Site-Selecting of the Photovoltaic Solar Power Plants Using Climatic Elements in Yazd Province

With the global expansion of population, rising energy consumption and the lack of renewable energy sources that are costly and polluting, the need for clean and sustainable energy such as solar energy has been increasingly taken into consideration. To evaluate land suitability for the optimal placement of photovoltaic solar power plants in Yazd province of Iran, the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) was used. A set of climatic and environmental constrains based experts' advices prepared in nine layers, estimates the potential sites for solar park installation. These constrains based on their relative importance in site evaluation extracted from AHP method, including sunshine, humidity, rainfall, evaporation, temperature, elevation, distance to access, fault and the power post. Climatic data obtained from eleven synoptic stations including fifteen-year period (2001-2016). After final mapping, the susceptible areas of photovoltaic solar power plants were determined in Yazd province. These areas located in Yazd, Bafgh, Ardakan, Meybod, Saduq and Khatam cities. After applying the privacy layer and considering the forbidden areas by conducting the field surveys, 5% of the Yazd province was considered suitable area for the construction of photovoltaic solar power plants. These areas are located in the south and south-east of Yazd, and part of the Bafg city.