Testing and Evaluation of Various Solar Energy Applications

Solar energy utilization can be done using a range of technologies such as photovoltaics and solar thermal conversion systems.  In addition to the existing applications, improvements can still be made in different ways to enhance the solar energy system output and efficiency. For example, a solar thermal collector integrated with a parabolic trough reflector would have a higher concentration of solar radiation than the unmodified one. The goal of this work was to enhance the performance of three different solar applications:  a solar photovoltaic system, a solar thermal air collector and an evacuated tube heat pipe solar thermal collector. Prior to any enhancement or adjustment, the working principle of each application was investigated. Comparison studies were later conducted to examine the effectiveness of various modifications.