Summary and Activities

Summary and Activities

In Lesson 3, we discussed the benefits of sun tracking for performance of the solar energy conversion systems. It is clear that although tracking helps to collect more solar radiation per square unit of solar receiver, the tracking systems may be complex and costly, and hence should be used only when benefits in terms of efficiency outweigh the expenses for extra energy and equipment. We reviewed the fundamentals of solar motion, and you should now be comfortable using the key equations to calculate the sun position at any time at any location on the earth. This lesson included description of different modes of tracking - single-axis and two axis - and gave you an opportunity to perform some basic calculations and work with available data on solar path. I hope you found the resources in this lesson useful and that, in the future, you will feel confident applying those calculation methods to the systems of your choice. Tracking certainly is a worthy technology when we look at the utility scale solar systems, as this technology provides an even more significant boost when scaled up. A number of companies are currently specialized in tracking technologies, constantly innovating and creating more and more robust systems for future solar plants.

The table below summarizes all activities that are due for this lesson. Some of those have been included in the body of the lesson, and this list simply repeats them for your reference.

References for Lesson 3