Rooftop Solar PV System Designers and
Installers
Training Curriculum
APEC Secretariat
March 2015
INVERTER - GRID
Phptp by marufish (flickr free use)
Training of PV Designer and Installer
Phptp by kyknoord (flickr free use)
Phptp by thomas kohler (flickr free use)
Contents
A. How PV generate electricity?
B. Solar cell characteristics
C. Inverter – grid structure
Questions
Inverter - Grid 3
A. How PV generate electricity
Photons in sunlight hit the solar
panel and are absorbed by
semiconductor material – silicon.
Electrons (negatively charged) are
knocked loose from their atoms,
allowing them to flow through the
material to produce electricity. Due
to special composition of solar cell,
the electrons are only allowed to
move in a single direction.
An array of the solar cells converts
solar energy into a usable amount
of direct current (DC) electricity.
Inverter - Grid 4
B. Solar cell characteristics
• PV can be modeled by a • Diode forms the I-V
current source in parallel with characteristic
a diode, shunt and series
• Shunt resistor (RSH) represents
resistances
the leakage currents (very small)
• ILoad represents the max
current of the solar panel • Series resistance (RS) represents
(short current) the wiring losses
Inverter - Grid 5
B. Solar cell characteristics: example
I-V curve varies with real working conditions – high dependency on the
irradiance and lower dependency on the temperature. This mean an
inverter-grid should have MPPT technology to get maximum power during
real conditions.
Inverter - Grid 6
C. Inverter – grid structure
Option
Charger Battery
Boost Output
MPPT Inverter GRID
stage filter
PV Panel
Isolation Isolation
Inverter - Grid 6
Questions:
What is a solar inverter?
What are the types of solar inverters?
What are grid-tied solar inverters?
Where are grid-tied solar inverters used?
Inverter - Grid 7
Grid Tie PV System
Grid Tie Without Battery Backup
Inverter - Grid 9
String inverter
Each inverter works at its individual
maximum power point , one MPPT
for one string or multiple strings
Different conditions ( e.g. irradiation,
orientation, temperature, shading)
are acceptable
High voltage and less current
Inverter - Grid 10
String inverter
No generator connection box
Short cable lengths
Simple generator design
Similar MPPT current for all
required modules put similar
modules into one string
Inverter - Grid 11
String inverter
Solar PV System Installation –Grid Tie 12
Micro (“module”) inverter
No DC cabling
Monitoring on module level is
possible
Shade on a module or faulty
inverter does not affect the
other strings, individual MPPT-
tracking possible
Fits for modules with high
power tolerances
Safety extra-low voltage
possible
Inverter - Grid 13
Micro (“module”) inverter
http://i01.i.aliimg.com/img/pb/026/793/069/1069793026_749.jpg
Inverter - Grid 14
Micro (“module”) inverter
http://pvshop.eu/userdata/gfx/81e6faa756f321b60b98feedf00b6ba2.jpg
Inverter - Grid 15
Inverter Types
Typical values Micro Inverter String Inverter
DC-Input power 200…300 Wp 1…100 kWp
DC-Voltage range ≤ 50 V ≤ 1000 V
DC-Current range ≤ 10 Amps ≤ 100 Amps
Efficiency ≤ 97% ≤ 98%
MPPTs 1 1…5
Phases 1 1 or 3
Voltage level Lov voltage grid Low voltage grid
Electric Workmanship 16
Inverter Manufacturers
Electric Workmanship 17
Relevant Specifications
Monitoring and Electromagnetic
communications compatibility (EMC)
Available communication interfaces? CE certification is a must!
Monitoring system integrated? Adhere to manufacture’s
Sampling rate and storage time of data recommendations on earthing and
recorded wiring
Specs
Data logging features
Fault signaling
Overload protection Reverse polarity protection
Operation above rated power Inverters usually do NOT have
stresses electronic components reverse DC polarity protection
should be avoided through adequate Connecting wires with reverse
system design. polarity can lead
Above the critical operating inverter destruction and void
temperature, the guarantee
inverter shall derate its power
automatically
Inverter - Grid 18
Inverter efficiency
Sample efficiency curve for a grid-connected inverter
Inverter - Grid 19
Peak efficiency
Peak efficiency represent the highest efficiency that
the inverter can achieve
Most of grid-tie inverter have peak efficiencies of over
94%
The energy lost during inversion is for the most part
converted into heat
This means that in order for an inverter to put out the
rated amount of power it will need to have a power
input that exceeds the output.
a 5000 W inverter operating at full power at 95%
efficiency will require an input of 5,263 W (rated
power divided by efficiency).
Inverter - Grid 20
Project Number : EWG 22/2013A
Produced By
Andre Susanto - http://id.linkedin.com/in/andresusanto/
Castlerock Consulting - http://www.castlerockasia.com/
For
Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Secretariat
35 Heng Mui Keng Terrace
Singapore 119616
Tel: (65) 68919 600
Fax: (65) 68919 690
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.apec.org
© 2015 APEC Secretariat
APEC#215-RE-03.9
