Comprehensive Report on Solar System Components and Function

This report provides a detailed overview of the essential components of a solar energy system. It begins by explaining the function and importance of solar power batteries, including their role in storing DC electricity generated by solar panels and their use as a backup during periods of insufficient su...Read More

Running head: ASSIGNMENT FOR THE SOLAR SYSTEM
Assignment for the Solar System
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author’s note:

ASSIGNMENT FOR THE SOLAR SYSTEM1
1. Solar Power Batteries
A solar power battery is a simple battery which would be charged with energy gained
from solar panels. Solar power batteries are those devices, which are capable of producing
and store the DC electricity. Solar electric systems commonly make use of batteries that are
used as substitutes of solar panels during night or cloudy days. In such cases, the electricity
which is needed could be easily drawn from batteries instead of getting it from the solar
array. The solar array cannot act as a generator because of insufficient sunlight (Budischak et
al., 2013).
Solar panel systems have emerged as the fastest growing energy sources in several
countries. The battery is not a vital part of a photovoltaic system. Whenever a solar electric
system is connected with the utility grid, it does not comprise of a battery system. A backup
of power is always needed for certain electric devices (Singh, 2013). Most of the solar
electric systems, which are disconnected from the utility grid possess batteries and charge
controllers. These are the kind of devices who manage the charging and discharging capacity
of the battery. In a solar system, the batteries are typically connected and combined in a
battery in order to get the required capacity and voltage.
A battery comprises of cells that could be either dry or wet. The wet cell batteries are
mostly common than the dry cells which is because of the efficiency of the cost, reliability
and higher efficiency of performance. Irrespective of the kind of battery used in a solar
system, the cost of a solar battery is a considerable part of the cost of the entire solar system.
A solar power battery which would have a lesser capacity would not be able to the daily
needs of energy. Hence the entire solar system would become useless. On the other hand, if a
battery possesses higher capacity, the cost of the solar system would increase but it would
also severely degrade the performance of the solar system (Zweibel, 2013).

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The working of solar power batteries is based on the conversion of AC energy that
would be produced by the solar panels and storing the energy in the form of DC power. In
some cases, the solar batteries possess their own inverter that would offer integrated
conversion of energy. Depending on the capacity of the solar power battery, the battery could
charge the larger amount of the solar system (Hoppmann, 2014).
2. Charge Controllers of the Solar System
A solar charge controller or solar charge regulator is a voltage or current regulator,
which are kept in order to control the batteries from being overcharged. The charge controller
helps in regulating the voltage and keeps a check on the incoming current from the solar
panels that are entering the solar power battery. The solar charge controller manages the
ongoing power into the battery from the solar array. The charge controller keeps a check that
the solar power batteries do not get overcharged during the time of the day. It also ensures
that the power should not run backwards to the solar panels during the time of the night,
which would completely drain the batteries. Some of the solar charge controllers are provided
with supplementary proficiencies such as load and lightning control but the primary job of the
charge controllers is to manage the charge (Bhoye & Sharma, 2014).
There are two different technologies of a solar charge controller. These are Pulse
Width Modulation (PWM) and Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT). These two types of
charge controllers are very much different from each other. The MPPT solar charge controller
is much more expensive than the PWM solar charge controller (Thygesen & Karlsson, 2014).
The Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) is the traditional kind of solar charge controller,
which are currently the standard of the industry. These kind of charge controllers establishes
a connection from the solar panel to the battery. When there is a regular connection from the
solar panel to the battery bank, the voltage of the output of the array is brought down to the

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voltage of the battery. The PWM solar charge controller is good solution at lower cost for the
use in smaller systems. The PWM solutions can perform at a temperature which would range
from moderate to high (Kazimierczuk, 2015).
The Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT) is a recent form of solar charge
controller, which is majorly used in the recent times. The solar charge controller would
measure the Vmp voltage of the solar panel and then converts the PV voltage to the voltage
of the battery (Harish & Prasad, 2013). The MPPT charge controller is the main suitable
choice for their use in higher systems of power. The MPPT charge controller would also be
able to function when the temperature of the solar cell would range from low to very high
temperature conditions (Subudhi & Pradhan, 2013).
Basic Features of the Solar Charge Controller
There are many features of the solar charge controller. These are mentioned as
follows:
 The solar charge controller helps in protecting the battery from excess charging
 The charge controller also reduces the maintenance of the system and thus increases
the lifetime of the battery.
 The solar charge controller also provides an auto charging indication.
 The reliability of the solar charge controller is high.
 The solar charge controller requires about 10 amp to 40 amp of current for the
charging.
 The charge controller also monitors the reverse flow of current (Osman, Rahim &
Selvaraj, 2013).

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Function of the Solar Charge Controller
The basic function of the solar charge controller is to keep a control of the voltage of
the device and thus opens the circuit and halts the charge when the voltage of the battery rises
to a certain level. Many of the solar charge controllers utilize a mechanical form of relay in
order to open or close the circuit. They can also halt or begin the heading of electric power to
the electric storage devices.
In general, solar power systems make use of 12V batteries. The solar panels is capable
of transmitting much voltage, which is indulged for charging the battery. The charging
voltage of the solar charge controller are normally kept at a higher level and the complete
charging time of the battery is reduced. This technique allows the solar systems to work
constantly in an optimum way. When higher voltage is passed through the wires from the
solar panels to the solar charge controllers, the dissipation of power in the wires is reduced
(Traube et al., 2013).
The reverse flow of power could be also controlled with the help of the solar charge
controllers. The solar charge controllers are also responsible for distinguishing when no
power would be originating from the solar panels. This would also open the circuits, which
separate the solar panels from the solar power batteries thus halting the reverse flow of
electric current.
Applications of Solar Charge Controllers
In the recent times, the entire process of the generation of electricity from sunlight has
gained much popularity than other sources. The photovoltaic panels are completely free of
pollution and also they do not require high level of maintenance.
Examples of the utilization of the solar charge controller are:

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 The street lights make use of photovoltaic cells in order to convert the energy of the
sunlight into electric charge. The entire solar system makes use of solar charge
controller in order to store the charge in the solar power batteries, which has several
uses in various areas.
 Hybrid solar systems also makes use of multiple sources of energy in order to
provide full time supply of backup to various other sources.
 Various systems in home uses PV module for their application in household items
(Badawy et al., 2014).
3. Solar Inverters
Inverters plays a major role in the use of electric systems in case of a power loss
scenario. The basic function of an inverter is to invert the output of the direct current (DC)
into alternating current (AC). The AC is the standard which is used by every commercial
appliances. Hence the inverter is viewed as the main gateway between the photovoltaic
system and the taker of energy. They also help in the monitoring of the data, advanced
controls of utility and system design engineering. The manufacturers of inverter are capable
of providing post-installation services, which are essential to maintain the production of
energy and a high performance level for the project. It also includes preventive measures,
operational and management services and a quick time of repair (Schwarzer, Buschhorn &
Vogel, 2014).
A solar inverter or a converter is capable of converting the variable direct current
(DC) output of a photovoltaic solar panel into a utility based frequency AC, which could be
used and fed into a commercial grid of electricity. The solar power inverters possess special
designed functions that are capable of adapting their usage with photovoltaic arrays (Carrasco
et al., 2013). This includes MPPT and protection of anti-islanding. The solar power inverter is
an important device in any system of solar power. The converted AC power is being used

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mainly for the running of different home based appliances such as refrigerator, microwave,
television and many others. In general, the power required for the solar power system is being
mainly used for the loads of AC power (Xavier et al., 2017).
Different Types of Solar Inverters
There are a number of solar inverters, which are used in the market in the recent
times. These are mentioned as follows:
off-Grid Inverters
These kind of inverter systems are mainly used in the remote power systems in which
the solar inverter is being fed by DC power from a panel of battery. The battery panel can be
charged with the help of solar panels. These kind of inverters have combined the battery
chargers that could be used to increase the battery obtained from an AC source of power.
Grid Tie Inverters
Solar Inverters that are associated with the power grid can be also called as a grid tie
inverter. These kind of inverters feed the electric power by their corresponding phase and
frequency. The frequency of the power might range from 50Hz in countries like India and
60Hz in North America to the power of output. These also possess the effectiveness that is
supplied by the AC power. The grid tie inverters are specifically designed in order to shut
down itself whenever the system senses that a loss of supply has been encountered from the
power utility.
Battery Backup Inverters
These kind of inverters are specially designed and manufactured in order to pull the
energy from a battery source. The battery charge is conserved with the help of the use of an
on-board charger and an extra source of energy, which is transferred to the electric grid.
These inverters provide the AC power with particular loads during outages of electric power.

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Micro Inverters
These kind of inverters are becoming a modern form in the solar industry. These type
of inverters are small and compact in size, portable and hence supports a lot of performance.
These may also include the functions and features of any common inverters.
The Working of Solar Inverters
The solar energy that is abstracted from the sun is converted into electrical energy
with the help of the photovoltaic cells. The gained energy is being stored in solar power
batteries during the time of the day for the purpose of several operations whenever there
would be a need (Cao et al., 2013).
Advantages of Solar Inverters
1. The solar inverters have been a constant support in reducing the effect of the greenhouse
gases and the effect of global warming.
2. The use of solar based devices would be extremely helpful in saving money and energy as
in the recent times many people have started the use of solar based devices.
3. As solar inverters help in the conversion of DC power to AC power, hence it would be
useful for the people who use a fractional amount of electricity.
4. The solar inverter is cost effective in nature.
Disadvantages of Solar Inverters
1. The price of a solar inverter is high.
2. Solar inverters would be able to function properly only when there is a substantial amount
of electricity.
3. The solar panels, which are used to attract the rays of the sun need a lot of space (Ellabban,
Abu-Rub & Blaabjerg, 2014).

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4. Mounting Brackets for the Solar System
The popularity of solar power has risen another renewable technology. The solar
power batteries is able to store extra solar power for later use. Many companies are in the
process of developing solar batteries, which could be installed with the help of solar panels in
order to create “solar-plus storage” systems, which could be used in homes. A solar energy
system comprises of solar panels, an equipment to mount the solar panels on the roofs, an
inverter and a monitoring system of the performance, which can track the production of
electricity. The solar panels are able to capture the light energy from the sun and convert the
energy into electricity (Hosenuzzaman et al., 2015). The electricity is then passed within the
inverter and then it could be converted into a form, which could be used in home. A majority
of the solar energy systems that are connected to the grid of electricity are used for residential
purposes. When the solar panels produce more electricity, the excess of the power is fed
again to the electric power grid. When a large amount of electricity is needed for residential
purposes, then the power could be drawn from the electric grid.
5. PV Array
Photovoltaic is a term, which is used for the conversion of light energy into
electricity. This conversion could be done with the help of semiconducting materials which
can exhibit the effect of photovoltaic. A photovoltaic system makes use of the solar panels
that comprises of a number of solar cells. The solar cells generate electric power. The
installation of photovoltaic systems could be mounted on the ground, roofs or walls. The
mount of these systems could be fixed or they could make use of a solar tracker in order to
follow the path of the sun across the sky (Eftekharnejad et al., 2013). There are some specific
advantages of photovoltaics. Once they are installed, the operation of these cells would not
generate any amount of pollution or greenhouse emissions of gas. Photovoltaic systems also
have several disadvantages. The output of the power of the cell is mainly dependent on the

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direct sunlight. Due to this, 10-25% of energy of the sunlight is usually lost if a system of
tracking is not used as the cell would not be directly facing the sun at all point of time. There
are many other factors that affect the diminishing of the effect of the sunlight such as dust,
clouds and many other factors. Another major issue which affects the diminishing power
factor is the concentration of the production in the number of hours corresponding to the core
insolation.

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