Engineering

Photovoltaic Systems

Application Flexibility
of Solar Electricity
 Outline
• Distributed Energy Source
– Roof Retrofits
– BIPV
– Tiles, Shingles
– Facades
– Parking and Sound Barriers
• Centralized PV
• PV Systems for Transportation
– Cars, Boats, and Bikes
 Photovoltaic Cells as
Distributed Energy Source
• Located near the consumer in order to
eliminate transmission losses (which can
be higher than 50% on some antiquated
grids).
• Panels can be placed on roofs, built into
roofs, building facades, carports, highway
sound barriers, etc.
• Any surface which is exposed to sunlight
is fair game.
 Roof Retrofits
• This house on right is
modular construction and
includes 6 kW of PV
modules.
• Below retrofits to schools
 Building Integrated
Photovoltaics or BIPV
The design and integration of PV technology into the
building envelope, usually replacing conventional building
materials:
Solar modules come in a • vertical facades,
variety of shapes, • replacing view glass,
colors, sizes and can • spandrel glass,
be integrated into any • or other facade material;
type of architecture. • into semitransparent skylight systems;
• Advantages • into roofing systems,
– Aesthetics • replacing traditional roofing materials;
– Reduce the cost of the
• into shading "eyebrows" over windows;
system (e.g. roof,
awning, etc.) • or other building envelope systems.
 Residential Rooftops
• Specifically designed
for PV.
• This energy efficient
home in Oxford
generates more
electricity than it uses.
– Surplus electricity is
sold to the local utility
company and to power
an electric car
Roofing Tiles and Shingles
• The PV shingle shown here
won Popular Science
Magazine's grand award for
What's new in
Environmental Technology.
• PV shingles can replace
common roofing shingles.
• PV shingles look much like
ordinary roofing shingles, but
they generate electricity.
• They were laid out and nailed
to the roof using the same
methods as are used to lay
conventional shingles.
• Like their non-PV
counterparts, these shingles
overlap providing for water
shedding capability.
 Peal and Stick Solar Cells
• Thin film amorphous
silicon solar cells which
can be deposited on
plastic or steel (right)
are extremely versatile
• The panels on the right
can be stuck directly to
standard standing seam
metal roofs
 Standing-Seam PV
• Buildings with standing-seam
metal roofs can use solar module
material referred to as "thin
films" that can be rolled out
inside the standing seams.

Roof-integrated PV panels were

installed on the south-facing roof
of the BigHorn Home
Improvement Center in
Silverthorne, Colorado.
 Semi-Transparent Solar PV
These panels have amorphous silicon deposited
on glass and are semi-transparent – they can be
used both as tinted glass but also as a project
screen backdrop.
 Putting it all Together

The Boston Edison

“Impact 2000” home
incorporated
– a 4-kWp utility-
connected
photovoltaic array in
the original
construction
– all electric appliances,
– solar electric water
heating, and
– both passive and
active space heating.
 Commercial Rooftops
Large rooftops
are ideal
locations for PV

PowerGuard sloped
tiles, 150 Wp per tile,
shown on customer's
roof
 PV at Lowe's
• Lowe’s executives
determined that clean,
reliable distributed solar
generation offers many
benefits both to its retail
operations and to the
surrounding community.
• Lowe’s is extremely
committed to reducing
greenhouse gas emissions,
while promoting and selling
energy efficient home
improvement products.
• Lowe’s sought a cost-
effective solution to reduce
the operating costs
associated with providing
reliable electricity supply at
its West Hills store.
 Could Wal-Mart be far behind?
• Wal-Mart McKinney
Location: TX
Operator: Wal-Mart
Configuration: 59 kWp PV
Operation: 2005
System supplier: RWE
Schott
• This pilot installation for
Wal-Mart has 5,500sqft of
crystalline and thin film PV
in five separate locations.
 Solar Powered Hotels
• Hawaii’s Mauna Lani
Bay Hotel
• This sprawling hotel
had acres of roof
space, making it the
perfect host for a
photovoltaic system.
• They installed a
PowerGuard (R) system
of insulating PV
roofing tiles that covers
10,000 ft2 and
generates 75kWs.
• The hotel will be
spared hundreds and
thousands of dollars in
utility bills.
4 Times Square - BIPV
• The building’s most
advanced feature is the
photovoltaic skin, a
system that uses thin-film
PV panels to replace
traditional glass cladding
material.
• The PV curtain wall
extends from the 35th to
the 48th floor on the
south and east walls of
the building, making it a
highly visible part of the
midtown New York
skyline.
Solar Skylights and Cladding
 PV Facades
• Scheidegger
Building with
photovoltaic
facade near Bern
in Switzerland.
Courtesy of
Atlantis Solar
Systeme AG
• Austria
• Swtizerland
Building Facades
 Building Facades
• 73 kW system and generates ~ 55 000 kW-hrs of
electricity per year in Sunderland, UK.
• This 3500 m2 solar office building at the Doxford
International Business Park near Sunderland in the
UK incorporates 646 m2 of photovoltaic modules.
 Facades
• Solar cells can be made in
different colors
• Glass façades on office buildings,
winter gardens or sunroofs on
automobiles will become energy
suppliers with the transparent
solar cell.
• The use of the transparent, dark
blue solar cells allows a beautiful
play of light and shadow.
• The standard product lets a tenth
of the light pass through and has
a 10 % efficiency rate.
 Solar
Cube
The 20kW cube
stands 135 feet tall
on top of the
Discovery Science
Center in Santa Ana
 Solar Olympics
• The 1996 Olympic
Games in Atlanta
featured a very unique
PV system.
• The Natatorium
(swimming and diving
facility) that houses a
large PV array for
powering the facility also
features a canopy system
at the entrance to the
building.
• The modules were made
especially for the
swimming facility with a
clear backing to allow
light to pass through.
Solar PV as Shading

Passive solar heating

Centralized
PV
Prescott Airport
Location: AZ
Operator: Arizona Public Service
Configuration: 1,450 kWp

SGS Solar
Location: AZ
Operator: Tucson Electric Power Co
Configuration: 3,200 kWp
Rem: Distributed vs
Centralized
Hysperia PV Power Station.
Centralized Wind-Solar Hybrid System

• In hybrid
energy systems
more than a
single source of
energy supplies
the electricity.
• Wind and Solar
compliment
one another
 Hybrid PV-Diesel Systems
• Unique to
the project
is the
introductio
n of a new
generation
of hybrid
power
processing
equipment.
• This new
115 kW
PV/hybrid
energy
system
PV Systems for Transportation

• PV will be most applicable to transportation

if it can be stored
–Batteries
– Electrolysis of water to produce hydrogen
 PV Covered Parking
Electric or hybrid electric
vehicles can recharge their
batteries at PV power
stations such as this one at
the University of S.
Florida.

Covered parking in
California provides
shading and makes
electricity
PV Integrated into Highway
Sound Barriers
• Solar Panels on Sound
Barriers
• This solar power, in proposed
system, could give EVs
essentially unlimited range on
freeways that supply in-transit
power.
• Highway sound barrier above
planted slope, with integrated
PV panels, in Austria.
• An upcoming project in
Holland will use
PVs, installed on railway
right-of-way, to power an
entire electric rail system.
 Solar Electric for Boats
300-watt system powers on-
board communications and
lighting, an application that
has been in use for 15 years
 Solar Boats
• On board, the solar modules create a
fascinating play of light, shadow, and
transparency.
• The largest solar boat in the world
began operating on the Alster River in
Hamburg on May 23, 2000.
• This boat can hold up to 120 passengers for
excursions and charter tours

The boat can hold up to 120

passengers for excursions
and charter tours. The
"Alster Sun" reaches a speed
of 5 kmph just from solar
power.
If it has to go faster, the rest
of the energy comes from
batteries.
 Solar Powered Fun!

• Catamaran “Sol 10”: direct current powering from 550 to 1600

watts.
• No drivers license needed, unsinkable, and easy to use.
Schematics of utility interactive
applications
PV panels on the roof of a house in
UK
A street light powered by PV.
Street lighting
components
Satellites used for communication are powered by PV.
Portable PV systems powering area
struck by natural disaster
Remote scientific experiment
powered by PV.
Light house being powered by PV.
Portable traffic lights powered by PV.
Solar water pumps can supply water to
areas with no connection to grid.
Electric vehicles at PV charging
station
Cathodic protection using PV
Solar powered refrigerator
ATM powered by PV
telephone booth powered by PV.
 PV power plant in Egypt

BENBAN 1.8GW PV SOLAR

PARK, Aswan, EGYPT
Benban location
 Benban PV Park
• Proposed development at the Benban site
will consist of
• 41 solar photovoltaic plants; total installed
capacity 1.8 GW;
• Related infrastructure including roads,
administrative buildings and four high
• voltage substations;
• high voltage interconnection.
Engineering Photovoltaic Systems 53
 The Key Components of
Benban PV Park
• PV modules 6,000,000 modules
• Mounting structures and tracking systems/motors
• Cabling
• DC-AC current inverters
• Transformers
• Medium Voltage (MV) (22 KV) & High Voltage (HV)
Switchgear (220 KV)
• Electrical connection cabin
• Supervisory Control And Data Acquisition (SCADA)
System
•Engineering
Transmission
Photovoltaic Systemsto grid. 54
 Green Hydrogen
• The strategy aims for Egypt to become
one of the leading countries in the low-
carbon hydrogen economy in the world,
which will allow the creation of more
jobs, increase national income in the
coming years, and reduce emissions, in
line with national efforts to protect the
environment. Dec 23, 2023
Engineering Photovoltaic Systems 55
 I. Types of hydrogen
There are three main types of hydrogen,
which are distinguished based on how
they are produced and their carbon
footprint:
1-Grey Hydrogen
2-Blue Hydrogen
3 Green Hydrogen
Engineering Photovoltaic Systems 56
 1- Grey Hydrogen
This is hydrogen that is produced from fossil
fuels, primarily natural gas, using a process called
steam methane reforming (SMR). Grey
hydrogen is the most common type of hydrogen
produced today and is used in a wide range of
industrial applications. However, grey hydrogen
production is associated with significant carbon
emissions, making it a major contributor to
climate change.

Engineering Photovoltaic Systems 57

 2- Blue Hydrogen
This is hydrogen that is produced from fossil fuels,
primarily natural gas, using SMR or other methods, but
with carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology to
capture and store the carbon emissions. Blue hydrogen
has a lower carbon footprint than grey hydrogen, as
the carbon emissions associated with hydrogen
production are captured and stored rather than
released into the atmosphere. However, blue hydrogen
still relies on the use of fossil fuels and is not
considered a fully sustainable energy source.
Engineering Photovoltaic Systems 58
 3- Green Hydrogen
This is hydrogen that is produced using renewable
energy sources such as wind, solar, or
hydropower, through the process of electrolysis.
Green hydrogen has a very low carbon footprint,
as it is produced using renewable energy sources
and does not produce any greenhouse gas
emissions during production. Green hydrogen is
considered a key component of the transition to a
low-carbon economy and has significant potential
to replace fossil fuels in a wide range of
59
 1.2 Green hydrogen production
Green hydrogen can be produced using
renewable energy sources such as wind,
solar, or hydropower. The process of
producing green hydrogen from
renewable energy sources typically
involves the following steps:

Engineering Photovoltaic Systems 60

 Green hydrogen production
Electricity generation: Renewable energy sources such as
wind turbines or solar panels are used to generate electricity.
Electrolysis: The electricity generated by the renewable energy
sources is then used to power an electrolysis reactor, which splits
water (H2O) into its component parts, hydrogen (H2) and
oxygen (O2). The electrolysis reactor contains an electrolyte
solution, such as potassium hydroxide (KOH) or sodium
hydroxide (NaOH), which conducts electricity and facilitates the
splitting of the water molecule.
Hydrogen purification: The hydrogen produced by the
electrolysis reactor contains impurities and must be purified
before it can be used as a fuel. The purification process typically
involves removing impurities such as moisture, carbon dioxide, 61
 Green hydrogen production
• Storage and transportation: The purified hydrogen
gas is then compressed and stored in tanks or
transported via pipelines to end-users such as fuel cell
vehicles, power plants, or industrial processes.
It is important to note that the efficiency of producing
green hydrogen from renewable energy sources depends
on several factors, including the efficiency of the
electrolysis process, the efficiency of the electricity
generation process, and the efficiency of the hydrogen
purification process. Additionally, the cost of producing
green hydrogen from renewable energy sources can be
higher than the cost of producing hydrogen from fossil62
 Green hydrogen production

Engineering Photovoltaic Systems 63

 1.3 Hydrogen Production Method
based on Renewable Energy
Solar and wind energy can be utilized for hydrogen
production through two main methods: electrolysis and
thermochemical processes.
1- electrolysis:
Electrolysis is the process of splitting water into
hydrogen and oxygen using an electrical current. Solar
and wind energy can provide the electricity required for
electrolysis, making it a sustainable and renewable
method for hydrogen production.

Engineering Photovoltaic Systems 64

 Photovoltaic (PV) Electrolysis
Photovoltaic (PV) electrolysis is a process
that combines photovoltaic technology with
electrolysis to produce hydrogen fuel from
water using sunlight as the energy source. It
involves the use of solar panels, which
convert sunlight directly into electricity, and
an electrolyzer, which splits water molecules
into hydrogen and oxygen through the
process of electrolysis.
65
 Photovoltaic (PV) Electrolysis

Engineering Photovoltaic Systems 66

 Green hydrogen applications
Green hydrogen has many potential applications,
including as a fuel for transportation, as a
feedstock for industrial processes, and as a
means of storing and delivering energy. As
countries around the world work to reduce their
greenhouse gas emissions and mitigate climate
change, green hydrogen is seen as an important
part of the solution. It offers a way to
decarbonize a wide range of sectors, including
transportation and industry that are difficult to
electrify using renewable energy sources alone. 67
 Conclusion
Green hydrogen which produced using
renewable such as wind, solar and hydropower
offers promising path way to decarbonize
various sectors of the economy including
transportation, heating and industrial processes
by using renewable energy sources to produce
hydrogen we can significantly reduce
greenhouse gas emission and mitigate the
impacts of climate change.

Engineering Photovoltaic Systems 68

Solar Photovoltaics
is the Future
 Report Required
Write a report on one of the PV applications from the
mentioned OR any other applications you can think of.
• The report should include the following items:
• Cover page contains, your name, section, and the title of your
report
• Historical background
• The main element
• Block diagram contains the connection of the main element
• The function of each element
• Theory of operation
• Advantage and disadvantage
• Explain, why did you choose this type of application.