Design and Development of Mobile Training Toolkit for Solar PV System

Project Title

Design and Development of Mobile Training Toolkit for Solar PV System

Project Area of Specialization Augmented and Virtual RealityProject Summary

An off-grid solar PV system is not connected to the electricity grid and therefore requires battery storage. Off-grid solar system must be designed appropriately so that it will generate enough power and have enough battery capacity to meet the requirements, even in the depths of winter when there is less sunlight. Off-grid system consists of solar panels, batteries, inverters, charge Controller, alternative energy source and cables. To make this system more efficient and protective. We are designing and developing a solar mobile training toolkit which is capable of conducting variety of experiments as defined in the problem statement. For conducting these experiments some methodologies have to be adopted to get brief information along with technical as well as physical terms of the system. For this purpose, I have gone through from the description and learning objectives of the desired experiments. The toolkit we are proposed will cover electricity basics, PV safety basics, solar resources and orientation, system components information, system sizing and energy efficiency, site survey and assessment, installation and commissioning, maintenance, troubleshooting and additional training exercises. This toolkit comprises of an arrangement of several components including solar panels, charge controller, inverter, dc and ac circuit breaker, PV extension wire, banana cables, inverter safety switch, insulated tool set along with goggles for physical safety, protective case, toolbox, variable resistors, DC light bulbs and LED’s, PV array mounting back, sundial, MTT wiring board, battery, IR thermometer, clamp on ammeter, irradiance sensor, light meter, magnetic compass, tape measure, solar mesh, digital multimeter, AC power monitor, calculator and MTT training manual that helps us to perform these proposed experiments. This toolkit can perform tests either for small as well as large solar systems of several kilowatts.

Project Objectives

This is a portable training toolkit in which all the components will be enclosed inside in a proper manner. In which there will be a manual regarding the steps that are involved in this. This toolkit comprises of an arrangement of several components including solar panels, charge controller, inverter, dc and ac circuit breaker, PV extension wire, banana cables, inverter safety switch, insulated tool set along with goggles for physical safety, protective case, toolbox, variable resistors, DC light bulbs and LED’s, PV array mounting back, sundial, MTT wiring board, battery, IR thermometer, clamp on ammeter, irradiance sensor, light meter, magnetic compass, tape measure, solar mesh, digital multimeter, AC power monitor and calculator. Firstly, we will make the connections of the solar system in which different components are involved like panels, inverter, charge controller and DC battery. After this we have a wiring board in which we have our DC and AC load will be connected and for their protection we are using the circuit breakers. After establishing the network we use DMM, clamp on ammeter, IR Thermometer, Irradiance sensor, light meter and AC power monitor which will be used to measure the voltage, current, irradiance effect and temperature effects on modules and its output. We are also using the battery PV analyzer to observe the I-V curves at different instants. In this we will perform testing on different components depending upon the conditions. In this toolkit the brief description of following experiments given e.g. voltage and current measurements of the PV panels, resistance measurements, electrical measurements in series and parallel circuits of PV panel, wet/dry resistance tests of the PV panels , direct and diffuse irradiance, optimal array orientation, angle of incidence, efficiency of PV panels, irradiance effect on PV module output, temperature effect on current-voltage and power, battery capacity discharge, low voltage disconnect of charge controller, efficiency of PV inverter, effect of efficient lightning on power, shading effects, voltage drop in cables, non-uniform irradiance effect , stand-alone system integration, electrical system inspection, soiling effects, continuity and human behavior problem, battery charging problem and the most importantly I-V measurements using analyzer and rheostat. For each experiment we have different strategies and different configurations of components. This manual contains diagrams and the brief description about each experiment that how to set components step by step and their connections according to the experiment.

Project Implementation Method

This is a portable training toolkit in which all the components will be enclosed inside in a proper manner. In which there will be a manual regarding the steps that are involved in this. This toolkit comprises of an arrangement of several components including solar panels, charge controller, inverter, dc and ac circuit breaker, PV extension wire, banana cables, inverter safety switch, insulated tool set along with goggles for physical safety, protective case, toolbox, variable resistors, DC light bulbs and LED’s, PV array mounting back, sundial, MTT wiring board, battery, IR thermometer, clamp on ammeter, irradiance sensor, light meter, magnetic compass, tape measure, solar mesh, digital multimeter, AC power monitor and calculator. Firstly, we will make the connections of the solar system in which different components are involved like panels, inverter, charge controller and DC battery. After this we have a wiring board in which we have our DC and AC load will be connected and for their protection we are using the circuit breakers. After establishing the network we use DMM, clamp on ammeter, IR Thermometer, Irradiance sensor, light meter and AC power monitor which will be used to measure the voltage, current, irradiance effect and temperature effects on modules and its output. We are also using the battery PV analyzer to observe the I-V curves at different instants. In this we will perform testing on different components depending upon the conditions. In this toolkit the brief description of following experiments given e.g. voltage and current measurements of the PV panels, resistance measurements, electrical measurements in series and parallel circuits of PV panel, wet/dry resistance tests of the PV panels , direct and diffuse irradiance, optimal array orientation, angle of incidence, efficiency of PV panels, irradiance effect on PV module output, temperature effect on current-voltage and power, battery capacity discharge, low voltage disconnect of charge controller, efficiency of PV inverter, effect of efficient lightning on power, shading effects, voltage drop in cables, non-uniform irradiance effect , stand-alone system integration, electrical system inspection, soiling effects, continuity and human behavior problem, battery charging problem and the most importantly I-V measurements using analyzer and rheostat. For each experiment we have different strategies and different configurations of components. This manual contains diagrams and the brief description about each experiment that how to set components step by step and their connections according to the experiment.

Benefits of the Project

The training toolkit we are going to develop includes the experiments e.g. voltage and current measurements of the PV panels, resistance measurements, electrical measurements in series and parallel circuits of PV panel, wet/dry resistance tests of the PV panels , direct and diffuse irradiance, optimal array orientation, angle of incidence, efficiency of PV panels, irradiance effect on PV module output, temperature effect on current-voltage and power, battery capacity discharge, low voltage disconnect of charge controller, efficiency of PV inverter, effect of efficient lightning on power, shading effects, voltage drop in cables, non-uniform irradiance effect , stand-alone system integration, electrical system inspection, soiling effects, continuity and human behavior problem, battery charging problem and the most importantly I-V measurements using analyzer and rheostat. This toolkit is a testing kit in which energy is only produced for the testing and performing of experiments. So the power is neither delivered nor get from other source.

Technical Details of Final Deliverable

For voltage and current measurement test, the learning objective is to demonstrate electrical parameters of battery and PV module with some basic testing equipment’s. For resistance measurement test, the learning objective is to demonstrate variation of resistance in cables and fuses with basic testing equipment’s. For electrical measurements in series circuit, the learning objective is to see physically how series circuits work. For electrical measurements in parallel circuit, the learning objective is to see physically how parallel circuits work. For wet/ dry resistance test of PV module, learning objective is to understand the safety importance of electrically faulty PV modules. For direct and diffuse irradiances test, the learning objective is to understand the relationship between the various irradiance components. For optimal array orientation test, and the learning objective is to demonstrate how to orient a bound tilt solar array for maximum energy generation. For angle of incidence test, the learning objective is to understand that how the angle of incidence affects the output performance of a solar PV array. For PV modules in series and parallel, the learning objective is to demonstrate the basic electrical parameters of connected PV modules with basic testing equipment. For efficiency of solar PV module, and the objective is to understand the power efficiency of a PV module with basic testing equipment. For irradiance effect on PV module Output, and the objective is to demonstrate how reduced irradiance affects PV array performance. For temperature effect on voltage, the objective is to understand that how temperature affects the voltage output of a PV module. For temperature effect on current, the objective is to understand that how temperature affects the current output of a PV module. For temperature effect on power, the objective is to understand that how temperature affects the power output of a PV module. For battery capacity discharge, the objective is to demonstrate the effects of discharge current on battery capacity. For low voltage disconnect point of charge controller test, the objective is to understand the effect battery discharge on battery capacity and charge controller. For efficiency test of solar PV module, the objective is to understand the power efficiency of a PV module with basic testing equipment. For irradiance effect on PV module output test, the objective is to demonstrate how reduced irradiance affects PV array performance. For temperature effect on voltage test, the objective is to understand that how temperature affects the voltage output of a PV module. For temperature effect on power test, the objective is to understand that how temperature affects the power output of a PV module. For battery capacity discharge test, the objective is to demonstrate the effects of discharge current on battery capacity.

Final Deliverable of the Project Hardware SystemType of Industry Energy Technologies OthersSustainable Development Goals Quality EducationRequired Resources

Item Name	Type	No. of Units	Per Unit Cost (in Rs)	Total (in Rs)
			Total in (Rs)	65000
Soulmetric SunEye	Equipment	1	65000	65000