The Turkish Antarctic Expedition placed four different PV modulette types – Monokrystallijn, Polycrystallijn, Flexible and Transparent – outside their research camp for three months to compare the performance, and found that Monocrystalline was the clear winner.
Scientists from Firat University, Polar Research Institute and the Technical University of Istanbul have conducted an experimental study into different types of PV panels in the extreme environment of Antarctica.
The experiment took place in the Turkish scientific research camp, located on Horseshoe Island Antarctica, during the Antarctic summer, which extends from December to February.
“Seventy -five active research stations are active in Antarctica during the summer months, with a total accommodation capacity limited to four thousand people. All energy required for heating, lighting, waste management, the operation of scientific equipment and purification processes on these stations is supplied by electrical generators driven by gasoline and diesel fuels, ”said the academics. “To meet the energy requirements of the research camp, PV experiments were performed during Turkish Antarctic Expedition (TAE) VII in 2022 to use solar energy.”
The experimental study used four panel types: monocrystalline, poly crystalline, flexible and transparent. Each had a maximum force of 25 W, where the first two modules were made of 36 cells and the other of 20 cells. The panels were fixed under a tilt angle of 54.3ker, which represents the optimum tilt corner for the location of the island on an annual basis.
“The experimental arrangement is driven by two lead acid batteries, which are ranked in a parallel configuration,” the group explained. “A dummy tax was used to extract the power generated by the PV panel. The dummy taxes are connected in series, which guarantees an immediate response to the electrical load. To minimize the influence of ambient air, the dummy loads were placed in a specially insulated secondary closed panel within the experimental setup. “
Image: Firat University, Case Studies in Thermal Engineering, CC by 4.0
Twelve parameters-inclusive meteorological factors such as temperature, humidity, wind speed and solar radiation-in addition to the surface temperature and immediate power were registered with an interval of 30 seconds during the summer, excluding days with full snow cover. This resulted in 34,560 data points for each type of panel. The experiments were conducted at an average temperature of 3.2 ° C, a humidity of 69%, a wind speed of 1.6 m/s and a radiation level of 476 W/m2.
“The average surface temperatures of PV were registered as 12.07 ° C for monocrystalline, 11.1 C for polycrystalline, 11.104 C for flexible and 10.5 C for transparent types,” the results showed. “Nevertheless, the average PV efficiency of 20.5% is attributed to monocrystalline technology. The remaining values are 18.95%, 18.9%and 14.51%. The exergy efficiency was determined as 11.53%, 11.4%, 11.29%and 9.42%. “
The tests showed that the monocrystalline panel yielded a capacity of 13.27 W, Polycrastallijn had 12.30 W, the flexible was measured at 12.13 W and the transparent at 8.32 W. Each panel reduced the annual CO2 emissions with 3.15 tons, 2.92 tonnes, respectively, respectively, respectively, respectively, respectively…………….. They have a monetary value of $ 45.66, $ 42.34, $ 42.76 and $ 28.62 per year respectively.
“The acceptance of renewable energy in Antarctica reduces the dependence on fossil fuels, supports the sustainability of the environment and helps to maintain the ecosystem,” concluded the team. “Moreover, international cooperation promotes, improves energy security for research stations and reduces logistical costs.”
The researchers presented their findings in “Evaluation of the performance of four types of photovoltaic panels in the extreme environment of Antarctica“Published in Case studies in Thermal Engineering.
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