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A special issue of Energies (ISSN 1996-1073). This special issue belongs to the section "A2: Solar Energy and Photovoltaic Systems".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (13 July 2023) | Viewed by 14447

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Dr. Edward Halawa

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Faculty of Science and Technology, Charles Darwin University, Darwin 0815, Australia
Interests: energy systems analysis; renewable energy; thermal energy storage; thermal comfort
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Dear Colleagues,

Solar energy has become a very popular topic that has attracted worldwide research interest, and for good reason: the Sun is constantly radiating energy in all directions, including towards the Earth’s surface. In this Special Issue, energy researchers, practitioners, energy economists and policymakers are invited to present research outcomes, innovations, or ideas related to the use of solar energy. These include current and emerging solar power/energy technologies; high, medium, and low-temperature applications; thermal and electrical energy storage; solar energy availability at a particular region; solar-grid integration; economic aspects of particular solar technology/application. The issues and challenges arising from the use of solar energy systems including solar panel waste and recycling, systems challenges in different climates (hails, flooding, extreme weather, etc.) and system reliability are relevant topics for this Special Issue. Review manuscripts which look at the current technologies and their technical and economic viability will be considered.

Dr. Edward Halawa
Guest Editor

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Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

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Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Related Special Issue

Volume 2: Solar Energy: Resources, Technologies and Challenges in Energies

Published Papers (7 papers)

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Research

11 pages, 6835 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Temperature Evaluation of a Building Facade with a Thin Plaster Layer under Various Degrees of Cloudiness

by Elena V. Korkina, Ekaterina V. Gorbarenko, Elena V. Voitovich, Matvey D. Tyulenev and Natalia I. Kozhukhova

Energies 2023, 16(15), 5783; https://doi.org/10.3390/en16155783 - 03 Aug 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1038

Abstract

In this paper, we investigate the surface temperature of a wall with a facade heat-insulating composite system (FHIC), which has a thin plaster layer, taking into account solar radiation exposure at different degrees of cloudiness during the month. The object of study is a wall with FHIC, on the outer surface of which temperature sensors were mounted and measurements were taken. Air temperatures were also measured for one month of the warm period of the year. The coefficient of absorption of solar radiation by the surface of the facade is calculated based on the measurement of the spectral reflection coefficient. Measurements of direct and scattered solar radiation arriving on a horizontal surface were carried out, and the cloudiness of the sky was also recorded. The calculation of direct and scattered solar radiation was carried out, taking into account the shading of surrounding buildings using the authors’ novel methods. The experimental days were divided into three groups according to the degree of cloudiness; statistically significant differences between the groups for the studied parameters were demonstrated. The temperature of the outer surface of the wall was calculated according to A.M. Shklover’s formula. The measured values of the temperature of the outer surface of the wall were compared with the calculated ones. It was shown that there is a good correlation between the measured and calculated temperatures for different degrees of cloudiness. At the same time, for days with no or slight cloudiness (Group I), when direct solar radiation predominates, the differences reach 1.7 °C; smaller differences are observed for days with average cloudiness (Group II) during daytime hours, with a maximum difference of 0.5 °C; and on days with continuous cloudiness (Group III), when only scattered radiation is present for daytime hours, the maximum difference is 0.3 °C. Statistically significant differences were found between the measured and calculated temperatures for groups of days, divided by the degree of cloudiness, for the experimental period of a day from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., which indicates the possibility of considering amendments to A.M. Shklover’s formula for sunny days. The results of comparing the measured and calculated heating temperatures of the facade surface also indirectly confirm the correctness of the author’s calculations of the incoming solar radiation, taking into account the effect of the surrounding buildings. The results obtained can be used to study the inertia and durability of building structures under solar radiation. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Solar Energy: Resources, Technologies and Challenges)

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13 pages, 552 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Generation of a Typical Meteorological Year for Global Solar Radiation in Taiwan

by Tsung-En Hsieh, Bianca Fraincas and Keh-Chin Chang

Energies 2023, 16(7), 2986; https://doi.org/10.3390/en16072986 - 24 Mar 2023

Viewed by 1352

Abstract

Solar energy technology is now a mature and environmentally friendly solution. Long-term and credible solar radiation data are required for energy assessments of solar applications. Due to the lack of a typical year and accurate, long-term global solar radiation data for Taiwan, data for the typical meteorological year (TMY) of global solar radiation from 30 weather stations across Taiwan of the Central Weather Bureau were gathered for this study. The database for solar radiation contains data for the 15 years between 2004 and 2018, except for one (Chigu) weather station which provides data for the 12 years between 2004 and 2015, which possesses credible data quality and meets the requirements of the TMY method. The minimum and maximum TMY global radiation observed from the 30 weather stations are 3421.8 and 5479.9 MJ/

m^{2}

at the Zhuzihu (Station 2) and Tainan (Station 16) weather stations, respectively. The effects of topography, geography, and latitude on the global radiation distribution in Taiwan are discussed. A trend of increasing annual global radiation from the northeast to the southwest in the Taiwanese mainland, which is attributed to the combined effects of topography and latitude, is observed. This credible, long-term database for global solar radiation is a prerequisite reference for solar information for use in determining the performance of solar energy applications in Taiwan. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Solar Energy: Resources, Technologies and Challenges)

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19 pages, 1351 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Challenges of Establishing Solar Power Stations in Hungary

by Henrik Zsiborács, András Vincze, István Háber, Gábor Pintér and Nóra Hegedűsné Baranyai

Energies 2023, 16(1), 530; https://doi.org/10.3390/en16010530 - 03 Jan 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 3035

Abstract

In the context of the ever-growing demand for energy, especially electric energy, from renewable sources, there has been great interest in photovoltaic energy generation. The speed at which the penetration of photovoltaic technology can grow, however, does not simply depend on supply and demand but also on the various policies and schemes adopted by countries around the world. These, in turn, play decisive roles in investment decisions and determine how projects are approached. Investors in photovoltaic (PV) systems need to be aware of the country-specific risk factors for investments and the regulatory environment. The aim of this research was to explore which managerial, economic and technical aspects should be considered in a causal approach when designing PV power plants with over 50 kW of capacity in the Hungarian regulatory environment for the success of the project. The innovative significance of the study is that it presents a validated, practically usable model for the realization of PV power plant projects in Hungary, which provides an in-depth description of the causal steps of their planning and establishment, based on real-life experience. The novel, practical benefit of the research is that it updates and clarifies the steps necessary for the design of PV power plants, since nowadays there are no current scientific works that provide knowledge of a sufficient depth regarding such projects, so these characteristics need to be investigated. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Solar Energy: Resources, Technologies and Challenges)

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20 pages, 2895 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Comparative Analysis of Power Distribution Systems with Individual Prosumers Owing Photovoltaic Installations and Solar Energy Communities in Terms of Profitability and Hosting Capacity

by Illia Diahovchenko and Lubov Petrichenko

Energies 2022, 15(23), 8837; https://doi.org/10.3390/en15238837 - 23 Nov 2022

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1624

Abstract

Future energy markets are foreseen to integrate multiple entities located mainly at the distribution level of the grid so that consumers can participate in energy trading while acting as individual prosumers or by forming energy communities. To ensure the smooth integration of prosumers and satisfy the effective operation of the power distribution systems (PDSs), it is important to fundamentally assess their performance for different grid development scenarios. This paper aims to estimate and compare the hosting capacity (HC) thresholds and profitability for two alternatives: (a) when the PDS experiences rapid growth of scattered individual prosumers with photovoltaic (PV) installations and (b) when prosumers intend to formulate a medium-scale energy community, which is a single source located in one node. Maximization of the profits of decision-makers and maximization of the capacity of the PV generation were set as the two objectives for the optimization tasks. It has been analyzed how the physical topology of the distribution network can be harmonized with the underlying bidirectional power flows for each alternative while satisfying system constraints. A typical distribution test feeder is employed to estimate the energy loss and voltage variations in the PDS, as well as the profitability for energy producers, for various penetration levels of prosumers, in comparison to the base case with no PV generation. The results indicate that improvements in terms of profitability and reduction of energy losses can be achieved in both alternatives, as long as the penetration of PV systems does not reach a certain threshold, which can be chosen by decision-makers and is limited by the HC. Comparing the results of the simulation, EComs demonstrate higher HC vs. individual prosumers, both in terms of technical and economic priorities. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Solar Energy: Resources, Technologies and Challenges)

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16 pages, 4516 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Optimizing the Spatial Nonuniformity of Irradiance in a Large-Area LED Solar Simulator

by Alaa Al-Ahmad, John Holdsworth, Benjamin Vaughan, Warwick Belcher, Xiaojing Zhou and Paul Dastoor

Energies 2022, 15(22), 8393; https://doi.org/10.3390/en15228393 - 10 Nov 2022

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1827

Abstract

The solar simulator has allowed all photovoltaic devices to be developed and tested under laboratory conditions. Filtered xenon arc lamps were the gold-standard source for solar simulation of small-area silicon photovoltaic devices; however, scaling these devices to illuminate large areas is neither efficient nor practical. Large-area solar simulation to meet appropriate spectral content and spatial nonuniformity of irradiance (SNI) standards has traditionally been difficult and expensive to achieve, partly due to the light sources employed. LED-based solar simulation allows a better electrical efficiency and uniformity of irradiance while meeting spectral intensity requirements with better form factors. This work details the design based on optical modeling of a scalable, large-area, LED-based, solar simulator meeting Class AAA performance standards formed for inline testing of printed solar cells. The modular design approach employed enables the illuminated area to be expanded in quanta of ~260 cm² to any preferred illumination area. A 640 cm² area illuminated by two adjacent PCB units has a measured total emission of 100 mW/cm², with a SNI of 1.7% and an excellent approximation to the AM1.5G spectrum over the wavelength range of 350–1100 nm. The measured long-term temporal instability of irradiance (TIE) is <0.5% for a 550-min continuous run. This work identifies the design steps and details the development and measurement of a scalable large-area LED-based solar simulator of interest to the PV testing community, and others using solar simulators. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Solar Energy: Resources, Technologies and Challenges)

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28 pages, 5542 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A Prefeasibility Solar Photovoltaic Tool for Tropical Small Island Developing States

by Nalini Dookie, Xsitaaz T. Chadee and Ricardo M. Clarke

Energies 2022, 15(22), 8337; https://doi.org/10.3390/en15228337 - 08 Nov 2022

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2742

Abstract

Small island developing states (SIDS) are the lowest emitters of greenhouse gases yet are the most vulnerable to the impacts of global climate warming. Many islands, such as the Caribbean islands, identified solar photovoltaics as a technology for reducing greenhouse gas emissions from their electricity sector. However, prefeasibility economic studies for photovoltaics are challenging as operational photovoltaic system data are nonexistent, and the measured solar radiation datasets are limited. Thus, a prefeasibility PV tool that uses ground-measured global horizontal irradiation and a supplementary photovoltaic derating factor model is proposed for use in tropical SIDS. In addition, the bias of a modelled irradiation dataset was quantified with limited solar radiation data for a tropical Caribbean SIDS, Trinidad and Tobago. For this SIDS, the tool estimates the annual energy output of a 50 MW photovoltaic system to be 57,890 MWh and the levelized cost of electricity to be USD 0.12/kWh. The performance of the proposed tool was comparable with two existing prefeasibility models, RETScreen and SAM, which use past ground measurements and modelled data, respectively. The biases in the annual irradiation data for RETScreen and SAM were determined to be 6% and 25%, respectively, against the solar irradiance dataset used. The proposed tool may be useful for first approximation prefeasibility photovoltaic studies in similar regions with limited climatic data. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Solar Energy: Resources, Technologies and Challenges)

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17 pages, 3637 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Evaluation of Thermal-Physical Properties of Novel Multicomponent Molten Nitrate Salts for Heat Transfer and Storage

by Na Li, Yang Wang, Qi Liu and Hao Peng

Energies 2022, 15(18), 6591; https://doi.org/10.3390/en15186591 - 08 Sep 2022

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1932

Abstract

In this work, a novel eutectic nitrate molten salt mixture of the NaNO₃-KNO₃-Ca(NO₃)₂ (16:48:36 wt%) ternary system with the significant advantage of low melting temperature was successfully designed and prepared using the static fusion method. Then, its thermal-physical properties, such as the melting point, fusion enthalpy, thermal stability, specific heat capacity, thermal diffusivity, thermal conductivity, density, and viscosity, were respectively measured by a modified or self-developed experimental device. Meanwhile, for better understanding and evaluating the heat transfer and storage performances of the material, the thermal-physical properties of this studied molten salt were further compared with those of other currently potential nitrate/nitrite systems in concentrating solar power (CSP) applications. The results proved that the newly developed NaNO₃-KNO₃-Ca(NO₃)₂ system has excellent thermal-physical properties and flow characteristics. Moreover, the cost analysis also showed the new salt has good economic performance with potential market competitiveness, its price is determined to be only 42.48 ¥/kg. All of these advantages make it a promising candidate material for heat transfer fluid (HTF) and thermal energy storage (TES) in CSP applications. This work is useful and significant for developing new molten salt materials and choosing appropriate media of HTF and TES in CSP plants or other probable thermal power generation facilities. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Solar Energy: Resources, Technologies and Challenges)

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