Ruj. Kami Tarikh

UNIVERSITI SAINS

- MALAYSIA

2008/511 (U0305) : 9 September 2011

Prof. Madya Abdul Malik Abdul Rahman Pusat Pengajian Perumahan, Sangunan & Perancangan Universiti Sains Malaysia 11800 USM PULAU PINANG

Tuan,

I Pejabat Pengurusan Dan Kreativit i Penyelidil<an Research Creat1v1ty and Management Office

Canselori,

Universiti Sa ins Malays ia Aras 6, Bangunan Canselori 11800, USM Pulau Pinang T : (6)04-653 3108/3178/3988/5019 F : (6)04-656 6466/8470

: (6)04-653 2350

L : www.research.usm.my

LAPORAN AKHIR GERAN PENYELIDIKAN UNIVERSITI PENYELIDIKAN (RU) TAJUK PROJEK: THE UTILIZATION OF THREE DIFFERENT TYPES OF SOLAR PANELS TO

REDUCE ENERGY CONSUMPTION IN A HIGHLY INTENSIVE ENERGY CONSUMING BUILDING

NO. AKAUN 10011 PPBGN 1814027

Dengan hormatnya perkara di atas dirujuk.

2. Terlebih dahulu saya ucapkan terima kasih atas penghantaran laporan akhir Geran RU seperti tajuk di atas. Sersama-sama ini dilampirkan komen penilaian daripada Dekan Penyelidikan Pelantar Kejuruteraan & Teknologi untuk perhatian tuan.

3. Memandangkan projek ini telah selesa i, Pejabat ini akan menutup projek ini dan seterusnya pihak Jabatan Sendahari diminta untuk memproses penutupan akaun projek ini selepas semua urusan tuntutan dan bayaran dalam tempoh projek dijalankan diselesaikan.

4. Selanjutnya, tuan diminta untuk mengambil tindakan seperti dinyatakan di bawah:

a) Merakamkan penghargaan kepada Universiti Sains Malaysia. Si la pastikan nama Universiti ditulis/ditaip dengan penuh/lengkap iaitu 'Universiti Sains Malaysia'.

b) Tiga salinan penerbitan berkaitan mesti dikirimkan ke Sahagian Penyelidikan dan lnovasi untuk tindakan selanjutnya.

c) USM mempunyai opsyen pertama untuk menerbitkan bahan yang dihasilkan melalui projek ini. lni akan dilakukan melalui Penerbit USM dan keputusan untuk menerbitkan bahan ini akan dibuat dalam tempoh enam bulan.

d) Sahagian ini akan mengagihkan semula peralatan yang telah dibeli menggunakan peruntukan geran ini seandainya terdapat penyelidik lain yang memerlukan peralatan tersebut.

5. Sahagian ini mengucapkan tahniah di atas kejayaan tuan selaku Ketua Penyelidik menyelesaikan projek dengan jayanya. Tuan akan dihubungi oleh Pejabat lnovasi untuk perkembangan selanjutnya hasilloutcome daripada geran ini sekiranya terdapat harta intelek/pengkomersialan hasil geran yang boleh diketengahkan.

Sekian, terima kasih .

"SERKHIDMAT UNTUK NEGARA" 'Memastikan Kelestarian Hari Esok'

(HAZLAN ABDUL HAMI Ketua Penolong Pendaftar Pejabat Pengurusan & Kreativiti Penyelidikan Sahagian Penyelidikan & lnvovasi

---------

LAPORAN AKHIR GERAN PENYELIDIKAN UNIVERSITI PENYELIDIKAN (RU) TAJUK PROJEK: THE UTILIZATION OF THREE DIFFERENT TYPES OF SOLAR PANELS TO

REDUCE ENERGY CONSUMPTION IN A HIGHLY INTENSIVE ENERGY CONSUMING BUILDING

NO. AKAUN 10011 PPBGN 1814027

s.k. Dekan Penyelidikan

HAH/aihat

Pelantar Kejuruteraan & Teknologi Pejabat Pelantar Penyelidikan USM Kampus Kejuruteraan

Dekan Pusat Pengajian Perumahan, Bangunan & Perancangan Universiti Sains Malaysia

Pengarah Pejabat lnovasi Universiti Sains Malaysia

Timbalan Dekan (Pengajian Siswazah & Penyelidikan) Pusat Pengajian Perumahan, Bangunan & Perancangan Universiti Sains Malaysia

Ketua Pustakawan Perpustakaan Hamzah Sendut Universiti Sains Malaysia

Ketua Penolong Bendahari Seksyen Kewangan Penyelidikan Jabatan Bendahari Universiti Sains Malaysia

Pegawai Sains Pelantar Kejuruteraan & Teknologi Pejabat Pelantar Penyelidikan USM Kampus Kejuruteraan

} }

Laporan Akhir - AbduiMalikAbdulRahman (U0305)

Disampaikan satu salinan laporan akhir projek untuk simpanan Perpustakaan

Sila ambil tindakan menutup akaun projek dan kemukakan satu salinan penyata kewangan terakhir ke Sahagian ini

UNIVERSITI SAINS MALAYSIA

A. TITLE OF RESEARCH: Tajuk penyelidikan:

UNIVERSITY RESEARCH GRANT FINAL REPORT

Geran Penyelidikan Universiti Laporan Akhir

TH E UTILIZATION OF THREE DI FFERENT TYP ES OF SOLAR PAN ELS TO REDUC E ENERGY CONSUMPTION IN A HIGHLY INTENSIVE ENERGY CONSUMING BUILDING.

B. PERSONAL PARTICULARS OF RESEARCHER I MAKLUMA T PENYEL/0/K:

(i) Name of Research Leader: Nama Ketua Penyelidik:

ABDUL MALIK ABDUL RAHMAN

Name of Co-Researcher Nama Penyelidik Bersama:

.Dr. Mohd. lzham Ibrahim ; Dr. Nurulain Abdullah Bayanuddin ; Dr. Normala Abdul Wahid ; Dr. Nurlela Maarup

(ii) School/Institute/Centre/Unit : Pusat Pengajian 1/nstitut!Pusat/Unit :

PERUMAHAN, BANGUNAN & PERANCANGAN

Pejabut Pelantar Penye/idikan 2009

c. Research Platform (Please tick (/)the appropriate box): Pelantar Penyelidikan (Si/a tanda (I) kotak berkenaan):

D A. Life Sciences Sains Hayat

D B. Fundamental Fundamental

~ c. Engineering & Technology Kejuruteraan & Teknologi

D D. Social Transformation Transformasi Sosia/

D E. Information & Communications Technology (ICT) Teknologi Maklumat & Komunikasi

D F. Clinical Sciences Sains K/inikal

D G. Biomedical & Health Sciences Bioperubatan Sains Kesihatan

D. Duration of this research : Tempoh masa penyelidikan ini :

*Duration : 21 months. Tempoh:

From Dari:

.28 - 5 - 2008

Pejabat Pelantar Penyelidikan 2009

To : .24- 11 - 2009 Ke:

' '

E. ABSTRACT OF RESEARCH

(An abstract of between 100 and 200 words must be prepared in Bahasa Malaysia and in English. This abstract will be included in the Annual Report of the Research and Innovation Section at a later date as a means of presenting the project findings of the researcher/s to the University and the community at large)

Abstrak Penyelidikan (Perlu disediakan di antara 100 - 200 perkataan di dalam Bahasa Malaysia dan juga Bahasa lngge Abstrak ini akan dimuatkan dalam Laporan Tahunan Sahagian Penyelidikan & lnovasi sebaga i satu c untuk menyampaikan dapatan projek tuan/puan kepada pihak Universiti & masyarakat luar).

To prevent future problems of world energy crisis, Malaysia has embarked into renewable energy by

introducing it as the Fifth Fuel Policy. Five percent was set aside for the different types of renewable

energy and it is up to the private sectors to take it up in terms of investment and infrastructure. The

government would help out in terms of incentives, enabling policies and tax cuts for energy saving and

efficient appliances and machinery. Since 2005 the Malaysian Energy Center (Pusat Tenaga Malaysia

now known as the Green Tech Office) has been campaigning for the use of solar electricity with the help

of the Danish Government via its implementation arm program known as DAN IDA (from 2005 to 2010) .

This paper investigates the three common types of solar panels available in the Malaysian market and to

identify the most efficient in term of power convers ion using the timer-tracking system) by optim izing

sun light and daylight at the most recommended angle of exposure. It is hoped that this experiment helps

to explore optimization of efficiency not only by manufacturer's technical panel specification but also by

design strategies.

Pejabat Pelantar Penyelidikrm 2009

, - F. SUMMARY OF RESEARCH FINDINGS Ringkasan dapatan Projek Penye/idikan

Developing a clean and renewable energy helps Malaysia safeguard its depleting energy resources. With

the introduction of photovoltaic system and Malaysian climate condition which is almost predictable with

the availability of 6 hours of direct sun light per day with average solar radiation between 800 W/m2 to 1000

W/m2, provide a suitable condition to consider solar power as a promising renewable energy for Malaysia.

Poly-crystalline, mono-crystalline and amorphous are types of PV panels most commonly use in Malaysia

with different characteristic and efficiency. In this research, a solar tracker device (timer) are being used to

maximize the usage of sun light in morning and afternoon performance to create more efficient solar

energy by oriented the PV panels towards the sun's rays which incident on them from the normal direction .

Poly-crystalline solar cell performed better in high level of solar radiation per day compared to amorphous

and mono-crystalline. Meanwhile, during low intensity of solar radiation, amorphous solar cells efficiency is

higher than the other two types of PV panel.

In built environment, by replacing the conventional type of solar installation with solar tracking installation,

it 's not only increase the performance of the PV panels installed but also, it can be integrate to the overal l

building design as part of Building Integrated Photovoltaic (BiPV) to perform specific function to the

building envelope (e.g., provide shades on top of parking lot, minimize direct heat from sun at roof top,

minimize direct sun light for natural lighting). Besides that, the quantity of PV panels installed at the

building can be reduced by using the solar tracking installation compare to the conventional type of

installation (fixed installation). Hence these will influence the cost of the overall construction of the

building. The combination of new green technology and well-design building will provides opportunities for

sustainable building that not only energy efficient but also create a better environment.

G. COMPREHENSIVE TECHNICAL REPORT Laporan Teknikal Lengkap Applicants are required to prepare a comprehensive technical report explaining the project. (This report must be attached separately) Sila sediakan laporan teknikallengkap yang menerangkan keseluruhan projek ini . [Laporan ini mesti dikepilkan]

List the key words that reflect your research: Senaraikan kata kunci yang mencerminkan penyelidikan anda:

English Bahasa Malaysia

Photovoltaic system Sistem fotovoltaik

Building integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) Bangunan berintegrasi fotovoltaik

Solar tracker Pengesan suria

Pejabat Pe/antar Penyelidikan 2009

H. a) Results/Benefits of this research Hasil Penyelidikan

No. Category/Number: Promised Achieved

Bit: Kategoril Bilangan:

Research Publications 2 sudah

(Specify target journals) dihantar ke 1.

Penerbitan Penyelidikan jurnal. Sedang

(Nyatakan sasaran jurnal) menunggu timbal ba lik.

2. Human Capital Development a. Ph. D Students

b. Masters Students 1 (writing up sta~e)

c. Undergraduates (Final Year Project)

d. Research Officers e. Research Assisstants f. Other: Please specify

3. Patents Paten

Pemasangan di

Specific I Potential Applications atas bumbung 4.

Spesifik/Potensi aplikasi untuk bekalan tenaga kepada ban~unan

1. Green Energy

5. Networking & Linkages Office. Jaringan & Jalinan 2. Sharp Roxy

Inc. Possible External Research Grants to be

6. Acquired Jangkaan Geran Penyelidikan Luar Dipero/eh

• Kind ly provide cop ies/evidence for Category 1 to 6 .

b) Equipment used for this research . Peralatan yang telah digunakan dalam penyelidikan ini.

Items Perkara Approved Equipment Approved Requested Equipment Location

Specialized Equipment This is not under category Peralatan equipment but a system khusus

Faci lity Kemudahan Solar electricity Pusat Sejahtera, USM

Infrastructure lnfrastruktur Car Park Pusat Sejahtera, USM

• Please attach append ix if necessary .

Pejabat Pe/antar Penyelidikan 2009

I. BUDGET I BAJET

Perbelanjaan :Expenditure

Project Account No.

Total Approved Budget

Total Additional Budget

Grand Total of Approved Budget

Total Expenditure

Balance

: 1001 I PPBGN I 814027

: RM 810,500.00

: RM ni l

: RM 810.500

Yearly Budget Distributed

Year1

Year2

Year3

RM no record

RM no record

RM no record

Additional Budget Approved

Year1

Year2

Year3

RM no record

RM no record

RM no record

: RM no up to date record . Latest was about 50% used

: RM About RM430,000.00

• Please attach final account statement from Treasury

Signature of Researcher Tandatangan Penyelidik

Pejabat Pehmtar Penyelidikan 2009

Date Tarikh

H. COMMENTS OF PT J'S RESEARCH COMMITTEE KOMEN JAWATANKUASA PENYEL/0/KAN PER/NGKAT PTJ

General Comments: Ulasan Umum:

ru:~L~ p . r'yrfJ . . .. ...... ...... ... .......... ... ... .... .... .. .. .......... .... ... ... .. ... ................................... .. ........... ....... ..... ... ..... ...... ..............

Profesor adya Dr. i\bu Hassan Abu Bakar P0n3erusi

Jawatankuasa Pa:1yelidikan & Pembangunan ..........._~ ...... · . P. .. P. •. P..erumahan, Bangunan dan Perancangan

••~,.,.,.,"""'!C1'o•rn•~.,.., hau,.iM~~r19"NJ3k:l~luation Committee ·<>nt.,~-nan Cop Pengerusi Jawatankuasa Penilaian PT J

Date : .... ~.~lh.f:~.<?::~ ! ...... ........ .. Tarikh : .. ........... .. ... ...... ....... ... ... ... . .

Prot'esor Jr. Dr. MahyuC:din Pam!i

P. P. Psrurn;.:1hen, 8~ns' 1:1:n '\ ~:;;-~2~·.san~s'l tk.;v:!.:L! Sz- ~. ::J 1::. '--- ~·.: : ~

© Division of Research & Innovation - Universiti Sains Malaysia- March 2010

COMPREHENSIVE TECHNICAL REPORT

THE UTILIZATION OF THREE DIFFERENT TYPES OF SOLAR PANELS TO REDUCE ENERGY CONSU MPTION IN A HIGHLY

INTENSIVE ENERGY CONSU MI NG BU ILDING

(1 001 /PPBGN/814027)

Main Researcher: Associate Professor Ar. Abdul Malek Abdul Rahman

Schoo l of Housing, Building & Planning

Submitted to:

Research Creativity and management Office (RCMO)

via

The School of Housing, Building & Planning

2011

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Background

2. Objective

3. Abstract

4 . Methodology

5. Find ings

6. Conclusion

7. Publication

1. BACKGROUND

Excessive usages of fossil fuel as main energy source have become the main factor that

contributes to the global warming. C02 emissions from the combustion of fossil fuel

increase the atmosphere's temperature. Besides that, the depleting of this energy

source also became a major factor to the world's energy crisis. According to APEC

Energy Demand and Supply Outlook 2006, Malaysia's primary energy demand is

projected to grow at 3.5 percent per year from 56 Mtoe in 2002 to 147 Mtoe in 2030;

mainly due to the increase in demand for coal, oil and gas; with coal demand accounting

for the highest growth rate at 9.7 percent per year through 2030. In the same report,

Malaysia's indigenous oil reserves are projected to be depleted within the outlook period,

thus shifting the economy to a net energy importer its also mention that Malaysia's net

importer dependency will reach 32 percent in 2030 from a net export position of 57

percent in 2002. As Malaysia move toward a develop country, energy requirement will

remain very intensive. At present, almost half the energy consumption in the nation

consumed by the industrial, residential and commercial sector. This means Malaysia has

a strong need and great potential to apply energy efficient strategies in lowering energy

consumption in buildings.

To keep up with other green energies, the solar cell market has to be as efficient as

possible. There are two ways to make solar cell more efficient, one is to develop the

solar cell material and make the panels even more efficient; and another way is to

optimize the output by installing the solar panels on a tracking base th at follows the sun

orientation. Commonly in Malaysia, PV panels were installed fix to the building either on

the roof or at the fa9ade of building and this installation considered as static system.

These static systems only maximize sun availability at certain time during daytime. While

a dynamic system use a Solar Tracker device for orienting Photovoltaic Panel (PV)

toward the sun. This is to ensure that the concentration sunlight is directed to the focal

point of the PV and this will improve the amount of power produced by the system by

enhancing morning and afternoon performances. Past study on solar tracking process

show that by setting the solar panels using sun tracking system, very significant

improvement in energy conversion can be achieved.

According to Thomas Markvart, in his book Solar Electricity (1994), the design of the

photovoltaic system relies on the input of measured data close to the site of the

installation which is the regular daily and yearly variation due to the apparent motion of

the sun, irregular variations are caused by the climate condition (cloud cover), as well as

by general composition of the atmosphere. Besides that, different materials and different

structures of photovoltaic panels provide different efficiency in term of power conversion.

According to Deo Prasad & Mark Snow in Designing With Solar Power: A Source Book

For Building Integrated Photovoltaic (2005), the principles advantage of mono-crystalline

cells is their high efficiency, typically around 15%, although the manufacturing process

required to produce mono-crystalline silicon is complicated, resulting in slightly higher

costs than other technologies while Poly-crystalline cells are cheaper to produce than

mono-crystalline cells, due to simpler manufacturing process. They tend to be slightly

less efficient however, with average efficiencies of around 12%. Amorphous cells are,

however, less efficient than crystalline-based cells, with typical efficiencies of around

6%, but they required less material and are therefore cheaper to produce. Their low cost

makes it ideally suited for many applications where high efficiency not required and low

cost is important.

An experiment done in Maryland by Brian P. Dougherty, A. Hunter Fanney and Mark W.

Davis from National Institute of Standards and Technology Gaithersburg, Maryland

(2005), to compare the performance of four types solar cells technologies. The

experiment found out that the measured mid-day efficiencies for non-insulated panels

are (1 0.4, 10.2 and 6.1) % for the mono-crystalline, poly-crystalline, si li con film and

amorphous si licon panels respectively. The midday performance differential was 3.8%

for mono-crystalline, 4.9% for poly-crystalline panels and 6.1% for the panels

constructed using silicon film. By comparison, the insulated amorphous silicon panel

conversion was identica l to the paired un-insulated panel.

Nowshad Amin, Chin Wen Lung and Kamaruzzaman Sopian from Department of

Electrical Electronic and System Engineering, and Solar Energy Research Institute ,

National University of Malaysia (2009) , found that Amorphous silicon and CIS solar cell

have shown better performance ratio than mono- and multi-crystalline silicon solar cells

- ,--

in Malaysia climate condition. Mono-crystalline si li con and multi-crystalline silicon solar

module perform better when they are under hot sun. whereas, the CIS and triple junction

amorphous si licon so lar panel perform better when it is cloudy and has diffused

sunshine. Furthermore, the efficiency of crystalline si li con solar panel has been drop

when the temperature rises higher.

In an article by David Appleyard, 'Solar Tracker: Facing the Sun' in Renewable Energy

World Magazine. The use of tracking technology allowing solar modules to fo llow the

course of the sun (and so optimize the incident angle of sunlight on their surface) can

increase electricity production by around a third, and some claim by as much as 40% in

some regions, compared with modules at a fixed angle. He added that, generally,

modules are fixed at the optimum angle for their specific latitude. However, this is the

angle optimized over the course of a year, and (depending on latitude) can vary by 30°

as the sun appears lower or higher in the sky. Fixing PV modules at the optimum angle

typ ically yields an improvement of around 15% compared with simply laying them flat.

Trackers, on the other hand, adapt to both the daily passage of the sun and potentially

the changing seasons too and in many concentrating solar technologies (PV and

thermal), tracking is an essential component.

Richard C. Nevillefrom Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science,

University of Cal iforn ia presented a theoretica l comparative study between the energy

avai lable to a two-axes tracker, an east-west tracker and a fixed surface. It was found

that the energy ava il able to the id eal tracker is higher by 5-10% and 50% than the east­

west tracker and the fixed surface, respectively.

An experimental study was performed by Salah Abdallah and Salem Nijmeh from the

Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, Appli ed Science Un iversity,

Amman to investigate the effect of using two axes tracking on the solar energy collected.

An electromechanical, two axes sun tracking system is designed and constructed . The

programming method of control with an open loop system is employed where the

programmable logic controller is used to control the motion of the sun tracking surface.

The collected energy was measured and compared with that on a fixed surface tilted at

32° towards the south . The results indicate that the measured collected solar energy on

the moving surface was significantly larger than that on a fixed surface. The two axes

tracking surface showed a better performance with an increase in the collected energy of

up to 41.34% compared with the fixed surface

An experimental investigation on the effect of using multi-axes sun-tracking systems on

the electrical generation of a flat photovoltaic system (FPVS) was carried out to evaluate

its performance under Jordanian climate by Mazen M. Abu-Khader, Omar 0 . Badran and

Salah Abdallah Department of Chemical Engineering, FET, AL-Balqa Applied University.

Multi-axes (N- S, E- W, vertical) electromechanical sun-tracking system was designed

and constructed . The measured variables were compared with that at fixed axis. It was

found that there was an overall increase of about 30-45% in the output power for the

North- South axes (N- S)-tracking system compared to the fixed PV system. Also, it was

found that the N- S axes sun tracking is the optimum.

This research focuses the three common types of solar panels available in the

Malaysian market and to identify the most efficient in term of power conversion using the

timer-tracking system by optimizing the sunlight and also to compare the performance

between static system and dynamic system . It is hope that this experiment helps to

explore optimization of efficiency not only by manufacturer's technical panel specifica ti on

but also by design strategies for creating Green Building .

2. OBJECTIVE

1) To measure the performance of different type of photovoltaic panels that commonly

use in Malays ia that more efficient in ten-n of power conversion by using the dynamic

(timer-tracking) system.

2) To determine the type of photovoltaic panel and installation are most efficient under

Malaysian climate condition.

The Importance and the Benefits of the Research

Findings in this research hopefully will help to identify critical technical factors in

maximizing the energy output in photovoltaic technologies under the Malaysian climate

conditions. Thus, it's will influence on building envelope as future possibilities in

designing green building . For the end users to understand the various means of saving

electricity while maintaining cleaner, healthy and sustainable environment.

3. ABSTRACT

To prevent future problems of world energy crisis, Malaysia has embarked into

renewable energy by introducing it as the Fifth Fuel Policy. Five percent was set aside

for the different types of renewable energy and it is up to the private sectors to take it up

in terms of investment and infrastructure. The government would help out in terms of

incentives, enabling policies and tax cuts for energy saving and efficient appliances and

machinery. Since 2005 the Malaysian Energy Center (Pusat Tenaga Malaysia now

known as the Green Tech Office) has been campaigning for the use of so lar electricity

with the help of the Danish Government via its implementation arm program known as

DAN IDA (from 2005 to 201 0) . This paper investigates the three common types of solar

panels avai lable in the Malaysian market and to identify the most efficient in term of

power conversion using the timer-tracking system) by optimizing sun light and daylight at

the most recommended angle of exposu re. It is hoped that thi s experiment helps to

exp lore optimization of efficiency not only by manufacturer's techn ical panel specification

but also by design strateg ies.

Keywords: photovolta ic system, building integrated photovoltaic (BiPV), tropica l climate,

solar tracker.

4. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Basically, th is research is scientific research to investigate the thr·ee common types of

solar panels available in the Malaysian market and to identify the most efficient in term of

power conversion using the timer-tracking system by optimizing the sunl ight and also to

compare the performance between stati c system and dynamic system. The effi ciency (%)

of each type of PV panel accord ing to method of insta ll ation will become the output of this

research (dependent variable). Meanwhile, ambient temperatu re, solar rad iation, current,

power, module temperature and voltage that will be co llect from the data logger from the

experiment will be the independent variable.

Conventional so lar installation on roof construction has two sets of solar panels both at

opposite ends of the roof pitch to face the moving sun thereby the necessity of doubling

the area for installation and doubling the number of panels . The sun moves and only falls

onto the panels at right ang les for a short time which gives maximum efficiency. An

advantage of employing the solar timer is that on ly the same number of panels is used for

generating solar electricity for both morning and afternoon. There would be 100% savings

from having to purchase the same number of solar panels as only one sector can

generate electricity both morning and afternoon. The timer device is not using sensor as

sensors are not advisable to be used in Malaysian cl imatic conditions because of the

heavy cloud cover. With sensors, the panel may stop whenever there is a cloud cover

between the panels and the sun, and as the cloud moves the sun may be at a certain

distance away and th is may cause a sudden adjustment to respond to the sensors. The

sudden change can be drastic and damaging to the device if th is happens too often.

morning

111111111111111111111111 I J I I I I I I I

/'-...../'-...../'-...../'-..... /'-...../'-...../'-...../'-..... V'-...../'-...../'-...../""'-

' - noon

afternoon

Fig 1: Panels oriented towards morning sun. Middle: Pane ls oriented directly under mid afternoon sun Bottom: Panels oriented towards afternoon sun.

Morning Noon Afternoon

Fig 2: Actual installation of solar panels as a roof structure at a parking space.

Figure 1 shows the diagrammatic illustration of the method to be used for investigating

the efficiency performance of the three so lar panels adjusted to fo llow the movement of

the sun every th irty minutes so that the perpendicul ar insolation of solar rays can be

optimized from morning until evening. Figure 2, shows the actu al insta ll ati on of the solar

panels as a roof structure at parking space. All the while the panels are always at almost

near perpendicular to the sun insolation. In this installation , the right three rows are

installed with amorphous solar panels, the middle three rows are the mono-crystal li ne

and the left three rows are instal led with polycrysta lline panels with its own specificat ion

as mention in Table 1. They are placed so as to monitor their efficiency performance on

top of a solar tracking device. Each section has its own tracking device. The three types

of PV installed will face the sun movement at the same time so readings can be

compared to veri fy the effic iency of the panels under the northern region climatic

condi tion.

}'

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u w c. In ..... w z c:t c.

0 LJJ --' --' <:1: f-Vl z -

Table 1: Specification of three type of PV panels insta lled

Detail Poly Crysta lli ne Mono Crysta lline Amorphous

Mod ule Efficiency (lab test) 12.11% 13.7% 8.10%

Maximum Power Output sow 180W 115W

Dimension (WxHxD) 545 x 1214 x 35 mm 1,318 x 994 x 46mm 1,009 x 1,409 x 46 mm

Front Cover Material Low iron temperd

white tempered glass Cover glass-less glasses

Square 126 mm, Monocrysta lline si li con

Type of Cel l Po ly Crystal

solar ce ll s, 155 .5mm

square a-Si/f.tc-Si (Tandem)

Weight 9 Kg 16.0kg 19kg

Open Circuit Vo ltage : Voc 238 v 21 .6 v 30 v

Short Circu it Current: lsc I I I 0.810 A i

i 5.15 A I 8.37 A

Max Power Vo ltage : Vpm 174 v 17.3 v 23.7 v

M ax Power Current: lpm

I 0.661 A

4.63 A I 7.6 A

Price I

Supplier SHARP (NE-080T1J) SHARP (NUSOE3E) SHARP (NA-F115A5)

Maximum Power Output 160W 180W 230 w

Installed

' I

1\rea of Mod ul Installed, 1.32m z

1.31m ..

2.84m 7

Pmp (m 2)

Number of Panel Installed 2 panel 1 panel 2 panel

The supply of electricity is stored in a solar battery via a contro ller and inverter located

inside the building . Each sector has its own battery, contro ll er and inverter and the

readings are synchronized for comparison in a data logger that can be view and

download from a PC.

. '

(a)

TO lOAD MOTOR LAMP

FROM PVMOOULE

3 2 1

BAITERY OAITER Y BAITERY 9 DA, 12 V 9 0A, 12 V 9DA, 12 V

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:1 ::: fl( JI.Y CnYl ill.Lf,•·:t:- UO \\'

(b)

Fig 3: (a) Contro l st ation fo r t he PV panels located insid e the bui ldi ng

(b )Schematic di agram for t he con t rol station

A ll three sets of solar panels were exposed to the sun concurrently wh ich means they

get the equa l amount of real-time sun light although when cons idering efficiency of so lar

performance th is has no bearing on the readings. Read ings will be log and download

into a computer using Microsoft Excel format and the readings wi ll include 5 parameters,

which is ambient temperature (0C), solar radiation (W/m2) , current (A), power (W ),

module temperature (0C) and voltage (V) . From the reading and the size of each panels

installed, the efficiency of each panels can be ca lcu late using this formu la;

Efficiency , 11 = E.!!)Q I Amod_

Solar Radiation

X 100%

Pmp = power of Modul (m2) , Amod = area of Modul (W)

5. FINDINGS

The readings from each panel were taken every 15 minutes from 9:00 until 16:00, where

al l the three set of solar panels were exposed to the sun concurrently which means they

get the same amount of real-t ime sunlight perpendicu larly by using so lar timer. Each type

of solar panels that were installed has its own maximum efficiency capacity which was

done in laboratory at a simulated solar radiation 1000 W/m2. As a general reference the

efficiency for Poly-crysta lline is at 12.11%, mono-crystall ine at 13.7% and amorphous is

at 8.1 %. Due to these differences, the efficiency va lue from each panel need to be

normalized for comparison with real-time so lar radiation and time by dividing the mean

module efficiency over maximum module efficiency (lab test) and then multiply by 100.

!--·--·-·--.... -............. -........ ...... ............... .. -· · .... --· ....................... --.. --.. ---·-·----.. ---- .. -.... ·-·-· ............................ ............ -- .................... _,_,_,. __ , .......... _ ----------···

--" .. - 31 Poly/12 .11 - ·-12 Mono/13.7 ----2009 Am or/8.10 - - -..- -- SOLAR RADI ATI ON (W/m 2) x 10

120.00 120.00 N

100.00 100.00 E ........

'* 80.00 > 80.00 $ 2

u 0 2 60.00 w u u::: 40.00 u. w

60.00 r= <(

0 40.00 <(

cc:

20.00 20.00 cc: 5 0

0.00 0.00 Vl

I TIM E

!_ __

Fig. 3: Normalized output efficiency and solar radiation vs t ime (day 1)

*' > u z w iJ u:: ... w

--6 Poly/12.11 ----v---- 1 Mono/13 .7

--2010 Amor/8.10 - - -+-- - SOLAR RADIATION (W/ m2) x 10

160.00 140.00 120.00 100.00

80.00 60.00 40.00 20.00 0.00

160.00 140.00 N'

E 120.00 ........

100.00 s

80.00 z 0

60.00 ~ 40.00 0 20.00 <

0::

0.00 0::

::5

,-~---~-~--------------------"---·----"

i ~ r-----·----- ,_, __ -----tr---·------+ ; , \ ,, t---····--·--·~--~----·--·--·~·-~· -¥-~~::.t{., ,_~\Y"W-~-~;--\-·-·-~.--··•-----····..---

IL.,,,,, ,, ,_, ··-······---···---·········· --····· ····--···· .. ······ ·;;.:;;+·~-~-:.;; - »+""' -~-::.~ ... ,. ...... ~-.. •~---····-----····-············\ · · ··· ·· ·· ··· ····· ·· · f-·········\ ·· ·····/~·-\ ······ ··········a······· ·········-······· ·· ·- f-\. ....... .

.......... • 1 I I \ 1\ I I

l~~~ '"', .. ,..' .........,.....

0 Vl

TIME

Fig. 4: Norma li zed output effic iency and so lar radiat ion vs t ime {day 2)

Fig. 3 and Fig. 4 show that the solar radiation level increases steadily throughout the

days and at peak during mid day between 11•1 5 to 14•00. Availability of scattered cloud

during 13.15 until 15•15 in day 2 cause the so lar radiation level fluctuated. With average

so lar radiation per day 796.2 W/m2 for day 1 and 807 .5 W/m 2 for day 2, these days were

considered sunny days, where average solar radiation per day above 600 W/m2 consider

sunny whi le below 600 W/m2 average so lar radiation per day were consider cloudy day .

From both days, it can be seen that the poly-crystallin e solar modu le efficiency is higher

than mono-crysta ll ine and amorphous solar module with an average efficiency per day

64 .55% for day 1 and 61.09% for day 2. Poly-crystalli ne solar modu le responded

concurrently with the so lar radiation th roughout the days, as the so lar rad iation in crease

the efficiency output also increase. These also occu r to mono-crysta ll ine solar module ,

with an average efficiency per day 49.45% for day 1 and 44.20% for day 2. Amorphous

solar module show the lowest efficiency compared to poly and mono-crysta ll ine so lar

module, with an average efficiency of 25.75% for day 1 and 18.65% for day 2. Although

efficiency of amorphous was the lowest but during the low light condition, the

performance of amorphous solar module were increase.

--.-

*' > u z ~

u u:: u. ~

*' > u z ~

u u:: u. w

--2 Poly/ 12.11 - :r-1 Mono/ 13.7

--2010 Amor/ 8.10 ---+---SOLAR RAD IATION (W/m2) x 10

120.00 120.00 i N'

100.00

80.00

60.00

40.00

20.00

0.00

-·-·-·--·--·--- .................. -... -................... . ·---·---- .. .. . -·-· -----------------·-·------- .............. _, _____ , .................. ..................... "" l" .................... - .... -- .......... -....... _ .......... ................. -!~\ ....... ;:.;~, ........................ .................... ___ .... ._ .... _ .. ................................... -... .[.

,_/.._ _......_ I \ I \ f> l ~~~~~~

···· 'T'"'""l" · · - - · ~-r·"·'"T""' ....... ···:: ·········r-·-· ·r· ···--·T ....... ,_ ........ , ...... .. ......... T········r···'"-·T ........ l ······T····--·.,.········y - -: -·r········· r ····"-·1 ···· ·+··

100.00 E ........

80 .00 5 60.00 z

0

40.00 ~ 20.00

0 <( Q::

0.00 Q::

::) 0 Vl

TIME

Fig. 5: Normali zed output effi ciency and sol ar ra di at ion vs t ime (clay 3)

--3 Poly/12.11 -~-. 1 Mono/13 .7

___,,__ 2010 Amor/8.10 .... _. ...... SO LAR RADIATI ON (W/m 2) x 10

120.00 120.00 N'

100.00 100.00 E ........

80.00 80.00 5 60.00 60.00 z

0

40.00 40.00 f= :::; 20.00 20 .00 0

~ c:

0.00 0.00 c: <( -' 0 Vl

TIME

Fig. 6: Norma lized output efficiency and solar radiation vs t ime (day 4)

Meanwhile from Fig. 5 and Fig . 6 show that day 3 and day 4 were cons idered cloudy as

the average solar rad iation per day was 402.2 W/m2 for day 3 and 369.0 W/m2 for day 4.

It can be seen that the amorphous solar module performed better under cloudy day and

diffused sunlight compared to poly-crysta ll ine and mono-crystall ine. Amorphous

efficiency output was the highest with an average efficiency per day 37.33% for day 3

,--

and 28 .22% for day 4. While poly-crystalli ne efficiency output was slightly lower than

amorphous with an average efficiency per day 34.55% for day 3 and 25.02% for day 4.

Poly Crystalline

100.00 ?fl. 80.00 >

60.00 u 1: Qj

40.00 ·;::; !E 20.00 LU

0 .00

30 .00 31.00 32 .00 33.00 34.00 35.00 36.00 37.00 38.00

Module Temp °C

M ono Crystalline

100.00 ?fl. 80.00 > ~ 60.00

-~ 40.00 iE 20 .00 U.J

~ -- ··- -·-····· - -~--·· -~ -· .... . -• ~· I*~~· - .. --·· ···------··-·· ··-···----····--··-·-----·---····----·-··· ···-·•······ ..... ...... ... ...... -----·· ·-··········--······ ............. ···-···-····-··············

• .. -:! •.• ·······-···

0 .00 --~-. ---.........,..--·--~----,-.-·-- --:·~---¥-~

30.00 31.00 32 .00 33 .00 34 .00 35.00 36.00 37.00 38 .00 I

I

--l Module Temp °C

Amorphous

I

I 100.00 ?fl. 80.00 > u 60.00 c OJ

40.00 ·u fE 20 .00 LU

0.00

• <> ~ • ~----~----·-+-- . - ------·-·· - ········-- ·-··· ·· __ <t .... ~'?-~---------- ----- - ··-. -------

' -~

30 .00 31.00 32 .00 33 .00 34 .00 35.00 36.00 37 .00 38.00

Modu le Temp °C

.i

Fig. 7: Norm ali zed output Effi ciency vs Module Temperatu re {day 1)

•

-, -

Poly Crystalline

100.00

'*' 80.00 "'"'"''"''''" '

> u 60.00 c:: Cll

40.00 ·c::;

• • "'""""''""'····" .,. • • • •• ••

!E 20.00 • w '"" ' """'"''""""'+"'-""""""""""" "" ' '"" ""'-"""""·-·-"" _____ _.., ... .,., ____ .,.,,,,., ., ......

0.00 "'"""""'"'"" """"' '"''"""""' ""'"'""" "" - ... ... ·------ " """ "

30.00 31.00 32 .00 33 .00 34.00 35 .00 36.00 37.00 38.00

Module Temp °C

1----------------------------------------·

'*' > u c:: Cll

·c::; ;;:: ..... w

'*' > u r:: Cll ·c::;

;.;:: ..... w

Mono Crystalline

100.00 ;---··--··-- ----- - ------"'"""""""""'"'"'"""""""" _____ "'""'"""--"----·-""""""'"-"'""-·-- .. --........ ___ ,_, ______ ,_., ________ _ 80.00

60.00

40.00

f ·""'''""""""'"""""'"'''""""'""'""'""""'""""'""''""""'"'""-""'--"'""'"""""""""""'"'-"""""'"""'""'"''""'"""."'_!__, ____ ,, .. ,..._ .. ~_ ... _________ .,_,.,, ..... .......... - -

• • ... •:* ....... ---------·-- ......................... __ ......... ,., ........... - ... ., .... ,,,_,,.,,., ... "' ........ . r-----"""' "'"'"'""'""""" . 20.00

0.00 -~-

30.00 31.00 32.00 33.00 34.00 35.00 36.00 37 .00 38 .00

Module Temp °C

Amorphous

100.00

80.00 r-------.,·----· ----.. ----------------------.. ·-·-·--·--- ---------------60.00

40.00

20.00

0.00 l .. -~-

30 .00 31.00 32 .00 33.00 34.00 35 .00 36 .00 37.00 38.00 I

Modu le Temp oc _ _j Fig. 8: Normali ze d out put Efficiency vs Module Temperature (d ay 2)

Temperature of the solar module increases with solar radiation level . As the sun 's

irradiance is higher, more energy is absorbed by the solar module and th is will generate

heat to the module. But, each module has different material, so the effect of solar

rad iation towards each of solar module installed will be different. Besides that, wind

speed, ambient temperature and wind humidity around the module also affect the

module temperature and this is known as cooling effects. From the normalized output

efficiency graph in Fig. 7 and Fig. 8, it can be seen that poly-crystall ine and mono­

crystalline module perform better when the module temperature reach 35 oc and above

.--

~ > u t: Qj

'u ;.:::: -w

'0'2. > u t: CJ

·c::.; <;::: '+-w

for both day 1 and day 2 as these days were consider sunny days based on the average

solar radiation per day. When the module temperature 35 °C and below, both poly and

mono-crystalli ne solar module not performing well. Meanwhi le, the amorphous module

does not show any drastic change in output efficiency although the module temperature

and solar radiation is high during sunny days.

Poly Crystalline

100.00

80.00

60.00

40.00

20.00

0.00

' ... ····-···---------·····--··-···---- ___ .., _____ -·-·. _______ ... ___ ····-·----- ---····-·····--··

I ! ......... ······························-··-··········· .. -------· .. - -·- ... ····-············-···--········ ............... ·-----··-·· .................. ······-······ .,. ............................................ ......... .............. _ ...... ············· ··-·····-------···--

' . r ~~~=~~~:---- -----~-~· _:~~-~-~:~:;_~~~~~~~~--------·-----~~=-

30.00 31.00 32 .00 33.00 34.00 35. 00 36 .00 37 .00 38 .00

Mod ul e Temp °C

Mono Crysta ll ine

100.00

80.00

60.00 ---·-···-·· .... . 40.00 ... .. ~ ..... . . <> . ~ ~

20.00

0.00

30.00 31.00 32.00 33.00 34.00 35.00 36.00 37.00 38.00

Modu le Temp oc

Am orphou s

100.00

'0'2. 8o .oo r-> ~ 60.00

-~ 40. 00 ~ 20. 00

t._w 0.00 \... ____ _

30.00

•············ . . I 38.oo I

J 31.00 32 .00 33.00 36.00 34.00 35. 00 37.00

Module Temp oc

-·------ - -Fig. 9: Norma li zed out put Efficiency vs Modu le Temperature (day 3)

'*' > u c: Q)

·o !E LU

'*' > u c: Q) ·o

:;:: .._ L.LJ

'*' > u s:: Q)

·u :;:: ..... L.LJ

I_

Poly Crystalline

100.00

80.00

60.00

40.00

20 .00

0.00 • • • 30.00 31.00 32 .00 33.00 34.00 35 .00 36.00

Module Temp ac

Mono Crystalline

100.00

80.00

60.00

40.00

20.00

0.00

30.00 31.00 32.00 33.00 34.00 35.00 36 .00

Module Temp 0(

Amorphous

100.00

80.00

60.00

40.00

20.00

0.00 "' fr ....

30.00 31.00 32 .00 33.00 3tJ 00 35.00 36 .00

Module Temp ac

Fig. 10: Norm ali zed output Effi ciency vs Module Te mperature (d ay 4}

37 .00

37.00

37.00

38.00

38.00

38.00

I _j

Fig . 9 and Fig. 10, shows the scattered diagram of output efficiency of po ly-crystal line,

mono-crysta ll ine and amorphous solar module with each module temperature during

cloudy days in day 3 and day 4. It can be seen that amorphous solar panel perform

slightly better when the module temperature is low compare the other two module.

During cloudy days in day 3 and day 4, the highest module temperature for all type of

solar panels is between 35 oc to 36 oc while in sunny days (day 1 and day 2), the

highest module temperature for all type of solar panels can reach between 37 oc to 38

oc.

6. CONCLUSIONS

Developing a clean and renewable energy helps Malaysia safeguard its depleting energy

resources. With the introduction of photovoltaic system and Malaysian climate condition

which is almost predictable with the avai lability of 6 hours of direct sunlight per day with

average solar radiation between 800 W/m 2 to 1000 W/m2, provide a suitable condition to

consider solar power as a promising renewable energy for Malaysia. Poly-crystalline,

mono-crystalline and amorphous are types of PV panels most commonly use in

Malaysia with different characteristic and efficiency. In th is research, a solar tracker

device (timer) are being used to maximize the usage of sun li ght in morning and

afternoon performance to create more efficient so lar energy by oriented the PV panels

towards the sun's rays which incident on them from the normal direction. Poly-crysta lline

so lar cell performed better in high level of so lar rad iati on per day compared to

amorphous and mono-crystalline . Meanwhile, during low intensity of so lar radi ation,

amorphous solar cells efficiency is higher than the other two types of PV panel.

In built environment, by rep lacing the conventi onal type of so lar install ation with so lar

tracking installation, it's not on ly increase the performance of the PV panels installed but

also, it can be integrate to the overall building design as part of Building Integrated

Photovoltaic (BiPV) to perform specific function to the building envelope (e.g., provide

shades on top of parking lot, minimize direct heat from sun at roof top, minimize direct

sunlight for natural lighting) Besides that, the quanti ty of PV panels insta!!ec! at the

building can be reduced by using the so lar tracking installation compare to the

conventional type of insta ll ation (fixed insta ll ation). Hence these will influence the cost of

the overall construction of the bui lding. The combination of new green technology and

wel l-design building wi ll provides opportunities for sustainable building that not only

energy efficient but also create a better environment.

7. PUBLICATIONS

1. Azhar Ghazali, M and Abdul Malek Abdu l Rahman, The performance of three different solar panels for solar electricity applying so lar tracking timer device under the Malaysian cl imate cond ition, International Building and Infrastructure Technology Conference 2011 (B ITECH2011 ), 7-8 June 2011, Vistana Hotel, Penang .

2. Azhar Ghazali , M and Abdul Malek Abdul Rahman, Determining the best solar electrical installation and its influence on bu ilding envelope in tropica l cl imate (Malaysia), 1Oth Post Graduate Seminar 2010 (1Oth PGS 201 0), 24 November 2010, School of Housing, Bu ilding and Planning.