Photovoltaic inverter varistor maintenance

Why is inverter reliability important in a large-scale PV plant?

Abstract: In large-scale PV plants, inverters have consistently been the leading cause of corrective maintenance and downtime. Improving inverter reliability is critical to increasing solar photovoltaic (PV) affordability and overall plant reliability.

Do metal oxide varistors protect PV systems from lightning strikes?

Metal oxide varistors (MOVs) are commonly used to protect PV systems from lightning strikes. This paper proposes a holistic impulse-based MOV lifetime estimation framework. The impacts of peak current and fault duration induced by lightning events are considered in the MOV lifetime estimation framework.

Do PV inverters need safety standards?

Applied safety standards for PV inverters provide a rudimentary level of reliability testing, insofar as they relate to safety. Considering the lack of generally accepted reliability standards, some apply draft standards in development and portions of standards from other industries.

What is PV inverter research?

This research also develops models and methods to compute the losses of the power electronics switches and other components in a PV inverter. The losses are then used to estimate the junction and heat sink temperatures of the power semiconductors in the inverter.

How is the lifetime of a PV inverter predicted?

Up to a certain point in time, the entire lifetime of a PV inverter was predicted based on the failure rates of individual components and handbooks provided by the manufacturers. In recent years, the prediction of the reliability and lifetime of power converters has been done through physics-of-failure assessments.

Do photovoltaic systems need maintenance?

The expansion of photovoltaic systems emphasizes the crucial requirement for effective operations and maintenance, drawing insights from advanced maintenance approaches evident in the wind industry. This review systematically explores the existing literature on the management of photovoltaic operation and maintenance.