Design And Construction Of A Solar Battery Charger Using 15V/130W Solar Panel

ABSTRACT

This project is titled the design and construction of a solar battery charger. It is designed to meet up with the higher demand of power supply needed to keep our battery charged.

Solar battery charger is an electrical device that converts the energy of light directly into electricity by the photovoltaic effect. It does this by the use of solar panel which is a form of photoelectric cell (in that its electrical characteristics– e.g. current, voltage, or resistance– vary when light is incident upon it) which, when exposed to light, can generate and support an electric current without being attached to any external voltage source.

This work is aimed at constructing a solar battery charger system which receives 15v dc from the solar panel and convert it to the level that can be safe to the acid battery – likely 13.6v.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

COVER PAGE

TITLE PAGE

APPROVAL PAGE

DEDICATION

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

ABSTRACT

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1      BACKGROUND OF THE PROJECT

• AIM OF THE PROJECT
• OBJECTIVE OF THE PROJECT
• SCOPE OF THE PROJECT
• SIGNIFICANCE OF THE PROJECT
• LIMITATION OF THE PROJECT
• BUILDING BLOCK OF A SOLAR PANEL

CHAPTER TWO

LITERATURE REVIEW

• BACKGROUND LITERATURE SURVEY
• HISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF SOLAR CELLS
• THEORY OF SOLAR CELLS
• EFFICIENCIES OF SOLAR PANEL
• BENEFITS OF SOLAR BATTERY CHARGERS

 CHAPTER THREE

SYSTEM DESIGN

• BLOCK DIAGRAM OF THE SYSTEM
• CIRCUIT DIAGRAM OF THE SYSTEM
• SOLAR BATTERY CHARGER CIRCUIT PRINCIPLE
• CIRCUIT COMPONENTS
• SOLAR BATTERY CHARGER CIRCUIT DESIGN
• HOW TO OPERATE THIS SOLAR BATTERY CHARGER CIRCUIT
• WOODEN ENCLOSURE PARTS
• TOOLS
• CONSTRUCTION PROCEDURES
• DEFINITION OF MAJOR COMPONENTS USED

CHAPTER FOUR

TESTING AND RESULTS

• CONSTRUCTION PROCEDURE AND TESTING
• INSTALLATION OF THE COMPLETE DESIGN
• ASSEMBLING OF SECTIONS
• TESTING OF SYSTEM OPERATION
• COST ANALYSIS
• SOLAR PANEL MOUNTING

CHAPTER FIVE

• CONCLUSION
• RECOMMENDATION
• REFERENCES

 CHAPTER ONE

1.0                                                        INTRODUCTION

Given the current energy crisis and increasing need for sustainable energy, we endeavored to create a cost-effective, small-scale electrical generator which could be used to power consumer electronics. Solar energy has proven its worth as an alternative energy source because it is low-impact and emission-free. It has been implemented with much success for power grids with hundreds of acres of enormous solar commentators. In the small-scale, solar energy has been harvested through the use of photovoltaic (PV) panels and have been used to power anything from an iPod to a residential home. Although PV systems are considered part of the green energy revolution, materials utilized for its construction (like silicon) are extremely dangerous to the environment and much care must be taken to ensure that they are recycled properly. PV cells also only utilize the energy stored in specific wavelengths of light and therefore have an approximate efficiency between 14-19%. Sunlight, however, produces immense amounts of heat which only serves to heat up the surface of the solar cell. Although there are some PV cells that have reached efficiency levels over 40% (world record is 41.6%), they are enormously complex and expensive. Concentrated solar power (CSP) works differently because it focuses solar energy in its entirety rather than absorb it. Ultimately, our group will be designing and producing a SolarPowered Battery

Solar battery charger is an electrical device that converts the energy of light directly into electricity by the photovoltaic effect. Solar chargers use solar panels to charge cell phone batteries. They are an alternative to conventional electrical battery chargers and in some cases can be plugged into an electrical outlet.

1.1                                             OBJECTIVE OF THE PROJECT

Objective of this work is to design a device that will help keep some battery-powered appliances service by providing you with a portable personal charging system. To provide constant electricity supply or those on the go with portable solar power charging systems (with or without battery) to power their battery-powered appliances to enable them work for the purpose they are been made. The solar panel used produced 15v, 130w output.

1.2                                                 SCOPE OF THE PROJECT

The idea of a solar charger is an excellent one in that it’s meant to allow you an option for charging your battery-powered appliances when you’re in a remote area or just don’t have access to an electrical outlet or car charger.

There are a few on the market today that will do what they say they  will do, whereas others are not living up to high expectations

Battery-powered appliances can be a real lifesaver in emergency situations. People have come to depend on this technology greatly over the last few years. Technologies such as iPods, MP3 players, and hand-held games have also become quite popular. All of these require fully charged batteries to function at their optimal level. Solar chargers are great for those times you are not close to a power source.

Another benefit of these chargers is that they’re free to use since they use the sun’s energy. The backup battery stores energy even when it’s not actively charging, so you can enjoy more time in between having to charge your battery-powered appliances battery via electric.

1.4                                                      SIGNIFICANCE OF THE PROJECT

There are several advantages you enjoy when you use a solar charger instead of a conventional mains charger. The energy savings. Unlike conventional energy resources that produce and consume a lot of waste energy from a solar charger draws energy from renewable sources and produces no waste. You can solar charger to use, you can go anywhere, provided you have access to solar energy.

The main advantage behind the invention of these solar powered charges is to save large amount of electrical energy. The solar panels of which will help in converting the solar energy from the sun into electrical energy through various reactions.

Other advantages of solar powered charges reside in the fact that they allow you to access power outside the national grid. You can charge yours phones even while traveling without depending on electricity. This property has made it possible to make use of these cell phone chargers at any possible place.

The last one is these solar powered charges are eco/environment-friendly. They don’t produce harmful waste, and can be used anytime and anywhere that there is daylight.

1.5                                           LIMITATION OF THE PROJECT

There are some disadvantages to solar chargers powered by the sun. The most obvious of course is that if it’s a cloudy or overcast day, your solar powered charger isn’t going to be able to garner the energy it needs from the sun in order to function. Usually, it needs direct sun in order to store enough in the battery to work efficiently.

Another disadvantage to the current solar phone chargers is that the amount of power they are capable of generating isn’t always enough to keep up with the amount of power required by today’s highly functional appliances.

Some analysts say that in order to meet and exceed the power needs of most battery-powered appliances, the solar charger will have to be larger in order to capture more of the sun’s energy more quickly. However, this poses a problem when it comes to the transport and convenience of the charger.

Another drawback is that solar chargers are not typically able to generate enough power for a full charge.

1.6                                    BUILDING BLOCK OF A SOLAR PANEL

Assemblies of photovoltaic cells are used to make solar modules which generate electrical power from sunlight. Multiple cells in an integrated group, all oriented in one plane, constitute a solar photovoltaic panel or “solar photovoltaic module,” as distinguished from a “solar thermal module” or “solar hot water panel.” The electrical energy generated from solar modules, referred to as solar power, is an example of solar energy. A group of connected solar modules (such as prior to installation on a pole-mounted tracker system) is called an “array.”