Solar PV systems

Overview

In Saudi Arabia, The average total radiation over the year on a horizontal level is 6.2 KWh/(m2.d) which is considered as one of the highest radiation on earth. On other hand there are two factors that affect the performance in Saudi Arabia, temperature and dust. The higher the temperature reduces the voltage by 2.2mV per degree rise of temperature. The usage of certain PV materials that are not much affected by temperature can help in that regard.

Our Research

At SET center, we are exploring PV materials and improve their performance to satisfy our needs . Zinc oxide, ZnO material is a very promising material due to its direct and wide band gap of 3.37 eV and its large exciton binding energy of 60 meV that can efficiently replace the conventional semiconductors. Also, a lot of efforts are directed to overcome the above mentioned problems by studying the Saudi environmental conditions that affect the efficiency of solar radiation.

Technology Impact

• Higher Yield of Energy Harvesting.
• Material Cost Reduction.

Prototype:A semiconductor layer that will be used as a component in the PV panel to enhance its efficiency.

Current Applications:Solar farms

Future Applications:Green Houses & Buildings, solar powered instruments.

Industrial scope:All industries that install solar panels.

Patent:In future

Publications:In future