Objective:

This paper presents a statistical analysis of solar radiation in the city of Cúcuta, aiming to provide a detailed description of its variability between 2005 and 2015. This information represents an assessment tool to study the solar potential of the region for photovoltaic system design, motivated by the need to improve the cost-effectiveness of this technology, and thus increase its penetration in the Colombian electric grid.

Methodology:

Three weather databases with hourly data were studied, from which the one with the largest amount of data available was selected. By means of the R Studio software, two types of statistical methods were executed: single factor variance analysis (ANOVA) and Bonferroni test. From this, graphs representing the statistical summary of solar radiation values in the last decade were obtained.

Results:

The ANOVA showed a p-value of 6,28x10-7, indicating that there is a statistically significant difference in the sample mean between the different years of study. Likewise, the years and months with the greatest deviation and the possible causes for the variability of this parameter were identified.

Conclusions:

Despite showing a stable behavior, the radiation of the city of Cúcuta requires a very specific analysis for its use in applications that need a high sensitivity in the handling of this information, since there are statistically significant variations that can occur for its use.

Funding:

Universidad Francisco de Paula Santander