Improvement in solar panel efficiency using solar concentration by simple mirrors and by cooling

Concentrated photovoltaic technology (CPV) uses optics such as mirrors and lens to focus sunlight on solar cells for the sake of generating electricity. CPV has advantage over non-concentrated photovoltaic as less number of solar cells are required for the same power output. Along with duration and intensity of sunlight, temperature also has great effect on the performance of PV module as high temperature significantly reduces output power. This research paper explains a practical approach to enhance the efficiency of solar panel by the use of mirrors and cooling mechanism. These reflectors are cheap, easy to handle, simple enough to use and need no extra equipment or devices to use. But CPV operate efficiently in concentrated light as long as the solar cells are kept cool by means of some heat sinks. Experimental results indicate appreciable enhancement in overall output of solar panel. Experimental readings obtained from a) without reflectors and without cooling b) with reflectors and without cooling c) with reflectors and with cooling are compared. Corresponding results obtained from different conditions showing improvement in efficiency up to 32% in case (b) and 52% in case (c) are tabled and plotted.

I. Introduction

Energy is the fundamental need for mankind today. It ensures better quality of life. For daily use uninterrupted energy has become a necessity for humanity now a days. As blood is to body electricity is to economy of any country so without it economy will tremble and it will be very hard to sustain it. All over the world energy is one of the leading issues and every country is looking for energy resources as its demand is increasing sharply. Non-renewable energy resources are either too expensive or damaging the environment and also they are eventually going to end in near future. That's why the world is moving towards renewable energy resources which are naturally replenished in a relatively small period of time. Though hydroelectric is very cheap renewable energy source but it is not available to all places in the world while on the other hand solar has the potential to take over the whole power generation [1], [13]–[14]. From over the centuries, sun is providing energy in both forms: light and heat. Today, solar energy is used to produce electricity by using photovoltaic cells.