See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.

net/publication/358212156

Shading effect on the performance of a photovoltaic panel

Conference Paper · January 2022

DOI: 10.1109/SCC53769.2021.9768356

CITATIONS READS

2 2,019

3 authors:

Gharbi Abdelaziz Hamdi Hichem

École Nationale d'Ingénieurs de Tunis École Nationale Supérieure d'Ingénieurs de Tunis (ENSIT)
1 PUBLICATION 2 CITATIONS 9 PUBLICATIONS 120 CITATIONS

SEE PROFILE SEE PROFILE

Rached Gharbi
École Nationale Supérieure d'ingénieurs de Tunis (ENSIT)
69 PUBLICATIONS 411 CITATIONS

SEE PROFILE

All content following this page was uploaded by Hamdi Hichem on 29 January 2022.

The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file.

 Shading effect on the performance of a
photovoltaic panel
Gharbi Abdelaziz hamdi hichem Gharbi Rached
University of Tunis, Higher National Engineering University of Tunis, Higher National Engineering University of Tunis, Higher National Engineering
School Of Tunis (ENSIT) Engineering Laboratory of School Of Tunis (ENSIT) Engineering Laboratory School Of Tunis (ENSIT) Engineering Laboratory of
Industrial Systems and Renewable Energies (LISIER) of Industrial Systems and Renewable Energies Industrial Systems and Renewable Energies (LISIER)
Tunis, Tunisia. (LISIER) Tunis, Tunisia. Tunis, Tunisia.
abdelaziz.gharbi@sidibouzid.r-iset.tn hichem.hamdi@isetsbz.rnu.tn Rached.gharbi@ensit.rnu.tn

Abstract--Photovoltaic modules are very sensitive to the

reduction of solar irradiation due to shading. Shading can be II. PHOTOVOLTAIC CELL MODEL
caused by a fixed obstacle (wall, tree or even a simple pillar) or in The simplest equivalent circuit of a solar cell is a current
case of circumstantial events (cloudy sky or covered with heavy
smoke or dust). In order to illustrate the influence of shading on source connected in parallel with a diode as shown in Fig. 1.
the behaviour of a photovoltaic device, a study using MatLab The output of the current source is directly proportional to the
Simulink was carried out on a polycrystalline silicon module light falling on the cell. During darkness, the solar cell is not
YL250P29. The degradation of the incident solar irradiation on a
an active device, and it works as a diode. It produces neither
single cell of the photovoltaic panel leads to a considerable
decrease in the power produced by the system (about 1/3 in the current nor voltage.
case of a fully shaded cell). We have monitored the behaviour of However, if light falls on the solar cell, it generates a diode
the bypass diode, and the pivotal role it plays in preserving the current. The diode 𝐷, determines the I–V characteristics of the
series of cells adjacent to the affected one and ensuring a
reasonable rate of output. cell. A series resistance 𝑅𝑠 , represents the resistance inside
each cell, while the shunt resistance 𝑅𝑝 , is neglected because
Keywords-- Photovoltaic Panel, diode bypass, Shading, MPP
it has a large resistance value [7].
I. INTRODUCTION
A photovoltaic panel produces electricity by reacting to
sunlight. More a panel is irradiated more electricity it
produces. Any shadow is therefore considered as an unwanted
disturbance. The photovoltaic effect is a physical phenomenon
unique to semiconductor materials that generate electricity
when exposed to light [1, 2].
Crystalline silicon is one of those semiconductor materials,
widely used today in photovoltaic panels. Light is made up of
photons, which generate the circulation of electrons in silicon Fig. 1. Solar cell circuit diagram.
cells by photovoltaic effect. A continuous electric current is In an ideal solar cell, it is assumed that 𝑅𝑠 = 0 and 𝑅𝑝 =
created. These electrons then travel from cell to cell through ∞. The net current of the cell is the difference between the
metallic connections. The continuous electricity is finally photocurrent𝐼𝑝ℎ , and the normal diode current, which given
collected at the junction box of the photovoltaic panel [3, 4]. by:
A shadow means that a mask prevents the arrival of photons
on the photovoltaic cells. If a cell is in the shade, its current 𝑉𝑃𝑉+𝐼𝑃𝑉.𝑅𝑠 𝑉𝑃𝑉 +𝐼𝑃𝑉 .𝑅𝑠
𝐼𝑃𝑉 = 𝐼𝑝ℎ − 𝐼0 [exp ( ) − 1] − (1)
𝐴.𝑉𝑇 𝑅𝑝
production is degraded. The photovoltaic cells of a solar panel
are connected in series. The cell that produces the least The photocurrent 𝐼𝑝ℎ , depends on reference, temperatures
imposes its current on all the cells in the panel. Therefore, 𝑇𝑐,𝑟𝑒𝑓 and 𝑇𝑐 respectively, and it is given by [8]:
𝐺
bypass diodes are fitted to photovoltaic panels to minimize the 𝐼𝑝ℎ = (𝐼𝑠𝑐,𝑟𝑒𝑓 + 𝐾𝑖 . Δ𝑇) (2)
𝐺𝑟𝑒𝑓
production degradation of one or more neighbouring cells.
However, it is important to understand and predict them in
order to extract as much power as possible. For this reason, where 𝐺 is the present solar radiation and 𝐺𝑟𝑒𝑓 is the solar
over the years, researchers have been studying the radiation at the reference test and 𝐾𝑖 is the short circuit
characteristics of PV modules and the meteorological factors temperature coefficient.
affecting them [5, 6]. The saturation current of the diode, 𝐼0 , is given by:
This paper is organized as follows: In section 2, we have 1 1
𝑞.𝐸𝑔 ( − )
𝑇𝑐 𝑇𝑐,𝑟𝑒𝑓 𝑇𝑐
3
presented the characteristics of our solar panel and the adopted 𝐼0 = 𝐼0,𝑟𝑒𝑓 ( ) exp ( ) (3)
𝑇𝑐,𝑟𝑒𝑓 𝑛.𝑘𝐵
model. The third section deals with the effect of shading on
the output quantities of a solar panel. Improvements of our Where
solar panel are given in section 4. Finally, section 5 presents 𝐼𝑠𝑐,𝑟𝑒𝑓
some concluding remarks. 𝐼0,𝑟𝑒𝑓 =
𝑉
exp ( 𝑜𝑐 ) − 1
𝑎

1
 𝑘𝐵 𝑇 TABLE 3: PARAMETERS OF CONSIDERED PHOTOVOLTAIC BLOCK
𝑉𝑇 = Parameterize by: By s/c current and o/c voltage 5 parameters
𝑞
𝐼𝑠𝑐 8.79 [A]
𝑛. 𝑘𝐵 . 𝑇𝑐 𝑉𝑜𝑐 0.64 [V]
𝑎=
𝑞 Irradiance 𝐺 1000 [W/m^2]
A GPV generator is obtained by combining several Quality factor 𝑛 0.998
identical panels in a S*P configuration, where S is the number Serie resistance 𝑅𝑠 0.007 Ω
Ns of panels connected in series and P is the number Np of III. PHOTOVOLTAIC PANEL
panels connected in parallel. This association of a number The elementary photovoltaic cell is a very low-power
N=Np×Ns of modules allows the generation of the required electrical generator compared to the needs of most domestic
power. The equivalent diagram of such a system is translated or industrial applications. Indeed, an elementary cell of a few
by the following expression: [8]: tens of square centimeters delivers, at most, a few watts under
𝑉𝑃𝑉 𝑅
+ 𝐼𝑃𝑉 . 𝑠 a very low voltage, since it is a junction voltage. Photovoltaic
𝑁𝑠 𝑁𝑝
𝐼𝑃𝑉 = 𝑁𝑝 𝐼𝑝ℎ − 𝑁𝑝 𝐼0 [exp ( ) − 1] generators are therefore made by combining many elementary
𝐴. 𝑉𝑇
cells.
𝑉𝑃𝑉 𝑁𝑝 /𝑁𝑠 +𝐼𝑃𝑉 .𝑅𝑠 A circuit diagram of a 60-cell 𝑃𝑉 module, 60 solar cells are
− (4)
𝑅𝑝 split into 3 strings, 20 cells on each string, each two strings are
The parameters mentioned in the previous equation are connected in series with an ideal diode. The power produced
grouped in the following table: by a photovoltaic field is the sum of the powers of all the cells
TABLE 1: EQUIVALENT MODEL PARAMETERS composing it, but it is lower there, and that depends on the
𝐼𝑃𝑉 The current of solar cells (Ampere) meteorological conditions [8, 9]
𝐼𝑝ℎ The photocurrent (Ampere)
𝐼0 The saturation current of solar cells (Ampere)
𝑉𝑃𝑉 The output voltage of solar cells (Volt)
𝜇𝑠𝑐 the temp. coef. of the short circuit current (𝐴⁄𝐾)
𝐸𝑔 The Silicon bandgap energy (𝐸𝑔 =1.12 eV)
𝑇𝑐 The temperature of the solar cell (Kelvin),
𝑇𝑐,𝑟𝑒𝑓 The reference temperature of Solar Cells (Kelvin)
𝐺&
The irradiance and the irradiance ref (𝑘𝑊 ⁄𝑚2 )
𝐺𝑟𝑒𝑓
𝑘𝐵 Boltzmann’s constant (1.381 × 10−23 𝐽/𝐾)
𝑞 electron charge (1.60222 × 10−19 𝐶)
𝑛 The ideality factor of PV technology
𝐼𝑠𝑐 , 𝑉0𝑐 , 𝑉𝑚𝑝𝑝 and 𝐼𝑚𝑝𝑝 represent the short circuit current, the
open circuit voltage, the maximum power point current and
Fig. 2: A circuit diagram of a 60-cell PV module.
voltage which are shown in Table 1.
Simulations were carried out in the Matlab Simulink
TABLE 2: CHARACTERISTICS OF THE YL250P29B
environment for a photovoltaic module consisting of 60 cells
Maximum power generated from the 250.496 W
identical to the one studied previously.
module (W)
Open-circuit voltage (𝑉𝑜𝑐 ) 38.4 V Fig. 3 and 4 show the 𝐼 − 𝑉 and 𝑃 − 𝑉 characteristics for
The voltage at MPP (𝑉𝑀𝑃𝑃 ) 30.4 V different solar irradiation.
Temperature coeff of Voc -0.33701 (%/deg.C) It should be noted that:
Light-generated current IL 8.8002 A
𝑉𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑜𝑑𝑢𝑙𝑒 = 𝑁𝑠 ∗ 𝑉𝑐𝑜𝑐𝑒𝑙𝑙 (5)
Diode saturation current I0 1.2723e-10
Series resistance 𝑅𝑠 0.436 Ω
Number of Cells 60
𝐼𝑠𝑐𝑚𝑜𝑑𝑢𝑙𝑒 = 𝐼𝑠𝑐𝑐𝑒𝑙𝑙 (6)
Short-circuit current (𝐼𝑠𝑐 ) 8.79 A
The current at MPP ((𝐼𝑀𝑃𝑃 ) 8.24 A 𝑃𝑚𝑎𝑥𝑚𝑜𝑑𝑢𝑙𝑒 = 𝑁𝑠 ∗ 𝑃𝑚𝑎𝑥𝑐𝑒𝑙𝑙 (7)
Temperature coeff of (𝐼𝑠𝑐 ) 0.0438 (%/deg.C)
Diode ideality factor 0.9985 In nature, the uniform irradiation is not always satisfied
Shunt resistance 𝑅𝑝 364.6382 Ω because of the shadows of buildings or trees, the fluctuation
of the atmosphere, clouds and variations of the solar angle
The following Table 2 summarising the five parameters of the and the loss of power occurs precisely by the effect of
adopted equivalent model for the block formed by a parallel shading.
photovoltaic cells.

2
The impact of this effect is reduced by several factors
including the bypass diode. In practice, a module contains
bypass diodes to prevent damage due to reverse bias on
shaded cells. These diodes are placed in antiparallel with a
group of 20 cells (𝑌𝐿250𝑝29). The bypass diode will start
The effect of shading on the output of a 𝑃𝑉 module is non-
linear because a small amount of shadow on part or the entire
module can result in a significant reduction in output power.
A simulation in the Matlab/Simulink environment at different
irradiance 𝐺 gave the following array of 𝐼 − 𝑉 and 𝑃 − 𝑉
characteristics.
(a)
(b)
Fig. 3. Changing of MPP with solar irradiation for: (a)
single photovoltaic solar cell and (b) Solar panel.
From the graph we find that as the irradiation
decreases is manifested by a decrease in the current
supplied by the cell with a small variation in the open
circuit voltage 𝑉𝑜𝑐 .
(a)
3 To avoid excessive losses on the crystalline panels, they are
driving as soon as a shaded cell is reverse biased. It allows
the current from the non-shaded modules to shunt around the
shaded cells. This diode protects this cell group and limits the
shading effect to only the neighbouring group of cells
protected by the same bypass diode.
(b)
Fig. 4. Changing of MPP with Temperature for: (a)
single photovoltaic solar cell and (b) Solar panel.
Similarly, the degradation of solar irradiation reduces the
power produced by the cell. The maximum power point MPP
is shifted downwards. The relations deduced from the series
association of the photovoltaic cells concerning the short-
circuit current, the open circuit voltage and the maximum
power are well verified.
IV. IMPACT OF SHADING
Disturbances affecting a photovoltaic array under real
operating conditions lead to a degradation of the reliability
and performance of photovoltaic modules over time.
Furthermore, the instability of the GPV output quantities (V-
pv, I-pv and P-pv) due to unpredictable variations in weather
conditions affects the operation of the upstream components
of the electricity production chain. [10].
Electrical mismatch conditions on PV module can occur
when solar cells receive non-uniform irradiance or partially
shaded, or even if there are differences between solar cells
intrinsic to the manufacturing process.
Shadowing conditions is a widespread situation, especially
on BIPV (Building Integrated Photovoltaics). Managing the
shadow possibility is a challenge for designers, once the
partial shadowing problem can appear from several sources,
such as surrounding buildings, trees, antennas, poles, and dirt,
for instance. In a series-connected string of cells, all the cells
carry the same current. When one or more cells are shaded,
the maximum permitted current is reduced, consequently
decreasing the output power. Moreover, the shaded cells can
reach high temperatures, leading to the hotspot phenomenon
and permanent damage to the PV module [11].
Shading on a single photovoltaic cell can disrupt the
operation of the entire photovoltaic module.
The diagram below shows the impact of partial shading (grey
cells) on the total production of a panel consisting of 3
parallel rows, each of which is composed of 20 cells in series.
internally subdivided into several cell series (often three)
series).
These series are equipped with a bypass diode that allows
each series to operate separately. Thus, a series affected by a
shadow (in whole or in part) does not prevent the electrical (b)
production of the other series not affected by the shadow. In
addition, manufacturers use various devices, both in the
manufacture of the collectors and in the way are connected to
each other and to the inverter, to reduce losses due to shading
and to minimise the effect of cells in series. These
improvements also reduce overheating and therefore the risk
of damage [12].

Fig. 6. Changing of MPP with solar irradiation for single cell shaded: (a)
𝐼 − 𝑉 and (b) 𝑃 − 𝑉 .

Fig. 6.a shows the effect of the decrease in irradiance due to

the presence of shading affecting one or more cells mounted
with the same bypass diode. There is a decrease in the current
supplied. In case of zero irradiance the decrease is remarkable
for the open circuit voltage (voltage drop of one third).
Fig. 6.b shows the effect of partial shading on the maximum
power point. In the case of zero irradiation there can be a
significant reduction in power due to the drop in both output
voltage and current.

Fig. 5. PV module with 1 shaded cell.

Ever since, many studies about the shading effect on (a)
𝑃𝑉 modules have been developed. Shading of solar 𝑃𝑉 icell
modules is an essential consideration in the design.
The primary consequence of shading is a reduction of power
generated from the solar array. The amount of power losses
depends on the size of the shade and how it falls across the idbp
PV modules.
We applied different irradiation levels (from 1000 to 0 W/m2)
to the solar panel under study. The following two figures 𝐼 −
𝑉 and 𝑃 − 𝑉 show the important role of the bypass diode.

(b)
(a)

Fig. 7. The variations in the current and the voltage absorbed by the loads.

4
For this test, a decreasing irradiation (from 1000 to 0 W/m 2)
was applied with a resistive load absorbing a current close to
(a)
the nominal current.
The bypass diode enters conduction for an irradiation of
about 500W/m2. As the current supplied by the panel is that
of the least irradiated branch, a decrease in the load current is
observed.
It is from this moment onwards that the charging current is
kept almost constant even when the irradiation reaches its
minimum value.
Referring to Figs. 7.a and 7.b the variation of the voltage and
the current absorbed by the load when the irradiation
decreases from 1000 W/m² to 0 W/m² are expressed by:
- ∆𝑉 = 𝑉1000 − 𝑉0 = 33 − 21 = 11𝑉 ≈ 33% (8)
- ∆𝐼 = 𝐼1000 − 𝐼0 = 6.5 − 4.3 = 2.2𝐴 ≈ 33% (9) (b)

V. IMPROVING THE PERFORMANCE OF THE PHOTOVOLTAIC

PANEL:

We have shown the important role of bypass diodes in cases

of mismatch due to the imbalance between the photovoltaic
cells mainly introduced by shading.
We therefore propose to increase the number of bypass
diodes in order to reduce the effect of shading on one or more
cells of the solar module.
Fig. 8 shows the improved diagram without making any
changes to the cell arrangement. We have kept the Fig. 9. influence of irradiation case of an improved panel :
dimensions of the solar panel (6 rows of 10 cells each) with (a) 𝐼 − 𝑉 and (b) 𝑃 − 𝑉 .
90° rotation of the cells, in order to place the bypass diodes
as mentioned in the previous Fig. 8. (a)
grouping of 12 cells in a row
Bypass diode

(b)

Fig. 10Variation of the electrical quantities of a cell in the case of an

improved panel:
Fig. 8. Circuit diagram of a 60-cell PV module (5 bypass diode). a) current characteristics b) Voltage characteristics

5
For this test, a decreasing irradiation (from 1000 to 0 W/m 2).
The bypass diode enters conduction for an irradiation of
about 800W/m2.
The I-V and P-V curves in Figure 9 show a significant
improvement in the open circuit voltage and the maximum
power point.
It is from this moment (Irradiation = 800 W/m²) that the
charging current is kept almost constant.
Referring to the two figures 10.a and 10.b the variation of the
voltage and the current absorbed by the load when the
irradiation decreases from 1000 W/m² to 0 W/m² are
expressed by:
- ∆𝑉 = 𝑉1000 − 𝑉0 = 34 − 26 = 8𝑉 ≈ 22% (10)
- ∆𝐼 = 𝐼1000 − 𝐼0 = 8.3 − 6.6 = 1.7𝐴 ≈ 20% (11)
VI. CONCLUSION
In this work, we studied the effect of different shading
conditions on the output power of PV modules. We used
Matlab / Simulink to perform our simulations and used the
Yingli YL250P29 module specifications from SAM (2014).
First, we simulated the panel studied with the manufacturer's
design (presence of three bypass diodes at the junction box).
We noticed that the reduction of the illumination acts on the
output values of the panel while protecting the cells against
overheating (hotspot).
Secondly, we proposed an improvement of the panel by
modifying the cell diagram with a different arrangement to
introduce five bypass diodes. This solution allowed us to
mitigate the effect of partial shading on the I-V and P-V
characteristics.
Furthermore, we have proposed a practical improvement
solution that the manufacturer can implement by simply
changing the cell diagram in order to increase the number of
bypass diodes.
[6] Bok-Jong Yoo, Chan-Bae Park, Ju-Lee. 'Analysis Of
Correlation Of Climate Factors Affecting Solar Power
Generation'. International Journal of Engineering &
Technology 7 (2018) 570-574.
[7] V. Franzitta, A. O. and A. Di Gangi. 'Assessment of the
Usability and Accuracy of the Simplified One-Diode Models
for Photovoltaic Modules'. Energies 2016(9) 1019.
[8] Hamdi, H., Ben Regaya, C., Zaafouri, A. 'Real-Time
Study of a Photovoltaic System with Boost Converter Using
the PSO-RBF Neural Network Algorithms in a MyRio
Controller'. International Conference on Signal, Control and
Communication (SCC), pp. 156-162, 2019.
[9] F. Kaya, G. Şahin, M. Hakkı Alma. 'Investigation effects
of environmental and operating factors on PV panel
efficiency using by multivariate linear regression.
International Journal of Energy Research 45:1, 2021 pages
554-567.
[10] P. dos Santos, E. M. Vicente and E. R. Ribeiro,
"Relationship between the shading position and the output
power of a photovoltaic panel," XI Brazilian Power
Electronics Conference, 2011, pp. 676-681, doi:
10.1109/COBEP.2011.6085183.
[11] R. Bhol, R. Dash, A. Pradhan and S. M. Ali,
"Environmental effect assessment on performance of solar
PV panel," 2015 International Conference on Circuits,
Power and Computing Technologies [ICCPCT-2015], 2015,
pp. 1-5, doi: 10.1109/ICCPCT.2015.7159521.
[12] B. J. G. Montano, D. J. F. Rombaoa, R. A. S. Peña and
E. Q. B. Macabebe, "Effects of shading on current, voltage
and power output of total cross-tied photovoltaic array
configuration," TENCON 2015 Conference, pp. 1-5, doi:
10.1109/TENCON.2015.7372757.

REFERENCES

[1] M. Zebiri, M. Mediouni, and H. Idadoub 'Modeling and

simulation of the shading effect on the performance of a
photovoltaic module in the presence of the bypass diode'. E3S
Web of Conferences 37, 06002 (2018).
[2] RG Vieira, FMU de Araújo, M Dhimish, MIS Guerra . 'A
Comprehensive Review on Bypass Diode Application on
Photovoltaic Modules'. Energies, 2020, 13, 2472.
[3] Mustafa, R.J.; Gomaa, M.R.; Al-Dhaifallah, M.; Rezk, H.
'Environmental Impacts on the Performance of Solar
Photovoltaic Systems'. Sustainability 2020, 12, 608.
https://doi.org/10.3390/su12020608
[4] P Sathyanarayana, R Ballal, PL Sagar, G Kumar. 'Effect
of shading on the performance of solar PV panel' Energy and
Power, 2015, 5, 1-4.
[5] Kazem, Hussein A & Chaichan, Miqdam & Al-Waeli, Ali
& Mani, Kavish. 'Effect of Shadows on the Performance of
Solar Photovoltaic' In Mediterranean Green Buildings &
Renewable Energy (2017) 10.1007/978-3-319-30746-6_27.

View publication stats