Procedure of the design of photovoltaic systems applied to ornamental lighting

Photovoltaic systems have the advantage of reducing atmospheric pollution, avoiding co₂ emissions. Another advantage is the energy savings they produce and that in the long term they can return the investment made. PV systems off grids are applied in remote and rural areas, where there is no electricity distribution network. The use of PV systems off grids can be included in ornamental lighting, as they have low levels of luminous efficiency due to the use of old technologies. Therefore, this study presents a procedure for the design of PV systems applied to ornamental lighting, starting from obtaining adjusted values of solar irradiance, based on estimated solar irradiance data from NASA in the city of Cuenca (Ecuador) and measured data. The critical month (maximum consumption and minimum irradiance) is selected, which corresponds to June with a value of 3, 33 kWh/m₂. The results indicate that these systems are feasible to be implemented, due to the fact that the total investment cost is around $10.450,00 compared to a 5,2 km grid extension system that costs around $44.512,00. Finally, the responses of the PV systems off grid applied to ornamental lighting are tested in MATLAB/Simulink.