IEEE STUDENT Branch of Dronacharya College of Engineering, Gurgaon organized an Industrial Visit to “National Institute of Solar Energy, Gwal Pahari” on 7th October 2016. Fifty one students from EEE and ECS department of DCE, Gurgaon along with faculty member Dr. Deepika Yadav (Associate Professor, EEE) visited the institute.

National Institute of Solar Energy, an autonomous institution of Ministry of New and Renewable (MNRE), is the apex National R&D institution in the field Solar Energy. The National Institute of Solar Energy is located on Gurgaon - Faridabad road. The Government of India has converted 25 year old Solar Energy Centre (SEC) under MNRE to an autonomous institution in September, 2013 to assist the Ministry in implementing the National Solar Mission and to coordinate research, technology and other related works.

The institute is involved in demonstration, standardization, interactive research, training and testing solar technologies and systems. It is an effective interface between the Government and institutions, industry & user organizations for development, promotion and widespread utilization of solar energy in the country. NISE is maintaining a NABL accredited Solar Photovoltaic module testing laboratory, lighting system test laboratory, battery testing facility and a water pumping system test ring and outdoor test facilities.

The students and faculty member were welcomed by Mr. Rahul Pachauri, Jr. Scientist at National Institute of Solar Energy. He gave brief introduction to students about National Institute of Solar Energy (NISE), Gwal Pahari and then students were headed towards auditorium at NISE. At auditorium Mr. Rahul Pachauri, described briefly the institute by short video of the institute. Then one Jr. Scientist and two research scholar introduced the solar site which includes: Solar thermal Energy, Solar PV Bed and Hydrogen Fuel Station.

Mr. Rahul described students three concepts used at National Institute of Technology, Gwal Pahari which were as follows:

Solar thermal Energy

1. Solar thermal energy is a form of energy and a technology for harnessing solar energy to generate thermal energy or electrical energy for use in industry, and in the residential and commercial sectors.

2. Solar thermal collectors are classified as low-, medium-, or high - temperature collectors. Low - temperature collectors are flat plates generally used to heat swimming pools. Medium - temperature collectors are also usually flat plates but are used for heating water or air for residential and commercial use. High - temperature collectors concentrate sunlight using mirrors or lenses and are generally used for fulfilling heat requirements up to 300 deg C / 20 bar pressure in industries, and for electric power production. Two categories include Concentrated Solar Thermal (CST) for fulfilling heat requirements in industries, and Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) when the heat collected is used for power generation.

Hydrogen fuel Station

1. A hydrogen station is a storage or filling station for hydrogen, usually located along a road or hydrogen highway, or at home as part of the distributed generation resources concept. The stations are usually intended to power hydrogen vehicles, but can also be used to power small devices. Vehicles use hydrogen as fuel in one of several ways, including fuel cells and mixed fuels like HCNG. The hydrogen fuel dispensers dispense the fuel by the kilogram.

Solar Photo Voltaic Bed

1. Photovoltaics (PV) covers the conversion of light into electricity using semiconducting materials that exhibit the photovoltaic effect, a phenomenon studied in physics, photochemistry, and electrochemistry.

2. A typical photovoltaic system employs solar panels, each comprising a number of solar cells, which generate electrical power. The first step is the photoelectric effect followed by an electrochemical process where crystallized atoms, ionized in a series, generate an electric current. PV Installations may be ground-mounted, rooftop mounted or wall mounted.

3. Solar PV generates no pollution. The direct conversion of sunlight to electricity occurs without any moving parts. Photovoltaic systems have been used for fifty years in specialized applications, standalone and grid-connected PV systems have been in use for more than twenty years.

Through the industrial visit students enhanced their knowledge about the sun and solar energy. They came to know sun is 93 million miles away. The tiny fraction of the Sun’s energy hits the Earth (a hundredth of a millionth of a percent) is enough to meet all our power needs and more. In addition to providing the energy that sustains the world, solar energy is stored in fossil fuels and biomass, and is responsible for powering the water cycle and producing wind. Solar energy produces no air pollution, thermal pollution, or water pollution, and using solar energy does not disrupt the natural environment.

“Energy production and energy consumption cause more environmental damage than any other peacetime activity on earth” so in future make use of renewable energy in our day to day life.

Some Glimpse from the Industrial Visit: