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History of Solar PV System and its Recent Development

Vaishali Gautam1, Shahida Khatoon1 and Mohd Faisal Jalil2*

1Department of Electrical Engineering, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, India

2Department of Electrical Engineering, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh, India

Abstract

Solar PV systems are becoming increasingly important in compensating for the shortage of electrical energy caused by rising demand and decreasing conventional energy sources. The level of carbon dioxide emissions surpassed the 440-ppm limit in 2017, resulting in an uncontrolled climate shift. To address the increasing need for decarbonization, wind energy (WE) and photovoltaic (PV) systems are being installed more frequently in developed and developing countries. PV systems are the most straightforward, reliable, and clean way to generate power from solar radiation. The photovoltaic (PV) effect was first observed by Alexandre Edmond Becquerel in 1839, and the first PV cell with a low efficiency of 6% was developed in 1954, which has now increased to 20%–22%. Examining the history of PV cells can provide valuable insights to guide future developments.

Keywords: Partial shading condition, PV array, reconfiguration, MPPT

1.1 Introduction

Owing to new enthusiastic tendencies that promote environmental preservation and the ongoing rise in energy consumption, renewable power production technologies have emerged as a significant study area. The rate of growth in the world’s energy demand in 2018 was 2.3%, which was the highest rate in the last 10 years [1]. Owing to their detrimental ecological impact and escalating costs, sources reliant on petroleum derivatives need to be used less frequently [2–4].

The year 2017 marked a turning point in the production of renewable energy. Surprisingly, 178 GW of additional renewable installations represent more than 66% of the world’s net power capacity. At 97 GW, solar photovoltaic (PV) installations increased the most, with China accounting for over half of this growth [5, 6]. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA) forecasts, an increase of approximately 1 TW, or a 46% in renewable power output is predicted for 2018 and 2023. Approximately half of this growth is accounted for by photovoltaic (PV) power, which is driven by supportive market and government policies [7]. The growth in the production of renewable energy is shown in Figure 1.1, and the growth in the production of PV electricity is shown in Figure 1.2.

Wind continues to be the 2nd largest donor in the development of renewable capability in this forecast, after hydropower and bioenergy. It is anticipated that wind capacity will increase by 60% (approximately 324 GW), with offshore wind accounting for 10% of this growth. Most of the time, hydropower and bioenergy development prospects are somewhat more optimistic than they were a year ago. This is probably due to developments in China [8, 9].

The IEA considers a different prediction situation, known as the favored case. This often-used example of prediction describes how market and methodological advancements can affect renewable installations. By 2023, renewable energy installations could grow by 25% more than in the preceding scenario, reaching 1.3 TW. According to the prediction of the favored case, China, India, Europe, and the United States account for approximately 66% of new installations [10, 11].

Figure 1.1 Growth in renewable power generation.

Figure 1.2 Growth in PV power generation.

1.2 Solar Photovoltaic (PV)

In the past two decades, the global rise in photovoltaics (PVs) has been virtually exponential. Photovoltaic (PV) installations are expected to grow the most in the next six years, with 575 GW of new installations coming online. In addition to the rapid growth of distributed generation installations, utility-scale ventures account for 55% of this expansion [12].

In favored case prediction, photovoltaics alone contributed to half of the additional development. The annual increase required to reach 140 GW by 2023 is driven by faster cost decreases, which makes the technology more focused everywhere. Most new developments in the field of photovoltaics consist of residential, commercial, and off-grid applications. This suggests a significant amount of untapped potential in these areas, particularly in countries such as China, India, Europe, and the United States [7].

India is the third fastest growing country in solar power business after China and the United States [7, 13]. In 2010, the National Solar Mission of India established a target of generating 20 GW of solar energy by 2022. This goal was accomplished four years earlier, in January 2018. The Indian government established a new goal for renewable power generation by 2022. Solar power generation of 100 GW and renewable energy output of 175 GW constitute the new goal [14].

1.3 Historical Overview

From the earliest times, people looked up to the sun as a divine being and a symbol of the power that sustains all life on Earth. Later, as learning and industrial age progressed, people realized that the sun was a source of energy. The importance of such a finding has peaked at present, when it has been shown that the extraction of fossil fuels for energy generation affects the temperature of the world. Every day, the sun provides 10,000 times as much energy as is needed on Earth. Early human societal orders used wind, water, and bioenergy as energy sources, and they all derived from solar energy in some way.

Solar PV was first introduced in 1839. The photovoltaic effect, or the Becquerel effect after its discoverer Edmond Becquerel, was first observed by him when he was 19 years old. When he shone light upon an electrode submerged in an acidic liquid, he found that the current flowed through the electrodes [15]. The term “Father of Photovoltaics” was later attributed to him.

No major progress has been made in this field between 1839 and 1877. Adams and Day created a selenium PV cell in 1877 [16]. In 1883, Fritts first proposed using a thin layer of selenium as a solar cell. Although Fritts thin-film selenium solar cells have been thoroughly tested and implemented, the scientific community is still doubtful. A lack of faith in the idea persisted, even though the experiments could be repeated and reproduced. Simply put, the hypothetical operating principle of solar cells was beyond the scope of conventional physics back in those days [17].

Significant progress was made in this key area in 1900. As a result, Quantum Mechanics was developed. At the same time, Max Planck introduced the concept of energy packets, or quanta, with his now-famous equation E = h.v [18]; he also introduced the idea of a photon. Albert Einstein introduced the concept of photon packets or light quanta in an article published in Annalender Physik in 1905. This process was the foundation upon which semiconductor engineering was built as it provided a complete explanation of the PV concept.

Grondahl conducted research and wrote numerous articles on copper cuprous oxide solar cells in 1933 [19]. However, Ohl filed the first silicon solar-cell patent in 1941. Considering its low efficiency (less than 1%), this silicon solar cell is not marketable. However, in terms of PV cells, this is a significant step forward [20].

Chapin, Fuller, and Pearson described a 6% efficient silicon solar cell in a 1954 article in the Journal of Applied Physics [21]. This silicon PV cell was used as this as its basis. Since then, numerous advances have paved the way for new solar cell designs. Currently, a wide variety of solar cells are available in the market, but researchers are always looking to improve their technology and find new ways to harness the sun’s rays for use. Advances in structures and materials are crucial for the development of such technologies. In any case, the goal of maximizing efficiency while minimizing expenditure has not changed.

According to the most recent data [22, 23], monocrystalline solar cells have a lab efficiency of 26.7%, whereas their multi-crystalline counterparts only achieve 22.3%. Copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS) and cadmium telluride (CdTe) thin-film solar cells achieved record-high laboratory efficiencies of 22.9% and 21.0%, respectively. Over the past decade, the efficiency of commercial silicon crystalline modules has increased from 12% to 17%. The commercial CdTe-based PV module efficiencies increased from 9% to 16% over the same period. Multijunction solar cells have achieved an efficiency of 46% in the laboratory.

1.4 Grid-Connected PV System

Our ability to use the sun’s energy for a wide variety of tasks is made possible by the PV system, which consists of several interconnected components. Typically, a PV system has two primary parts: PV modules and an inverter. Battery storage is also necessary; its exact role varies depending on the system design [24].

Countries with robust solar energy policies tend to prefer grid-connected configurations, as they enable consumers to supply surplus power to the utility company. The PV module and inverter are the two main components of the...