Solar Energy Materials & Solar Cells 244 (2022) 111834 Available online 4 June 2022 0927-0248/© 2022 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. Feasibility of solar tracking and fxed topologies considering the estimated degradation and performance of photovoltaic panels Leonardo Jonas Piotrowski * , Felix Alberto Farret Center of Excellence in Energy and Power Systems, Federal University of Santa Maria (UFSM), Santa Maria, RS, Brazil A R T I C L E INFO Keywords: Photovoltaic panels Degradation Solar tracking Electric power generation Photovoltaic performance ABSTRACT Solar tracking maximizes the amount of electricity generated by photovoltaic (PV) panels throughout the day. Nevertheless, it is necessary to understand the effects of the topology on the degradation of PV modules. Thus, a methodology is described in this paper to predict changes in the degradation and performance over the lifetime of PV panels according to solar tracking topology. A technical and economic analysis of an experimental system built in UFSM (Santa Maria-RS, Brazil) is used to discuss typical confgurations with and without solar tracking. Computational simulations were performed in the OpenDSS, Matlab and Homer programs for a period of 25 years. The results show an increase up to 2.43% in the accumulated degradation at the end of the simulated period by using a solar panel tracking compared to the fxed topology. In compensation, solar tracking increased annual electricity generation by an average of 20.87% proving that this topology is technically and economically quite feasible. 1. Introduction The path to the global energy transition aiming to limit the increase in global temperature goes through different technologies, innovations and emerging solutions, as well as the use of all existing renewable energy sources. One of the main expectations for the predominance in the future supply of electricity comes through photovoltaic (PV) panels. This adhesion to PV solar energy is related to several factors. Among them are the fact that they are renewable and noise free type of energy. As a result, it brings huge environmental benefts as well as reduction in greenhouse gas emissions compared to other types of electricity gener- ation [1]. Resources for PV generation are widely available, coupled with growing global political and economic support. Its decreasing costs make this source an excellent alternative for new projects of low cost and high-quality performance. An outlook from Ref. [2] estimates that solar PV is massively expanding to meet nearly one-third of the expected electricity demand between 2020 and 2030 with an average growth of 13% per year. The installed capacity of global solar energy, composed predomi- nantly by PV generation, has grown signifcantly in recent years. Ac- cording to Ref. [3] there was a worldwide increase of 19% (133 GW) at the end of 2021 in solar power generation capacity. As an example - in this same period Brazil added about 5.2 GW of PV generation. Solar energy remained the leader in global expansion capacity compared to other renewable energy sources accounting for a share of around 28% (849 GW) at the end of 2021 [3]. In this context, PV solar energy gains notoriety among the most promising renewable sources and emphasizes studies related to factors that can affect its generation capacity. Advances in solar cell manufacturing technology and the materials that compose them, such as Perovskite solar cells, try to increase gains in energy generation for different orientations and geographic locations [4]. Beyond that, other factors that affect PV energy production can be highlighted, such as temperature and solar irradiation. These climatic conditions of the PV installation sites are factors that vary geographi- cally and can be determinant for PV projects, as well as the use of ac- cessories and techniques to maximize the PV generation [5]. There are different confgurations with accessories that allow an increase of the energy captured by PV panels. For example, using panel cooling by circulation of water with thermal purposes usage [6], maximum power point tracking systems and simplifed solar tracking systems [7]. Such confgurations allow an increase in the electrical en- ergy generated by PV modules, either by reducing the operating tem- perature (PV panel cooling) or by increasing the module’s exposition to the sun rays (solar tracking systems). However, there remains a need for a better understanding of the impacts on PV panels using two-axis solar tracking under different degradation modes. A study by Ref. [8] shows a * Corresponding author. E-mail address: leonardoljp@gmail.com (L.J. Piotrowski). Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Solar Energy Materials and Solar Cells journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/solmat https://doi.org/10.1016/j.solmat.2022.111834 Received 1 January 2022; Received in revised form 26 May 2022; Accepted 28 May 2022