A RESEARCH PROPOSAL ON

SOLAR SIZING IN KISII SCHOOL

NAME: DISMAS BOERA
REG.NO: PS 25/00031/20
SUPERVISOR: DR. WILLIS OTIENO
 OUTLINE
 Introduction
 Objective
 Statement of problem
 Justification of the problem
 Methodology
 Solar sizing
 Literature review
 Work plan
INTRODUCTION

The integration of solar power systems in institutional settings has gained significant
traction as organizations seek to embrace sustainable and cost-effective energy solutions.
The process of solar sizing for an institution involves a meticulous assessment of energy
needs, site characteristics, technological considerations, and financial viability to determine
the optimal capacity and configuration of a solar power system
 OBJECTIVES

 To determine the number of solar panels, batteries, inverters and charge controller
required to work as a system that could meet the electricity energy demand of the
Kisii school.
 To determine the average monthly and annual electricity of the school
 To determine the number of solar panels that can sustain the electricity of
the school
 STATEMENT OF PROBLEM

The increasing cost of electric power associated with grid electricity has brought
about a great shift to embrace the use of power harnessed solar by residents even
some companies.
The uptake is also due to cheaper solar technology and the unstable nature of both
hydro and wind power generation which are expensive to install, maintain and
requires a specific location.
JUSTIFICATION OF THE PROBLEM

Solar sizing of the building provides the required number of solar modules that
together with batteries and inverters can fully generate enough power to sustain the
school even when there is little or no sunshine.
Also, sizing enables panels and the power electronics to last for long for the
required number shall be attained hence limiting the possibility of overworking
them. The end product is a self-reliant solar powered system
 LITERATURE REVIEW

Solar insolation
Solar energy
Solar cell
 METHODOLOGY

Area of study
Planning (household power usage)
Data collection
 SOLAR SIZING
PVsyst software sizing
This is a designed software for the sizing of a standalone system with batteries
used during the project. It will provide the PV array characteristics, system
parameters (batteries, controller, inverter and PV array loss factors).
Number Load type Watts (W) Number of
hours per day
20 Bulb 5.0 6
5 Laptop 70.0 3
3 TV 120.0 3
2 Desktops 120.0 1
24 Phone 1.0 3
From the PVsyst software;
 1. The total Watts-hours per day for each appliance used is 3226Wh/day
 2. The total Watt-hours per day needed from the PV modules is found by multiplying
the total Watt-hours per day of the appliances by 1.3 (the energy lost in the system),
4.2kWh/day
SIZING THE SYSTEM COMPONENTS

PV module sizing

 Different PV modules produces different amount of power. To find out the
sizing of PV module, the total peak watt produced needs. To get the total
number of PV panels required, the total watt-peak rating for PV module was
calculated. Therefore to get the required PV panels, total watts-peak divided
by the solar watt rating gave the quantity
 SOLAR CHARGE CONTROLLER
SIZING
The solar charge controller is typically rated against Amperage and Voltage
capacities. The solar charge controller selected, matched the voltage of the PV
array and batteries. According to the standard practices, the sizing of solar
charge controller is to take the short circuit current (Isc) of the PV array and
multiply it by 1.3
 BATTERY SIZING

 The battery type recommended for use in solar PV system is deep cycle battery
which is specifically designed for to be discharged to low energy level and rapid
recharge day after day for years. To find out the battery size to use in the project;
Battery capacity (Ah) = Total Watt-hour per day of appliances * Days of Autonomy
0.85 * 0.6 * nominal battery voltage
 INVERTER SIZING

 For a standalone system, the inverter used must be large enough to handle the total
amount of watts needed at one time. The inverter size should be 25-30% bigger
than the total watts of appliances.
 WORK PLAN

Research Plan

2024

Activity Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 Week 5 Week 6 Week 7 Week 8

Proposal research

Proposal writing

Presentation of the proposal

Data collection and analysis

Project writing

Oral presentation of the project