PV Surge Protection Systems

Read More: https://www.raycap.com/pv-surge-protection/

 

PV surge protection systems are one of the major assets that increase profitability for the solar industry. This increase in profit margin comes in two forms, but both these forms result from the same systems designed to optimize the performance of equipment used in the process. The most apparent form of profit increase comes from inclement weather destruction of equipment. Bad weather impacting exposed components, especially in the form of lightning strikes to the equipment, causes damage that must be repaired or replaced to restore functionality. Lightning striking the solar panels themselves produces significant damage at the strike point, but unfortunately, the creation of cheaper solar panels does not solve the issue. Instead, we find that the subsequent power surge that is produced by the strike also creates a significant amount of damage. The surge of electricity created by the strike moves through the interconnected components, overwhelming those components at the circuit level and creating damage that must be repaired before functioning can be restored. Integrating PV surge protection devices and components along the critical pathways over which the electrical flow happens can minimize and even eliminate the damage that occurs downstream from the strike. By mitigating the amount of damage resulting from these natural occurrences, we can ultimately improve the bottom line by keeping equipment active for more extended periods.

 

The main loss of profitability within solar operators occurs when the systems that produce power for customer consumption go offline. Downtime for photovoltaic operators happens when systems are offline during the times when the sun is shining and can create power. Due to the limitations of the systems being unable to produce effectively at night or when the sunlight is not optimal, any additional downtimes can prove to be critical for operations. The solution to these issues is to install surge protective devices within inverter locations, string boxes, and along any pathway that a power surge can travel. Inverter manufacturers have realized the necessity of surge protection, and many are already building devices and systems into their products. Through this push towards damage reduction from the obvious natural sources, we are seeing modern versions of these components able to outlast their previous generations by significant amounts of time. Through the push for longer uptimes and physical damage reduction, the solar industry can find better pathways toward the profitability necessary to make it a primary form of electrical power for production. For it to replace fossil fuel production, the systems themselves need to operate more effectively at producing power reliably and for lesser costs. This is being made more realistic by solving past issues that have hindered it. We may see a tipping point in the industry through surge protection devices for PV systems within the next few years.