Swiss telecoms firm Leuk TDC has turned two out of date satellite tv for pc dishes on its land into sun-tracking solar energy crops to assist energy its knowledge centre.
Constructing know-how specialist CKW put in 614 photo voltaic panels on two dishes inbuilt 1972 – 307 panels on every – so that every generates round 110,000 kWh of electrical energy a yr.
The corporate additionally put in a photo voltaic array on the principle constructing of Leuk TDC’s computing and knowledge centre, producing an additional 555,000 kWh a yr.
The remainder of the information centre’s electrical energy comes from hydroelectric crops, so it runs fully on renewable power sources.
Know-how firm SolarEdge helped overcome difficulties posed by the dishes’ concave form, the place their diverse inclinations may have diminished the system’s effectivity.
In a press launch, SolarEdge mentioned conventional string photo voltaic inverters trigger the general photo voltaic array to match the weakest performing panel on the string, so one shaded panel may reduce all panels’ power yield.
SolarEdge used a DC-optimised inverter, with “energy optimisers” connected to the underside of each pair of panels to mitigate module mismatch and make the undertaking extra financially viable.
“In complicated circumstances akin to these with uneven surfaces, with out using energy optimisers we merely wouldn’t have been capable of obtain wherever near the extent of power being produced immediately,” mentioned Manuel Jossi, CKW’s deputy head of photo voltaic know-how for central Switzerland.
“By following the solar’s path all through the day, these dishes optimise photo voltaic radiation absorption. Having put in them we get significantly extra hours of electrical energy than typical string system, and energy optimisers improve electrical energy manufacturing additional,” mentioned Leuk TDC chief govt John Harris.
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