Techno-Economic Analysis Of Solar Thermal Power Plants

Techno-economic analysis of solar thermal power plants in
Oman
Abstract:-

Solar photovoltaic panels face many challenges in Oman related to the cost, policy
and thermal development. For growing demand in the energy sector, GCPV- Grid-
Connected PV can be used as an alternative energy source that helps to reduce the
demanding peak load. The main aim of this study is to analyze the 500KW Grid-
Connected PV plant in Oman numerically. On this location, hour basis real data has
estimated at the highest accuracy. Simulation is used to evaluate the parameters of
Concentrated Solar PV technology. Investment in this technology leads to
development in the energy sector. The result of this study shows that investment in
PV technology shows a good sign in the various sites of Oman for the future
prospective. To estimate the annual accuracy of the Concentrated Solar PV system,
HOMER Software is used. Multiple parameters such as Capacity factor and
installation Cost also calculated by using the proposed Software.
Keywords: - Energy cost, Photovoltaic, Grid – connection, Numerical simulation,
economy.
1. Introduction:-
Over the past decade, various utilization techniques of solar energy have increased
the growth rate in the energy sector. Estimation of parameters related to the cost
and efficiency of the PV system. It had proven that Solar cell Photovoltaic
technology is a valuable renewable source of energy because of zero emissions,
zero noise, and zero reliability for sunny locations (Europe, 2019). The price of the
solar plant decreased from the 19th century. The peak watt cost from 1990 to 2016
reduced from the 8 USD per watt to 2 USD per watt. The photovoltaic solar cell can
be classified into two types – grid-tied and standalone. These systems must install
and operated carefully, which follows the manufacturing standards for safety and
application (Charabi, & Hamed al-badi, 2014). Status of the solar cell in Oman is an
upward trend because of these projects used by the government and the private
sectors. Everyday discovery in the technology of the PV solar cell leads towards the
optimization of the PV systems (Kazem & Khatib, 2013).
2. Literature Review:-
Due to climate and geographical location, Oman has a high potential to generate
solar energy; this country provides clear skies about 342 days per year (AL-Hatmi,

Tan, Al-Yahyai & Al-Badi, 2016). From the past study, it has estimated if only 10% of
Omani land is used for solar energy production, that produces the total annual
output of electricity is approximately 7.6 million GWh. It is around 680 times of
current electricity demand of the country (Manoj Kumar, Sudhakar & Samykano,
2017). Photovoltaic systems convert sun energy into electrical energy. These
systems connected close to end-users to increase the reliability of the electric
services and decrease the requirement of the distribution device. Different solar
technologies can be used to convert solar irradiation indirectly or directly for the
electricity generation. Crystalline silicon technology is used to improve the
efficiency of the Solar Panel. Silicon material is used for the design of the Mono-
crystalline Solar panel. This technology provides a low contamination rate, high
lifetime value, and a high-efficiency rate. Crystalline Silicon improves efficiency as
compared to amorphous silicon. For the manufacturing solar cell, most widely
polycrystalline or mono-crystalline is used. The efficiency of the Monocrystalline
Solar panel is 20%. This technology is expensive as compared to other solar
technologies, and a large amount of material is lost during the production of the
solar panel. The efficiency of polycrystalline silicon panel is around 15%, and the
price is low (Taşçıoğlu, Taşkın & Vardar, 2016). Production of polycrystalline silicon
type PV cell is easier than others technology. Casting Method is used in the
production of this technology. The material prepared in starting is the same as
anticipated in the mono-crystalline. The degree of purity level is also the same in
both technologies. The semiconductor silicon after melting cast into mould and left
it for the cooling (Taşçıoğlu, Taşkın & Vardar, 2016). The durability of this
technology is very less and high temperature-sensitive. Monocrystalline and Poly-
crystalline are the most widely used solar panels because of different efficiency and
characteristics. The effectiveness of the solar panel influenced by the type of solar
cell and the climatic condition. Daily, the average efficiency of the mono-crystalline
solar panel is 6.65%, and polycrystalline is 5.38% (Pratama, Hermawan &
Andromeda, 2019). Thin-film amorphous silicon solar technology is efficient but
costly in fabrication. In this technology, the thickness of Solar cells is reduced, and
absorption is also reduced. In the indirect bandgap material, bandgap absorption is
the very week (Iqbal et al., 2018). Recently, the nanostructure is used in the
fabrication of thin-film silicon solar panels. Thin-film Si-grating structure of 500nm
enhances the absorption of power in polycrystalline solar cells. Silver nanostructure

in Germanium Arsenide can increase efficiency up to seven times as compared to
the planar solar cell. The efficiency rate of Thin- Film amorphous silicon solar panel
is 7-10%. The main advantage of this technology is flexibility and relatively low cost.
The disadvantage of this technology is its short lifespan (Sai, Matsui, & Matsubara,
2016). CPV (Concentrator Photovoltaic) is a new Solar PV technology. It generates
up to 370MW of electricity from solar energy. CPV technology reduces the cell area
as compared to previous technologies. CPV (Concentrator photovoltaic) is also
called concentration photovoltaic. This technology generates electricity from
sunlight. It used the curved mirror or lenses to focus the sunlight on the small multi-
junction solar cells. Solar trackers are also used to increase efficiency.
Concentration photovoltaic cell has various Advantages, such as the efficiency of
this plant is more than 40%, not contains any intervening heat transfer surface, fast
response, scalable in the many sizes range, and the cost is very less (Tien & Shin,
2016).
Type of Solar Cell Rate of
Efficienc
y
Advantages Disadvantages
Mono-Si(Mono-0crysttalline
Solar Panel)
20% Long life, High
Efficiency,
optimization in
commercial used
Expensive
P-Si(Polycrystalline Solar
Panel)
15% Low Price Low life span,
Acquired larger
Space, More
Sensitive to
temperature
A-Si(Thin-film amorphous
silicon Panel)
7-10% Easy Production,
Relatively low cost,
Flexibility
Shorter Life Time
Concentrated PV cell 41% Efficiency rate is
high; Performance is
very high , low cost
To Estimate the
High-Efficiency
rate- Cooling
System and Solar
tracker required
Table 1:- Shows the different type of solar technology according to their
Advantages and Disadvantages