5-5.

PHOTOVOLTAIC SYSTEM CONFIGURATIONS

The heart of any PV system is solar cells, arranged into modules and arrays. A PV system incorporates various other
components depending on the application. The application areas can be divided into two main categories as off-grid (stand-
alone) and grid-connected systems.

An off-grid PV system may be as simple as a PV array feeding direct current (DC) power to a load. This is called adirect-coupled
PV system (Fig. 5-13). These systems are used for low power uses. They only produce power when there is solar irradiation
(Hodge, 2010).

Figure 5-13 An off-grid direct-coupled PV system supplying DC power to a load.

For remote applications such as residences not connected to the grid, the PV system must have a battery storage for meeting
loads during nighttime hours and cloudy periods. An off-grid system with battery storage is shown in Fig. 5-14. The system has
flexibility to supply both DC power and AC (alternating current) power. The charge controller takes DC power from the PV array
and directs to an application working with DC power. When there is excess power output from the PV array, the charge
controller directs the power to the battery for storage. When there is no solar irradiation, the charge controller absorbs power
from the battery and directs it to the DC load. For the operation of devices using AC power, an inverter must be used. The
inverter receives DC power from the battery and converts it to AC power.

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 Figure 5-14 An off-grid PV system with energy storage. It is designed to supply both DC power and
AC power.

Stand-alone PV systems can be used to power many different applications such as calculators, watches, street lighting, traffic
signs, battery charging, telephones, radios, weather stations, and water purification (Fig. 5-15). These simple systems usually
consist of a solar module, a charge controller, and a battery. Low-power stand-alone PV systems are usually cost-competitive
to conventional methods such as conventional batteries, grid power, and small diesel generators. They also have advantages of
reliability, durability, and, of course, no fuel cost.

Figure 5-15 A stand-alone solar panel used in a small bus converted to a caravan.

Water pumping in remote homes, villages, and farms is a common application of off-grid systems. In this application, the
system is not equipped with a battery. Another important application of an off-grid PV system is supplying electricity to remote
homes and villages. The cost of extending grid power to remote homes is usually much higher than the cost of PV installation.
A commonly used alternative to PV power for water pumping and remote homes is diesel generators. Diesel generators are
less expensive to install but the fuel cost and operating and maintenance expenses are very high compared to PV systems.

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A disadvantage of the PV system is its inability to supply power during winter with long periods of cloudy days. An effective
solution is a hybrid system consisting of a diesel generator and a PV array. The PV system is used to provide power most of the
time when solar radiation or battery storage are available, and the diesel generator provides power at other times.

Grid-connected PV systems supply AC power at grid voltage, phase, and frequency for compatibility with the grid. Such a
system is shown in Fig. 5-16. The inverter does not only convert DC power to AC power but also condition the power (works as
a power conditioner) to make it compatible with the grid specifications. In this configuration, there is no waste of solar power
because all the power produced from the PV array are transferred to the grid, and the applications use only the required amount
of power from the grid.

Figure 5-16 A grid-connected PV system.

A main advantage of grid-connected PV systems is the absence of a battery for energy storage. This greatly simplifies the
overall system. They provide an effective and green method of peak shaving during the periods of peak demand from the utility.
Most of the PV systems in the world are grid connected. The grid connected systems can be as small as a few kilowatts for
residential applications, hundreds of kilowatts for industrial uses, and thousands of kilowatts for supplying power to utilities
(Fig. 5-17).

Figure 5-17 A grid-connected PV array on top of a campus building supplying power to the grid.

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A battery can be added to a grid-connected PV system if the user demands power when the grid is down. This may be needed
for industrial users to meet critical loads. The system becomes more complicated in this scenario with advanced controls to
allow disconnecting and reconnecting to the grid.

Large installations of grid-connected PV systems are mostly owned by the utilities while the capacity is usually small for
privately owned systems. There are significant variations in the specifications of the agreement between the private owner and
the utility depending on the country, region, and the utility. In one case, the utility is required to pay for its levelized cost of
producing 1 kWh of electricity. This is usually not attractive for the owner of the PV system because this cost is usually much
lower than the rate the consumers pay for the electricity. Another example of the agreement between the owner and the utility is
called net metering. In this arrangement, the consumption of the owner increases when power from the grid is used; and the
consumption decreases when solar power is supplied to the grid. The same pricing (in $/kWh) is used for both the purchased
electricity and sold electricity. Net metering is financially attractive for the PV owner. Some governments provide significant
incentives to allow a profitable agreement for the PV owner to promote greater production of solar electricity.

Photovoltaic arrays can be installed at a fixed angle, or they can involve one-axis tracking or two-axis tracking capabilities. For
fixed-angle systems, the best performance in the northern hemisphere is obtained when the arrays are placed with the azimuth
south, and the tilt angle is selected to be equal to the latitude of the location. Most PV installations have no option of tracking
the sun. One-axis tracking involves an axis of rotation at the north-south or east-west line. Two-axis tracking has an additional
control of changing the tilt angle to track the sun. Passive tracking systems involving no motors or gears are also available, but
they are not effective in windy areas. PV systems with tracking capabilities can produce 25 to 45 percent more power in the
summer and can pump up to 50 percent more water compared to fixed PV systems (Nelson, 2011).

The lifespan of a solar cell is about 20 to 35 years. The collection of dust on panel surfaces over time reduces the performance
of solar panels. There is no easy solution to this problem, and this is one of the main obstacles preventing widespread use of
solar panels in some solar-rich countries. The cost of solar panels has been decreasing steadily over the years while the
efficiencies have been increasing. As a result, PV systems are likely to remain as a main actor in green energy production.

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