Analysis of Photovoltaic Modules Attached with a Vertical-Axis Wind Turbine

In this paper, we have analyzed the performance of rotating Photovoltaic (PV) modules integrated with an H-type vertical-axis wind turbine (VAWT) consisting of five blades. The PV modules used are flexible monocrystalline thin films. The importance of the proposed design over the conventional photovoltaic wind-hybrid systems are: first, it combines the turbine with PV modules resulting in a reduced utilized area (about 0.25m(2)). Second, the rotating PV modules self-cool themselves and prevent the dust accumulation on their surfaces resulting in an increase in their efficiencies compared to the fixed PV modules. This paper proves experimentally that the rotating PV modules produce more output voltage. We have also modeled the variation of the output voltage as a function of the operating temperatures by four parameters where the error doesn't exceed 1.2%. The output voltage readings of the PV modules are collected from the slip rings used in the design and then monitored by an Arduino microcontroller.