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Photovoltaic Systems: Outline

The developer's estimate is incorrect for the following reasons: - He has not accounted for losses in the system from the solar modules, wiring, charge controller, battery and inverter. The module power rating is at peak conditions but the system will not operate at peak power for the full 6 hours. - He has not sized the battery correctly. A battery is needed to store power from the modules during the day and supply it to the load at night. The capacity and number of batteries needs to be calculated based on the daily load and available solar radiation. - Additional information needed includes daily solar radiation data, voltage requirements of the load, battery specifications and efficiency. He needs to do a proper load and resource calculation to

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George Mavromatidis
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198 views

Photovoltaic Systems: Outline

The developer's estimate is incorrect for the following reasons: - He has not accounted for losses in the system from the solar modules, wiring, charge controller, battery and inverter. The module power rating is at peak conditions but the system will not operate at peak power for the full 6 hours. - He has not sized the battery correctly. A battery is needed to store power from the modules during the day and supply it to the load at night. The capacity and number of batteries needs to be calculated based on the daily load and available solar radiation. - Additional information needed includes daily solar radiation data, voltage requirements of the load, battery specifications and efficiency. He needs to do a proper load and resource calculation to

Uploaded by

George Mavromatidis
Copyright
© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Photovoltaic systems: Outline

Output characteristics of cells and modules The PV generator Components of a PV system Examples of PV systems Sizing a PV system: step-by-step
Worked example: sizing a PV powered water pumping system

From cells to systems

C-Si module efficiencies typically ~ 15%

Light to power efficiency of best silicon solar cell ~ 25%

Photovoltaic systems: cell


Solar cell Area ~ 100 cm2 Current output in AM 1.5: I ~ 30 mA cm-2 x 100 cm2 = 3 A Voltage at maximum power point ~ 0.5 V Power conversion efficiency = 3A x 0.5 V / (100 cm2 x 100 mWcm-2) = 15%

Photovoltaic systems: module


Solar module BP 380J 80 Wp module 36 x 150 cm2 cells in series Current output in AM 1.5: I ~ 30 mA cm-2 x 150 cm2 = 4.5 A Voltage at mpp ~ 36 x 0.5 V ~ 18 V Power conversion efficiency ~ 15%

Module designed to supply charge to a 12V rated battery or inverter

Photovoltaic systems : module


4Vm
Im 3Vm i 2Vm Im 2Vm Im Vm i 2Vm Im 3Vm Im

3Vm

~Vm i << Im Vm Im i
0

~Vm Im Vm Im
0 i

Voltage output exceeds 12V rating to allow for cell failure. Bypass diodes used

Photovoltaic systems : generator


Solar PV system
+V

Module output Im x Vmod System rating VDC

N modules in string: String voltage N x Vmod > VDC


M strings in array: Array current M x Im PV generator output: M x Im x VDC
Module

PV generator supplies:
0

M x Im x VDC x PSH [Wh] electric energy per day M x Im x PSH [Ah] electric charge per day

Array of modules

Photovoltaic systems : charge storage


Power generated by PV system
PV generator

V DC IL x 24

Load

M x Im x PSH

[Ah / day]

[Ah / day] Battery

Power consumed by load

Charge stored in battery

time

Photovoltaic systems : system


Solar PV system
PV generator
+V

V DC

Load

Battery

PV generator

inverter

VAC

Load

Grid
Module

Components of a PV system

Array of modules

Sizing a PV system (stand-alone)


Power consumed EL = Power rating of load x hours of use x 1 / [1 - f (1-)] [Wh / day]

Fraction of power that has to be stored before use

Efficiency of battery

Current required by load IL =

EL / ( 24 x VDC)

System dc voltage

[A]
Power provided EPV = [Wh / day] M x Im x VDC x <PSH>

Average insolation

Require EPV > EL

M x Im IL x 24 / <PSH>

Sizing a PV system (stand-alone)


No. of modules in string N = VDC / Vmod Module rated V usually 12 or 24 V

No. of strings in generator M =

SF x IL x 24 / (Im x <PSH>) Size factor (> 1) for reliability

Sizing a PV system (stand-alone)


Size of battery [Ah] Maximum discharge fraction Charge deficit Q = Qd + Qlos + Qwinter QB = Q /

Qd = IL x 24 x f Qlos = IL x 24 x max. no. days with no sunshine Qwinter = ( IL x 24 - M x Im x PSH ) Summed over winter days

Example: Sizing a water pumping system


You are designing a stand-alone photovoltaic system to power a water pump for irrigation in a remote Central American location. The average power required by the load is 150 W, and it is used for 4 hours per day. The system runs at a dc voltage of 24V.
The following are available: Silicon photovoltaic modules of output 2.5A and 12V dc at 1kW m-2 irradiance. Battery storage in units of 100 Ah capacity. The battery has an efficiency of 80% and maximum discharge limit of 70%. Typical monthly radiation data for the site are given below:
Month January February March April May June July August September October November December Daily irradiance / kWh m-2 6.5 6.5 6.7 6.8 6.8 6.8 6.3 5.9 6.4 6.6 6.4 6.4 Charge generated / Ah Charge deficit / Ah

Example: Sizing a water pumping system


(a) Estimate the fraction of the load, f, which must be stored before use. This could be low, since (i) the water can be pumped when the sun is shining (pumped water is itself a form of energy storage) and (ii) solar irradiance is fairly constant through the year, so energy shouldnt need to be stored from summer for use in winter. Lets take f to be 0.2. (b) Estimate the energy required by the load each day, EL. EL = 150 W 4 h 1/ (1 0.2(1-0.8)) = 625 Wh
(c) Find the number of series connected modules, N, needed to supply the system dc voltage.

N = 24 / 12 = 2
(d) Find the mean current required by the load, IL , (averaging over 24 hours). IL = 625 Wh / (24 h 24 V) = 1.09 A

Example: Sizing a water pumping system


(e) Find the annual mean irradiance in kWh/day and hence find the minimum current which must be supplied by the PV generator, during peak sunshine hours, to meet the daily load.
Annual mean daily irradiance = 6.51 kWh m-2 (= sum of monthly values / 12) PV generator must supply current IPV such that IPV 6.51 24 1.09 24 24, i.e. IPV 4.02 A

(f) Decide on the number of parallel strings, M, for this system. Hence extract the size factor, SF. Note that SF should be higher for a greater system reliability.
Since one string generates only 2.5 A we need at least 2 strings. i.e. M = 2. Two strings generate 5 A leading to a size factor of 5 / 4.02 = 1.24. This is ample.

Example: Sizing a water pumping system


(g) Find the current provided by the PV generator during the months with least sunshine. Identify the months where load exceeds supply (if any), and find the charge deficit for those months, Qy. In August, the generator produces 5 A 5.9 h = 29.5 Ah per day while the load uses 1.09 A 24 h = 26.2 Ah. Load does not exceed supply, so the seasonal charge deficit is 0.
Month January February March April May June July August September October November December Daily irradiance / kWh m-2 6.5 6.5 6.7 6.8 6.8 6.8 6.3 5.9 6.4 6.6 6.4 6.4 Charge generated / Ah 32.5 32.5 33.5 34.0 34.0 34.0 31.5 29.5 32.0 33.0 32.0 32.0 Charge deficit / Ah 32.5 1.09 x 24 = 6.34

29.5 1.09 x 24 = 3.34

Example: Sizing a water pumping system


(h) Estimate the maximum number of consecutive days without sunshine at this location, and hence find the charge deficit due to lack of sunshine, Qlos.
Dont expect prolonged bad weather in a location with such steady insolation. Allow for two consecutive days with no sunshine: Qlos = 2 1.09 A 24 h = 52.4 Ah (i) Find the daily charge deficit, Qd, using your value of f from part (a). Qd = 0.2 1.09 A 24 h = 5.2 Ah (j) Find the total capacity required for the battery, remembering to allow for the maximum depth of discharge. Qd+ Qlos = 57.6 Ah. This can be supplied by one 100 Ah battery, allowing for the maximum discharge of 70%.

Example: Sizing a water pumping system


The average power required by the load is 150 W, and it is used for 4 hours per day. The system runs at a dc voltage of 24V.
The following are available: Silicon photovoltaic modules of output 2.5A and 12V dc at 1kW m-2 irradiance. Battery storage in units of 100 Ah capacity. The battery has an efficiency of 80% and maximum discharge limit of 70%.

So the system consists of: Two parallel strings of two modules each One 100 Ah battery.

Exercise for the student


A developer wants to design a stand-alone photovoltaic generator to provide power for lighting of a group of buildings in a sunny tropical location. Given that ten 20 W bulbs (d.c. compatible) are to be powered for six hours a night, the developer calculates that the average power load is 6 / 24 200 = 50 W. He has access to silicon solar modules with a power rating of 80 Watt-peak (Wp). He concludes that one module will be sufficient to provide power for his system.

Explain why his estimate is not correct, and briefly outline the factors he needs to consider and any additional information that he needs to obtain in order to design the system.

From SEF exam paper 2008.

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