Solar energy is used as an efficient energy source in modern days. Solar panels are used to convert solar energy into electricity to power house lighting, appliances, etc. Solar panels are selected on the basis of a house’s needs and also depending upon the position of the sun and weather conditions.
When a house uses solar panels to derive energy from the sun, it is measured in kWh. In this system kWh refers to the amount of energy that is produced by the solar panels. The amount of solar energy produced is represented as kWh per square meter of the surface of solar panels. The amount of energy generated by a system entirely depends upon the amount of solar rays that reached the solar panel.
Solar energy is measured by using different parameters, such as the intensity of light, voltage, current and the temperature. Different components are used to measure these parameters of the solar cells.
The intensity of the light is measured by using an LDR sensor (Light dependent resistor); voltage is measured by using voltage divider; current by using a current sensor and temperature by using a temperature sensor. The sensors that are used to measure different parameters for calculating solar energy are regulated by a PIC microcontroller (Programmable Interface Controllers) which has an in-built multi-channel ADC (Application delivery controller). The energy output of solar panels is greatly affected by factors such as shading and temperature. If a small portion of the solar panels is shaded and the rest is exposed to sunlight, it decreases the efficiency of the solar panels greatly. Similarly, high temperature reduces the efficiency of the solar panel system greatly. To avoid this wastage of energy sensors are attached to the system to make an efficient use of energy.
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