Designing of two axis solar system using Light dependent Resistors for precisely tracking of Sun irradiance and solar panel cleaning

Project Title

Designing of two axis solar system using Light dependent Resistors for precisely tracking of Sun irradiance and solar panel cleaning

Project Area of Specialization Electrical/Electronic EngineeringProject Summary

Solar power is the fastest-growing means of renewable energy. The project is designed and implemented using a simple dual-axis solar tracker system using LDR. To maximize energy generation from the sun, it is necessary to introduce solar tracking systems into solar power systems. A dual-axis tracker can increase energy by tracking sun rays by switching solar panels in various directions. This solar panel can rotate in all directions. This dual-axis solar tracker project can also be used to sense weather, and it will be displayed on LCD. This system is powered by Arduino and consists of a dc gear motor, linear actuator, PWM(pulse width modulator), and forward-reverse relay.

The manufactured dual-axis solar tracking system is tested in solar light as well as in the normal tube light. In both cases, LDR sensors perfectly detect the direction of maximum intensity light and accordingly rotate the solar panel to that direction. The input energy required to drive the system is as calculated above and which is 0.00875 Whr. The output energy can be calculated from the multimeter readings of voltage and current concerning the time. These values are shown on the PWM battery charge controller.

The manufactured dual-axis solar tracking system tracks the current and exact position of the sun and can be cross-checked by using a timer. The Solar Panel moves from East to West in a day as well as from North to South in a year (according to the seasonal movement) in a direction of the maximum light source i.e. Sun. Thus, the complexity of the tracking strategy is eliminated & system is made simpler.

Project Objectives

The main objective of the dual-axis solar tracker is to follow the position of the sun for maximum energy efficiency. Given that the sun moves at 10 degrees per 45 minutes and assuming, the tracker would make position changes every.

The main objective of this project is whether a static solar panel is better than a solar tracker or not. This work is divided into two parts hardware and software system. In the hardware part, four light-dependent resistors (LDR) are used to detect the utmost light source from the sun. One DC gear motor and one linear actuator are conjointly used to move the solar panel to the maximum light source location perceived by the LDRs. In the software part, the code is written using C programming language and has targeted the Arduino UNO controller. The outcome of the solar tracker system has been analyzed and compared with the fixed or static solar panel found better performance in terms of voltage, current, and power. Therefore, the solar tracker is proved more practical for capturing the maximum sunlight supply for star harvesting applications. The result showed that dual-axis solar tracking systems produced extra power compared with fixed and single-axis solar tracking systems.

The dual-axis solar tracking system will increase the energy efficiency considerably as it tracks the daily, as well as the seasonal movements of solar panels & cost of power generation, which will reduce the same power generation capacity in comparison with the fixed solar panel.

Project Implementation Method

In this system, four Light dependent resistors are fixed to sense the intensity of light (two for the azimuth position sensor and another two for the altitude position sensor). The analog signal from the sensors is given to the in-built  ADC (Analog to Digital Converter) and light comparison unit. This output is given as an input to the Arduino board along with the input command. The output of the Arduino is given to the motor relay circuit. One DC gear motor and another linear actuator are connected with the driving circuit, one for vertical and another one for horizontal movement. The motor rotates the solar panel perpendicular to the position of the sun’s rays. Then finally the output power is displayed on the PWM (Pulse Width Modulator). In this project, LDR (Light Dependent Resistor) combination plays an important role.

Implementation of a dual-axis solar tracker is simple but we must take care while designing it. The circuit comprises 4 LDR and 4 resistors, connected in such a way that they act as a voltage divider, and output is provided to analog input pins of Arduino. Pin no. 9 and 10 of Arduino are responsible for providing PWM inputs to the motor and actuator. LDRs are used to sense the presence of light. The one dc gear motor is put on the structure in such a manner that one is responsible for horizontal movement and actuator for vertical movement. Now the program is uploaded for Arduino to the microcontroller. The project is working as follows.

· Four LDR sense the presence of maximum sunlight, which is situated at four corners of the PV panel.

· For the east to west track, if the analog values of top LDRs are more in compared to the bottom two LDRs, then the vertical linear actuator will move in that particular direction

 · If the bottom LDRs receive more light, the motor moves in that particular direction.

· For the angular deflection of the solar panel, if the left sets of LDRs receive more light than the right set, the horizontal motor will move in that particular direction.

 · If the right set of LDRs receives more light, the motor and actuator in that particular direction.

The whole system is dependent on an automatic tracking mechanism instead of a predefined motion. The sensors are the feedback constituents as they provide signals to the control system. Microcontroller plays an important role in controlling mechanism or control system. The microcontroller aims to determine the direction of motor rotation, according to the signal received from the respective LDR. So, the whole system adjusts itself for the sunlight to fall directly on the panel.

Benefits of the Project

Solar trackers can increase energy production by up to a third or more versus a fixed system. This means that more energy can be produced without needing to increase the size of the system, making for smarter use of land. While the energy generation benefits are clear, there are some things to consider when deciding if a single-axis tracking system is suited to your site’s needs. Installation costs are generally higher, as there is often more work to be done in prepping the site. The need for periodic upkeep and repairs must be considered too, as trackers utilize moving machinery. Single-axis tracking systems also tend to weigh more than fixed systems, so use in ground-mounted solar is preferred over roof-mounted solar. When deployed under the right conditions, solar trackers can add significant value to the system by boosting energy production that quickly makes up for these initial costs.

Technical Details of Final Deliverable

Dual-axis solar tracking is still rare even in countries, wherever a major part of electricity is being produced by solar energy as they claim that single-axis tracking is doing the work. However, dual-axis tracking will noticeably increase the potency. For our work, we’ve implemented this procedure on a solar panel. Cost-effectiveness and proposed system. This project used a monocrystalline PV panel. But a polycrystalline material-based solar panel also can be used for this proposed model. We used LDR (Light Dependent Resistors) for this proposed model but LDR is not a good choice as a sensor as it is affected by dust. So in the future, we can also use a more efficient sensor. A reliable structure is very expensive compared to a solar panel cost; therefore, adding a panel to the system instead of spending on tracking structure is much more cost-effective.

Except for the dual-axis solar tracking system, there is some other available technique for solar power tracking system such as power towers, parabolic trough concentrator, central receiver concentrator, parabolic dish concentrator, etc. All of these systems are very efficient and produce more electricity. But all of them are very expensive to set up. If our proposed system is compared to all of the available solar tracking systems, the dual-axis solar tracking system is more efficient, easy to set up, and cost-effective.

Final Deliverable of the Project Hardware SystemCore Industry Energy Other Industries Agriculture , Others Core Technology OthersOther Technologies Clean TechSustainable Development Goals Affordable and Clean Energy, Responsible Consumption and ProductionRequired Resources

Item Name	Type	No. of Units	Per Unit Cost (in Rs)	Total (in Rs)
			Total in (Rs)	63760
Inverter	Equipment	1	3200	3200
Pulse width modulator battery charge controller	Equipment	1	1350	1350
DC gear motor	Equipment	1	5000	5000
Linear Actuator	Equipment	1	5000	5000
Forward reverse relay	Equipment	2	1000	2000
Customize stand for solar panel mounting made by iron	Equipment	1	31000	31000
Light dependent resistors	Equipment	6	160	960
Wires	Miscellaneous	1	1000	1000
Nuts and boults	Miscellaneous	1	1000	1000
Labour cost	Miscellaneous	1	6000	6000
Arduino mega	Equipment	1	2250	2250
Solar panel(pay 25%)	Equipment	1	5000	5000