Determining Optimum Tilt Angle for 1 MW Photovoltaic System at Sukkur, Pakistan

Abstract

Solar energy is directly converted into electrical energy by using photovoltaic (PV) panels. The efficiency of PV panel varies with its orientation and tilt angle with the horizontal plane. In this paper, we investigate the optimum tilt angle of solar panels installed at Sukkur IBA University. The optimum angle for tilted surfaces varying from 0° to 90° in steps of 1° was calculated for the values of which the daily total solar radiation was maximum for a specific period. It was found that the optimum tilt angle changed between 0° and 61.1° throughout the year in Sukkur IBA University, Sindh Pakistan ( $\text{latitude}={27.7268}^{°}$ N, $\text{longitude}={68.8191}^{°}$ E). For calculating irradiance, optimal fixed (15 and 29.5 degrees) and variable tilt angles are used for every month of year 2019. The irradiance calculated at 15 degrees tilt angle is compared with the fixed angle of 29.5 and variable angles. It was found that optimal tilt angle for the region of Sukkur located in northern Pakistan is to be 29.5 degrees.