Energy and exergy analysis of photovoltaic panels in northern Poland

The increasing cost of conventional energy resources, limited access to natural resources, and concern for environmental protection contributes to increased work on the use of renewable energy sources. Harmful pollutants that enter the atmosphere: sulfur oxides, nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, hydrocarbons and dust from thermal power plants, transportation or industry, negatively affect the ecosystem. The demand for electricity is increasing dramatically every year. This development is caused, among other things, by the increase in economic development, population, technical progress in improving equipment and new technologies. Natural conditions, technological progress, as well as economic development determine the possibility of using renewable energy resources. One of both basic, also easily accessible sources includes solar radiation energy, which will be an inexhaustible source in the foreseeable future. This system is considered to be timeless. Photovoltaic systems are among the popular systems that use renewable resources. Photovoltaic right next to wind power is the fastest growing renewable energy conversion technology. The growing interest in photovoltaic and photovoltaic modules is due to the fact that they convert solar radiation into electricity without other factors that have a destructive impact on the environment without noise and pollution. The cost of photovoltaic installation decreases periodically, which results in profitability of the investment and its short-term return. Currently, policies in many countries support the development of the booming Renewable Energy Sources industry and many programs are dedicated to photovoltaics. The article presents the results of energy and exergy analysis of monocrystalline and amorphous photovoltaic cells functioning in irradiation in the area of northern Poland in Koszalin. The study was conducted in real conditions. On this basis, an energy and exergy analysis was performed to compare the functioning of photovoltaic systems using different photovoltaic panels. The use of exergy analysis is particularly important, which is not very common in case of RES systems.

Automated summary

The rising costs of conventional energy resources, limited access to natural resources, and concerns for environmental protection have led to increased focus on renewable energy sources. Harmful pollutants emitted by power plants, transportation, and industry negatively impact the ecosystem. The demand for electricity is growing rapidly due to economic development, population increase, and technological progress. Solar radiation, an easily accessible and infinite source, is one of the main renewable energy resources. Photovoltaic systems, along with wind power, are the fastest-growing conversion technologies.