Realization of an educational tool dedicated to teaching the fundamental principles of photovoltaic systems

Abstract

Abstract This article describes a low-cost educational tool dedicated to teaching basic knowledge of solar energy and photovoltaic applications for first-year students at the poly disciplinary faculty of Larache. This experimental teaching method allows students to concretize all the achievements of the theory and the results obtained during the simulations of the PV systems on a simulation tool, so, it’s an opportunity of sensitization and integration of the students in a world in full change towards a purely green system. The realized system is simple to use, robust, easy on the move, economical and not spacious. It offers students the opportunity to acquire the fundamentals of photovoltaic energy. Several models of practical work are developed to give an overview of the learning exercises that could be done by students to discover the multiple applications of photovoltaics. For example, many cases of study can be treated such as the electrical characterization of PV panels with different technologies, the effect of irradiation and temperature, the effect of shading, the effect the inclination and orientation and finally the calculation of the efficiency of the PV panel.