Smarter E products at a glance
pv magazine summarises the products we covered at the recent Smarter E exhibition, in the first of a series of reports on all of the new releases from the annual trade fair in Munich, Germany.
Solis unveils off-grid PV inverter
The S5-EO1P(4-5)K-48 series off-grid PV inverter has an efficiency of 96.7% and supports parallel operation of up to 10 units, which allows for a system capacity of up to 50 kW. According to the manufacturer, the device is compatible with all top-tier brands of lithium-ion and lead-acid batteries.
Weekend read: 2 GW Sungrow and SolarJuice distribution agreement is Australia’s largest
The partnership between Chinese inverter maker Sungrow and Sydney-based wholesaler Solar Juice has been taken to a new level after the partners signed a 2 GW capacity distribution contract.
Enphase predicts another revenue landmark this quarter
Enphase expects the volume of business generated to rise again for the April-June period, accompanied by another bump in battery shipments.
Solar inverter fault detection techniques at a glance
New research has categorised all existing fault detection and localisation strategies for grid-connected PV inverters. The overview also provides a classification of various component failure modes and their potential causes in a tabular form.
Growatt unveils new inverter for residential applications
The new device has an efficiency of up to 98.6% and a European efficiency of up to 98.1%. It features up to two maximum power point tracking (MPPT) inputs, with MPPT voltage ranging from 140-1,000V. While the inverter is currently only available in China and Europe, the company said it plans to launch it in Australia “soon.”
MIT scientists develop waterless PV cleaning system
Scientists from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have developed a system that can be operated at a voltage of around 12V, with a 95% recovery rate for lost power after cleaning. The waterless system can be operated automatically via an electric motor.
Weekend read: Silicon carbide’s second coming
Silicon carbide (SiC) has promised inverter makers higher power density, higher efficiency, and a total bill of materials that comes in closer to its more established rival in silicon. Has SiC finally arrived? Tristan Rayner spoke to the people at the forefront of the wider-bandgap material to find out the back story and what’s next.
Fraunhofer ISE reaches legal settlements with seven inverter manufacturers who infringed its patent
In 2002, the Fraunhofer ISE patented the HERIC circuit for highly efficient inverters. Since then, the institute says, it has recorded out-of-court settlements in seven patent infringement lawsuits against companies from China, Taiwan and Germany.
Sungrow presents new central inverter
Called the 1+X modular inverter, the new product can be deployed, by combining eight units, to reach a power of 8.8MW. It also features a DC/ESS interface for the connection of storage energy systems.
