Electrical Surge Protection

Friday, September 2, 2022

PV Surge Protection And Solar Producers

It is essential to plan for the future, especially if the future potentially holds significant changes that will impact the entire world. With regards to electricity production, nearly the whole globe relies upon burning a fuel source to manufacture electricity. The fossil fuels currently used for this purpose are the same ones that have been used for 100 years, and as the populations that rely upon electricity for daily life grow, so does the need for more and more electricity to service them. This is not just putting a strain on the fossil fuel market, but instead has identified that it will not be sustainable in the future. Simply put, we are quickly running out of fossil fuels to burn to make electricity, and we need a valid method of replacing those fossil fuels that can sustain the same levels of production that we currently have. If we were to run out before the processes of production that can take up the slack are fully flushed out, we will face the problem of a lack of power. This is simply not an option. This is why there is such a push to develop wind and solar power production methods fully.

While wind and solar are essentially worked out as far as the methods necessary to produce power, but it is currently unable to replace fossil fuel production for two reasons fully. It is too expensive, and it cannot generate enough power to satisfy the needs of major cities. Until these issues are worked out, we will continue to rely upon the limited resources of fossil fuels to meet the demand. Luckily, these two issues are being solved with the same technological improvements. PV surge protection systems are making it so that solar-producing plants can make more power from less sunlight and do it at cheaper costs. This is done by limiting the amount of damage that happens regularly to these plants, namely, caused by lightning strikes to the panels. In addition, these panels are being developed from cheaper materials making them more accessible and less expensive to replace when the inevitable happens. Still, the additional integration of surge protection devices designed explicitly for PV systems also dramatically cuts costs. These surge protection devices cut off the flow of power when the surge of electricity created by a lightning strike flows through the system and overwhelms the components attached to the panels. By integrating these devices along the critical pathways electricity can follow, we minimize the damage resulting from strikes. This keeps the plants online and functioning for more extended periods while the sun is shining and extends the life span of the components involved. By developing more effective surge protection systems for photovoltaic operations, we can potentially see a real replacement of fossil fuel production in the future.

PV Surge Protection Systems And Profitability

Photovoltaic power production systems work by positioning a panel that collects sunlight in an open area capable of collecting as much as possible. That panel then utilizes the collected sunlight to heat liquid within an enclosed piping system. The fluid expands and creates a movement or flow, ultimately moving turbines that produce static electricity for collection. The positioning of the panel is critical to the amount of power that can ultimately be made, as the sheer volume of available sunlight directly impacts the volume of power ultimately produced. For this reason, control equipment is continually optimizing the panel position and improving the liquid's ability to flow. These necessary interconnections between components present a significant challenge to the solar industry and have made it slow to progress due to the need to improve the systems to increase the amount of power that can be produced in 24 hours. The systems also need to be enhanced to do this at a lower cost than simply burning fossil fuels. Until that happens, we will continue to see solar power be looked at as interesting but unable to be relied upon as a primary fuel source.

The improvement of PV surge protection systems has brought about a dramatic change in the potential profitability of solar farms through the extension of uptimes and equipment lifespan. By enabling systems to stay online longer while the free power source of the sun is available is critical to profits, and due to the exposed nature of the panels and their interconnection to other equipment, lightning strikes hinder profits. The lightning strikes the panel doing damage that must be repaired before the system can go back online and continue to produce. The power surge that is produced by the strike moves through the system and creates additional damage to the equipment downstream, further necessitating the need for repairs. This costs the business money in both repairs and downtime during peak production hours. The downstream damage can be minimized or even eliminated by integrating PV surge protection devices at the places where electricity can flow. There is little ability to shield from a lightning strike fully. Still, by minimizing the damage to the panel itself instead of the connected equipment, the system can be restored to function much faster and for far less cost. When this is worked into the systems operating as much as humanly possible, the savings over time and the increases in production can potentially make solar power a reliable and cost-effective primary source for consumers. Once PV surge protection systems are entirely doing their job, other cost-saving and production-increasing methods can be implemented that will possibly push solar into the forefront of production. We do not know what the future holds, but if the current development indicates, we may someday be living in a solar world.

PV Surge Protection Systems

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.

Solar And Photovoltaic Surge Protection

The solar industry has faced challenges since its beginning, always fighting the uphill battle of support and funding. The main reason funding for developing new and improved techniques is difficult to come by is that the public is essentially being asked to pay slightly more for the same product that is generated using fossil fuel methods of production, that method being dirtier but cheaper. The fossil fuel industry interests have been able to move sentiment away from renewable energy by downplaying the damage caused by fossil fuels. Simply put, producing electricity using fossil fuels causes pollution and environmental damage. Still, because that damage is difficult for the public to see, the fossil fuel industry claims it does not exist. Because of these manipulative techniques, we find that people will vote not to provide extra funding towards research into cleaner methods, instead putting support behind the more damaging practices as long as they cost less. Because of this lack of support and funding for development, the solar industry has not yet moved to the point of being able to produce power cheaper. Everyone agrees it is cleaner but still does not support putting extra funds into projects that will make it a viable replacement regarding costs. This keeps fossil fuel production in the leading position and pushes solar and wind power into the background. For this reason, the industry is forced to create innovations using only private funding and interest.

Photovoltaic surge protection is a development that has moved the solar industry forward toward the goal of possible viability as far as replacement, being developed almost exclusively by private individuals and companies. The issue that needed solving was that solar panels are exposed and prone to lightning strikes. Lightning strike surges damage the solar panel and the control equipment connected to the panels. Through the integration of effective methods of stopping the power surges that follow a lightning strike, private industry has been able to reduce the costs of ongoing operations of solar producers and improve the amount of time they are operational. By keeping the repair and replacement process simple, the systems can go back online faster after a strike, allowing them to produce power for longer periods when the sun is shining. This creates more energy for the exact costs, ultimately driving the total cost of each unit of electricity down to a more competitive level. We are very close to finding that solar power producers have the ability to produce enough power to keep the lights on in major cities without fossil fuel backups and can do it for a lower price. This shows that special interests may have slowed the solar industry but it cannot be stopped.

Monday, August 1, 2022

Cell Phone Surge Protection

Nearly every person in most developed countries has a cell phone. Every one of these people connects to a network where their phone can receive and transmit signals to other users also connected to that network. Through inter-network cooperation, these networks can connect users that are on networks different than the one they use. Even though there is competition between carriers, they all understand that not allowing customers to connect to those outside of their network would be bad for business, losing them subscribers. The providers earn customer loyalty by providing superior service and low prices, competing by offering the highest call clarity and the fastest speeds. Outside of the contract periods that customers enter into to receive a discount on purchasing a device, these companies realize that customers are always potentially tempted to switch carriers. The primary method of keeping customers loyal in the last few years has been low prices and the largest network of cell towers. Connectivity is critical to the industry, with customer frustration building through lost or dropped calls and those customers potentially being stolen by competitors offering better connectivity in that area. This competition has led to a race to place as much equipment in the field as possible. Every piece of equipment used for the process of connecting calls is at risk all the time, with power surges and lightning strikes to the equipment being the most damaging event. Because lightning is unpredictable and naturally occurring, damage from direct lightning strikes is difficult to avoid. But damages from the surges that follow lightning strikes can be mitigated using lightning protection systems. That power surge will cause significant damage as it runs through the systems along conductivity lines and materials. This ability to travel effectively allows that surge of power to overwhelm the circuitry of the connected devices, creating outages that need to be repaired to restore functionality. Once the damage has occurred, it is a race to fix the components and restore functionality as quickly as possible to avoid customer frustration and the potential for reconsidering their provider. Because of this ongoing competition, cellular providers have taken steps to minimize the amount of damage that can occur by installing industrial surge protection solutions and systems. These devices are installed to protect the equipment from the electricity that can travel and provide the ability to stop a surge before it overwhelms the next component. By minimizing damage, carriers can stay more competitive through better uptimes and connectivity, while keeping prices lower by ensuring that equipment can be functional for longer periods. Surge protection has become a significant line of defense for nearly all providers, who rely upon it to extend their equipment life span and assist in the retention of customers as a result. Your calls are clearer and cheaper through surge protection, and you are no doubt happier as a customer.

Cell Tower Surge Protection

One of the major contributing factors to high cellular bills is the continual and ongoing repair of equipment in the field. That is not referring to your cell phone, but instead to the network equipment (radios, antennas and other active equipment) that is used to connect your device to the network itself. The number of interconnected devices positioned strategically in the field is staggering. This equipment allows a cellular device to transfer or receive from its position, and the strength of that signal is determined by how unobstructed and nearby the network equipment is. As cellular technology has evolved, we have created more powerful and faster connectivity devices capable of delivering data to the network faster. Still, the signals from these devices cannot be broadcast for the vast distances of slower connection equipment.

For this reason, the desire of customers to transfer and receive data faster has lead to a rush on the part of cellular networks to install 5G or higher devices in more locations than ever. These installations must be closer to the ground and closer to one another to prevent dropped calls as users move through streets around them. While the older structures and technology are still effective and able to pick up the slack if no faster signal is available, the race to create the fastest network with the best coverage is underway by all providers. This creates the situation of hundreds of cellular installations all around us, with every bit of that equipment critical. Damage to network equipment is a very real possibility and can often come as a result of lightning strikes to or near the towers or the equipment itself. This is compounded by the power surges that follow a lightning strike. While the direct lightning strike is brutal and damage from it cannot be avoided, further damage from the lightning surge to equipment in the field can be minimized through the use of specialized lightning protection systems coupled with external surge protection solutions. Operational expenditure budgets can be reduced by this means.

Through the installation of robust industrial surgeprotection devices along the pathways which electricity will follow, damage generally seen after a lightning strike can be minimized. Connected devices at tower tops and base stations form the paths that electrical surges can take to easily flow and damage equipment if external surge protection is not installed. These power surges can overwhelm and damage equipment that will need repair or replacement, all of which cost money. Through the installation of surge protection devices, this subsequent damage can be minimized or avoided altogether by creating a gap or diversion which does not allow the electricity to reach any components downstream. As a result, industrial surge protection helps to conserve equipment repair budgets and ultimately keeps the cellular bills of consumers lower by keeping the networks functioning with less need for repair or replacement. While no system is perfect, our connected world is improving daily thanks to improvements in cell site surge protection.

Cellular Lightning Protection

At the most basic level, cellular technology can be understood as a device in your hand beaming and receiving signals to and from a tower nearby. That tower pushes those signals to a network where they are connected to the correct person or entity on the other side. This may seem simplistic, like the cord stretched between two tin cans you used as a child, but it is far more complex and expensive. Expense is drive by new technology being rolled out and new phone improvements. All of these new features must have the ability to be connected to the network you pay for, or they will go unused on your phone. This means that cellular network providers are in a constant state of expansion and upgrade, all the while attempting to figure out effective ways to minimize the damage that can happen to the necessary equipment that is positioned in the field. Each tower or installation takes hundreds of thousands of dollars of investment to allow for the latest technology on your phone to be utilized, meaning that those carriers are deploying more equipment into the field every day. Every component is at risk from many ways that it can be damaged, the most extreme being lightning strikes and the power surges that follow them. These are so dangerous for cellular providers because the strike itself is usually not the worst of the damage. That comes in the form of the power surge that follows the strike, which travels along conductive materials and power lines that interconnect the equipment in the installation. This excess power quickly overwhelms the circuitry of any component it comes into contact with. The only effective method of preventing damage is to stop the surge before it hits the next component. This is accomplished through lightning protection systems at the cell sites and the integration of high-tech surge protective devices along the pathways that electricity can travel. These devices provide the ability to keep the levels of electricity at range safe to the equipment. If that range is breached they activate to divert the excess energy to the grounding system. Surge protection allows the network provider to potentially salvage equipment that they would expect to be damaged by these naturally occurring events, keeping that equipment functional for extended periods. In addition, it provides the ability for the tower or installation to remain operational for longer, or be restored to functionality faster. This keeps customers happy because they are more easily able to connect and maintain the network, ultimately putting all those features they pay for to use. Even though it could be viewed as an additional expense regarding operating a cell network, external surge protection is critical in today’s competitive climate. This is because the network with the lowest prices, best coverage, and longest equipment uptimes are the winners. Surge protection systems help to facilitate success.