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Solar irradiation data of India 

Solar Radiation Resource Assessment

Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has initiated a major project on Solar Radiation Resource Assessment (SRRA) across the nation to assess and quantify the solar radiation availability along with weather parameters with a view to develop Solar Atlas. Centre for Wind Energy Technology (C-WET), Chennai is implementing the project by installing a network of 51 Automatic Solar Radiation Monitoring Stations (ASRMS) in the first phase in different States using high quality, high resolution equipment/instruments.

 

Sl. No	States	No.of ASRMS
		Proposed	Completed
1	Rajasthan	12	12
2	Gujarat	11	11
3	Tamilnadu	7	7
4	Andhra Pradesh	6	6
5	Karnataka	5	5
6	Maharashtra	3	3
7	Madhya Pradesh	3	3
8	Jammu & kashmir	1	1
9	Chhattisgarh	1	1
10	Pondichery	1	1
11	Haryana	1	1
	Total	51	51

Each ASRMS consists of two towers of 1.5 m and 6 m tall each. The 1.5 m tall tower houses a Solar Tracker equipped with Pyranometer, Pyranometer with Shaded Ring and Pyrheliometer to measure solar parameters, such as, global, diffused and direct radiation. The 6 m tall tower houses instruments measuring rainfall, ambient temperature, atmospheric pressure, relative humidity, wind speed and direction. Each ASRMS is totally powered by 160 Watt SPV Panels and consists of 13 equipments/instruments and records 37 parameters inclusive of both measured and derived. The data from each ASRMS averaged to 10 minutes will be transmitted to a Central Receiving Station established at C-WET, Chennai through GPRS mode. The implementation of the project has started from February 2011 and all stations have already been installed, completed and commissioned.  The monthly average (daily) wise data received from each ASRMS is available on C-WET website as test run. The quality checking process of the data is on.

To caluclate or to find the data arrived by C WET  starting from May to Oct for 2011 and you will results as given below.

Monthly Average (Daily) values, October 2011

S.No	STATION  NAME	STATE	DOC	Global Horizontal Solar Radiation	Diffuse Horizontal Solar Radiation	Direct  Normal Solar Radiation	Wind Speed	Wind Direction	Rain Accumulation	Air Temperature	Relative Humidity	Atmospheric Pressure (SLP)
				(Kwh/m2)	(Kwh/m2)	(Kwh/m2)	(m/s)	(o)	(mm)	(o)	(%)	(mb)
1	Karakudi	Tamil Nadu	23-05-11	4.752	2.592	2.880	2.568	139.385	215.500	27.192	81.001	995.731
2	CWET	Tamil Nadu	28-05-11	4.464	2.448	2.592	3.587	192.669	168.100	28.121	85.055	1,006.914
3	Ramanathpuram	Tamil Nadu	03-06-11	4.320	2.448	2.592	4.713	199.639	281.500	27.765	80.095	1,004.731
4	Kayathar	Tamil Nadu	10-06-11	4.896	2.160	3.168	4.285	200.660	374.101	27.835	73.526	996.310
5	Vellore*	Tamil Nadu	23-07-11	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
6	Trichy	Tamil Nadu	29-07-11	4.752	2.592	2.736	5.025	185.788	135.900	17.781	67.810	997.158
7	Erode	Tamil Nadu	03-08-11	5.040	2.592	2.880	3.125	183.653	176.800	26.962	74.975	976.345

Disclaimer: The data are still under the process of quality checking and evaluation and are kept on test run basis.

DOC  Date of Commissioning 
SLP   Station Level Pressure 
         Accumulated rain fall recorded 
*       Due to communication problem data from these stations will be uploaded later

http://cwet.res.in/web/html/departments_srra.html?state=Tamilnadu&year=2011&month=October&go=go

 

Solar Radiation data in India

 

India is endowed with rich solar energy resource since it is located in the equatorial sun belt of the earth. Theoretically India’s solar power reception is about 5000 trillion kWh/year with about 300 clear sunny days in a year. The daily average solar energy incident over India varies from 4 to 7 kWh/m² with about 2,300–3,200 sunshine hours per year, depending upon location. This is far more than current total energy consumption.

 

The daily average global radiation is around 5 Kwh/m2 in north - eastern and hilly areas to about 7 Kwh/m2 in Western regions and cold desert areas.

 

The annual global radiation varies from 1600 to 2200 kWh/m2, which is comparable with radiation received in the tropical and sub-tropical regions. Although the highest annual global radiation is received in Rajasthan, northern Gujarat, Tamilnadu and parts of Ladakh region, the parts of Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka also receive fairly large amount of radiation as compared to many parts of the world especially Japan, Europe and the US where development and deployment of solar technologies is maximum. Thus it is clear that solar power projects are commercially viable in most parts of India.

 

 

Solar radiation:

 

Solar radiation is electromagnetic radiation emitted by the sun. The sun is converting its mass into light particles called photons. The solar radiation that reaches on different locations of earth depends on several factors such as geographic location, time, season, local landscape, local weather etc. The Earth rotates around the sun in an elliptical orbit and is closer to the sun during part of the year. When the sun is nearer the Earth, the Earth's surface receives a little more solar energy. The rotation of the Earth is responsible for hourly variations in sunlight.

 

When sunlight passes through the atmosphere, it is subjected to absorption, scattering and reflection by air molecules, water vapor, clouds, dust, pollutants, forest fires etc. When a photon is absorbed, its energy is changed in to either electrical energy or heat. Scattering occurs when gas molecules and small particles diffuse part of the incoming solar radiation in different directions without any alteration to the wavelength of electromagnetic energy. Reflection of solar radiation is a process where sunlight is redirect by 180⁰ after it strikes an atmospheric particle. Mainly reflection is caused by clouds.

 

 Visit NASA  and assesses solar irradiation data for anywhere in your  town, city or state 

All you need to do is to point to your city  or your town  or village and submit for data.

WOW, there you get  

Air temperature,  Relative humidity,  Daily solar radiation, - horizontal Atmospheric pressure,  Wind speed,  Earth temperature,  Heating degree-days Cooling degree-days,     etc., 

In fact Maharashtra government has recently decided that they will go for 140 MW of solar power by 2016 and have chosen Northern Maharashtra, Vidharba and Maratwada based on NASA figures. It is believed that these parts of Maharashtra has solar irradiation similar to Rajasthan.

http://eosweb.larc.nasa.gov/sse/RETScreen/

Global solar radiation:

 

Global solar radiation measurement:

 

Global solar radiation is the total amount of solar energy received by the Earth's surface, usually expressed as W m^-2. About 99 percent of global solar radiation has wavelengths between 300 and 3000 nm. This includes ultraviolet (300-400 nm), visible (400-700 nm), and infrared (700-3000 nm) radiation. Global solar radiation is the sum of direct, diffuse, and reflected solar radiation. Direct solar radiation passes directly through the atmosphere to the Earth's surface, diffuse solar radiation is scattered in the atmosphere, and reflected solar radiation reaches a surface and is reflected to adjacent surfaces.

 

The visible portion of the solar radiation spectrum provides energy for photosynthesis, which is the primary gateway for inorganic carbon to become organic and support life on the Earth. Infrared light heats the ground and maintains an ideal environment for life. Global solar radiation drives the global water cycle and weather patterns. In fact, about half of the solar radiation absorbed by the Earth's surface is consumed by evapotranspiration on a global scale. Solar radiation is also used to generate electricity. Measuring global solar radiation can be accomplished with pyranometers and pyroheliometers.

 

Solar radiation budget:

 

The solar radiation budget represents the balance between incoming energy from the sun and outgoing thermal and reflected energy from the earth. Globally, the budget is balanced. But locally, it is not balanced. The earth receives 1.8x10¹⁷W of incoming solar radiation continuously at top of its atmosphere. But only halt of it reaches the earth’s surface.

 

Instruments for measuring solar radiation:

 

Different instruments are used for measuring short wave and long wave solar radiation.

Parameters

Instruments used

Short wave (0.3µ - 4µ)

Direct solar irradiance

Angstrom and thermoelectric Pyrheliometers

Global solar irradiance

Thermoelectric pyranometer

Diffuse solar irradiance

Thermoelectric pyranometer with shading ring

Reflected solar irradiance

Inverted pyranometer

Solar spectral irradiance and turbidity

Sunphotometer

Long wave (4µ - 100µ)

Net terrestrial radiation

Angstrom Pyrgeometer

Total (0.3µ - 100µ)

Upward  or downward radiation

Pyradiometer

Net radiation

Net Pyradiometer

 

Solar radiation in Rajasthan:

Rajasthan, the largest state in India receives maximum solar radiation intensity in India. According to US Department of Energy, Rajasthan receives the second largest amount of solar radiation in the world. Rajasthan is best suited for solar power generation since average rain fall is minimum. Solar radiation in Rajasthan is similar to California and Nevada in USA. Rajasthan has around 208,110 Sq.km of desert land. Rajasthan has more than 325 sunny days in a year with solar radiation of about 6-7Kwh/sq-m/day. 

 

The direct normal insolation over Rajasthan varies from 1800 Kwh/m2 to 2600Kwh/m2. Mostly the western part of Rajasthan is blessed with abundant solar energy. Jodhpur in Rajasthan is receiving maximum solar radiation which is known as Sun City of India. Rajasthan is also blessed with abundant land, so it would be ideal for solar PV.

 

Solar Radiation in Gujarat:

 

Gujarat receives second largest amount of solar radiation in India. Gujarat receives 5.5 to 6 Kwh/sq.m/day with 300 sunny days/year. Most locations in Gujarat receive an annual Direct Normal Incidence (DNI) in between 1,800 - 2,000 Kwh/m2. 

 

Waste land of about 14.40 Million Acres is receiving largest amount of solar radiation. Northern part of Gujarat is receiving more solar radiation. The locations connected by the Rann of Kachch region of Gujarat receive the maximum DNI in the state.

 

Solar radiation in Maharashtra

Dhule and Jalgaon from north Maharashtra, Osmanabad and Aurangabad from Marathwada and Chandrapur and Wardha districts of Vidarbha have the highest exposure to solar rays.

Solar radiation in Tamilnadu:

 

After Rajasthan and Gujarat, Tamil Nadu receives the third largest amount of solar radiation in India. Tamil Nadu receives about 5.35Kwh/sq.m/day. Now some companies are taking initiative for solar power projects in Tamil Nadu. 

 

Solar Irradiance Calculator

http://www.solarelectricityhandbook.com/solar-irradiance.html      

How to use the irradiance calculator:

Select your country from the list.

If you have selected America or Canada, select your state or province.

Select the town or city nearest where you live.
The irradiance calculator will then show monthly figures showing the average kWh per square meter per day for energy at your location.
You can multiply this irradiance figure by the wattage of your photovoltaic panels to give you an average daily amount of energy you can expect to generate with your system, measured in watt-hours.

These are the values of major cities in India

City                          Jan    Feb    Mar    Apr    May   Jun    Jul     Aug   Sep    Oct    Nov   Dec    Avg

Agra                         3.25   4.28   5.35   6.39   7.31   7.22   6.11   5.66   5.5     5        3.92   3.19   5.26

Agartala                   4.28   4.98   5.52   5.45   5.01   4.36   4.27   4.3     4.04   4.31   4.19   4.13   4.57

Ahmadabad             4.36   5.08   5.89   6.29   6.56   5.9     4.71   4.39   5.07   5.07   4.52   4.03   5.15

Aizawl                     4.39   5.06   5.5     5.42   4.95   4.46   4.3     4.37   4.26   4.34   4.28   4.19   4.62

Bengaluru                5.31   6.07   6.53   6.43   6        4.92   4.45   4.53   4.89   4.57   4.49   4.72   5.24

Bhubaneshwar         4.5     5.22   5.75   6.23   6.15   4.48   3.86   3.72   4.09   4.53   4.4     4.24   4.76

Chandigarh              3.5     4.58   5.65   6.66   7.39   7.08   5.86   5.43   5.54   5.25   4.22   3.4     5.38

Chennai                   4.89   5.83   6.56   6.61   6        5.12   4.63   4.71   4.94   4.37   4.02   4.21   5.15

Dehra Dun               3.67   4.47   5.58   6.61   7.39   6.69   5.33   4.8     5.17   5.38   4.38   3.63   5.25

Delhi                        3.71   4.64   5.73   6.17   6.39   6.04   5.19   4.78   4.99   4.79   4.07   3.45   4.99

Hyderabad               5.02   5.77   6.28   6.4     6.14   4.81   4.24   4.1     4.46   4.74   4.81   4.7     5.12

Imphal                     4.3     4.9     5.16   5.4     4.9     4.26   3.84   3.8     3.75   4.07   4.02   4.01   4.36

Jaipur                       3.9     4.67   5.4     5.99   6.35   6.21   5.08   4.68   5.05   4.75   4.04   3.66   4.98

Kolkata                    4.13   4.89   5.59   5.99   5.79   4.49   4.09   3.9     3.88   4.32   4.21   4.02   4.60

Lucknow                 3.62   4.63   5.68   6.19   6.54   5.88   4.78   4.45   4.45   4.83   4.14   3.52   4.89

Mumbai                   6.54   7.17   7.42   7.14   6.69   5.63   4.94   4.85   5.69   6.29   6.46   5.92   6.23

Patna                        4.06   5.21   6.19   6.81   6.87   5.71   4.55   4.54   4.37   4.92   4.57   3.97   5.14

Monthly Direct Normal Irradiance of India

January                                                 February                                     March

April                                                      May                                      June

july                                                   August                                     September

October                                                   November                                     December

Solar Radiation Resource Assessment across India:

MNRE has initiated a major project on Solar Radiation Resource Assessment (SRRA) across the nation to assess and quantify the solar radiation availability along with weather parameters with a view to develop Solar Atlas. Centre for Wind Energy Technology, Chennai is implementing the project by installing a network of 51 Automatic Solar Radiation Monitoring Stations (ASRMS) in the first phase in different states.

Each ASRM consists of two towers of 1.5m and 6m tall each. The 1.5m tall tower houses a solar tracker equipped with pyranometer, pyranometers with shaded ring and pyrheliometer to measure solar parameters such as global, diffused and direct radiation. The 6m tall tower houses instruments measuring rainfall, ambient temperature, atmospheric pressure, relative humidity, wind speed and radiation.

http://cwet.res.in/web/html/departments_srra.html?state=Tamilnadu&year=2011&month=May&go=go

Link : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_power_in_India#Status_of_Solar_Energy_in_2010

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