Abstract
The development of photovoltaic (PV) technology is now a reality. The inclusion of lithium-ion batteries in grid-connected PV systems is growing, and the sharp drop in prices for these batteries will enable their use in applications such as PV water pumping schemes (PVWPS). A technical solution for the monitoring and tracking of PV systems is shown in this work, and a novel quasi-real-time monitoring system for a PVWPS with a Li-ion battery is proposed in which open-source Internet of Things (IoT) tools are used. The purpose of the monitoring system is to provide a useful tool for the operation, management, and development of these facilities. The experimental facility used to test the monitoring system includes a 2.4 kWpk photovoltaic field, a 3.6 kVA hybrid inverter, a 3.3 kWh/3 kW lithium-ion battery, a 2.2 kVA variable speed driver, and a 1.5 kW submersible pump. To address this study, data acquisition is performed using commercial hardware solutions that communicate using a Modbus-RTU protocol over an RS485 bus and open software. A Raspberry Pi is used in the data gateway stage, including a PM2 free open-source process manager to increase the robustness and reliability of the monitoring system. Data storage is performed in a server using InfluxDB for open-source database storage and Grafana as open-source data visualization software. Data processing is complemented with a configurable data exporter program that enables users to select and copy the data stored in InfluxDB. Excel or .csv files can be created that include the desired variables with a defined time interval and with the desired data granularity. Finally, the initial results of the monitoring system are presented, and the possible uses of the acquired data and potential users of the system are identified and described.
Highlights
Concern about climate change is growing, and a transformation in the current energy model is needed to achieve a sustainable and efficient energy mix [1]
New trends in grid-connected PV systems include the use of energy storage systems (ESSs), such as lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) [9], to increase the share of self-consumed energy in domestic and industrial sectors [10] and to solve problems related to the integration of distributed generation (DG) systems based on Renewable energies (REs) with conventional electricity grids
The comparison with the results presented for the Direct PVWPS (DPVWPS) mode in Figure 13 enables us to identify the following benefits that the PV water pumping schemes (PVWPS)+LIB mode can provide:
Summary
Concern about climate change is growing, and a transformation in the current energy model is needed to achieve a sustainable and efficient energy mix [1]. Wind and photovoltaic (PV) technologies are experiencing worldwide growth due to the low cost of the energy they generate, and they are currently leading the fight against climate change [4,5]. ESSs are expected to develop considerably in the coming years since both wind and PV are intermittent sources [6], and battery storage [7] and pumped hydro energy are emerging as the most implemented solutions for adjusting the profiles of energy generation and energy demand [8]. Water needs for human consumption in some regions of developing countries are often covered by auxiliary generators that require a continuous supply of fossil fuel, and this approach encounters various problems—including high fuel prices, difficulty of supply, high maintenance costs, short life expectancy, fuel leakage, noise, and environmental pollution [12] New trends in grid-connected PV systems include the use of ESSs, such as lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) [9], to increase the share of self-consumed energy in domestic and industrial sectors [10] and to solve problems related to the integration of distributed generation (DG) systems based on REs with conventional electricity grids (these problems include frequency control, active power control, reactive power control, dynamic grid support [11]).
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