Performance evaluation of roof-mounted photovoltaic modules in selected rural secondary schools in northern and eastern Uganda

Abstract

This study focused on the performance of roof-mounted photovoltaic modules in selected rural secondary schools in Northern and Eastern Uganda. The Ministry of Education and Sports installed these modules under the Energy for Rural Electrification Project II to address the electrical power problem in rural secondary schools. The study was carried out using three objectives, namely, to perform visual inspection using the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) guidelines, to determine the module maximum power using the I-V characterization technique and to determine the conversion efficiencies of the modules. The modules studied are installed at Orungo SS, Katine SS, Akii Bua Comprehensive SS and Adwari SS. In the visual inspection done, most of the modules had green leakage, water ingress, discolouration, cracks, snail trails, scratches, black spots, dust, debris, bird droppings, burnt spots on diodes, rust, broken sealant, and broken cell interconnects. Experimental data were collected using the FTV200 I-V tracer. Findings revealed that the maximum power output of the PV modules was higher after washing the modules. The modules at Orungo High School produced the highest power (62 W), while the modules at Akii Bua Comprehensive School produced the lowest (34.5 W). The drop in module efficiencies as compared to the manufacturer’s efficiency, with degradation taken into account, was found to be highest for the modules at Akii Bua Comprehensive School (11.3%) and lowest for the modules at Orungo High School (5.5%). Despite taking degradation into account, all the modules were found to have a significant drop in their power output as well as efficiencies.