Residential Implementation of Photovoltaic Systems

By Chris Hinton & Patrick Patterson

OffOff-Grid & Grid Tied

Placement & Orientation

System Sizing & Design

Mounting Techniques

Energy Storage Charge controllers

PV Modules

Inverters

Future of PVs

Two Types of Residential Photovoltaic (PV) Systems

OffOff-grid GridGrid-tied

Golden, Colorado - National Renewable Energy Lab

East Lansing, Michigan - National Renewable Energy Lab

OffOff-grid PV Systems


Power for remote systems CostCost-prohibitive utility line extensions

Location unknown - SolarDepot.com

Electric company quoted US$7 a foot to bring in the utility line from about a mile away (about US$37,000). - Home Power Magazine #92 Pg 22

GridGrid-tied PV Systems


Net Metering Local incentives promote grid-tied gridsystems exclusively Reduce peak power demand on utility

- Energy Trust of Oregon

PV System Sizing
How much power do you need?
Energy use & auditing Energy efficiency measures Energy requirements for PV

OffOff-grid System Considerations

Design system to match load


Begin with precise load calculations Reduce load requirements through efficiency measures Estimate energy production potential from solar insolation data Select PV hardware to match load requirements
- Xantrex

GridGrid-tied System Considerations

Design system economically
  

Examine previous power bills Implement energy efficiency first Estimate production potential from solar insolation data Choose % of load to match Select PV hardware for utility interconnection
- Xantrex

 

Module Placement & Orientation



Implications of shading The sun path Azimuth Tilt angle

Moorepark, California - BP Solar

Tracing the Sun



Seasonal sun path variations Solar pathfinder tool Obstacles to sunlight can be traced and predicted for different times of the year

- Real Goods

- Home Power Magazine # 57, pg. 32

Module Placement & Orientation Guidelines

 Standard PV module azimuth rule: (Orientation) = (True South) Note: In Portland, true South is about 19 19 east of magnetic South  Standard PV module tilt rule: (Angle from horizontal) = (Geographic Latitude)
http://www.proaxis.com/~johnbe ll/iitt/questionftf49.htm

- Real Goods

What About Azimuth & Performance?

-Home Power Magazine # 93, pgs. 24-28

Effects of Tilting PV Modules

Maximize energy production by optimizing tilt angle Seasonal adjustments can further maximize production capabilities

- Home Power Magazine # 57, pg. 35

How much does tilt angle really matter?

-Home Power Magazine # 93, pgs. 24-28

Module Placement & Orientation Considerations

Placement and orientation often depend upon system priority:


OffOff-grid systems should maximize energy production GridGrid-tied systems often maximize aesthetics characteristics

Aesthetics Count

This is the same house!

-Home Power Magazine # 93, pg. 26

-Home Power Magazine # 93, pgs. 10, 11

Module Mounting
Roof Mounted Ground Mounted
-Home Power Magazine # 93, pg. 15

- National Renewable Energy Lab

Trackers
-Home Power Magazine # 95, pg. 127

Mounting Considerations
      

PV cooling Wind resistance Structural Stability Code compliance PV Orientation Oak Park, California - BP Solar Aesthetics Visibility (visible installations may increase public awareness of renewable energy)

Energy Storage
  

OffOff-grid storage needs GridGrid-tied energy storage Cost and Efficiency Considerations

- Home Power Magazine # 27, pg. 34 - National Renewable Energy Lab

OffOff-grid Energy Storage



Calculate storage requirements from:

  

Climate (periods of cloudy weather?) Critical loads (what do you need to power?) Capacity should last 4 21 days

 

Batteries should not be discharged more than 50% 70% or battery life is shortened Install batteries in safe, climate-controlled, climateventilated location (not in your living room)

GridGrid-tied Energy Storage

 Most

GridGrid-tied systems do not use batteries  Rather the utility grid is treated as a 100% efficient, unlimited capacity battery (except during outages)  Batteries may be added for additional storage flexibility

Batteries: Cost & Efficiency Considerations

 

Batteries add significant cost to a PV system Charging batteries significantly reduces system efficiency: 20% energy losses are typical during battery charging

The Xantrex XS12205 12-volt, 184 amp hour, AGM battery was designed for backup and solar applications. $399 (list) or $179 (on sale)
http://www.partsonsale.com/xs12200.html

Photovoltaic Hardware Selection

   

PV Modules Inverters & Charge Controllers Mounting Hardware Balance of System Components

Photovoltaic Modules Criteria

 Cell


Selection

types

(in decreasing order of price and efficiency)

Monocrystalline  Polycrystalline  Amorphous (thin-film) (thin

Performance
IV curves  Maximum power rating  efficiency


 Aesthetics

Module Comparison Chart

Photovoltaic Modules Survey

 BP

Product

Solar: BP 5170 Solar: SP150-PC SP150Solar: EC-110 EC-

http://www.bpsolar.com/ContentDocuments/84/BP%205170S.pdf

 Shell

http://www.shell.com/static/shellsolar/downloads/products/us/ShellSP150http://www.shell.com/static/shellsolar/downloads/products/us/ShellSP150-PC_USv1.pdf

 Evergreen  Kyocera: 

http://www.evergreensolar.com/egsolar1/pdf/ec100series13.pdf

KC120KC120-1

http://www.kyocerasolar.com/pdf/specsheets/kc120_1.pdf

Sharp: NT-S5E1U NThttp://www.sharpusa.com/files/sol_dow_185WSS.pdf

Inverters


Selection Criteria

Output types
 

True sine wave Modified sine wave 12VDC, 24VDC, 48VDC String inverters PV Modules wired accordingly

Input requirements
  

- SMA America

 

Monitoring and data logging capabilities NonNon-islanding inverters for Grid-tie applications Grid-

Charge Controllers
 

Purpose safe battery charging Types

 

Series Shunt

 

StandStand-alone units Integrated (into inverter)

- RV Power Products

Inverter Comparison Chart

Remote Monitoring Options

PC Interface: Trace (Xantrex)

-Home Power Magazine # 94, pgs. 24, 26

PC Interface: SunnyBoy

- SMA America

Inverters & Charge Controllers Product Survey

 Outback


Power Systems

http://www.outbackpower.com/

 SMA


America

http://www.smahttp://www.sma-america.com/ http://www.xantrex.com/products/index.asp

 Xantrex


Mounting Hardware


Two Seas Mounting Structures

http://www.2seas.com/matrix_ground_roof_a_r.htm    

Ground/Roof Flush Mount MultiMulti-Tier Low Profile

Unirac
http://www.unirac.com/   

Large Array PV Module Mounting System Solarmount (ground/roof) Tracker 200 (2-module tracking rack) (2-

- UniRac

Balance of System Components

 DC

disconnects  AC Disconnects  Fuses/Breakers  Grounding hardware  Lightning Arrestors  Combiner Boxes

Case Studies
 Off

Grid Living  Grid-tied with batteries and monitoring Grid Off Grid PV & Wind Hybrid System  Grid-tied system with unbelievable payback Grid-

Off Grid Case Study: Bisbee Family

Home Power Magazine #92, pgs. 22-27 22-

GridGrid-tied Case Study: Simons Family

- Home Power Magazine # 94, pgs. 22-27 22-

Off Grid Case Study:

Reising & McCoy Family
- Home Power Magazine #89, pgs. 10-19 10-

GridGrid-tied Case Study: Webster Family

- Home Power Magazine #95, pgs. 22-28 22-

GridGrid-tied Case Study: Webster Family

Conclusions & Personal Thoughts



Carefully designed residential PV systems provide their owners with clean, reliable power, and promote interest in renewable energy sources Hydrogen as Energy Storage BuildingBuilding-integrated materials Expanded use of solar energy for water purification, water heating, space heating (air-to-air heat (air-toexchangers), as well as electricity production
-Home Power Magazine # 93, pg. 27

  

References
Bell, John (2000). Questions from the Field [Internet] Available from: <http://www.proaxis.com/~johnbell/iitt/questionftf49.htm> [Accessed July 2003] Bisbee, D. (2002) Off the Grid: Starting Small Home Power Magazine, No 92, December/January, pp. 22-23. BP Solar (2003). BP Solar Home Page [Internet] Available from: <http://www.bpsolar.com> [Accessed July 2003] Chadderdon, M. and Chadderdon, J. (2003) The Chadderdon Photovoltaic Story. Home Power Magazine, No 93, February/March pp. 10-18. Energy Trust (2003). Solar Electric for Homes and Businesses [Internet] Available from: <http://www.energytrust.org> [Accessed July 2003] McCoy, C. and Reising, C. (2002) Still Saying "Yes" to Sunshine Home Power Magazine, No 89, June/July, pp. 10-19. National Renewable Energy Lab (2003). Photographic Information Exchange [Internet] Available from: <http://www.nrel.gov/data/pix/pix.html> [Accessed July 2003] OutBack Power Systems (2003). OutBack Power Systems Home Page [Internet] Available from: <http://www.outbackpower.com> [Accessed July 2003] Perez, R. and Drake, J. (1997) Where and How to Mount PV Modules. Home Power Magazine, No 57, February/March, pp. 32-37. RV Power Products (2003). RV Power Products Home Page [Internet] Available from: <http://www.rvpowerproducts.com> [Accessed July 2003] Schaeffer, J. ed. (2001) Solar Living Source Book: The Complete Guide To Renewable Energy Technologies & Sustainable Living. 11th ed. USA, Chelsea Green Publishing Company. Simons, B. (2003) PV Done Right - Grid Tie, Battery Backup, and System Monitoring. Home Power Magazine, No 94, April/May, pp. 22-27. SMA-America (2003). SMA-America Home Page [Internet] Available from: <http://www.sma-america.com> [Accessed July 2003] Solar Depot (2003). Solar Depot Home Page [Internet] Available from: <http://www.solardepot.com> [Accessed July 2003] Solatron Technologies (2003). Xantrex XS12205 [Internet] Available from: <http://www.partsonsale.com/xs12200.html> [Accessed July 2003] Two Seas Metalworks (2003). Two Seas Metalworks Home Page [Internet] Available from: <http://www.2seas.com/matrix_ground_roof_a_r.htm> [Accessed July 2003] UniRac (2003). Unirac Home Page [Internet] Available from: <http://www.unirac.com> [Accessed July 2003] Webster, D. (2003) Getting Off the Lifetime Utility Payment Plan. Home Power Magazine, No 95, June/July, pp. 22-28. Xantrex (2003). Products [Internet] Available from: <http://www.xantrex.com/Products/index.asp> [Accessed July 2003] Yewdall, Z. (2003) PV Orientation. Home Power Magazine, No 93, February/March, pp. 24-28.