35000 400

No. of Custumers Capacity (MW)

30000
300
No. of Customers

25000

Capacity (MW)
20000
200
15000
10000 100
5000
0 0
2012 2014 2016 2018 2020 2022
Figure 2: Growth of Solar PV Rooftops (Source: SLSEA)

Nothern Uva Eastern

North Central Southern
5% 1% 2%
3% 10%
North
Western
4%
Sabaragamuw
a
10%
Central
6%
Western
59%

Figure 3: Distribution of Rooftop Solar PV Systems

EE6013 Renewable Energy Systems and Energy Management

Assessment:
Section A
• 4 short questions
• Answer all questions
o Explain the components of the wind/solar systems
o Solar cells, energy optimization, shading etc.
o Inverters, voltage waveforms etc.
o MPPT
o Battery sizing calculations etc.
Section B: Financial analysis
• 2 long questions
• Answer only one question
Section C: Load scheduling and PF correction
• 2 long questions

Page 2 of 12
 • Answer only one question

Solar Renewable Energy Systems

• Solar PV : Sunlight → electricity
• Solar thermal : Sun heat → electricity
(this’s a thermal power plant)

Solar PV Systems:
1. INTRODUCTION
It is light energy or irradiance, not heat, which produces electricity in solar PV cells. When
radiant energy hits the solar cells, the electrons absorb the energy and elevate themselves to
the conduction band as free electrons. These free electrons and the holes created accumulate at
the opposite ends of the cell creating a potential difference.

Page 3 of 12
 Fig. : Photovoltaic effect in solar cells (source: researchgate.net)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xKxrkht7CpY

In a solar PV system, the amount of electrical energy generated depends on a number of

factors including
Installation (Mechanically)
• efficiency of the solar panel
• the orientation and tilt angle of the solar panels
• any losses due to shading
• dirt and even ambient temperature
Installation (Electrically)
• inverter type and configuration
• maximum power point tracking
• earthing
• wiring and cabling
• draining and leakages

Page 4 of 12
 Fig. : A solar photovoltaic system (source: ADB)

1.1 Two types:

• Utility-scale installations
o capacity usually above 1 megawatt (MW)
o require large, open land areas with few or no shadows
o Usually connected to the HV transmission system
(HV transmission: 220 kV, 132 kV, …; MV distribution: 33kV, 11 kV; LV distribution 400 V, 230 V)
• Distributed generation
o ground-mounted or installed on rooftops
o Residential: capacity usually up to 20 kilowatts (kW)
o Larger public, commercial, and industrial buildings may have systems with a capacity as
large as 1 MW
There are
• Ground mounted solar PV
• Floating solar PV (on the surfaces of large lakes etc.)
• Rooftop solar PV

Page 5 of 12