Solar Energy Fundamentals and Modeling Techniques (eBook)

Prof. Dr. Zekai Sen is a researcher at the Istanbul Technical University, Turkey. His main interests are renewable energy (especially solar energy), hydrology, water resources, hydrogeology, hydrometeorology, hydraulics, philosophy of science, and science history. He has been appointed by the United Nations as a member of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) for research on the effects of climate change.

Preface 7
Contents 9
Energy and Climate Change 13
1.1 General 13
1.2 Energy and Climate 15
1.3 Energy and Society 17
1.4 Energy and Industry 22
1.5 Energy and the Economy 24
1.6 Energy and the Atmospheric Environment 25
1.7 Energy and the Future 29
References 30
Atmospheric Environment and Renewable Energy 33
2.1 General 33
2.2 Weather, Climate, and Climate Change 34
2.3 Atmosphere and Its Natural Composition 38
2.4 Anthropogenic Composition of the Atmosphere 40
2.5 Energy Dynamics in the Atmosphere 46
2.6 Renewable Energy Alternatives and Climate Change 47
2.7 Energy Units 55
References 56
Solar Radiation Deterministic Models 59
3.1 General 59
3.2 The Sun 59
3.3 Electromagnetic (EM) Spectrum 63
3.4 Energy Balance of the Earth 67
3.5 Earth Motion 69
3.6 Solar Radiation 73
3.7 Solar Constant 78
3.8 Solar Radiation Calculation 79
3.9 Solar Parameters 84
3.10 Solar Geometry 89
3.11 Zenith Angle Calculation 97
3.12 Solar Energy Calculations 99
References 110
Linear Solar Energy Models 113
4.1 General 113
4.2 Solar Radiation and Daylight Measurement 114
4.3 Statistical Evaluation of Models 118
4.4 Linear Model 125
4.5 Successive Substitution (SS) Model 132
4.6 Unrestricted Model (UM) 138
4.7 Principal Component Analysis (PCA) Model 145
4.8 Linear Cluster Method (LCM) 152
References 159
Non-Linear Solar Energy Models 163
5.1 General 163
5.2 Classic Non-Linear Models 163
5.3 Simple Power Model (SPM) 168
5.4 Comparison of Different Models 171
5.5 Solar Irradiance Polygon Model (SIPM) 172
5.6 Triple Solar Irradiation Model (TSIM) 180
5.7 Triple Drought–Solar Irradiation Model (TDSIM) 184
5.8 Fuzzy Logic Model (FLM) 188
5.9 Geno-Fuzzy Model (GFM) 198
5.10 Monthly Principal Component Model (MPCM) 200
5.11 Parabolic Monthly Irradiation Model (PMIM) 208
5.12 Solar Radiation Estimation from Ambient Air Temperature 214
References 218
Spatial Solar Energy Models 221
6.1 General 221
6.2 Spatial Variability 222
6.3 Linear Interpolation 224
6.4 Geometric Weighting Function 226
6.5 Cumulative Semivariogram (CSV) and Weighting Function 228
6.6 Regional Estimation 232
6.7 General Application 240
References 248
Solar Radiation Devices and Collectors 251
7.1 General 251
7.2 Solar Energy Alternatives 251
7.3 Heat Transfer and Losses 253
7.4 Collectors 257
7.5 Photovoltaic (PV) Cells 268
7.6 Fuel Cells 271
7.7 Hydrogen Storage and Transport 271
7.8 Solar Energy Home 272
7.9 Solar Energy and Desalination Plants 273
7.10 Future Expectations 274
References 276
A Simple Explanation of Beta Distribution 279
A Simple Power Model 281
Index 285