Optimum tilt angles for maximum power generation by photovoltaic systems in western himalayan state Of himachal Pradesh, India

Tilt angle of a solar panel is one of the important parameters for capturing maximum solar radiation on its plane. This angle is site specific and it depends on daily, monthly and yearly variation of solar irradiance for a particular location. The determination of optimum tilt angle for a location of interest is important for maximum energy production by a photovoltaic (PV) system. In this study monthly and yearly tilt angles for the PV panels for 12 study locations in a western Himalayan hilly state of Himachal Pradesh are determined. Two types of solar radiation data sets are used in this study: ground measured meteorological data (for Hamirpur location) and NASA satellite data (for rest 11 locations) for a four year period. Optimization is done using HOMER (Hybrid Optimization of Multiple Energy Resources) microgrid modeling software. The monthly optimum tilt angles for the 12 locations are found to range from 00 to 620 throughout the year and the annual optimum tilt angle is found close to the latitude for these locations.