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  • Solar Energy in Kerala: A Step Towards a Sustainable Future

    Solar energy is revolutionizing the energy landscape across the world, and Kerala is no exception. Known for its natural beauty and environmental consciousness, Kerala is embracing solar energy as a clean and sustainable power source. Why Solar Energy is Gaining Popularity in Kerala Kerala has abundant sunlight, with over 300 sunny days a year, making it an ideal location for harnessing solar energy. The increasing cost of electricity, coupled with growing environmental awareness, has encouraged individuals, businesses, and the government to explore solar power solutions. Benefits of Solar Energy in Kerala Cost Savings : Solar energy significantly reduces electricity bills for households and businesses. Once installed, the maintenance costs are minimal. Environmentally Friendly : Solar power helps reduce the carbon footprint by providing clean energy without greenhouse gas emissions. Energy Independence : By adopting solar energy, Kerala can reduce its dependency on fossil fuels and imported electricity. Government Incentives : The Kerala government offers various subsidies and incentives to promote solar energy adoption. Government Initiatives to Promote Solar Energy The state government, through the Agency for New and Renewable Energy Research and Technology (ANERT) , is spearheading initiatives to encourage solar installations. Key programs include: Solar Rooftop Subsidies : Financial support for homeowners and businesses to install solar panels. Solar Farming Projects : Opportunities for farmers to utilize unused land for solar farming. PM Kusum Yojana : Aimed at providing solar pumps to farmers to reduce irrigation costs. Popular Solar Solutions in Kerala Kerala offers various solar solutions to meet different needs: 1. On-Grid Solar Systems These systems are connected to the local electricity grid, allowing users to feed excess energy back to the grid and earn credits. 2. Off-Grid Solar Systems Ideal for remote areas, off-grid systems store energy in batteries and provide power even during grid outages. 3. Solar Water Heaters Widely used in Kerala, solar water heaters are a cost-effective solution for hot water needs in homes and hotels. Future of Solar Energy in Kerala The future of solar energy in Kerala looks promising, with increasing investments in renewable energy and government policies aimed at sustainability. Initiatives like solar parks, microgrids, and smart city projects will further boost solar adoption in the state. Conclusion Solar energy is not just a solution to Kerala’s growing energy needs but also a step towards a greener and more sustainable future. By leveraging its natural resources and government support, Kerala can emerge as a leader in renewable energy.

  • സോളാർപാനൽ സ്ഥാപിക്കുന്നതിന് മുൻപ് അറിയേണ്ട കാര്യങ്ങൾ

    All About Solar Rooftop Installations In Your Home. An interview with Mr. C M Varughese, CEO Evergreen Energy Technologies | Malayalam

  • Solar Inverter | A Technical Overview

    Solar Inverter –An overlook A solar Inverter is the core unit in a solar power system where the DC power from Solar PV is converted to AC power of standard voltage and frequency . Mainly three categories of Solar Inverters- OFF Grid Inverter ,Grid Tie Inverter and Hybrid Inverter are available . Off Grid INVERTER : The PV supply pass through a charge controller –PWM  type with MPPT algorithm to derive maximum power from the PV .The charge controller limit the charging voltage to safe value . The Inverter is a normal inverter where Sinusoidal PWM switching technology is used to derive Sinusoidal output with least THDv and perfect regulation .The inverter switching by Mosfets or IGBTs depending battery voltage and Inverter rating . The loading on inverter be selected to cater the surge rating and over load rating .Inverter being an equipment switched through  semiconductors the surge rating is limited to 150-200% generally . As the loading on an Off Grid inverter varies 5% to 30% of rating ,to discharge the energy over 16-18 hrs in a day  by storage of  4kWHr/Kw of PV  in 4-6 hrs ,it is import the low load efficiency be high rather than full load efficiency to be high . Solar Battery : Unlike the battery discharge in Home UPS or IT UPS where back up need to be ½ hr to 2 hrs and again in an unlikely event of mains failures only ,here for Solar Power System the solar battery need to charge and discharge every day and 365 days an year .So ideal to keep depth of discharge for 50% on lead acid batteries . The end cell voltage shall be decided based on 16 hr discharge at 50% DOD and shall be >1.9V cell for longer life . And load shall be re-transferred to inverter on charging >80-8%% of battery ,say 2.25V/cell. It is ideal to have auto transfer to mains supply on inverter trip ,but charging from mains shall be inhibited and shall have an option to charge from mains on an unlikely event of full depth discharge during rainy season . The PCU ,PVs must be protected against lightning through lightning arrestor ,against surges by SPDs .PVs are Isolated through DC MCBs/MCCBs .The PVs ,Lightning arrestor and PCUs are earthed as per IS 3043 . The PVs shall be type tested for IEC 61215 –design qualification and type approval ,IEC 61730-1,2 for electrical ,mechanical and operational safety requirements . PCU (Inverter +charge controller ) shall be type tested for IEC 61683 for performance and efficiency ,IEC 60068 -12,13,30 for Environmental protection . The battery shall be type tested for IS 1651 –Capacity test and endurance test . Grid Tie Inverter : Grid Tie Inverter (GTI)is again and Inverter converting DC power from PVs to AC  and transferring same to Grid or internally consumed in conjunction with Grid .It is always tied to grid and that is why Grid Tied Inverter . unlike normal inverter or UPS inverter where is a voltage source inverter a GTI is a current source inverter and cannot stand itself its own to support the load .It is controlled by Grid –voltage ,frequency and phase angle as well as load  sharing . The THDi of the GTI shall be limited <5% and shall have a frequency window 48-50.5Hz and voltage 180-250V L-N . The GTI controls each phase independently but get isolated on any of the phase deviates . The Ant Islanding protection of GTI is of paramount important as on a GTI working as an island can damage the electrical equipments  connected as the voltage or frequency is not self corrected to standard value . The GTI is protected against Anti islanding through Passive protections –U/O voltage U/O frequency ,Dv/dt ,Df/dt ,THDietc beyond the allowed range in addition active protection by frequency drift mechanism . On an Grid failure by cable cut or isolation etc on an unlikely event of the GTIs capacity (single or multiple GTIs) shall be prevented to act as an island ,here the frequency drift mechanism acts upon if the passive protections fail and GTIs got tripped with 2 Second of grid failure . The GTI  shall be type tested for IEC 61683 for performance and efficiency ,IEC 60068 -12,13,30 for Environmental IEC 62116 for anti islanding IEC 61727 for Utility interface and IEC 62109-1 for Safety . GTIs are generally not galvanically isolated and share the mains neutral for sensing etc ,this neutral do not carry any load . The GTIs are working on a DC bus voltage rather than  PV voltage to get MPPT level by MPPT algorithm embedded in the controller .For lower Kva rating the PV DC is boosted to reach +400-0-400V bus and higher kVAs no need to boost . For large KVAs more number of  GTIs shall be parralleled as String inverters and above 1000KVA generally go for a Central inverter where one inverter alone supply this load . The central inverter can be connected to MV transformer LV side and power directly transferred to 11Kv . Hybrid Inverter : A grid interactive solar inverter which has battery storage. It can work as OFF GRID at same as Grid tied too on excess power to transport to grid The introduction of hybrid solar systems has opened up for many interesting innovations. New inverters let homeowners take advantage of changes in the utility electricity rates throughout the day. Solar panels happen to output the most electrical power at noon – not long before the price of electricity peaks. Your home and electrical vehicle can be programmed to consume power during off-peak hours (or from your solar panels). Consequently, you can temporarily store whatever excess electricity your solar panels in batteries, and put it on the utility grid when you are paid the most for every kWh. Smart solar holds a lot of promise. The concept will become increasingly important as we transition towards the smart grid in the coming years. What is a Micro-Inverter? A micro-inverter converts power at the solar panel from DC electricity to 240v AC electricity and is attached to each panel in a solar system. As opposed to a conventional string inverter which is connected to a series or “string” of solar panels and converts the power from Direct Current (DC) in to Alternate Current (AC) electricity , for the solar system as a whole. When a system owner switches off the circuit breaker in the main switchboard of a house or business, a micro inverter no longer sees mains power and it automatically switches off. However the DC Voltage between the panels and the inverter is still live. In the case of a micro inverter, the Voltage is only 50V DC – Extra Low Voltage. In the case of a conventional inverter, when the circuit breaker in the switchboard is switched off, there is still 1,000V DC being generated in the live DC cable between the panels and the inverter. This cable is still live and just as dangerous as when the circuit breaker is switched on. A low DC system Voltage also means the risk of Potential Induced Degradation is mitigated. STRING INVERTERS : Typically several panels put in series to connect a single inverter to increase capacity of System and several such inverters can be connected to GRID in parallel .Rating 1-150Kw generally .for 1000KW System 10 nos 100Kw connected in parallel . Central Inverter : A single large inverter of 250KW or more ,available up to 5 Mw now .Functionally same of string inverter but generally connected to MV through a transformer Compiled by : C M Varughese

  • Solar Power Systems | Some Key Facts

    Solar Power Systems – Facts to be known : Solar PV System generate 4kWHr DC Power (4 units )/Kw average per day at PV end in Kerala .On conversion to AC the yield is 3 to 3.5 units per day .Average 100 units per months per Kw ,on higher kWs yield increases proportionally . Space requirements- 100 sq.ft per Kw and increases proportionally as Kw increases .Space should be south oriented in Kerala ,without shade . Standard mounting on flat roof at 10-11 deg centigrade south oriented , Possible to mount on inclined roof ,tiled roof as well as sheet roof ,also above car porch and ground mounted . Type and Selection of Solar PV Systems - Off Grid (with battery ) : Useful for areas where mains failures and fluctuations are frequent .Battery per Kw 4x150AH C10 Tubular for residential and 2x150AH for office ,day time use . Load be distributed to contain PCU rating and PV generation ,say 3-3.5 units per Kw . Priority load shall be Lights,Fans ,TV etc . PCU (Solar Inverter ) rating 1Kva o.k if the Fridge-285L/DL is inverter type ,other wise 2Kw may be needed . For AC ,1.5T AC of inverter type can be connected on 3Kva PCU ,other type AC of 1.5T may need 6/7.5 Kva PCU . 1.5 T AC ,average energy consumption 8Hrs may be 8 units . On maximum energy conservation and Energy Efficiency exercise only go for Solar ,limit 80% of energy consumption on solar and balance on Mains on an average . Avoid connecting high surge loads (low duration running ) like motors on Solar if possible . Advantage OFF GRID-Give a steady , stable ,Clean power 24Hrs (depending connected load rating ) Type and Selection of Solar PV Systems - Grid Connected Good for mains stable steady Just generate energy and get bill reduced through Net metering Power Quality same as mains Good for large commercial complexes ,Hospitals ,Institutions etc where own substation available with less fluctuations and failures . Pricing at an average : Off Grid 1Kw-10Kw with 4x150AH C10 battery/Kw –Rs.1.3 to 1.5L /Kw depending BOQ and higher kWs price increases almost proportionally as Battery and PVs Nos increase straight up which are major price part of the systems . On Grid -1-5Kw Rs.90k to Rs.3.5L ,5-10KW Rs.3.5L to Rs.6.5 L .Per W price reduces as rating goes up . Above prices for standard items and may vary depending change in roofing ,cable length etc Maintenance – Cleaning the PVs once in a month with clean water a must , birds drops shall be cleared as soon as located . Battery top up shall be checked once in 6 months . Take readings of the system from the display once in a month-W ,kWHr ,AC voltage , Load % ,Frequency ,Battery Voltage ,charging current , PV Current etc during sunny hrs as well as during night peak . Life of Solar PVs aprox 25 Years ,Battery 7-8 Years and PCU 15 Years on right selection ,usage and maintenance . Pls be reminded battery life is number of charge discharge cycles with ref to depth of discharge ,for above application and life solar batteries are designed for 50% depth of discharge . Solar PVs – Mono crystalline and Polycrystalline PVs are generally used and Mono is having 1.5% conversion efficiency over Poly but price almost 5% more .But yield for a particular Wp panel same irrespective of Mono or Poly ,difference is mono need little space less for mounting and so advantageous on large plants by space . MPPT Charge controller yield average 20% energy more over PWM charger and available as inbuilt with PCUs ,shall not be there for single battery single PV system . As solar Off Grid systems generally work at 20-30% load normally the efficiency at low load is important than full load . BOS –Balance of Systems ,even though cost share small BOS important to keep the system protected ,keep system running without failures . Mounting structure shall be GI for long life without rusting . Cable sizes shall be for <3% drop in PV side and shall be UV protected . SPD (Surge protection device ),shall be used in SPV System DC MCB for PV isolation shall be used Earthing shall be done as per standard And Lightening arrestors shall be used as part of SPV systems Net Metering and Connectivity : Net Meter Available from EB on rent and shall be replaced for standard meter on Grid connected PV system and Grid connectivity on Inspection and approval by KSEB and Inspectorate . Up to 10Kw only KSEB inspection. Rs.1000 for for feasibility study and Rs.1000 per Kw on Grid connection fee as of now Generation based incentive Rs.1.0 /unit available for OFF Grid System from KSEB . Energy Conservation -the habit by which we reduce energy consumption by reducing consumption: ELCB must for all electrical circuits Keeping lights and fans off on not in use Use lower rated lamps or reducing light intensity etc as required Switch off standby devices not in use Energy Efficiency ,using equipments and devices of higher efficiency : Fluorescent tubes and CFL bulbs be replaced with LED tubes and LED bulbs of 50% power rating keeping the lux same. Replace old fans with BLDC fans Replace old Fridges and ACs with 5 Star rated Fridges and ACs Replace the Motors with energy efficient motors . Compiled by : C M Varughese

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KERALA, INDIA

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0484-2429348 /

965-698-1118

VII/223-A, Ambadimoola, Palachuvadu, NGO Qrts Road, Kakkanad, Cochin- 682 030

Kerala, India

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Ever Green Energy Technologies is  a registeted vendor under PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana program under MNRE and also empanelled with ANERT, Govt of Kerala.

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