Salvina Gagliano

Probabilistic energy performance comparison among flat and tracking PV systems

This paper presents an energy performance study based on probabilistic model for the power produced by a PhotoVoltaic System (PVS). Three different PVSs configurations have been studied and compared: flat, one-axis and two axis tracking systems. In particular, the impact of a tracking system on the probability density function (PDF) of the power produced by a PVS has been evaluated through the first fourth moments (mean, variance, skewness and kurtosis) of a PDF. The simulations results have been compared with experimental data related to a 9.6 kWp PV plant installed in ENEA research center located in Portici, Napoli (Italy).

Web interactive non intrusive load disaggregation system for energy consumption awareness

Recent works in ubiquitous computing have addressed analysis of electric power for energy conservation by detailing and studying consumption of electrical appliances. Consumer systems for home energy management can provide significant potential energy saving. But most people have only an approximate idea of how much energy they are using and what impacts they could make by changing day-to-day behavior. Hence it is important to develop systems, based on Non Intrusive Appliance Load Monitoring (NIALM) algorithms, in which individual appliance power consumption information is disaggregated from single-point measurements, that provide a feedback in such a way to make energy more visible and more amenable to understanding and control. We contribute with an approach to develop techniques for monitoring consumption of electric power in households. A new algorithm, which detects the load curve of each appliance in a domestic context based on power consumption, is presented.

Optimal design of Photovoltaic systems for Wireless Sensor Networks

The development of wireless sensor networks (WSNs) has recently become an area of great interest to researchers and industry. WSNs offer the promise of monitoring, data collection, and control of systems with unprecedented scale and spatial granularity. On this regard, the study of a reliable and low cost energy supply for WSNs remains an open challenge. Of course, the correct sizing of a supply system depends on many factors; in particular, as far as wireless node load demand is concerned, it varies mainly with some load characteristics, such as: transmission technology and type and number of sensors. The main goal of this paper is to study how load characteristics impact the optimal sizing of supply system made of a stand alone photovoltaic system. Optimal design consists of determining the appropriate characteristics of photovoltaic cells, batteries as well as BoS (balance of system) so as to find the counterbalance between the energy availability and total cost of the whole system. Other issues such as the size and weight of the components have been also considered. Finally a case study related to the consumptions of a wireless sensor networks for climatic monitoring prototype will be presented.