3-Port Single-Stage PV & Battery Converter Improves Efficiency and Cost in Combined PV/Battery Systems

[摘要] Due to impressive cost reductions in recent years, photovoltaic (PV) generation is now able to produce electricity at highly competitive prices, but PV???s inherent intermittency reduces the potential value of this energy. The integration of battery storage with PV will be transformational by increasing the value of solar. Utility scale systems will benefit by firming intermittency including PV ramp smoothing, grid support and load shifting, allowing PV to compete directly with conventional generation. For distributed grid-tied PV adding storage will reduce peak demand utility charges, as well as providing backup power during power grid failures. The largest long term impact of combined PV and battery systems may be for delivering reliable off-grid power to the billions of individuals globally without access to conventional power grids, or for billions more that suffer from daily power outages. PV module costs no longer dominate installed PV system costs. Balance-of-System (BOS) costs including the PV inverter and installation now contribute the majority of installed system costs. Battery costs are also dropping faster than installation and battery power converter systems. In each of these separate systems power converters have become a bottleneck for efficiency, cost and reliability. These bottlenecks are compounded in hybrid power conversion systems that combine separate PV and battery converters. Hybrid power conversion systems have required multiple power converters hardware units and multiple power conversion steps adding to efficiency losses, product and installation costs, and reliability issues. Ideal Power Converters has developed and patented a completely new theory of operation for electronic power converters using its indirect EnergyPacket Switching??? topology. It has established successful power converter products for both PV and battery systems, and its 3-Port Hybrid Converter is the first product to exploit the topology???s capability for the industry???s first single-stage multi-port hybrid power converter. This unique low cost approach eliminates the hybrid power conversion bottlenecks when integrating batteries into PV systems. As result this product will significantly accelerate market adoption of these systems.

[发布日期] 2013-03-23

[学科分类] 再生能源与代替技术

[关键词] hybrid;batteries;PV;microgrid