Protection of photovoltaic (PV) systems - Furse - 2015

Furse

Protection of photovoltaic (PV) systems - Furse - 2015

Published: 9 December 2015 · Category: Product Catalogues & Brochures

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Application Note Protection of photovoltaic (PV) systems Protection of photovoltaic (PV) systems Increasingly considered as a viable and cost-effective source of renewable energy, PV systems now range from commercial and residential supplementary energy solutions, to large-scale power generation at solar parks etc. Installation of PV arrays at roof level, and the siting of solar parks in open, exposed locations, makes PV systems highly susceptibleto damage from partial lightning currents. Partial lightning currents can enter the PV system following a direct lightning strike to the external lightning protection system (LPS), or via transient overvoltages from the wider electrical network. Installation on the DC side of the inverter Installation on the AC side of the inverter An SPD specifically designed for use on the DC side of a PV system (location 1 in Figures 1 & 2) should be installed. A lightning current SPD for protecting AC mains power supplies should be installed on the AC side of the inverter, dependent of the state of the external LPS (see Table 1). The number of SPDs required is based on the distance between the PV array and inverter: – – If the distance between the PV array and inverter is less than 10 m, a single SPD installed as close as possible to the inverter, should suffice If the distance between PV array and inverter is greater than 10 m, two SPDs should be installed, one close to the inverter and the other close to the PV array Protecting the PV system...