Design and Implementation of a Photovoltaic Characterization Platform at FaST

Abstract

The site that houses the FaST faces high dusty winds and considerable temperature variation. Weather conditions such as solar radiation, temperature, and wind speed greatly affect the performance of PV modules. But the data from PV equipment manufacturers do not allow for proper sizing. Therefore, a rigorous study is needed to find the most suitable PV module technology for the study area. For this purpose, platforms for the acquisition of meteorological parameters and module characterization are indispensable. This platform project at FaST will serve training and pedagogy because its configuration will allow master and bachelor students to carry out practical work, to carry out studies on new cell technologies under the influence of external factors specific to the sub-Saharan zone and will bring an added value by providing additional information on real conditions and especially the influence of local external factors. Our study consisted first of all in the realization of the platform on the roof of the FaST, then in the design and the programming of a module of acquisition of the measured parameters on the basis of the Arduino microcontroller card and finally in the test of characterization of the modules used for the platform thanks to an electronic load on the basis of MOSFET of power controlled by a microcontroller that we realized.