On-Campus Solar PV Lab: Component Selection is Only the Beginning

The work of the Solar PV Team is to design and install Solar PV systems which enable our clients to fulfill their mission in the presence of unreliable or non-existent electrical power. In order to experiment with different Solar PV configurations and train new members, the Solar PV team last year designed a Solar Lab to be installed in and next to Frey 70. This work paralleled the design/component selection typically performed prior to an installation site trip. This year, the team modeled the efforts typically done at the installation site by building and configuring the Solar Lab design. This poster will focus on the lessons learned about decisions that need to be made in the field to convert a Component Selection level design into a Functioning PV System.https://mosaic.messiah.edu/engr2021/1015/thumbnail.jp

On-Campus Solar PV Lab: Component Selection is Only the Beginning

The work of the Solar PV Team is to design and install Solar PV systems which enable our clients to fulfill their mission in the presence of unreliable or non-existent electrical power. In order to experiment with different Solar PV configurations and train new members, the Solar PV team last year designed a Solar Lab to be installed in and next to Frey 70. This work paralleled the design/component selection typically performed prior to an installation site trip. This year, the team modeled the efforts typically done at the installation site by building and configuring the Solar Lab design. This poster will focus on the lessons learned about decisions that need to be made in the field to convert a Component Selection level design into a Functioning PV System.https://mosaic.messiah.edu/engr2021/1003/thumbnail.jp

Solar PV - Equipping the Future

The Solar PV team has installed several solar power systems for various partners in the developing world. Most recently, the team installed a solar-powered well pump at the Living Love Ministries Children’s Home in Ol Kalou, Kenya. As is true for all the previous installations, the team gained a wealth of valuable knowledge and experience on the trip to Kenya. A problem the team faces is that a lot of that experience gained leaves when seniors graduate. With the goal of passing on our knowledge and experience to future generations of the Solar PV team, we have been constructing a solar lab at Messiah for experimentation and training. We also are developing a curriculum to teach new team members about solar power and provide a framework for preserving new knowledge the team obtains in the future. Throughout the 2019-2020 year, the solar team has made significant progress towards the completion of these projects.https://mosaic.messiah.edu/engr2020/1011/thumbnail.jp

Designing a Solar PV System for Tree 4 Hope

The Solar Photovoltaics (PV) team designs and installs solar electricity systems in developing countries where power is less reliable or non-existent. Starting in 2020, the Solar PV team began collaborating with Tree 4 Hope—a nonprofit organization that partners with an orphanage near Guatemala City, Guatemala. Over the past year, the team has designed a solar system to be installed at the orphanage which will provide them with a cleaner and cheaper source of electricity. Thus far, the overall 5 kW solar panel system design including lead-acid batteries has been completed. Key components of the system consisting of the system controller, two charge controllers and the inverter have been programmed and tested, by plugging them into existing elements of the solar lab system, in preparation for installation in Guatemala. This poster details the progress accomplished this year in the design, testing, and programming of the Solar PV system including wiring considerations and communication with in-country suppliers for installation at the orphanage during May of this year. Funding for this work provided by The Collaboratory for Strategic Partnerships and Applied Research.https://mosaic.messiah.edu/engr2022/1016/thumbnail.jp