Electrostatic Field Interaction Analysis With Photovoltaic Cells For Solar-Powered UAV

Abstract

The development of photovoltaic sources is currently contributing to new aerospace applications and the global trend is towards the increased use of green energy in both terrestrial and aerial applications. This study focuses on the possibility of using photovoltaic cells to supply electricity to consumers on board a UAV. The main objective of this study is to analyze the effects resulting from the interaction of the electrostatic field with the photovoltaic cells, mounted on the wings of a UAV, under the influence of different values of solar radiation. An experiment was conducted to validate the hypothesis proposed in this study, in which a photovoltaic structure, integrated on the surface of a NACA 0012 airfoil, was exposed to the electrostatic field produced by a Van der Graaff generator. The results show the appearance of an electrical voltage, additional to that generated by the photovoltaic system and independent of the intensity of the light radiation. These results have important practical applications, as they demonstrate the feasibility of developing photovoltaic systems capable of generating electricity independently of the existence of a light source.