TY - GEN
T1 - Study of energy improvement with the insertion of bifacial modules and solar trackers in photovoltaic installations in Brazil
AU - Barbosa de Melo, Karen
AU - Kitayama da Silva, Michelle
AU - Lucas de Souza Silva, João
AU - Costa, Tatiane Silva
AU - Villalva, Marcelo Gradella
N1 - Funding Information:
This work was supported by BYD Energy Brazil through the PADIS/MCTI program.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 Elsevier Ltd
PY - 2022/6
Y1 - 2022/6
N2 - To improve the performance of photovoltaic systems, solar trackers have been widely used in photovoltaic power plants. Recently, bifacial modules also have started being widely used in the photovoltaic market for the same purpose. Bifacial technology is currently being widely discussed by the scientific community due to the considerable challenges and possibilities, such as modelling and mismatch of irradiance on the rear side of the module, albedo databases, optimum orientation and heights, and the meagre amount of measurement and study data for specific locations. This work presents and compares simulation results of a photovoltaic plant with monofacial and bifacial modules installed on a fixed structure and solar trackers in seven localities in Brazil. Bifacial gains, tracker gains, and bifacial-tracker gains were calculated and compared for each location. A comparison of system gains was also made by varying ground coverage ratio and clearance height in two locations. The results showed that the bifacial gain varies from 3.78% to 8.16%, and the tracker gain varies from 13.40% and 18.20% depending on weather conditions and system configuration. The total gain from the application of bifacial modules and trackers varies between 19.39% and 27.39%. Therefore, the potential of combining these technologies to enhance the technical and economic viability of photovoltaic plants is emphasised.
AB - To improve the performance of photovoltaic systems, solar trackers have been widely used in photovoltaic power plants. Recently, bifacial modules also have started being widely used in the photovoltaic market for the same purpose. Bifacial technology is currently being widely discussed by the scientific community due to the considerable challenges and possibilities, such as modelling and mismatch of irradiance on the rear side of the module, albedo databases, optimum orientation and heights, and the meagre amount of measurement and study data for specific locations. This work presents and compares simulation results of a photovoltaic plant with monofacial and bifacial modules installed on a fixed structure and solar trackers in seven localities in Brazil. Bifacial gains, tracker gains, and bifacial-tracker gains were calculated and compared for each location. A comparison of system gains was also made by varying ground coverage ratio and clearance height in two locations. The results showed that the bifacial gain varies from 3.78% to 8.16%, and the tracker gain varies from 13.40% and 18.20% depending on weather conditions and system configuration. The total gain from the application of bifacial modules and trackers varies between 19.39% and 27.39%. Therefore, the potential of combining these technologies to enhance the technical and economic viability of photovoltaic plants is emphasised.
KW - Bifacial gain
KW - Bifacial modules
KW - Energy gain
KW - Photovoltaic systems
KW - Solar energy
KW - Solar trackers
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85127495675&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.ref.2022.02.005
DO - 10.1016/j.ref.2022.02.005
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85127495675
SN - 1755-0084
VL - 41
SP - 179
EP - 187
JO - Renewable Energy Focus
JF - Renewable Energy Focus
ER -
