The latest developments and trends in inverters, charging solutions, battery storage and increasingly digitalised PV systems were an important focus of the two-day conference sessions. The fact that the latest generation of inverters is becoming more and more versatile, efficient and intelligent became clear at the presentation by Marion Futterer, Business Development Manager PVI at Delta Electronics.
The new three-phase M250HV of Delta Electronics
For example, the new three-phase M250HV with 250 kW has an input voltage of up to 1500 Vdc, an output voltage of 800 Vac, a peak efficiency of more than 99 percent as well as 12 MPPTs ((Maximum Power Point Tracking), an integrated wireless communication with Sub-1G as well as reactive power compensation during night operation. It can be quickly put into operation using a MyDeltaSolar app. Delta's M250HV will be launched in the first quarter of 2021, along with new inverter models for residential and commercial applications.
AC Max Wallbox with integrated net metering function
Delta also offers a wide range of charging stations, from the 22 kW AC Max Wallbox to the 25 kW DC Wallbox for commercial applications and the 200 kW Ultra Fast Charger for public charging. Each of them incorporates different user access options such as RFID and various communication options. The latest generation of the Ultra Fast Charger is now also available with front and rear charging options to make the fast charger even more flexible to use, for example at petrol stations. In addition, the latest premium version of the AC Max Wallbox will also have an integrated net metering function, according to Dev Micknaus, Business Development Manager EV Charging Infrastructure at Delta.
SMA: Wide range of charging solutions embedded in energy system solutions
SMA also offers a wide range of charging solutions for households and companies with e-fleets, each embedded in energy system solutions from the Kassel-based company such as planning software, inverters, battery storage systems, system monitoring and energy management. A strong focus here is on charging that is optimised in terms of solar own consumption and costs and at the same time grid-friendly, as became clear during the presentation by Product Manager Lisa Spangenberg and Bernd Haberecht, Manager BD Business System.
EV chargers with various intelligent charging modes
The EV chargers from SMA offer various charging modes, such as fast charging or the option to use only surplus solar power for charging. An automatic phase change from three-phase to single-phase charging from 1.3 kW in times of weak solar radiation is also integrated in order to use the own solar power as efficiently as possible. Spangenberg and Habebrecht emphasized that the dynamic adjustment of the charging capacity of the EV chargers from SMA also protects the electrical installation from overload and thus prevents power failures. The new EV chargers are scheduled to be launched on the market from this October.
Solar Promotion
Ray Cheng, Overseas Marketing Head of the Chinese manufacturer Growatt, spoke about the increasing importance, challenges and trends in energy storage worldwide and about Growatt solutions. He emphasized the important drivers for energy storage systems as their grid stabilizing effect and the increase in self-supply. He saw particular challenges for the product quality of storage systems and inverters due to increasing extreme temperatures, which could lead to failures and safety risks such as fire if the components and installation are of poor quality. This makes professional installation and high service quality as well as matching components all the more important, emphasized Cheng.
Growatt: Complete system solutions – GroHome
Growatt offers complete system solutions, including inverters, batteries, monitoring and sustainable service. Increasingly important is the possibility of retrofitting grid-connected PV systems with battery storage systems. The three-phase hybrid inverter SPH4000-10000TL3 BH from Growatt offers an interesting possibility for this, because older inverters can be integrated and AC data can be imported into the monitoring system. He sees bidirectional charging and Virtual Power Plants (VPPs) as well as smart home solutions as new trends. Here, the company offers GroHome, which, in addition to the PV system, integrates energy storage systems, EV chargers, water heaters, VPP interfaces and IoT devices with the aim of increasing self-supply and convenience.
Huawei: Grid support through digitized PV plants
Hariram Subramanian, CTO of Huawei FusionSolar Europe / Huawei Technologies (Düsseldorf) gave a broad view on the necessity and the possibilities of grid support of digitized PV plants. The trend here is more and more towards the pure grid compatibility of PV plants and a proactive support of grid stability. Digital technology and the use of artificial intelligence are indispensable for this. Inverters should have new features such as a wide range of short circuit ratio (SCR) adaptability, the ability to control the harmonic current within 1%, fast frequency control and successive high and low voltage cross-connections. Huawei is also currently working on the development of voltage-controlled inverters, Subramanian said in a virtual discussion with Intersolar Innovation Day participants. (hcn)
Read part 1 of our report of the Intersolar Innovation Day here
