Examinando por Materia "Solar cells"

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    Ítem
    Optimization of V-Trough photovoltaic concentrators through genetic algorithms with heuristics based on Weibull distributions
    (Elsevier Ltd, 2018-02-15) Arias-Rosales A.; Mejía-Gutiérrez R.; Universidad EAFIT. Departamento de Ingeniería de Diseño; Ingeniería de Diseño (GRID)
    Photovoltaic V-Troughs use simple and low-cost non-imaging optics, namely flat mirrors, to increase the solar harvesting area by concentrating the sunlight towards regular solar cells. The geometrical dispositions of the V-Trough's elements, and the way in which they are dynamically adjusted to track the sun, condition the optical performance. In order to improve their harvesting capacity, their geometrical set-up can be tailored to specific conditions and performance priorities. Given the large number of possible configurations and the interdependence of the multiple parameters involved, this work studies genetic algorithms as a heuristic approach for navigating the space of possible solutions. Among the algorithms studied, a new genetic algorithm named “GA-WA” (Genetic Algorithm-Weibull Arias) is proposed. GA-WA uses new heuristic processes based on Weibull distributions. Several V-Trough performance indicators are proposed as objective functions that can be optimized with genetic algorithms: (i) Ce? (average effective concentration); (ii) Cost (cost of materials) and (iii) Tsp (space required). Moreover, from the integration of these indicators, three multi-objective indices are proposed: (a) ICOE (Ce? versus Cost); (b) MICOE (Ce? versus Cost and Ce? versus Tsp combined) and (c) MDICOE (similar to MICOE but with discretization considerations). The heuristic parameters of the studied genetic algorithms are optimized and their capacities are explored in a case study. The results are compared against reported V-Trough set-ups designed with the interactive software VTDesign for the same case study. It was found that genetic algorithms, such as the ones developed in this work, are effective in the performance indicators improvement, as well as efficient and flexible tools in the problem of defining the set-up of solar V-Troughs in personalized scenarios. The intuition and the more holistic exploration of a trained engineer with an interactive software can be complemented with the broader and less biased evolutionary optimization of a tool like GA-WA. © 2017 Elsevier Ltd
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    Procedure to determine module distribution within a solar array to increase the net energy collection in a solar competition vehicle
    (2014-06-05) Barrera Velásquez, Jorge; Osorio Gómez, Gilberto; Mejía Gutiérrez, Ricardo; Suárez Castañeda, Nicolás; Gil Herrera, Ana; Universidad EAFIT. Departamento de Ingeniería de Diseño; Jorge Barrera Velasquez ( jbarre13@eafit.edu.co); Gilberto Osorio (gosoriog@eafit.edu.co); Ricardo Mejia (rmejiag@eafit.edu.co); Nicolas Suarez Castañeda (nsuarezc@eafit.edu.co); Ana Gil Herrera (agilher1@eafit.edu.co); Ingeniería de Diseño - GRID
    In solar vehicle competition, the available space for installation of the solar panel in the car is limited -- In order to optimize space, it is difficult not to install solar modules in areas impacted by shadows, even if they cause reduction of efficiency in the overall photoelectric generation -- Shadow patterns arise from the relative position of the sun to the earth, and the relative position of the vehicle towards both of them -- Since vehicle, earth and sun are moving in semi-predictable patterns, computer simulations can cross and match data from such sources to forecast generation behavior -- The outputs of such simulations are shadow patterns on the surface of the vehicle, indicating locations that are suitable or unsuitable to install solar cells -- This paper will show the design procedure of the solar panel for a Challenger Class solar vehicle that participated in the World Solar Challenge 2013, intended to increase the net energy collection -- The results obtained, illustrate how the employment of a computational tool can help in the acquisition of both qualitative and quantitative information, related to shadows position and their impact on energy collection. With data inputs such as vehicle geometry and its relative position towards the route, the tool was used to evaluate different possible configurations of solar panel module distribution and select the ones that are more convenient to the given scenario. Therefore, this analysis allows improving the solar panel design by considering important variables that were often overlooked
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    Publicación
    Process of component integration for concentrating photovoltaic systems
    (Universidad EAFIT, 2017) González Correa, David Esteban; Osorio Gómez, Gilberto
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    Solar beam radiation modeling for design and simulation of V-Trough photovoltaic applications
    (Universidad EAFIT, 2017) Arias Rosales, Andrés; Mejía-Gutiérrez, Ricardo
    Photovoltaic V-Troughs use simple and low-cost non-imaging optics, namely flat mirrors, to increase the solar harvesting area by concentrating the solar rays towards the photovoltaic surface -- Combined with stepped manual tracking, these devices can boost the performance of regular solar cells for residential and personalized scenarios in developing countries -- The geometrical set-up of a V-Trough, related to its length and angular parameters, conditions the optical phenomena that occur as the solar beam radiation dynamically interacts with the surfaces of the device -- These phenomena, such as shadows and consecutive reflections, determine the solar radiation that is effectively concentrated towards the photovoltaic area -- To support the design and simulation of such devices, this research project proposes a theoretical model of their effective concentration, seeking a high flexibility in the geometrical inputs, a detailed output of the optical phenomena involved and a low computational demand -- The model is based on the geometrical optics of beam solar radiation and it was experimentally validated in a statistical comparison against experimental measurements performed in a laser testing platform -- Based on the model, several design performance indicators were established: i) Ce (the average effective concentration); ii) Cost (the cost of materials); iii) Tsp (the space required) -- Moreover, from the integration of these indicators in proportional comparisons, three multi-objective indices were proposed: a) ICOE (Ce versus Cost); b) MICOE (Ce versus Cost and Ce versus Tsp combined); c) MDICOE (the same comparison as the previous one but also including the discretization effects related to the solar cells) – As tools for supporting the V-Trough set-up definition process, an interactive software and a series of genetic algorithms were developed based on these indicators and indices and the modeling framework developed -- The proposed software, named “VTDesign”, allows a V-Trough designer to iterate and compare diverse design alternatives in real-time by means of a visualization of the optical performance, representations of the geometrical set-ups and a cost-effectiveness analysis -- Among the genetic algorithms studied, a new genetic algorithm, named “GA-WA” (Genetic Algorithm - Weibull Arias), was proposed -- This tool uses heuristic processes, based on biomimicry and Weibull probability distributions, in order to optimize the indicators and indices as fitness/objective functions -- The intuition and the more holistic exploration of a trained engineer with VTDesign can be complemented with the broader and less biased evolutionary optimization of GAWA -- In a design case study, both VTDesign and GA-WA were implemented and found to be effective in the indices improvement, as well as efficient and flexible tools in the problem of defining the set-up of a solar V-Trough in a given personalized scenario