Performance Analysis of Pneumatic based Solar PV Tracking System

Renewable energy particularly, solar energy has been receiving increased focus because
it’s believed that solar energy is the viable option to satisfy the increasing energy demand
in environmentally friendly way. One of the key is use of harvesting solar energy is an
efficient use of tracking unit. In conventional solar PV tracking system the electricity is
used as source medium for operation. In this project an attempt has been made to use
solar energy for tracking, with the help of mechanical system. The development of
pneumatic based solar PV tracking primary system consists of refrigerant tank,
pneumatic actuator, PV panel and shading plate. The refrigerant stored in the tank starts
evaporating with temperature difference based on various incident solar radiation
intensity over a period of time which tends to actuate the pneumatic piston and this panel
follows the direction of sun. Testing of the feasibility of newly developed tracking unit.
System at various solar radiation intensity and finding the operating pressure and
temperature are the major objectives of the present project. In this work, a pneumatic
based solar PV tracking was developed through proper dynamic analysis of the unit.