Razvan Virtan
The problem
Finding alternative energy sources is one of the greatest challenge humanity has to face. The sun is a great source of energy, but we had to find efficient ways to use it. One method are the classical photovoltaic solar panels, but they are pretty expensive and don't have a long life. We thought that we could try to find a better solution, without using the photovoltaic effect.
Our solution
Our prototype is based on the thermoelectric effect. We concentrate the solar radiation on one face of a thermoelectric Seebeck module that generates a voltage this way.
In order to realize the concentration of the solar rays on one face of the module, we are using a Fresnel lens. This device is more compact and also cheaper than a classical biconvex lens, making it more viable for our project.
A fixed solar panel has a maximum efficiency only when the solar rays are normal to it's surface, so we decided to create an auto-orientation system.
Our first prototype was created in a cardboard box and used 2 stepper motors for reorientation. It also had a system of photoresistors that measured luminosity for outside feedback.
After we demonstrated that our principle works, we improved our device by creating a better case from plexiglas and metal. We have also changed the steppers with 2 servo-motors and, using a 3D printer we phave placed the photoresisitors in the same place on the panels case.
Wasim Sahu
electronicsworkshops
probably a useless comment for you, but I recall and project several years ago, called a solar sundial. used the photo resistors to run servomotor. Face was solar cells. would turn to brightest light source (usually the sun) and follow it through the day. Keep up the good thinking. good to see people trying something.