STAND-ALONE PHOTOVOLTAIC SYSTEM

COMPONENTS

Objective

to know components (balance of system) required to design

stand alone system

Learning Out come :

After this lecture, you will be able to

Identify components required during design of stand alone

system
Know Working principle and types of inverter , maximum
power point tracker
Know storage type (battery) required for stand alone system
, their type and characterstics
Know general lay out of installation , protection ,
distribution box , etc

Learning Out come :

Appreciate application areas of PV system

Design stand alone Pv system for single home,
institutions (school, health center etc)
Know criteria in selection of pv module, battery, charge
controller and inverter
Explain different types of inverter based on out put wave
form
Regarding batteries DOD and SOC, gassing, sulphation
and stratification
Use of charge controller in stand alone Pv system

Application of PV

Photovoltaic cells and systems have a wide variety

of applications, including

Application of PV

Basic components stand alone

Basic components grid connected

Thin film or amorphous solar

photovoltaic

Example of pv system

basic components

Module (Array)- the basic component that convert solar energy

directly to electricity i.e. the very source of electricity
Battery :where the energy from the module stored for later use

Charge controller; the device which controls the energy produced

by the module, the level of battery charge and energy consumed by
the equipment
Load ; energy consuming appliance ( TV, radio ,fridge ,computer
etc)
Inverter ; to convert DC to AC when required
Connecting wires , combiner boxes and protective devices such
as circuit breaker ,Dc and AC disconnect switch , fuse etc

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solar PV system in Direct current

the pv module produce Dc current and voltage and the

battery stores DC
This type of system generally works in very small Dc
voltage ,12V,24Vor 48V. And primarily for Dc
lighting and for Dc equipment with low energy
requirement

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SPV with DC and AC

In order to use AC appliance with PV system we need

DC to AC converter called Inverter.

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1. Module /Array

Module/array is Electric generator in PV system

Electric characteristic of module

all module specification is based on STC (standard test

condition ) which is industry standard which allows to
compare the performance of different module from
different manufacturers. STC test is done at

In reality the working condition of the module is different from

STC and the manufacturers give standard operating condition(SOC
data as well.

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STC specification of some modules

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NOCT spec of some module

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1. Module /Array

The electrical characteristics includes:

Pmax= maximum power the module can produce at MPP
Imax= maximum current at MPP
Vmax= maximum voltage at MPP
Voc= open circuit voltage
Isc= short circuit current

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1. Module /Array

Choosing module ; the following points have to be

taken into account when choosing /buying module

Module characteristics and application- check

module IV curve rather than data
Warranty usually 20-25 year
Cost per watt
Module certification

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Series connected modules

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Parallel connected modules

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Series-parallel connected modules

In high power applications, the array usually

consists of a combination of series and parallel
modules for which the total I V curve is the sum
of the individual module I V curves.

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2. Batteries

Used to store electricity generated by module during

the day time to be used by appliance during night time
or cloudy days.
Most sensitive part of spv system and needs the most
care and attention
Its life time is 2-8 years and after which needs
replacement therefore represent the highest cost the
user will have over the life time of the system
There are many types of batteries potentially available for use
in stand-alone PV systems, including lead-acid, nickelcadmium, nickel-metal-hydride, rechargeable
alkaline
manganese (RAM), lithium-ion, lithium-polymer and redox
batteries

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Common batteries in pv system

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Battery (lead acid)

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Type of Lead-acid Batteries

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battery

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Profile of Battery Voltage

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Indicator of State Of Charge

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Charging Efficiency

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2. Batteries

Among the many possible battery technologies, it is

the lead-acid battery that continues to be the
workhorse of PV systems.
Battery maintenance can be a major limitation for
stand-alone PV systems.
Typical requirements for a battery system to be used
for long term storage are:

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2. Batteries

Conventional car batteries (SLI) are not designed

for deep discharge; therefore, they are
inappropriate for PV systems.

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2. Batteries

Efficiency
Battery efficiency can be characterized as follows:

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Battery energy efficiency

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2. Batteries

Power rating and capacity

At the other extreme,
however, high temperatures accelerate aging,
selfdischarge and electrolyte use.

The battery capacity is measured in kilowatt-hours (kWh)

or ampere-hours (Ah), at a constant discharge rate.
The rate of discharge affects capacity
Battery capacity is affected by temperature, falling by
about 1% per degree below about 20C.
At the other extreme, however, high temperatures
accelerate aging, self-discharge and electrolyte use.

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2. Batteries

Depth of discharge(DOD) / state of charge (SOC)

Depth-of-discharge is the percentage of the rated

capacity withdrawn from the battery. Shallow cycling
batteries should not be discharged more than 25% of
rated, while up to 80% of the capacity of deep cycling
batteries may be discharged
Sate of charge =1-DOD

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Lead Acid batteries

A lead acid battery consists of a negative electrode made of porous

lead and a positive electrode which consists of lead oxide.
Both electrodes are immersed in a electrolytic solution of sulfuric acid
and water.

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Lead Acid batteries

Gassing :

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Lead Acid batteries

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Type of Lead-acid Batteries

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Indicator of State Of Charge

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Cycle life

Do you know?
(Voltage)

41

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Lead Acid batteries

Impact of depth of discharge on number of cycles

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Grid connected PV

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Battery Capacity

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Stand alone or roof mount PV

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How to read capacity

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Battery capacity vs discharge rate

Maintenance of Electrolyte
( To keep Level )

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Maintenance of Electrolyte
( To Prevent Stratification )

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Maintenance of Electrode
( To Prevent Sulfation )

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Maintenance of Cell Voltage

( To Equal voltage )

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Solar spectrum

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Parallel conection

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battery storage days

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3. Charge controller

Charge controller placed between batteries and solar

module . And have the following function;

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3. Charge controller

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3. Charge controller

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Charging phases of charge controller

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Charging phases of charge controller

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Type of Charge Controller

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Type of Charge Controller

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Types of charge controller

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Series and shunt charge controller

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Steca mppt controller

Electrical characteristics of charge

controller

72

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Choosing charge controller

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Set point voltages

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Connecting Sequence to cc

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Additional functions of CC

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4. Inverter

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Type of inverter

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inverter

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Output Waveform of inverter

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Characteristics of Typical lnverters

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Inverter efficiency

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Worldwide Annual Insolation

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Continued..

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Choosing an inverter

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Choosing an inverter

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When to use inverter?

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Connection to inverter

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Single inverter plant (small plant)

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Plant with one inverter for each string

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Multi-inverter plant

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5. Lighting and appliance

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characteristics of different light

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Choosing appliances

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Choosing appliances

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Dc lights

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Interconnection

For stand-alone PV systems the PV array charges the

battery, and the battery provides dc power to the inverter
which can produce ac power output at any time.

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Interconnection

For simple interactive PV systems, the PV array is

connected to the dc input of inverters, and there is no
energy storage.

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Selecting and sizing cables

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Selecting and sizing cables

When sizing the cables, three essential criteria should

be observed:

the cable voltage ratings,

the current carrying capacity of the cable and
the minimizing of cable losses.

With large PV systems and long module strings, the

voltage rating of the cable should be checked, taking
into account the maximum open-circuit voltage (at 10C) of the PV string or array to which it is to be
connected.

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Maintenance

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General Cleaning

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Measuring Points (Centralized)

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Common Troubles in a PV System

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Common Troubles in a PV System

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Troubleshooting Procedures

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COSTS ESTIMATE AND PRICING

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Design of stand alone system

Design of stand alone system

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PSH

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Learning Out come :

After this lecture, you will be able to
Design stand alone photovoltaic system for
residential ,commercial center and institution such
as school, health center etc.
Understand design procedures for spv system
Identify and select components required during
design time
Make appropriate assumptions during design time
Know selection criteria for battery, inverter, cables
and etc

step 1. measure /estimate daily

electric consumption wh/day

The most important and complex stage in sizing a stand-alone PV

system is providing a carefully worked out breakdown of the daily
electricity consumption. This is listed in Table below using the
example of a small holiday home.
First of all we need to estimate the consumption of all the
individual electric loads. All intended electric loads and their
respective power consumption are listed with their probable daily
operating times and their daily consumption amounts.
The calculation of the radiation energy is based each time on the
weakest month, taking into account the location, inclination and
temperature

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Example of step1

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.Sizing PV array

The size of the PV array should be selected to take

account of:

seasonal variation of solar radiation

seasonal variation of the load
battery efficiency
manufacturing tolerance of modules
dirt
temperature of array (the effective cell temperature)

In order to determine the energy required from the

PV array, it is necessary to increase the energy
from the battery bank to account for battery
efficiency. It around 90% or 0.9

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Step2 .Sizing PV array

After the daily electricity demand has been ascertained, the
correct size of the PV array needs to be determined.
There are different approaches to determining the yields of
the diverse solar module types available on the market.
The most sensible procedure would be to base this on the
nominal power of a module at STC

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Sizing methods

There are two types of sizing method for stand

alone PV system
1. Ampere hour method (Ah method)
2. Watt hour method (wh method )

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Steps in Ah method
1.

determine total load Ah /day

total load Ah/day= 1.2

2. Determine Battery size

/
Ah(batt)=
(0.8 )

no. of batt in series

no. of parallel string

=


=

total no. of batt= no. of batt in series x no. of parallel string

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Steps in Ah method

Total Ah of battery bank=( Ah single batt) x( no.

of parallel string)
System voltage = no. of batt in series x (voltage of
selected battery)
3.Determine Pv array size
/
Total Ampere required from pv=1.2 x

No.of module in
No.of parallel

series=

string=

Total number of module=no.series x no. parallel

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Steps in Ah method
4. determine charge controller
The current of charge controller= 1.3 x
Input voltage of charge controller = voltage of the
array
5. Determine inverter
wattage =1.3 x total wattage of the appliance
Input voltage window=bus voltage
6. Determine wire size
Determine the distance from
Array to CC
CC to battery

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Steps in Ah method

From battery to inverter

From inverter to sub distribution box
From sub distribution box to load
Assume 5% voltage drop in distribution system
AC side
2-3% voltage drop in DC Side
1% drop from charge controller to battery.
2
Area of the wire=
%.

Resistivity of copper 0.0179

L single length of wire

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Watt hour method

1, get total wh of the load (E)
2. PV power

(peak)=
.

where Q is for quality factor of the system ranges

from 0.1-0.4

Total number

of=

Pv module
No. of series connected
No. of parallel

module=

string=
.

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Area required =

3. Determine battery size

Kwh of battery

/
=
. ( ~0.8 )

no. of batt in series

no. of parallel string

total no. of batt= no. of batt in series x no. of parallel string

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Total Ah of battery bank=( Ah single batt) x( no.

of parallel string)
System voltage = no. of batt in series x (voltage of
selected battery)
4 &5. other steps are the same to that of Ah method.