Projects

Application: Microwave broadband ethernet links
Location: United States
Year: 2011
Product: SunSaver MPPT
System size: 135-W solar panel with 105-Ah, 12-V battery (more than 20 sites)
Partners: Kyocera Solar

Kyocera Solar and Morningstar partnered to bring microwave broadband ethernet to regions of the Northwest, Heartland and Southeast United States. Morningstar SunSavers’ high efficiency, easy installation and versatile battery load input combinations were factors in their selection.

Application: Grid-tied battery backup
Location: Barbados, Caribbean
Year: 2015
Product: TriStar MPPT 600V with DC transfer switch
System size: 1.5 kW of solar with 275-Ah, 24-V battery

Morningstar provided its TriStar MPPT 600V controller with DC transfer switch for a grid-tied retrofit battery backup application at a business office in the Caribbean islands. The Morningstar controller easily installs and works with virtually any inverter charger. It also accommodates scaling if backup needs increase over time.

Application: Residential
Location: Pennsylvania
Year: 2015
Product: TriStar MPPT 600-V with disconnect box, ground fault protection devices
System size: Several solar sub-arrays for 16.5 kW and a 48-V nominal battery system with 2-V cells in series

A rural home in Pennsylvania used Morningstar’s five TriStar MPPT 600-V charge controllers with several ground fault protection devices. The controllers’ synchronized charging in parallel configurations and support of requirements for battery backup, in addition to quality and reliability, were considerations for the project.

Application: Telecom
Location: Canada
Year: 2014
Product: TriStar MPPT 600V with disconnect box
System size: 7.2 kW of solar, 15-kW generator, 3,000-Ah, 48-V battery (two sites)
Partners: Sunwize, Howell-Mayhew Engineering, East Penn Manufacturing, OutBack Power

Sunwize chose the Morningstar TriStar MPPT 600-V controller for a Verizon facility in Canada because the device could withstand arctic regions with temperatures of -67°F to +86°F (-55°C to +30°C). The controller’s long wire-runs, reliability and ease of installation to produce a low angle of incidence were also considerations for its selection. In addition to solar, the project included a generator that used four, 3.6-kW OutBack Power inverters on a custom control panel. This generator hybrid project saved 70% on fuel consumption for off-grid cell towers with a microwave uplink.

Application: Other
Location: United Arab Emirates
Year: 2015
Product: TriStar MPPT 45A, TriStar PWM 45A
System size: 2.4 kW of solar and 16 200-Ah, 12-V batteries (6 sites)
Partners: SWME

Morningstar TriStar controllers work well in hot temperatures, such as in this application in the Sahara Desert.

Application: Telecom
Location: Mali, West Africa
Year: 2014
Product: TriStar MPPT 600V with disconnect box
System size: 8, 280-W solar modules and 8, 150-Ah, 12-V batteries
Partners include: AECOM International Development (now DT-Global)

Vandals completely destroyed the Gourma-Rharous community radio station during the occupation of armed insurgent groups in Northern Mali from 2012 to 2013. Local authorities and the UN Mission (MINUSMA) needed to restore local radio in the area because the town also hosts an important administrative center.

The United States Agency for International Development’s Mali Transition Initiative funded the project led by AECOM International Development (now DT-Global). A solar installation helped restore power using the TriStar MPPT 600-V controller, which could withstand the Sahara Desert environment. The radio restoration continues to provide critical communication such as media coverage of the reconciliation forums and peace activities undertaken by local authorities and civil society organizations in the region.

Application: Residential
Location: California
Year: 2014
Product: TriStar MPPT 600V controller
System size: 2.4 kW of solar with 1,080-Ah, 48-V flooded lead-acid battery

The TriStar MPPT 600V controller can handle high-voltage PV input while maintaining reliability and performance in California’s desert environment, which sees temperatures of ~19°F to +115°F (-7°C to +46°C).

Application: Telecom
Location: Middle East
System size: Solar array 1,600W

Morningstar equipment and solar helped power the only electrical supply for telecommunications in the Middle Eastern desert.

Application: Other
Location: Nevia, Colombia, South America
Product: TriStar MPPT 600V
System: Solar array and 50-kW generator
Partners: Smart Hydro Power

Designers chose Morningstar’s TriStar MPPT 600V for a renewable hybrid system in Nevia, Colombia, South America. The modular SMART Hybrid System includes a hydrokinetic turbine, photovoltaic panels and a 50-kW backup diesel generator. Smart Hydro Power GmbH developed the system, which will replace diesel irrigation pumps in a rice farm.