Eventos Anais de eventos
COBEM 2017
24th ABCM International Congress of Mechanical Engineering
Design of a cost effective educational instrument to study solar tracking strategies
Submission Author:
Bruno Alves , CE , Brazil
Co-Authors:
Fabio Brito, Raul Melo, Bruno Alves
Presenter: Fabio Brito
doi://10.26678/ABCM.COBEM2017.COB17-1786
Abstract
Solar energy has been drawing more and more attention due to the increasing pollution and shortage of fossil fuels. As the sun´s position changes throughout the day, a solar tracker is an efficient method to increase the energy production. This paper presented herein describes a microcontroller based project easily extended for controlling and monitoring solar trackers for research and educational purposes. A dual-axis solar tracker has been employed in standalone photovoltaic system. Around 30% annual energy production gains will be expect in similar commercial solar trackers, nevertheless, commercial trackers are often prohibitively costly for standalone and decentralized photovoltaic systems. The proposed tracker design is built from recycled materials that are readily available to promote a low cost solution. Few specialized parts are made in router machine using a computer-aided design and manufacturing software. Comprised of a 0.15 m linear actuator coupled directly to stepper motor, the tracking mechanisms would pair well with the single robot scheme since the lead screws for the linear operation prevent back drive without braking. The solar tracker geometry fully exploits solar trajectory with 270° maximum range. The microcontroller software employs the mathematical formulas to determine the sun position. The system calculates constantly the declination angle and clock angle and the tracking process continues until sunset. Field tests demonstrated low error rates in the tracking capability to what would be expected with the use of a commercial PV solar tracker.
Keywords
Solar Photovoltaic, solar tracker, Educational Instrument
