Energy and economic analysis of a point-focus concentrating photovoltaic system when its installation site varies

Abstract

The concentrating photovoltaic (CPV) systems are a promising technology to obtain clean energy. However, these systems are not equally convenient worldwide due to different climatic conditions. The main aim of this paper is to analyze energy and economic performances of a point-focus CPV system for a residential user when its installation site varies. Three locations, Riyadh, Copenhagen, and Palermo, characterized by very different weather conditions are chosen. A model that links the electrical power of a triple-junction (TJ) cell with its temperature and concentrated radiation incident on it is experimentally developed to evaluate the energy performance of the CPV system. A comparison of the three localities for typical winter and summer sunny days indicates that the higher values of the TJ cell temperature are reached in summer, over 70°C at Riyadh, and its electrical power is reduced compared to a winter day. In winter, a TJ cell in Riyadh supplies an electric power of about 20% higher than that in other two cities, while in summer, the maximum power is observed at Copenhagen. On the contrary, the electrical producibility also depends on the sunlight daily hours number during the year. Hence, considering the real distribution of direct normal irradiance (DNI) and the environmental temperature for each locality, a CPV system composed of modules of 90 cells adopted for a residential user is sized. The electric producibility of the CPV system, by varying its module number, is evaluated for different localities together with the optimal number of the modules which is able to maximize the investment profitability.

Key words： CPV system; point-focus; experimental model; energy and economic analysis

References

1 Rejeb O, Shittu S, Ghenai C, Optimization and performance analysis of a solar concentrated photovoltaic-thermoelectric (CPV-TE) hybrid system. Renewable Energy, 2020, 152: 1342–1353

2 Burhan M, Shahzad M W, Oh S J, Long term electrical rating of concentrated photovoltaic (CPV) systems in Singapore. Energy Procedia, 2019, 158: 73–78

3 Bellos E, Tzivanidis C, Antonopoulos K A, Thermal enhancement of solar parabolic trough collectors by using nanofluids and converging-diverging absorber tube. Renewable Energy, 2016, 94: 213–222

4 Soni M S, Gakkhar N. Techno-economic parametric assessment of solar power in India: a survey. Renewable & Sustainable Energy Reviews, 2014, 40: 326–334

5 Wang G, Wang F, Shen F, Experimental and optical performances of a solar CPV device using a linear Fresnel reflector concentrator. Renewable Energy, 2020, 146: 2351–2361

6 Wang G, Chen Z, Hu P, Design and optical analysis of the band-focus Fresnel lens solar concentrator. Applied Thermal Engineering, 2016, 102: 695–700

7 Renno C. Thermal and electrical modelling of a CPV/T system varying its configuration. Journal of Thermal Science, 2019, 28(1): 123–132

8 García-Domingo B Piliougine M, Elizondo D CPV module electric characterisation by artificial neural networks. Renewable Energy, 2015, 78: 173–181

9 Xu N, Ji J, Sun W, Outdoor performance analysis of a 1090× point-focus Fresnel high concentrator photovoltaic/thermal system with triple-junction solar cells. Energy Conversion and Management, 2015, 100: 191–200

10 Renno C. Experimental and theoretical analysis of a linear focus CPV/T system for cogeneration purposes. Energies, 2018, 11(11): 2960

11 Burhan M, Shahzad M W, Ng K C. Sustainable cooling with hybrid concentrated photovoltaic thermal (CPVT) system and hydrogen energy storage. International Journal of Computational Physics Series, 2018, 1(2): 40–51

12 Marques Filho E P, Oliveira A P, Vita W A, Global, diffuse and direct solar radiation at the surface in the city of Rio de Janeiro: observational characterization and empirical modeling. Renewable Energy, 2016, 91: 64–74

13 Renno C, Petito F. Choice model for a modular configuration of a point-focus CPV/T system. Energy and Buildings, 2015, 92: 55–66

14 Alves P, Fernandes J F, Torres J P N, From Sweden to Portugal: the effect of very distinct climate zones on energy efficiency of a concentrating photovoltaic/thermal system (CPV/T). Solar Energy, 2019, 188: 96–110

15 Lokeswaran S, Mallick T K, Reddy K S. Design and analysis of dense array CPV receiver for square parabolic dish system with CPC array as secondary concentrator. Solar Energy, 2020, 199: 782–795

16 Renno C, Petito F, Landi G, Neitzert H C. Experimental characterization of a concentrating photovoltaic system varying the light concentration. Energy Conversion and Management, 2017, 138: 119–130

17 Burhan M, Shahzad M W, Ng K C. Long-term performance potential of concentrated photovoltaic (CPV) systems. Energy Conversion and Management, 2017, 148: 90–99

18 Wang G, Wang F, Shen F, Novel design and thermodynamic analysis of a solar concentration PV and thermal combined system based on compact linear Fresnel reflector. Energy, 2019, 180: 133–148

19 Han X, Xu C, Ju X, Energy analysis of a hybrid solar concentrating photovoltaic/concentrating solar power (CPV/CSP) system. Science Bulletin, 2015, 60(4): 460–469

20 Han X, Zhao G, Xu C, Parametric analysis of a hybrid solar concentrating photovoltaic/concentrating solar power (CPV/CSP) system. Applied Energy, 2017, 189: 520–533

21 Aprea C, Renno C. An experimental analysis of a thermodynamic model of a vapour compression refrigeration plant on varying the compressor speed. International Journal of Energy Research, 2004, 28(6): 537–549

22 The Joint Research Centre. Photovoltaic geographical information system (PVGIS), 2020–05–08

23 The Math Works, Inc. MATLAB R2019a, 1994–2020. Massachusetts, USA

24 Aprea C, Renno C. An air cooled tube-fin evaporator model for an expansion valve control law. Mathematical and Computer Modelling, 1999, 30(7-8): 135–146

25 Renno C, Landi G, Petito F, Influence of a degraded triple-junction solar cell on the CPV system performances. Energy Conversion and Management, 2018, 160: 326–340

26 Xu N, Ji J, Sun W, Outdoor performance analysis of a 1090× point-focus Fresnel high concentrator photovoltaic/thermal system with triple-junction solar cells. Energy Conversion and Management, 2015, 100: 191–200

27 Aprea C, Renno C. A numerical approach to a very fast thermal transient in an air cooling evaporator. Applied Thermal Engineering, 2002, 22(2): 219–228

28 Francesca T (GSE), Giosuè M (RSE). National survey report of PV power applications in Italy–2018. 2019

29 Renno C, Petito F. Triple-junction cell temperature evaluation in a CPV system by means of a Random-Forest model. Energy Conversion and Management, 2018, 169: 124–136