Category: Innovation

Integration of Solar With Your Current Generation Set-Up

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Maximum reliability and energy availability are required in energy-intensive industries especially in mining, raw material processing, dairy, and agriculture. To be prepared for grid power outages, industries in Pakistan rely heavily on diesel gensets. Integrating solar with your current energy mix hence offers a reliable, cost-effective and a clean energy power source.

For solar to integrate seamlessly with your industry’s current power mix, there may be two combinations available:

1. Grid and Solar Hybrid with Diesel Genset

Solar energy acts as the main supply during day time backed up by the grid and diesel generators. This helps in peak shaving of the total energy consumed.

An integrated setup like this offers low maintenance costs and energy reliability as now the energy is provided from three different sources. Another feature which can be introduced in this setup is the PV Genset Controller program that helps save on fuel by bridging the gap between a PV power plant and a generator run power plant. The PV Genset controller helps keep the energy consumption from the generator within the recommended threshold.

Furthermore, being connected to the grid allows you to benefit through licensed net- metering by selling the excess solar energy produced back to the grid.

 

2. Remote Hybrid with Diesel Genset and Battery Backup

This set-up comprises of a PV system, diesel genset and a storage solution. The objective of Remote Hybrid System is to reduce the cost of operation and maintenance and cost of logistic by minimizing diesel consumption. To achieve cost efficiencies, the gensets only run as needed to recharge the battery and to supply excess load. Introducing batteries in this energy mix also helps in efficiency gains.

This system offers 24/7 reliable energy supply to meet the industry energy needs. A remote monitoring tool can be extremely beneficial in this case as it can help industries in monitoring their energy consumption and load so that they can devise a strategy to obtain maximum benefit from their PV system.

 

Conclusion

Installing PV solutions for your company means moving a step closer towards taking your energy consumption and production into your own hands. However, one of the greatest hurdles that most industrialists face when going solar is how to integrate PV technology with their current power production set-up, be it the grid, diesel, HFO or gas run generators or a combination. It is hence important to remember that it is always essential to integrate solar with another primary energy source so that it can generate optimum power. An expert Solar Energy consultant can devise the best technical and financial strategy for your business based on your energy objectives.

 

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Using Thermal Imaging for Solar Plant Inspection

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With advancements in technology, the Solar industry has undergone remarkable developments and innovations to ensure a smooth and failure-proof operation of solar plants. While several technologies have impacted the Solar industry by bringing about greater durability, more efficiency, as well as a high return on investment, the use of thermal imaging is one of the most popular choices. This technology provides a fast, simple and reliable method to evaluate the Solar Plant’s performance, both during and after the installation.

Detecting Faults through Thermal Imaging

With an increase in temperatures, the solar panels become less efficient and generate lesser energy. They may even get damaged with some defects causing them to break down or generate a reverse current, which may, in turn, damage the entire Solar Plant. Thermal Imaging can help detect any presence of hot spots on the panels. They can be used to inspect entire solar systems; from panels to connections, fuses, inverters and all components of the system. This makes it substantially easier to detect faults on the panels before they cause any devastating breakdowns.

 

Types of Defects

There are three major types of defects that can be identified using aerial Thermal Imaging:

Module defects: These defects include distinct hot spots formed on the panel cells, diode failures, coating, and fogging issues, junction box heating and dirty or shattered modules.

String and system defects: These defects include wiring issues such as frayed cables and reversed polarity, inverter and fuse failures, and charge controller problems.

Types of Defects

Racking and balance of system defects: These defects comprise of major issues in the mounting and structure of the modules.

Most of these faults result in the formation of hot spots which are caused in places with increased recombination of electrons that release energy. This energy is radiated into space as heat and can be detected through Thermal Imaging.  If left unresolved, these spots can cause excessive heating that may lead to irreversible damage to the defective cell, and subsequently the entire solar panel.

Conclusion

Thermal Imaging enables a swift localization of any potential defects at the cell and module level. It also allows timely identification of possible electrical interconnection problems. Unlike other methods, Thermal inspections can easily be performed under normal operating conditions over large areas without the need for a complete plant shutdown. Thermal Imaging has proven to help improve the Plant’s yield and cost-efficiency.

 

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Performance Evaluation of Solar Plants using I-V Curve Tracer

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I-V curve tracing offers a quick and reliable method for assessing the true performance of Solar PV modules and traditional string inverter systems. The technique is especially utilized by Solar PV installers for real-time module monitoring and performance evaluation.

How does it work?

I-V Curve Tracing is a method of electrically testing the PV module and photovoltaic array and ensuring that it performs at optimum level. This test can be conducted at any time during the manufacture, installation, commissioning, performance and troubleshooting phase to ensure productivity. A device, called the I-V Curve Tracer can be installed for this purpose, which measures current and power as a function of voltage. This test can be applied on individual strings and the captured results can be compared to expected results for any variation.

I-V Curve tracing helps in determining the optimum combination of current and voltage to maximize yield as illustrated in the figure below. The red line depicts maximum output achieved through the best combination of current and voltage whereas the dotted line shows reduced output which may be a result of several factors such as a module mismatch, soiling, and more.

 

What are the Benefits Of I-V CURVE TRACING?

Some key benefits of I-V Curve Tracing include:

  • Lower risks during startup and commissioning
  • Thorough system performance baselines
  • Effective and expedited troubleshooting
  • Better performance modeling
  • Detailed testing reports and analytics
  • Reduced system downtime

I-V Curve Tracing can also help in detecting module faults such as shading, soiling, series resistance and module mismatch. Immediate identification of these issues can allow technicians to make timely array layout adjustments, repairs and warranty claims.

-V Curve Tracing is currently one of the most comprehensive methods of testing PV modules and strings to regulate and optimize the performance of each array in the PV system.

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Can Bifacial PV Modules improve your Solar Asset’s Performance?

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Bifacial Solar modules can capture sunlight from both sides as opposed to one in case of traditional photovoltaic (PV) modules. This allows bifacial modules to reflect sunlight from behind the panel to increase energy production, with estimates claiming up to a 5-15% jump, depending upon the type of installation.

Bifacial Solar modules for Commercial and Industrial (C&I) applications

In commercial and utility-scale applications, panels are elevated and angled away from the mounting surface allowing light that strikes the ground to reflect back upwards enabling bifacial cells to absorb greater sunlight. Essentially, with bifacial modules, there are now two optimal sun hours (peak hours) of the day opposed to just one because of the dual sides. Thus, generating greater energy yield without having the need to occupy additional space.

In general, surfaces that are lighter in color like fine sand and marble can cause more sunlight to be reflected than darker surfaces like asphalt. Therefore, the use of bifacial panels in sandy deserts can generate maximum energy output.

Bifacial PV module is the new buzz word in the Solar industry and seems like a promising technology for 2020. Other than the energy production benefits, bifacial modules also come with sleeker aesthetics and versatile system designs.

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How can Single-Axis Solar Trackers improve your project’s Return on Investment (ROI)?

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A single-axis solar tracker positions the panels towards the sun capturing maximum solar energy during the day. Tracking arrays are designed to literally follow solar position at every minute, hour, and day of the year – without requiring manual adjustment.

Gain in Energy Production from Single-Axis Solar Plants

In traditional Solar PV fixed-tilt Plants, the power output follows a bell curve throughout the day, it gradually increases until peaking at noon, then returns to decrease. Whereas, in single-axis Solar PV Plants, we approach the maximum power from early in the morning and this production is maintained until late afternoon. Hence, seeing a performance gain of approximately 25% (Energy Sage, 2019) as compared to the fixed PV installation.

Unlike fixed-tilt traditional Solar PV Plants, single-axis tracking systems require more space per module to allow for the rotation of the PV modules and to eliminate all possible shadowing. However, the latest innovation in the industry is to optimize site design by adjusting the array layout to accommodate greater modules unique to its specific latitude and vertical tilt angle.

10 MW Single-Axis Solar Power Project for Eni Pakistan

For the 10 MW Eni Bhit Gas Field, horizontal single-axis trackers have been used. These are powered by motors and gear trains, through an astronomical clock controller. This is Reon’s first integrated Solar Powered Project for the Oil and Gas sector that shall help Eni shut down one of its gas turbines during the day. The single-axis panels have been installed with wind and precipitation sensors that can immediately detect any unusual weather changes while taking its angle to a 0-degree tilt to minimize the impact of heavy rain or wind.

The use of solar trackers is increasingly on the rise in photovoltaic plants because it allows a significant increase in energy production; hence, improving project profitability. Tracking systems tend to cost more than the fixed-tilt PV Plants but the 25% increase in energy yield could significantly help bring the cost down.

 

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Ground vs Roof: Where to Install your Solar Plant?

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Photovoltaic modules can be installed practically anywhere that gets direct sunshine for most of the day and is not obstructed by buildings or trees that would cause shadows. However, one’s preference could be influenced by factors such as local requirements, budgets, space and location. Here, we will talk about ground versus roof setups where a Solar Plant can easily be installed.

Ground Spaces

Ground mounted solar panels can be placed anywhere in a field or yard that sees the sun for majority of the day. Ground mounting requires a dedicated space in the field or yard to set up the panels. These are an ideal choice for commercial and industrial businesses that have excess availability of land. Some of the ground types where panels can be installed are:

 

Standard Ground Mounts

Standard ground mounts use metal framing that is driven into the ground to hold the solar panels up at a fixed angle.

This is the fastest installation technique which requires no concrete work.

 

Pole mounts

Polar mounts are structures that hold multiple solar panels on a single pole. This helps elevate the panels higher off the ground than a standard ground mount whilst occupying lesser space.

 

Solar Carports or Canopies

Solar carports are overhead canopies built to cover parking areas or other paved areas to provide shade and generate efficient energy, simultaneously. Solar Carports are ideal for commercial settings with limited roof or land availability.

Here, reinforced concrete foundations hold large steel beams that support solar modules overhead.

 

Solar Roof Spaces

In urban and commercialized cities with limited land space, roof-mounted racking is a popular choice. Any rooftop that receives ample sunlight during the day can become a source for producing solar energy. Some of the types are:

 

Inverted T-Beam Roof

An inverted T-beam is a load-bearing structure of reinforced concrete, wood or metal, with a T-shaped cross section. These structures are the most common of all roof types as they can bear maximum weight and can withstand a wind speed of 35 m/s. They have been designed for 2 B seismic zone.

Dome/Shell Shaped roof

Many industrial roofs have a rounded dome type or a shell-like structure. Solar panels can be installed on these roofs by resting the panel structure, and most of their weight, on valley beams, avoiding putting any load over the thin slabs of shell building. These structures can withstand a wind speed of 35 m/s and have been designed for 2B seismic zone.

Corrugated Sheet roof

For pre-engineered building (PEB) roofs, light-weight panel structures are preferable in order to avoid extra load and leakage during rain. These structures can bear the wind speed of 30 m/s and have been designed for 2 B seismic zone.

No matter how limited space a business might have, Solar can easily be installed anywhere to convert any idle space into a power generator for producing cost-efficient and clean energy.

 

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An Overview to Solar Panel Mounting Structures

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Mounting structures, made of steel or aluminum, support PV modules on the ground or roof and allow modules to be mounted at a precise tilt angle to receive maximum sunlight. Hence, choosing the right material for the structure is one of the most critical steps when installing a Solar PV system. Beneath, let’s look at the structures that are durable, cost-effective and adaptable to most terrains.

Hot-dip Galvanized Steel Structures

Hot-dip galvanized steel structures are made with fabricated steel sheets that are coated in zinc to keep them corrosion free. While regular steel is composed of iron which rusts to the point of disintegration on prolonged exposure to moisture, galvanized steel structures ensure structural durability by creating a physical barrier that prevents water from reacting with iron.

This method of galvanization is two to three times more expensive than pre-galvanized mounting structures. However, while pre-galvanized structures may be fairly popular among Solar Plant Installers due to their cost advantage, they are not sustainable in the longer run and could rust, corrode and crumble when exposed to rain, humidity, etc in access.

 

Anodized Aluminum Structures

Anodized aluminum is extruded through designed molds to develop durable finish. Anodizing is an electrochemical process where the metal is immersed, for an acid electrolyte bath, in a tank that passes an electric current through it causing an anodic layer to grow from aluminum itself.

Anodized Aluminum Structures

Standard aluminum is a durable material, and once anodized the surface becomes three times tougher and more versatile than standard aluminum. Furthermore, anodized aluminum does not rust, peel, flake or chip and is 60% lighter than copper and stainless steel. All told, anodized aluminum is a fairly expensive mounting option.

Typically, Solar mounting structures require minimum maintenance unless they come along with solar trackers. Mounting structures could be galvanized steel or aluminum; however, it’s difficult to say which one is better. It is better to choose the mounting structures, for factors such as weight or durability, based on the type of roof or land space.

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Changing Dynamics Give Birth to IT Tower Business

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Following the change in technology dynamics, the cellular business sector has come up with a new concept for IT towers. So far more than 10 companies have acquired licences for tower business, among which Edotco and Enfrashare are active players.

Modern inventions like Facebook, Twitter and WhatsApp have completely changed the way of communications for public. However, they have created great challenges for mobile network operators as people now mainly use these mobile applications for most of their communications, making the traditional voice and text services obsolete.

As a result, the mobile network operators (MNOs) are not making as much revenue from voice and text services as they made earlier and in future they might completely lose revenue from the two services.

With the changing dynamics, the cellular companies have shifted their focus more towards wireless internet – mobile data services – as it is needed for every new digital app that has become a necessity now, like ride-hailing apps, communication apps, food service apps and e-commerce marketplace.

All these software, which have made lives easier, need data to be connected, which is why mobile network companies have reformed their business models. “Now, cellular mobile companies are happy to call themselves digital companies rather than mobile network operators,” said Salman Saeed Khalili, Head of Telco at Reon Energy.

There was a time, around the end of first decade of the 21st century, when mobile operators competed with each other on the basis of how bigger their network was, said Edotco Pakistan Country Managing Director and CEO Arif Hussain. No company, he continued, wanted to share their towers as that meant losing a competitive edge.

 

However, each company now has a network of towers in thousands, which is increasing with the growing number of users and new technologies. But that is becoming a burden on them.

Marketing campaigns of Jazz used to revolve around its largest network in the country, which made talking with relatives in far-flung areas more convenient. With the changing scenario, the same company had to deal with Edotco, a tower operating company, headquartered in Malaysia, with its operations spread in Bangladesh, Cambodia, Sri Lanka, Myanmar and Pakistan.

The Malaysian company had to scrap a $940-million deal with Jazz, involving the acquisition of 13,000 cellular towers as approval of the deal was delayed by the authorities.

The company has installed 1,400 towers in an effort to strike a deal with Jazz again or any other MNO for breakthrough. Axiata Group, the parent company of Edotco, is also under the process of merging its operations with Telenor, South Asia.

This transformation has compelled the MNOs to think out of the box and share passive investment in the towers. Pakistan, a country of 208 million people, has achieved cellular subscriptions from 161 million or 76% of the population. The country has 70 million broadband subscribers, including 68 million 3G/4G subscribers.

With the increased number of users and emergence of new technologies like 3G, 4G and most probably 5G, the country needs more and more towers. Currently, the country has 35,000 towers, which are expected to double by 2027.

The subscriber density has reached 5,000 users per tower, which is more than double the standard density.

“In developed countries, 2,000 users are connected to every tower,” said Arif Hussain. “This means the country needs more towers in coming years and MNOs can see a significant reduction in capital expenditure and annual operating expenses by outsourcing towers to us,” he said.

MNOs are now outsourcing their towers. In a tower, passive investment, which does not help a mobile network company in generating direct revenue, entails structure of the tower, battery, generator, solar power panel and the guard watching.

Companies like Edotco would arrange these and in return MNOs will pay rent for installing their antenna to disseminate their signals, which then becomes an active investment.

Solar power is of great help for towers in far-flung areas. Cellular companies that shared 25% of existing sites on a reciprocal basis have moved towards solar power to ensure uptime – the duration in which the tower remains active.

This was one of the biggest challenges as the country faced electricity shortage for more than a decade, until 2016, when load-shedding went up to 18 hours a day in rural areas, thus affecting the uptime of towers.

Although this was a challenge in cities as well, the situation aggravated in far-flung areas. The network-operating businesses require active signal towers round the clock.

Following the shortfall in electricity supply, a new business, which supplied petrol and diesel to these towers, emerged. However, the system caused trouble for the cellular companies – one of which was fuel theft, as the supplier would write 200 litres of fuel in the books instead of 100 litres that was actually filled in the generator.

Transporting the fuel to the generators in far-flung areas was itself a big challenge as there were areas where motor vehicles could not pass and thus, mules and donkeys had to be employed.

Now, the companies are employing the renewable energy system in great deal, which has resulted in a decrease of up to 30% in average cost per tower, said Salman Saeed Khalili, whose company, Reon Energy, has installed solar panels on more than 250 towers.

He said the renewable energy system would help in maintaining their goal of 99.9% uptime, operating 24 hours a day.

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Think 2025-Enabling Actions and Conversations

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The global energy systems are experiencing rapid change, driven by technological innovation, change in demand and supply patterns and policy shifts. While this offers a wonderful opportunity to address systemic challenges such as energy inclusivity, job creation, energy affordability and carbon emissions; it poses some key questions to the decision makers such as what is required from the developing countries to have a similar energy transition? And what groundwork do these nations need to carry out to seize such opportunities as no stakeholder present in the energy systems alone could drive such a change?

 

While this process is continuously evolving, our Think 2025 platform ensures energy efficiency readiness through conversations and actions to enable an environment for effective energy transition.

The Vision

The Covid19 crisis seems to have brought forward various avenues to accelerate energy transition while highlighting the need for a collaborative approach that brings together the government, private institutions, and the society. Reon understands the diverse challenges faced by the energy systems today cannot be addressed in isolation; hence, we aim to support corporate actions and public-private partnerships for an inclusive, affordable, sustainable energy future and greater wellbeing.

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Performance Evaluation of Solar PlantsUsing I-V Curve Tracer

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I-V curve tracing offers a quick and reliable method for assessing the true performance of Solar PV modules and traditional string inverter systems. The technique is especially utilized by Solar PV installers for real-time module monitoring and performance evaluation.

How does it work?

I-V Curve Tracing is a method of electrically testing the PV module and photovoltaic array and ensuring that it performs at optimum level. This test can be conducted at any time during the manufacture, installation, commissioning, performance and troubleshooting phase to ensure productivity. A device, called the I-V Curve Tracer can be installed for this purpose, which measures current and power as a function of voltage. This test can be applied on individual strings and the captured results can be compared to expected results for any variation.

I-V Curve tracing helps in determining the optimum combination of current and voltage to maximize yield as illustrated in the figure below. The red line depicts maximum output achieved through the best combination of current and voltage whereas the dotted line shows reduced output which may be a result of several factors such as a module mismatch, soiling, and more.

What are the Benefits Of I-V CURVE TRACING?

Some key benefits of I-V Curve Tracing include:

Lower risks during startup and commissioning
Thorough system performance baselines
Effective and expedited troubleshooting
Better performance modeling
Detailed testing reports and analytics
Reduced system downtime
I-V Curve Tracing can also help in detecting module faults such as shading, soiling, series resistance and module mismatch. Immediate identification of these issues can allow technicians to make timely array layout adjustments, repairs and warranty claims.

I-V Curve Tracing is currently one of the most comprehensive methods of testing PV modules and strings to regulate and optimize the performance of each array in the PV system.

 

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