Abstract With the increasing of energy demand in Brazil and the unprecedent popular support for the use of energy sources with low environmental impact, the market for photovoltaic energy has become progressively relevant. Thus, it is of strategic importance to gather information of the solar resources either for a particular location or a specific region. This paper presents all the steps taken in order to design a solarimetric station intended to be used as part of the National Institute for Space Research's(INPE)Environmental Database System (SONDA)network, from the specification of the devices and sensors that will take part in it to the structural dimensioning necessary in order to accommodate them. This high-quality network mainly collects and stores surface solar radiation data, indispensable for the solar energy study and prospecting, therefore of great importance for the generation of energy of the State of Paraná– Brazil.

Abstract The photovoltaic solar energy has been growing in installed capacity worldwide year by year, and Brazil has also been investing in this renewable source of energy generation. The conversion of light into electrical energy occurs in the photovoltaic cells, which are sensitive to the increase of the temperature. A considerable amount of the energy incident on the module is transformed into heat, rising its temperature and decreasing its efficiency. This study aims to estimate the temperature in photovoltaic cells (Tc) for polycrystalline silicon modules from a grid-connected photovoltaic systems through several equations proposed over the last decades by researchers. This estimation will occur in the municipality of Curitiba, using data from INMET’s automatic station, located in the same city. The estimation was calculated hourly, throughout the day for one year. The validation of the estimated results was performed by measuring the cell temperature of a photovoltaic system installed in Curitiba, where it was observed that the equation proposed by Duffie and Beckman (2013) was the one that most approached to the measured value.

Abstract Understanding the solar radiation values in the surface is important for the development of solar energy projects, obtaining through radiometers installed in certain places or publications as in solar energy atlases. Typically, solar or weather stations do not have sensors to measure diffuse irradiation due to high investment and the need for constant maintenance. This paper presents methods for the determination of diffuse irradiation from surface measured data of global horizontal irradiation in the city of Curitiba, obtained through pyranometers installed at the Federal University of Technology – Paraná (UTFPR) headquarters and from Curitiba-A807 National Institute of Meteorology (INMET) station. Two models are presented for the estimation of the monthly mean daily diffuse irradiation, based on the studies of Liu and Jordan (1960) and Page (1961). Finally, these data were compared with those presented by the Solar Energy Atlas - Paraná, verifying the percentage differences presented. It was observed that the model elaborated by Page presented better results in the diffuse radiation estimates when compared to the values presented by the Paraná Atlas, with an average variation of -1.39% and -1.55%, for data from INMET and UTFPR respectively.

ABSTRACT The Federal University of Technology - Paraná (UTFPR), Campus Curitiba, has a Grid-Connected Photovoltaic System (GCPVS) of 2.1 kWp in the Green Office (GO), which has been in operation since December 2011, and until September 2017 generated little more than 13.64 MWh and a GCPVS of 10.2 kWp, in operation since February 2016. The photovoltaic panel of the 2.1 kWp system was set up following the inclination of the roof of the building, which does not give its maximum performance. On the other hand, the panel of the 10.2 kWp system in Neoville was installed in optimum conditions, that is, oriented to the north and with slope equal to the latitude of Curitiba and, up tol September 2017 generated more than 20.65 MWh. This paper presents the monitoring of the electric energy generated by the systems and also a history of the merit indexes of the GCPVS, which are: Productivity (Yield); Performance Ratio; and Capacity Factor. These indexes allow to evaluate the performance of the GCPVS and make a comparison between them. Finally, the photovoltaic generation of both GCPVS proved to be a sustainable and effective form of distributed generation of electric energy in the urban environment.

ABSTRACT Energy is essential for human activities and, considering the prospect that the demand for energy increases, it is necessary to carry out studies of new technical solutions so as to make the use of the available sources feasible. Greater participation of renewable energy sources in the electricity matrix has been stimulated worldwide and a number of public policies have been adopted by different countries in order to seek greater energy security and sustainability. In this context, photovoltaic solar energy potentially plays an important role in the evolution of the participation of alternative sources in the world energy matrix, considering its abundance and wide availability in the terrestrial surface. This work proposes a methodology to model a scenario that estimates the consumption of electricity in 2050 in the State of Paraná and how it can contribute to the complementarity of the Brazilian electricity matrix. In addition, it indicates, based on decision factors, which are the most indicated mesoregions for possible deployments of grid-connected photovoltaic systems in Paraná to meet this demand.

ABSTRACT Considering the development of new technologies in the electricity generation sector, such as solar photovoltaic energy, some studies are made necessary to obtain the best performance of these systems. This generation model consists of modules, which are exposed to adverse climatic conditions, they receive direct influence of the dirt, according to the environment from which they were installed, which directly influences the performance of the system since, due to the disposal of waste on the module, a smaller portion of the solar radiation can reach the photovoltaic cell effectively. The objective of this work is to determine the ideal time for cleaning photovoltaic panels, aiming at high system productivity, having as object of study the photovoltaic panels of the Federal University of Technology - Paraná (UTFPR) Campus Curitiba, installed in the Green Office (GO) and at Neoville´s headquarters. Within this objective, it was necessary to verify its merit indexes, parameters used to compare grid-connected photovoltaic systems. The study shows the importance of frequent cleaning of panels, especially when they are installed in urban areas and close to high traffic access roads.