Design and analysis of a solar-wind hybrid renewable energy tree

Abstract

A hybrid tree is an artificial structure resembling a natural tree with branches on top of which are mounted solar modules or wind turbines. It can help supply power to mobile phones, laptops, electric vehicles, home appliances and lighting loads covering small or large areas, which can be the best energy source for sustainable cities and modern societies. This paper presents a 3 kW hybrid tree design consisting of 2 kW solar and 1 kW wind to be installed at Vaddeswaram, Andhra Pradesh (16.26°N and 80.36°E) which can generate maximum energy using a two-axis tracking system. Different designs and applications of energy trees available worldwide are also presented. P–V and I–V characteristics of solar panels were obtained at different irradiance and temperature values. For wind turbine, power characteristics at different wind speed and co-efficient of power at different tip speed ratios were studied. Power generation study for the hybrid tree was carried out at different tilt angles from 10° to 20° for solar panels. Structural optimisations are performed to validate whether the structure can withstand the loads applied. The proposed solar-wind hybrid tree can generate 4709 kWh/year with the two-axis tracking system instead of generating 3763 kWh/year when solar panels are fixed at an 18.25° tilt angle.

Keywords

• Solar-wind hybrid tree
• Structural optimisation
• Shading losses
• Renewable energy
• Power generation