount of current due to an internal effect
of resistance. A solar cell has a shunt resistor Rsh
and a series resistor Rs, which are due to the
semiconductor device creating natural resistances
within. A current source I in the figure 3 is the
current that flows through external path of Rs. The
voltage is the panel’s voltage of the external path Fig. 4: Band diagram of hetero-junction solar cell
shown here. Efficiency of solar cell is increased if
the shunt resistance is reduced. Researchers In multi-junction cells, layers of junctions of p-n
improved efficiency of the solar cell by using p-n materials with varied band gaps used such that wide
materials in silicon with GaAs and with that focus spectrum of light energy is absorbed to produce
shifted to use of group III-IV materials in 1980. higher density of current. So multi-junction solar
panels cell are more efficient. These types of cells
were first used in satellites and other advanced
technologies because of their higher efficiencies.
Figure 5 shows a multi-junction solar cell and
penetration of light through the layers of material
absorbing energy.

Fig. 2: Generalized diagram of a solar cell in real

application of light bulb

Fig. 5: Structure of a multi-junction solar cell

2. SOLAR POWER OPTIMIZATION

Fig. 3: The equivalent internal circuit of a solar cell
There are few techniques have been identified to
There are three types of photovoltaic cells: homo- increase efficiency of solar panels beside the
junction, hetero-junction and multi-junction. The improvement at cell device and process. Photon
mono-junction cells have the equal band energy of collected at instantaneous or a collective period can
p-n materials in semiconductor. The hetero-junction be controlled by external setups for a solar panel.
devices have different band-gap energies in the p-n Light concentration and solar tracking systems are
very effective for those setups to increase There is another technique to collect photons at the
efficiency. Various types of mechanical tracking maximum level, called dual-mode tracking system.
systems have been developed for both types of This system has both light concentrator by
setups. Light concentration process is done by reflectors and panel’s angle moving solar tracking
reflectors to add more light on the panel from system. This work has found that solar panel
additional light area outside the panel, thus becomes highly efficient with such setup.
increasing concentration at an instance. Two types
of light concentrators are found: fixed panel and 3. SETUP, TESTS AND RESULTS
variable angle concentrator of photons. Variable
angle concentrator system changes the angle of Four types of test setups were completed for a
light accumulation path to increase resultant power improvements comparison. The panel
concentration and thus achieving higher efficiency produces 80% of its maximum specified power by
than fixed panel setup, but it is much more sunlight. So this 10watt panel can produce 8 watts.
expensive to apply, especially in developing Two multi-testers were placed with the solar panel
country like Bangladesh. Fixed panel setup is more to measure voltage and current. Current was
acceptable and this work has focused on this type allowed to pass through a load. This load was made
concentrator or light reflectors. Figure 6 shows the by placing 34 of 1Kohm, 1/4watt resistors in
experimental setup of fixed panel concentrator. In parallel creating about 29.5 ohms, allowing the
both techniques, the solar panel is kept on fixed panel to produce maximum of 0.60A current at
mounting frames. 16.5V, as specified. So the load can safely handle
8.5watts electric power dissipated as heat. Figure 8
Solar P anel shows the circuit of the test setup.

Resistive Load
Solar Panel

V
Tester

Tester
Photon C oncentratin g Reflector

Fig. 6: A setup of fixed panel photon concentrator

Another techniques are called solar tracking Fig. 8: Circuit of the test setup with resistive load
system. The solar panel is placed on a rotating
mounting frame and a subsidiary electronic system From this simple setup, power can be calculated as,
tracks the suns position. Thus the solar panel is
moved directly towards the sun, collecting Power = Voltage X Current
maximum light. Figure 7 shows a diagram of a
solar tracking system where dual angle tracking can So in this case, solar power is the product of current
collect maximum energy directly from sun. flowing through the load and voltage difference
across the load.

3.1 Fixed Position Solar Panel Test

The test setup was done by the solar panel set on
the perpendicular plane to the sun at mid sky. This
setup was kept fixed at all times during the day
regardless of sun’s position. Even though this is not
the best power absorbing technique, it is the
cheapest and also the easiest way to mount solar
panel. During the test, I-V measurements
performed and data were collected every 30
minutes. Then power was calculated using those
data each time. Power Figure 9 shows the plot of
the data read during the day. This setup collected
Fig. 7: A side view diagram of a solar tracker total of 50 watts during the day.
y

Fig. 9: Plot of power vs. hour for fixed position Fig. 11: Plot of power vs. hour for solar panel with
solar panel light concentrators

In the plot it shows that the high amount of energy 3.3 Solar Tracking Panel Setup
was absorbed above 7 watts by the panel was Figure 12 shows the solar tracking panel setup. The
during the mid-day for only 1.5 hours. Also it was panel was set along the solar path and panel was
found that 60% of the total energy was absorbed in able follow the sun’s position by the movable panel
2 hours. mount that is vertical to the plane. It’s mount is
comparatively lot more expensive than solar power
3.2 Solar Energy Concentration Setup concentrators.
Figure 10 shows solar power optimized by light
concentrating reflectors. A simple inexpensive
polished aluminum reflector fixed at 350 around the
panel. The width of the reflector was 50% width of
the solar panel. This technique is called
concentration of energy.

Fig. 12: Panel with solar tracking

Even though the panel followed the solar path

vertical to the plane, the energy level is weaker
when sun is away from the mid-sky position at mid-
day. Also power was 7.98 watts at maximum
Fig. 10: Solar power optimized by placing position of vertical plane in the mid-day. Data plot
reflectors with the panel to concentrate light of power is presented in figure 13.

Even though the panel was fixed on vertical plane

at mid-day position of sun, energy level was
significantly increased. It was found that power was
8.013 watts at maximum level at mid-day. Data plot
of power is presented in figure 11. Total energy
absorbed was 55 watts. The concentrator having
50% width of the panel had a gain of 10%.
Reflector width was proportional to panel width.

The setup was a fixed position and it was easily

made by just a little additional expense in
Bangladesh. Larger reflectors can absorb more Fig. 13: Plot of power vs. hour for solar tracking
energy. This setup is considerably simple to panel setup
construct and marketable with solar systems. There
are plastic coated, highly reflective foils found for Total energy absorbed during the entire day was 57
around 15 Taka. This foil can easily be glued on the watts. Also showing in the plot that the high
rigid fixtures. Also it can easily be replaced when amount of energy was absorbed above 7 watts by
needed. So maintenance of the system is easy also. the panel was during the mid-day for 2.5 hours.
Also it was found that 70% of the total energy was setup economically viable for Bangladesh market.
absorbed in 2.5 hours. The highest efficiency was observed by tracking
system with light concentrators.
3.4 Optimized Solar Tracking Panel Setup
This setup is combination of solar tracking and Table 1: Test results of power improvements
light concentration techniques. Figure 14 shows
Panel Energy/day Hours Power
such a setup. It is the most expensive of all
Setup Type (Watts) Over 7 % Improved
techniques. This setup may not be very marketable Watts
in Bangladesh as tracking system are made with Fixed Position 50 1.5 N/A
strong metal mounts for wind factors on this large
Photon 55 2 10
moveable structure. For this experiment, the same Concentration
solar panel with reflector in previous section was Solar Tracking 57 2.5 14
used and manually moved to operate as tracking Optimized 63 3 26
system. Thus all collected data could easily be Tracking
compared with other systems.

5. CONCLUSIONS
This work has been completed to find various
techniques to optimize power of a 10watt
polycrystalline PV panel. It was found that a panels
efficiency can be improved to absorb sun’s light
energy by various setups that are described here.
The simplest and most economical system is energy
concentration setup that is feasible for Bangladesh
and also the reflectors can be set to various sizes to
Fig. 14: A optimized solar tracking system vary power. A 100% width reflector can increase
solar panel’s power by about 20%. Solar tracking is
Figure 15 shows the data plot of energy collected a mechanical system that is more costly but can
during the day. This system could collect the total generate higher power. In this research work, it has
energy of 63watts. High energy above 7 watts was been found that solar panels energy can be
collected for 3 hours in a day. This was a very increased up to 13 watts in a day by using a 10watt
significant energy increase of 26% using a 10watt panel. Also the efficiency can be increased by up to
solar panel. 26%. Various ranges of power applications can be
established by using techniques of this work.

REFERENCES
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Photovoltaic Solar Energy Generation,
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3. Bube R. H., (1992), Photoelectronic Properties
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tracking panel setup University of Cambridge, New York, pp. 244-
246.
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solar panel. Table 1 summarizes the test results of Panels, Thesis, Department of Electrical and
the panel of various setups. It is found that the Electronic Engineering, University of
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the energy concentration that improves by 10% Bangladesh, pp. 13-32.
with 50% width of the panel reflectors. It is the best