Electrical Energy-saving Systems (EE530/6530 )

Solar Energy Utilization – Part 3

04-April-2018

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Solar Energy Utilization– Part 3 2
 A typical polycrystalline silicon solar cell, measuring
100 x 100 mm has the ability to generate 1.2 Watt-
peak. This is usually expressed in Wp. 1.2 Wp means
that the cell delivers 1.2 W in the optimal test
conditions, whereby the sun irradiation density equals 1
kW/m² and the cell temperature equals 25 °C, AM#
1.5 (it is called standard test condition, STC of PV
cells).

Solar Energy Utilization– Part 3 3

Effect of solar irradiance on V-I characteristics of a
typical solar module (maintaining constant module 4
temperature,25C)
Solar Energy Utilization– Part 3
 Effect of module
temperature in V-I
characteristics of a
typical solar
module
(maintaining
constant solar
irradiance, 100%, 1
kW/m2).

•Solar irradiation affects mainly the output short-circuit current, not

the output open-circuit voltage. Module temperature affects mainly
the output open-circuit voltage not the output short-circuit current.
•In general, the efficiency of a PV panel decrease with increased
module temperature, however the value for the coefficient of this
Solar Energy Utilization– Part 3 5
dependence varies with the material used in the PV cells.
 For a given solar irradiance and module temperature, the
maximum-power-point is at a specific point somewhere between
open-circuit and short circuit (usually more near to the s.c. than the
o.c.).

 Hence to extract the maximum power from the module for that
given condition, you have to present a load of suitable ohmic value
at the output of the PV module, but not just any load.

 As the condition changes (either the solar irradiance or module

temperature or others), this maximum-power-point moves, a special
device (usually called maximum-power-point tracking device,
MPPT device) is need to be installed between the PV module/array
and a given load such that the load presented to the PV system at the
output of the PV module/arrays varies in a way to always extract the
maximum possible power from the PV system as condition changes.
Solar Energy Utilization– Part 3 6
Solar Energy Utilization– Part 3 7
 As mentioned above, that is the solar irradiance
determines the output current of a PV module. In
making a PV array of higher rated voltage, usually PV
modules are connected in series.
 If the solar irradiance values of these modules are not
the same (say due to shadings from nearby
obstructions, or failure of a module), the array can only
output the least current of the modules.
 Therefore, the way to connect modules can greatly
affect the output of a PV array under shading
conditions or fault conditions.
Solar Energy Utilization– Part 3 8
 Very low output
from the PV
system, although
Only ¼ of the
modules are
shaded
May maintain 3/4 full
100% output from the PV
system, when ¼ of the
irradiance
modules are Shaded
10%
irradiance

100% irradiance

10% irradiance
Solar Energy Utilization– Part 3 9
Bypass
Diodes

Blocking Diodes

Solar Energy Utilization– Part 3 10

 Passby diode will let current bypass its associated
module, if its output current is less than the output
currents of other modules in the same string.
 Blocking diode to stop any internal circulation current
between the strings of the PV modules, if the output
voltages of the string are not the same.

Solar Energy Utilization– Part 3 11

Type of cells Efficiency at 25 degree C, in %
(typical, for commercially
available products)
Silicon – 14-16=>25
Monocrystalline
Silicon – Polycrystalline 10-14

Silicon – Amorphous 6-8

Gallium Arsenide (GaAs) 12-15 =>40

CIS (Copper Indium- 10-11

Diselenide)
CdTe (Cadmium- 9-10
Telluride) Solar Energy Utilization– Part 3 12
Grid connected Inverter:

Solar Energy Utilization– Part 3 13

 Central inverter concept – 1 inverter only
◦ ELV (VDC<120V):
 Protection class III
 High current
 Less shadow effect
◦ Higher voltages (VDC>120V):
 Protection class II
 Relatively low current
 Higher shadow effect

Solar Energy Utilization– Part 3 14

Solar Energy Utilization– Part 3 15
 For large PV system
 Use 2 or 3 inverters
 One master operates at low
irradiance ranges, with
increasing irradiance, the
power limit of master is
reached and the next
inverter (slave) is
connected.
 Master and slave are
swapped over in a specific
cycle to have equal loads

Solar Energy Utilization– Part 3 16

Solar Energy Utilization– Part 3 17
 For systems with different orientation, shading, irradiance
profile or separated physically due to architectural
limitation
 One inverter is used per array or per string
 Modules with similar ambient conditions should be
connected together in a string/array
 May facilitate installation of PV system
 Reduce installation costs (not capital)
 Often mounted in the immediate vicinity of PV modules
 Available in 0.5-3.0kW
 can omit junction box
 Reduction of module cabling to series interconnection
 Can omit DC main cable

Solar Energy Utilization– Part 3 18

 Every module is
connected to its own
inverter
 Also called AC
modules
 Better MPP matching
for PV modules
 Some inverters are
small enough to put
inside junction box

Solar Energy Utilization– Part 3 19

Solar Energy Utilization– Part 3 20
 Central inverter: often installed with other devices such
as meters, circuit breakers and line circuit breakers in
an inverter cabinet
 Array/string/module inverter: should install close to PV
junction box to reduce power losses through the DC
main cable
 IP rating: 65 or above suitable for roof applications, but
should also avoid direct solar irradiance or rain]
 Noise from inverter should also be considered (not very
often)

Solar Energy Utilization– Part 3 21

 range between 0.7 to 1.2Ppv
◦ Depends on tilt angle of your PV system
◦ 1-1.2(not preferred): roof
◦ 0.7: vertical façade
◦ Disaster if oversize or undersize (illustrated in Example A ext
c: Calculations of final AC electricity output to the grid)

Solar Energy Utilization– Part 3 22

Solar Energy Utilization– Part 3 23
V In A B

Solar Energy Utilization– Part 3 24

Solar Energy Utilization– Part 3 25
 Other than losses in PV cells (reflected in PV cell conversion efficiency
) and losses in inverters (reflected in inverter conversion efficiency ),
the next slide shows other minor losses in a PV system.
 Usually the inverter should also carry out the job of Maximum Power
Point Tracking (MPPT).
 Electronic control and data logging subsystems of a PV system
consume electrical power, this should usually reflected in the inverter
efficiency (as inverter for PV system must have the control subsystem,
sometimes included some data logging subsystem) .
 However, these electronic subsystems may consume electrical power
even when the PV system is in standby mode (say night time or low
sunlight time).
 Therefore, this have to be taken into account in daily or yearly total AC
electricity output from the PV system. (This is illustrated in Example A
ext c: Calculations of final AC electricity output) Solar Energy Utilization– Part 3 26
Solar Energy Utilization– Part 3 27
• Due to the fluctuating nature of the solar irradiance and the variable power
demand, the power generation does not match well with the power
consumption.

• The aim of the energy storage system (ESS) is to compensate the power gap
caused by the renewable energy sources and the load demand.

Solar Energy Utilization– Part 3 28

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Introduction to Energy Storage System (ESS)

Energy storage system is essential in a power grid. In a stand-alone
renewable energy system, it is used to compensate the unbalance between
generation and consumption. In a grid-connected renewable energy system,
it can be used to regulate the power flow and improve the power quality.

ESS can be classified as：

• Chemical Energy Storage
• Magnetic Energy Storage
• Thermal Energy Storage
• Mechanical Energy Storage
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Introduction to Energy Storage System (ESS)

Commonly used ESS devices：

 Batteries
 Supercapacitors
 Flywheels
 Superconducting magnetic energy storage (SMES)
 Compressed air
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Batteries
 Batteries are devices that can store the electricity in terms of
chemical energy. The one-way conversion efficiency is 85% - 90%。

 Batteries can be classified into two types：

• Non-chargable
This kind of batteries supply power by converting chemical energy into
electricity. But this conversion cannot be reversed.

• Chargable
The battery can be charged many times. There is power loss during
charging or discharging. This power loss is transfered into heat.
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Batteries

Ah capacity remaining in the battery

SOC 
Rated Ah capacity
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Batteries

Common chargable batteries

 Lead-acid (Pb-acid)
 Nickel-metal hydride (NiMH)
 Lithium-ion (Li-ion)
 Lithium-polymer (Li-poly)
 Zinc-air

NiMH and Li-ion are the two most commonly used batteries in mobile phones
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Batteries

Voltage per cell

Batteris Types Features
(V)
Lead-acid 2.0 cheapest
Nickel-metal hydride 1.2 temperature sensitive
Lithium-ion 3.6 safe
Lithium-polymer 3.0 pollute the environment
Zinc-air 1.2 need to control the air
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Batteries

Battery Characteristics
 charging and discharging voltage
 charging and discharging ratio
 conversion efficiency
 internal resistor
 temperature rise
 charge/discharge cycle
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Batteries
Internal resistor is an equivalent resistor that is used to represent the
power loss of a battery. It is related to the power capacity, temperature
and state of charge (SOC).
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Batteries
 Self-discharging
Even the battery is not connected to the load, its SOC will be
decreased gradually with less than 1% per day approximately.

 Temperature Influence：

• SOC and the charging efficiency are decreased with increased tempareture.

• Self-discharging rate is increased with increased tempareture

• The internal resistance is increased with increased tempareture

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Batteries
Three stages during a charging process：

 Fast charging - The SOC is increased from 0% up to 80% - 90%

 Slow charging - This stage is reached when the SOC is increased to

about 85%

 Soft charging - When the battery is fully charged and it is still

plugged to the electricity source.
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Supercapacitor
 Supercapacitor, or Ultracapacitor, is actually the trademark owned
by a Japanese company called Nippon Electric Company (NEC) and
an American company called Pinnacle Research Institute (PRI)。

 Technically the accurate name of supercapacitor is electrochemical double-

layer capacitor (EDLC)。

 The energy stored in a supercapacitor can be calculated as：

1
W CV 2
2

where W denotes energy, C is the capacitance, V is the voltage.

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Supercapacitor
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Supercapacitor

activated carbon

electrochemical double-layer capacitor (EDLC)

The activated carbon is used as the dielectrics, so that the surface of

the material is about a factor 100,000 larger than the smooth surface.
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Supercapacitor
The most promising application of supercapacitors is
Electric Vehicles (EV)
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Supercapacitor
Supercapacitor in the application of power quality improvement
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Supercapacitor
1. The capacitor is divided in half with different dielectrics. Find the capacitance.

2. Find the voltage across the nylon dielectrics

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Flywheel
Energy is stored in the form of mechnaical energy
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Flywheel
The energy stored in a flywheel can be calcuated as：

1
E J2
2

where J is the inertia of the flywhell， ω is the angular speed, and

v  2 r

If the energy is tranfered out of the energy storage system, the

flywheel speed will bedecreased; if the energy is tranfered into
the energy storage system, the flywheel speed will be increased.
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Fly Wheel

Advantages

 Very compact when compared to other energy storage systems

 Flywheels are used for starting and braking locomotives
 A flywheel is preferred due to light weight and high energy capacity
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Flywheel
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Compressed Air
Operations:
Use off-peak electricity to compress air and store it in airtight underground
caverns. When the air is released from storage, it expands through a
combustion turbine to create electricity
 Fast start-up
× Geological structure reliance

underground cavern
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Superconducting magnetic energy storage

(SMES)

SMES systems store energy in a magnetic field created by the flow of

direct current in a coil of superconducting material that has been
cryogenically cooled

Principle: At low-temperatures, electric currents encounter almost no

resistance stores energy in the magnetic field

Features: Environmental frieldly and highly efficient

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Superconducting magnetic energy storage

(SMES)
Solar Energy Utilization– Part 3 52