This paper presents a thorough review of state-of-the-art research and literature in the field of photovoltaic tracking systems for the production of electrical energy. A review of the literature is performed mainly for the field of solar photovoltaic tracking systems, which gives this paper the necessary foundation. Solar systems can be roughly divided into three fields: the generation of thermal energy (solar collectors), the generation of electrical energy (photovoltaic systems), and the generation of electrical energy/thermal energy (hybrid systems). The development of photovoltaic systems began in the mid-19th century, followed shortly by research in the field of tracking systems. With the development of tracking systems, different types of tracking systems, drives, designs, and tracking strategies were also defined. This paper presents a comprehensive overview of photovoltaic tracking systems, as well as the latest studies that have been done in recent years. The review will be supplemented with a factual presentation of the tracking systems used at the Institute of Energy Technology of the University of Maribor.

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The main aim of this paper is to analyze the influence of laser shaping of the photovoltaic cell based on its efficiency. The authors described both process of the monocrystalline photovoltaic cell manufacturing, its efficiency, and the possibilities of usage in architecture and the process of creating the photovoltaic cells of unconventional shapes by using laser technology. A method for cutting photovoltaic cells using a fiber laser was presented as well as the parameters of the laser cutting process. The described method allows cutting the massively produced silicon cells according to the predetermined trajectory. Using the proposed process parameters, satisfactory cutting edge quality, and negligible impact of the laser beam on changes in the structure of the photovoltaic cell active layers were achieved. In each cycle of structure cutting, only a small part of the material is removed (from 1 to 2 μm), and depending on the thickness, the process is repeated from 50 to 300 times. It has been shown that the efficiency of the modified cells depends on the ratio of their surface area to the laser cutting line.

This paper deals with photovoltaic (PV) power plant modeling and its integration into the medium-voltage distribution network. Apart from solar cells, a simulation model includes a boost converter, voltage-oriented controller and LCL filter. The main emphasis is given to the comparison of two optimization methods—particle swarm optimization (PSO) and the Ziegler–Nichols (ZN) tuning method, approaches that are used for the parameters of Proportional-Integral (PI) controllers determination. A PI controller is commonly used because of its performance, but it is limited in its effectiveness if there is a change in the parameters of the system. In our case, the aforementioned change is caused by switching the feeders of the distribution network from an open-loop to a closed-loop arrangement. The simulation results have claimed the superiority of the PSO algorithm, while the classical ZN tuning method is acceptable in a limited area of operation.