SOLAR TRAINING MANUAL

(INTERMEDIATE)

For: Climate Resilient Low Cost Buildings in Marsabit County Project, 2018
Contents
Electrical Basics .......................................................................................................................................... 2
THE SUN AS AN ENERGY SOURCE ...................................................................................................... 5
Basics of a Solar System ............................................................................................................................. 7
PV Module .............................................................................................................................................. 8
Battery .................................................................................................................................................... 9
Charge controller................................................................................................................................... 11

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Electrical Basics
Current
Electricity flow can be compared to water flow. The higher the electrical flow, the higher the
current flow. Current is the quantity of electrons flowing inside wires (conductors)
 Symbol:‘I’
 Unit: ‘A’(ampere)
Voltage
Voltage is the electrical potential, or the pressure that moves electrons through the wires
(conductors) and can be compared to pressure in a water pipe. Voltage is the electric potential
difference between two points
 Symbol: ‘V’
 Unit: ‘V’(voltage)
Resistance
 Resistance limits the flow of electrons through the wires, like a nozzle restricts the
flow of water through a pipe
 Smaller pipes restrict water flow, just like smaller wires restrict electrical flow
(higher resistance)
 Longer pipes also restrict water flow. Similarly, the longer the wires, the higher the
resistance
Resistance is the opposition to the passage of an electric current
 Symbol: ‘Ω’
 Unit: ‘Ohms’

Ohms law
Current, Voltage and Resistance are related and if you know any two you can calculate the third.

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(Mikl, 2014) (Mikl, 2014)

Power


Power can be thought of as a stream of water, which has both pressure and flow rate


Power is derived from voltage (V) multiplied by current (I)


P=VxI
Symbol: ‘P’ and Unit: ‘W’(watt)
Power Law

(Mikl, 2014)

(Mikl, 2014)

Power & Energy

 The W (Watt) is a measure of power and it is the rate at which energy is generated or


consumed.


The Wh(Watt-hour) is the (integrated) power that is generated or consumed in one hour
When a 1 kW appliance is used for one hour, the energy used is 1 kWh

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(Mikl, 2014)
If the 20W module is used to charge a battery for 5 hours per day
Total energy generated per day is 20 W * 5 hours = 100 Watt-hours (Wh)
Parallel and series connections

(Mikl, 2014)

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Alternating Current (AC) & Direct Current (DC)
AC current is a specific type of electric current in which the direction of the current's flow is
reversed, or alternated, on a regular basis. Direct current is no different electrically from
alternating current except for the fact that it flows in the same direction at all times.

The Sun As An Energy Source

 The central star in our planetary system has 330,000 times the mass of the earth and its


core pressure equals 200 billion earth atmospheres.
For the next 4.5 billion years every second 560 million tons of hydrogen will be fusioned
into lighter helium. The loss of mass creates an energetic power of 3.85 x 1026 W


(E=mc2)).
The portion of solar energy which reaches the outer parts of the earths atmosphere in a


rectangular angle is called solar constant.


The solar constant at the outer earth atmosphere averages per year at approx. 1,037W/m2.


About 1,000W/m2 of this power reach the earths surface.
The energy accumulated by this radiation lies between 2,200kWh/m2 at the equator and
800kWh/m2 at the polar circles.Basics of PV solar system
Solar Radiation


Power produced by PV arrays is directly proportional to sunlight intensity


The sunlight intensity on PV array is dictated by cloud cover and array orientation


Cloud cover decreases sunlight intensity and diffuses sunlight
Array orientation (tilt angle and azimuth angle) impacts the extent of direct and diffuse
lights reaching the PV array

Irradiance: Direct/Diffuse Ration & Installation

Direct/diffuse ration dictates tilt or tracking installation

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(Mikl, 2014)

Solar resource
Irradiance is power (unit: watt/m2); irradiation is energy (unit: watt-hour/m2/day or watt-
hour/m2/year). Solar irradiance is the sun’s radiant energy incident on a surface of unit area
expressed in units of kW/m2. Diffuse could be considered “scattered” light; direct light is non-
scattered light reaching the device directly from the sun. Peak sun is the irradiance when it is
1000 W/m2; peak sun hours are equivalent to the number of hours that the solar irradiance would
be at a peak level/power of 1kW/m2
Solar Irradiation or Insolation (kWh/m2)
Solar irradiation (energy) or solar insolation is equal to total solar irradiance (power) over time.
Solar irradiation is the sun’s radiant energy incident on a surface of unit area expressed in units
of kWh/m2


expressed on an average daily basis for a given month or year
referred to as solar insolation or peak sun hours
Peak sun hours (PSH) is the average daily amount of solar energy received on a surface. PSH
are equivalent to the number of hours that the solar irradiance would be at a peak level/power of
1 kW/m2. 1000 W/m2 is a typical average globally at noon on a clear day. Modules are rated at
1000 W/m2.

PV Array Orientation
The orientation of PV arrays is defined by two angles with respect to the PV surface

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  The PV array azimuth angle represents the angle between true north and the direction


the array faces (in Nairobi, magnetic north is 0-3° west of true north).
The PV array tilt angle represents the angle the array surface makes with the horizontal
plane/earth.
Tilt Angle
 The correct tilt angle should be determined based on the energy usage and the local


weather conditions at different times of the year
A tilt angle at less than 10o -is typically not recommended to allow for self cleaning


(soiling losses).
The self cleaning ability of solar panels starts at a tilt angle of 25°. Higher tilting angles
are usually sufficient for the ability to self cleaning.

Basics of a Solar System

(Manual for Solar PV training, 2009)

Features of Solar PV System

 PV Module
 Charge controller

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  Battery
 Inverter

PV Module
Types of PV modules
 Monocrystalline
 Polycrystalline
 Amorphous

(Manual for Solar PV training, 2009)

 All PV modules must be marked with the following information (if not, then they
might not be from a reputable source):
1. Open-circuit voltage (Voc)
2. Short-circuit current (Isc)
3. Operating voltage (Vmp)
4. Operating current (Imp)


5. Maximum power (Pmp)


Polarity of terminals
Maximum permissible system voltage
Influence of Radiation Intensity
The biggest influence on the power output of a solar panel is naturally caused by the variation of
sun light. The biggest effects happen in the changes of the panels current. A fifty percent
decrease of solar irradiation also causes a fifty percent decrease of ISC. VOC only decreases by a
few volts.

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 (Mikl, 2014)
Temperature Influence

Like all semiconductors photovoltaic cells are strongly temperature dependent. Higher
temperatures can minimize voltage values while low ambient temperatures lead to a higher VOC.

(Mikl, 2014)
Battery
– Battery stores electrical energy in DC
– Mainly used during night time and charged during the day.
Unit cell for a battery is 2V. Which is the nominal voltage. Voltage range is around 1.85V to
2.40V


12V battery has 6 unit cells in series connected.
6V battery has 3 unit cells in series connected.

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The main type of battery used in Solar PV systems are the Lead Acid type and they can either be
flooded type of the maintenance free type.
Capacity
Capacity is a measure of the stored electric charge or stored energy that a battery can deliver
under specified conditions
 An ampere-hour (Ah) is the unit measurement of battery energy storage capacity, and


equals to the transfer of one ampere for one hour.
Capacity depends on the battery temperature, discharge rate and cut-off voltage.
How to read capacity
 960Ah at 24h discharge rate [ 960Ah (C/24) ]. 40A can be discharged for 24hours till


voltage becomes 1.85V/cell
1200Ah at 120h discharge rate [ 1200Ah (C/120) ]. 10A can be discharged for 120hours
till voltage becomes 1.85V/cell
(Manual for Solar PV training, 2009)

(Manual for Solar PV training, 2009)

Technical maintenance of batteries
 Maintain electrolyte level ( use distilled water only).
 Maintain homogenous electrolyte (Avoid stratification)- acid tends to accumulate in
bottom areas, simple shaking could be done.
 Maintain healthy electrode (Avoid sulfation). Very common in case of no charge
controller and due to over discharging of the battery of leaving the battery uncharged .
Crystallized sulfation covers the surface of electrode permanently.
 Maintain equal cell voltage ( periodical equalization). Normally automatic by charge
controller.

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Charge controller
The charge controller is the central equipment of a DC coupled PV stand-alone system. Its main
tasks are
1. Overcharge protection by automated disconnection
2. Reverse current protection
3. Controlled recharging and continuous charge hold
5. Deep discharge protection

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