Evaluating Solar Tracking System Efficiency in Dusty and Humid Environments

Abstract

This paper will conduct an analysis and comparison of the efficiency of the fixed, single axis and dual axis solar tracking systems based on climate conditions in Jordan. An Altera Field-Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) kit was used to apply the solar tracking and showed a great increase in energy generation. The single-axis tracking system created 51.4 more Wh per day, which resulted in a total of 702.02 Wh generated, as opposed to 582.95 Wh generated by the fixed system. The fixed system showed a peak power output of 70 W, the single-axis tracker was 75 W and the dual-axis tracker at 80 W. The findings also emphasize the environmental factors which significantly affected the daily energy production with dust lowering it by about 40 % and humidity lowering it by up to 12 %. Although the dual-axis system was the most robust in operation, its sensitivity to the environment requires it to be cleaned and maintained on a regular basis. In general, the results show that solar tracking systems result in a substantial improvement of the photovoltaic performance, especially when the device is used in conjunction with proper management of the environment.