Wind turbine and solar battery on one pole. About wind turbines and solar panels

Having lived one summer with a pair of solar panels and did not wait to be connected to the mains, it was necessary to solve the problem of electricity supply for the next year. Winter was ahead and there was time to study the methods of autonomous power supply, as well as choose which would be better: your own solar power plant, a wind generator or a compact hydroelectric power station ...

The first option was to acquire their own hydroelectric power plant. Quiet work, your own pond and fishing - it all looks great until you plunge into theory. To extract energy, one must have either a decent elevation difference or a high flow rate. There is neither the first nor the second at our latitudes, so this option was swept away immediately. It should be noted that ready-made sets of mini-hydroelectric power plants are produced in Russia.

The second and most attractive option was the wind turbine. "How," I thought. “After all, the wind is always there. And the beautiful blades will spin slowly and romantically. " The deeper I delved into the theory of wind energy and read user reviews, the more my hair moved. Over time, I realized that it is impossible to live on one wind generator, if only because I do not live on the edge of the steppes and not on the seashore or ocean, where there are constant winds. In addition, if there are forests or at least forest belts around, this significantly affects the speed and strength of the wind, and therefore, on energy production. Having also studied the market of wind power plants, I learned that Russia has its own manufacturers of wind turbines, but there were problems with the guarantee, so I turned my gaze towards China, where the mass production of such devices has been established. Based on energy requirements, I would like to have up to two kilowatts of power at the peak. As it turned out, such a wind turbine could produce even more, but then I looked at the graph.

It turns out that 2 kW of energy can be obtained with a wind speed of 9 m / s. The question arose, what are the winds blowing in my region? I started digging and saw that NASA had more data and it was easier to get it. In general, the wind map for the Russian Federation looks like this:

That is, if you put a windmill on a 10 meter high mast, you can count on an average annual wind of 4 meters per second. And this despite the fact that the rocking of the blades sometimes occurs only with gusty winds up to 5 m / s, and then the blades rotate even with a lower wind. But production starts at 2.5-3 m / s, and the flow of energy with such a wind will be only 200-300 W / h.
After reading a few more experienced people, I realized that you either have to live on a hill, or raise the mast with a wind generator 15 meters in order to get more wind. It must be remembered that the wind turbine requires periodic maintenance (at least once every two years) and in case of repair it will need to be lowered somehow.
Now let's estimate the accounting department of such a windmill. We will only take into account the cost of the wind generator itself, a special controller for it and the mast. Batteries are not considered, since they will be needed autonomously, regardless of the energy source. I will quote the prices of finished devices in Russia. They may argue that in the same way you can buy pipes, weld them and make a mast yourself, or order a wind turbine from China. As my practice has shown at the stage of creating solar panels, the economic feasibility of these actions is available only if you have a lot of experience. self assembly.

Wind power set (prices as of early March 2015):
1. Wind turbine LOW · WIND · 48 · 2.5, 2.5 kW 48V with controller - 131880 r
2. Mast 15 m for wind turbine SWG-E - 32500 r
Total for the set: 164,380 rubles.
Somehow not very budgetary. With this money, you can buy a generator for about 6 kW and 7300 liters of AI-92 gasoline at a price of 32 rubles per liter. At a consumption of 2.3 liters per hour, the generator will work without stopping for 3175 hours or 132 days. It is clear that it is necessary to carry out maintenance on the generator and it will not work around the clock, but only at moments of high loads or to charge the batteries, but I thought that the wind generator was expensive for me.

Pros of wind energy: Cool, unusual, eye-catching. The worse the weather, the stronger the wind, which means more energy... There are exceptions - in case of a hurricane wind, to prevent failure, it is blocked.
Cons: high initial investment, large space for mast braces (installation of a mast without braces is possible, but requires a better foundation and the structure is somewhat more expensive), wind dependence, noise

Let's turn to solar energy. The advantages are immediately noticeable: the absence of any sound vibrations, the possibility of a gradual purchase of modules and a stepwise increase in power.
The downsides are a little less obvious: you need a sufficient area with constant lighting, no shadow. Weather dependence. Seasonality, as in winter period production drops multiple, relative to summer.

I switched to the sun side and started purchasing modules. Having studied more than one forum and studied the prices in Russian online stores, I decided to save money and turn to foreign sellers. The question of warranty and reliability came up, so I chose European suppliers of Chinese panels. At that time, they had a rather interesting offer when buying two batteries with a capacity of 100 W each at once. Even with delivery, the cost came out about 7 thousand rubles apiece. So I got 4 batteries and started looking towards the controllers. It became clear that the production efficiency can only be increased with the help of the MPPT controller. After researching the market, I ordered an EPSolar Tracer 3215RN controller through Ebay. It refers to budget models, but it allows you to connect to the input up to 150V and withstand currents up to 30 A. With 12V batteries, it is capable of digesting up to 390W of power, that is, my batteries had just. And if you raise the voltage to 24V, then the digested power doubles. That is, the controller, as they say, "for growth." In addition to my battery, I added another 190 Ah.
It became clear that the energy received needed to be consumed, and Chinese inverters were not suitable for this at all. The idea came to get a pure sine wave inverter. This pleasure is expensive, but after examining several options, including Russian ones, I decided to take a Chinese device under a European name. This inverter is capable of delivering 1500W to consumers for a long time, up to 3000W peak. That is, such an inverter will easily start all household electrical appliances with motors, as well as power tools. In the autonomous system, such a parameter as the idle current is very important. In this device, this parameter equaled from 600 to 1000 mA, which is not very good, but bearable, since the work was usually carried out under load and during daylight hours, the conversion losses were more than compensated for.
I must say that before buying, I even found an OEM manufacturer of these inverters in China and contacted them directly for purchase. The profit at that time (the dollar exchange rate of 30-32 rubles) was about 30-40 dollars, but with the guarantee from the Chinese it is more difficult, so I preferred to buy in Germany, knowing how the Germans relate to guarantee obligations. And I understand that I did the right thing, because the warranty for the inverter is 24 months and I had to send it in for repair twice. I only paid for one way shipping, so I think it was worth it.
Closer to summer, I decided to buy solar panels and then it turned out that it was more profitable to buy batteries in Russia, since the Europeans raised the cost, and the popularity of solar energy grew in our country, and I did not take batteries from the highest price echelon. Thus, my solar power plant was able to generate 800 watts of energy. I had to buy a new controller, since I categorically did not want to switch to the main voltage of 24 V. The new controller was twice as powerful and could handle current up to 60A. My main consumers remained the same: household appliances, power tools (the inverter was already at 12 V) and lighting. I also ordered the second inverter through Ebay, bargaining with various sellers for a long time, offering my price (there is such a fad) and even bargaining for about $ 30. When I made such expensive purchases, sellers, as a rule, sent the tracking code themselves to track the package's travel, but it’s not shameful to ask yourself if they didn’t send it right away. I received all the packages and everything worked successfully.
Keeping in mind that it is better to duplicate important nodes in an autonomous system, I got a 12V and 2000 W inverter with a modified sine. He helped me out when the main inverter left for repairs, so this approach paid off. For the largest and most complex loads, like electric welding, I started the generator. And here it became clear that the generator could be useful when it was idle. I started looking at chargers that could charge such a battery pack.
A bit of theory. Lead-acid batteries are usually charged with a current of 1/10 of their capacity. Since I had two 190Ah batteries connected in parallel, the calculated total capacity was 380 Ah and the charge current should have been around 38A. Such devices were either very expensive or were starter kits to start the car engine. Choosing among our and foreign manufacturers for a long time, I came across a feedback from one user and began to dig further. Curiously, ZU Orion Vympel-50 is produced by a Russian company based in St. Petersburg. Judging by the reviews, the company listens to the wishes of users and produces fairly reliable and inexpensive chargers. The selected model allows charging current up to 15A and has five charge profiles with three manual settings for the lower and upper voltage limits. Simply put, you can configure the charging of almost any type of battery, which is what I needed. To get 10% of the battery capacity, it was required to take a couple of chargers and connect them in parallel. By the way, the sun was enough so that the charge was not required, and now this charger is working on the constant maintenance of the battery charge.

The diagram shows a switch, into which the power lines from the inverter and generator converge. This is a manual phase changeover switch. Phase and zero are supplied to it from two power sources, and the output is fed to the load. You can manually select only one power source through the opening position, so I secured myself against the possibility of shorting two power sources. The option is extremely simple, but effective.

The result is a system that includes (prices in 2014):
1.8x100 W solar panels (~ 6500 r / pc)
2. Charge controller EPSolar Tracer 3215RN (~ 13000 r)
3. Charge controller mppsolar pcm60x (~ 16500r)
4. Inverter Solartronics 1500W (~ 16000 r)
5. Inverter Mystery MAC-2000 (used for 1000r)
6.2x Battery 190Ah (~ 8500 r / pc)
7. ZU Orion Vympel-50 (~ 3000r)
Total: 118500 r

What can such a system do? All summer I did without a generator, even in not very clear weather. In cloudy times, consumption simply decreased, and in clear weather, it was possible to successfully use a powerful power tool. The generator was started for electric welding use only. Several tricks have been used to make better use of the energy received. The refrigerator thermostat was unscrewed to the maximum so that the refrigerator would work without stopping when it was turned on. Bottles with highly salted water were placed in the freezer, which served as cold accumulators and froze all day, releasing the cold into the main chamber at night. The refrigerator itself was turned off at night. An electric bread maker was added to the electrical appliances, which consumed 650 W * h during a cycle of operation with a peak consumption of 600 W. Bread was baked almost every day. Thus, energy production exceeded consumption, but for powerful jobs like a welding machine or an iron, a generator had to be turned on.

Based on the results of the creation of the second version of the autonomous system, we can conclude that:
a) buy complex electronics on Ebay can
b) bargain before buying on Ebay can and should
c) should be related warranty obligations and the difference in price between the device from China, bought from the Chinese and from the Europeans
d) the cost of solar panels inevitably decreases and it is more profitable to buy them at the moment in Russia (as applied to Russians)
e) key devices must be duplicated so that in the event of a breakdown, they do not run out of energy during the repair
f) it is imperative to separate the power circuits from different energy sources in order to prevent short circuits
g) there are Russian analogues of all these devices, which are often superior in their characteristics to Western or Chinese counterparts
h) when buying in our stores, you can agree on a warranty replacement of key devices during the repair, in case of their failure

At the end of the article, I would like to summarize some of the results. The constructed solar power plant cost half the price of a wind generator, but it is efficient from March to October. In winter, its production is only enough to provide lighting for the house, therefore, the rather popular question in autonomous energy "can a house be heated with solar panels" can be answered negatively. If full autonomy is required all year round, then only a combination of two energy sources will allow you to live in a bright house. One of the sources is solar panels, and the other is a generator or wind turbine. In the case, if there is a hydroelectric power station nearby, then the power generation is constant, with some exceptions.

Dear Khabrovites, I noticed that many people were interested in the autonomous supply of energy and heat, so I would like to make the following material as useful as possible. In the comments, in addition to questions, please let me know what would be more interesting for you:

1. The fight against power engineers for grid electricity and typical mistakes in the design of solar autonomous systems
2. Reducing energy costs with solar panels
3. We get not only electricity from the sun, but also heat
4. Is there a life with a windmill?

Not a single windmill will generate electricity at a wind speed of less than 3 m / s, and its work becomes effective at a wind speed of at least 4-5 m / s. In central Russia, wind generators designed to operate in low winds have an advantage.

It is better to install a wind generator in an open area, preferably on a hill, and the higher the mast, the better. The length of the blades also matters, especially in light winds. Blades with an airplane profile are much (2-4 times) more effective than flat blades.

There are wind generators with horizontal and vertical axis of rotation. Wind turbines with a vertical axis of rotation are about twice as expensive, but their resource is almost twice as high - 20-25 years versus 10-15.

There are two types of wind turbine masts: 1) cable-supported masts can be easily lifted, but the cable guides take up a large area; 2) independent towers, which do not have cables, are heavy and expensive, their installation is difficult, but they do not take up much space. For use in the country or in country cottage wind generators with a capacity of 2-5 kW are best suited.

In areas with weak winds, and these include the Moscow region, in order to get at least some energy, you should choose a windmill with the best efficiency in low winds, which, moreover, has a high power.

Solar panels directly convert solar energy into electricity, which can be fed directly to the grid or stored in batteries. Monocrystalline silicon solar panels work best. Their service life is approximately 50 years, and the efficiency reaches 18%.

Solar batteries made of multicrystalline silicon are somewhat inferior in these indicators. Occasionally you can find completely backward amorphous silicon panels - the cheapest, of course. In order to extract solar energy in the summer, it is advisable to install solar panels along the entire southern slope of the roof at an angle of approximately 45 ° to the horizon. In winter, everything is different: solar panels should be located almost vertically, at an angle of 70-80 ° to the horizon, due to snow and the low position of the sun.

To ensure the autonomous operation of several fluorescent or LED energy-saving lamps, a refrigerator and a TV in the country, you can install several solar panels with a total capacity of 500-600, or better 1000 watts. Such a set of solar panels is complemented by a battery pack with a total capacity of 200-400 ampere-hour and an inverter from 2 to 6 kW with a solar controller. This is how much power the inverter needs to handle peak loads and inrush currents. A set of solar panels with a capacity of 2-4 kW can power a small cottage, providing a comfortable stay.

Ecology of consumption. Homestead: To balance the flow of energy from alternative sources often there is a desire to combine solar panels and a wind turbine in one system.

To balance the supply of energy from alternative sources, there is often a desire to combine solar panels and a wind generator in one system.

In what cases it is worth doing this and which source of alternative energy to choose, you can understand by considering the pros and cons of wind turbines and solar panels.

Pros of solar panels:

• Reliability - high-quality panels from a well-known world manufacturer will last 25 years or more, since they do not have moving parts and any electronics in their composition, and tempered glass, a strong aluminum frame and reliable sealing of elements ensure trouble-free operation of the panels in all weather conditions at any temperature ...
• Easy to install - With the help of standard fixing kits, you can easily fix the panels on the roof or on the wall of the house.
• Absence of necessity Maintenance - the only thing recommended to increase energy production is to wash the surface of the solar panels once a year detergent for glass, but this is not necessary.

Cons of solar panels:

• Low average daily power generation in winter time - 5-10 times less than in summer for middle lane Russia, 2-3 times less - for the southern regions and the complete absence of production in winter in the northern regions beyond the Arctic Circle. To compensate for the lack of electricity, it is necessary to use a diesel generator, a gas generator or a wind generator.
• Strong dependence of power generation on the weather. In cloudy weather, production is reduced by up to 5-20% compared to cloudless sunny weather. However, this dependence in an autonomous solar power plant can be eliminated by using high-capacity batteries that provide a supply of electricity for 5-7 days.

Advantages of wind turbines:

• Electricity generation does not depend on the time of day and time of year if there is wind.
• In areas where winds often blow (in the mountains, in the steppes, on the banks of rivers and seas), a wind turbine can generate a significant amount of electricity. However, the total area of ​​such places inhabited by people in the Russian Federation is less than 1% of all inhabited places.

Disadvantages of wind turbines:

• The need for installation on a mast with a height of more than 25 meters in 99% of the territory of the Russian Federation because residential buildings and forests greatly reduce the wind speed close to the ground - the cost of installing a wind generator will many times exceed the cost of the wind generator itself.
• With an average wind speed in Russia of 3-4 meters per second, the wind generator will generate about 1-3% percent of its rated power. The rated power of the wind generator is indicated for a wind speed of 10-12 m / s.
• Lack of reliability in the segment of low-power wind turbines up to 10 kW - the majority of cheap low-power wind turbines will not work for more than 2 years without breakdowns, although there are cases of wind turbines operating for 8 years.
• The need for annual maintenance to keep the wind generator in working order.
• Freezing of grease when negative temperatures leads to the impossibility of starting the windmill in winter.
• Whistle of low-power wind turbines operating at high speeds at high wind speeds - will not give pleasure to you or your neighbors.
• Low frequency infrasound powerful wind generators at any wind speed and low-power at low wind speeds - as you know, infrasound has a negative effect on human health and all living things. It is for this reason that industrial wind farms are located at a considerable distance from residential areas.

Summarize:

The use of a wind generator as an additional source of energy for a solar power plant makes economic sense only in areas where winds often blow, provided that it is possible to install it away from home. At the same time, it is necessary to install reliable powerful models with a power of 10 kW or more and be sure to carry out their annual maintenance. published by

If you have any questions on this topic, ask the experts and readers of our project.

The most widespread alternative sources of electricity are solar panels and wind generators. Both technologies are quite well developed, prices for equipment are gradually decreasing, and now, for example, a solar module with a capacity of 200–250 W can be purchased for 15–20 thousand rubles.

Which source and how to choose?

Different types silicon solar cells. Option with monocrystalline modules (the module plate is made of a solid silicon crystal). Photo: ShutterStock / Fotodom.ru

First, decide on the amount of electricity you need. Are you going to build a solar or wind power system for your home, or use it for quality? After all, the price tags are very different. For an emergency system (with an output power of 200-500 W), one or two solar modules and additional equipment are enough - a total of about 40-50 thousand rubles. But completely switching to autonomous power supply will cost much more. For example, a system on solar powered with an output power of 2500 W will cost 300-400 thousand rubles. A similar order of numbers and in the price tags for wind turbines.

Solar controllers, inverters and modern batteries in a residential environment do not take up much space and do not require a separate room... Their maintenance and operation can be carried out both locally and remotely using a tablet or smartphone (via Ethernet or Wi-Fi). Photo: ABB

With polycrystalline modules (contains several crystals). Photo: ShutterStock / Fotodom.ru

Directly the choice of the type of "green" source depends on the climatic and geographical features of the area. For example, solar panels are best suited for low-latitude regions with little cloudy weather (for example, in the Crimea). In open areas, on hills and on the seaside, which is characterized by long strong winds, wind generators have proven themselves well. In most of European Russia, there are few places with a climate that is ideal for one or another type of electricity generator. In such conditions, it makes sense to install both types of generators, which will back up each other. Of course, such a system turns out to be much more expensive - but what can be done, these are the features of the Russian climate.

Solar panels

Currently, two types of these devices have become widespread: silicon and film. Each of them is subdivided into types:

1. silicon monocrystalline. Each individual light receiving module is made on the basis of a silicon wafer cut from a single crystal. These batteries are distinguished by the highest efficiency (up to 22-24%), but also by the highest cost;
2. silicon polycrystalline. The plate of a separate module has a structure consisting of several silicon crystals, due to which the device is approximately halved in price. Efficiency 13-15%;
3. silicon amorphous. At a cost of 20 percent less than polycrystalline, the efficiency is about 6-8%;
4. film based on cadmium telluride, copper selenide, polymer materials, etc. They have appeared recently and are not widely used, but are considered by many manufacturers as very promising. The efficiency and cost are about 20% higher than that of amorphous.

The most widespread today are polycrystalline and amorphous silicon-based panels. These modifications are easier to manufacture and cheaper than panels based on a single crystal, and in addition, batteries based on amorphous silicon do not require direct exposure to streams of sunlight, they more efficiently reproduce electricity in diffused lighting and, accordingly, are better suited for central Russia. where there are many cloudy days. For regions with a predominance of clear weather (Crimea, Central Asia), on the contrary, it is better to use mono- and polycrystalline batteries.

Wind turbines

A wind generator converts wind energy into electrical energy. Modern models they are able to work even with a low wind (2-3 m / s), although the optimal wind speed for their work is higher and is usually 10-12 m / s. At a wind speed of 3 m / s, such a wind generator will produce about 5% of the possible power, at a speed of 7 m / s - about 50%. Therefore, when choosing a generator model, it is necessary to take into account the average annual wind speed in your area, this indicator is always indicated in the description.

With amorphous modules. Photo: ShutterStock / Fotodom.ru

A wind generator is also chosen according to the amount of monthly current generation. You must calculate how much electricity you need. Let's say you decide to be frugal and limit yourself to emergency lighting, work circulation pump and the ability to charge a smartphone or laptop. Then you need an output power of 150-200 W, which is about 50-100 kWh per month. Such output will be provided by models of small capacity, they can be purchased today for 20-30 thousand rubles. And if you need more energy, then the wind generator should be chosen more powerful: models that generate several hundred kilowatt-hours per month, but their price will also be higher - 100-150 thousand rubles.

A complete solution with solar panels and powerful wind turbines designed to withstand a wide range of wind speeds. Photo: ShutterStock / Fotodom.ru

The calculation for solar panels is carried out in a similar way. The required amount of electricity is calculated, and based on the calculation, modules are selected so that their combined performance with a guarantee meets your needs. The calculation turns out to be a little more complicated, since the amount of monthly current generation varies greatly with the season. In summer it is maximum, and in winter it barely reaches 10–20% of the summer. Therefore, choose solar panels depending on whether you are going to use them only in the warm season (summer season) or all year round. In addition, generation efficiency is highly dependent on how well you position the solar panels. If they fail to be deployed in the right direction and at the right angle, then the efficiency of energy generation will noticeably decrease - by 20-30%, or even more. Therefore, it is better for a specialist to make calculations on the required performance of batteries, taking into account their location.

An approximate diagram of a hybrid wind-solar installation

Visualization: Igor Smiryagin / Burda Media

Comparative advantages and disadvantages of solar silicon batteries

	Monocrystal	Polycrystal	Amorphous silicon
Price	The tallest		Lowest
Productivity, efficiency,%
Lighting requirements			Less demanding on the angle of incidence of sunlight
Cloudy performance	Low	Low	High
Service life, years

Where and how to install batteries and wind turbines

As far as possible, solar panels should be located so that sunlight falls vertically on them. In the Northern Hemisphere, solar panels are deployed in a southerly direction, at an inclination corresponding to latitude. In practice, solar panels are usually installed on the southern slope of the roof. If this is not possible, then the batteries are placed in a less favorable position, and adjustments should be made to the calculation of performance. It may be necessary to increase the number of modules.

The vertical axis wind turbine is different low level noise. Photo: ShutterStock / Fotodom.ru

It is good if you have a stock of the mounting area, on which you can install one or more additional modules in the future. Because sooner or later the thought will occur to you that it would be nice to increase system performance.

Solar panels must be installed so that they can be serviced. This applies not only to repair work, but also to cleaning - it must be done regularly. The availability of panels for year-round use is especially important due to the need for them.

Three-blade wind turbine for weak (from 2-3 m / s) wind. Photo: "Wind-Force"

It is recommended to install wind turbines on the highest part of the terrain. There is no need to save money on the mast: at a height of 8–10 m, the wind strength increases by about 30%. The wind turbine can make noise during operation, so it is better to install it no closer than 20 m from the house. Fortunately, low-frequency noises affecting health and wildlife are produced only by very large wind turbines - from 100 kW and above. Therefore, light and low-power models of wind generators are sometimes installed on the roofs of buildings, and for such cases it is advisable to use damping pads.

Kärcher iSolar system for cleaning photovoltaic power plants. Cleaning a heavily contaminated solar panel increases its energy efficiency by about 20%. Photo: Kärcher

Optional equipment

In addition to current generators (wind turbine or solar battery), you will need:

1. Inverter - converts the direct current generated by the solar panel or battery into 220 V alternating current.
2. Storage batteries (accumulator batteries). They accumulate a supply of electricity in case of peak consumption or for a situation when the generator does not produce current (for example, solar panels at night).
3. Charge controllers are devices responsible for directing the flow of electricity generated by a generator. Without them, the generator will have to be manually disconnected from the battery every night and at the end of each charge. In addition, the controllers increase generator efficiency by 30-50%.
4. Fastening the generator. In the case of a wind generator, this is a mast with a height of 8-10 m. For solar panels, these are brackets for installation on the roof or free-standing structures.

As practice shows, you will have to pay for a set of equipment about the same as for a generator.