Projects

Application: Telecom
Location: United States
Product: TriStar MPPT 60
System size: Solar panel and diesel generator (four sites)
Partners include: Motive Energy, EnerSys, Emerson

Motive Energy installed solar, a diesel generator, two 1,500-Ah EnerSys deep-cycle battery strings, eight Emerson NetSure 502 power plant 30-A inverter chargers and TriStar MPPT 60 controllers for four outdoor remote locations without access to commercial power.

Application: Grid-tied battery backup
Location: Newton, Pennsylvania
Year: 2016
Product: TriStar MPPT 600V with DC transfer switch
System size: 6.24-kW solar input with 6-kW grid-tied inverter and 5.5-kW backup inverter charger and 200-Ah, 48-V battery
Partners: Exact Solar

Exact Solar used Morningstar’s charge controller for a DC transfer grid-tied battery backup application in Pennsylvania. The installer chose Morningstar for its low cost, easy installation and compatibility with the small battery and inverter/charger. The TriStar MPPT 600V with DC transfer switch was also a good option in light of concerns with low-voltage shutdown issues associated with AC coupling.

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: Other/Mining
Location: Australia
Product: TriStar MPPT 60

Nearly 70 trailers at a Western Australia mining site used TriStar MPPT 60 solar controllers. The trailers provide WiFi coverage throughout the mine to support operations. SNMP traps are configured into each unit.

Application: Residential, Rural Development
Location: Brazil
Year: 2003
Product: SureSine inverters
System size: 160W of solar for each installation
Partners include: Light for All, Kyocera Solar

Nearly 10 million people in Brazil’s rural areas live without access to electricity and approximately 90% live below the poverty line without basic amenities such as electronic devices, refrigeration and lighting. Brazil’s federal government launched the “Light for All” program in 2003 to deliver electricity to these families. The program covered equipment and installation costs to provide citizens with necessary materials and training to operate and maintain renewable energy installations in their communities.

Morningstar shipped 20,000 SureSine inverters for the program to convert the solar-generated electricity into usable AC power. The SureSine’s sealed design requires no cooling fans, eliminating the risk of failure that could shorten internal component life. The inverter is also rugged and encapsulated to withstand harsh conditions. It’s also “fault-tolerant” with built-in circuitry protection to resist damage from installer or user error.

By May 2016, 15.6 million Brazilians benefited from the program, which also created 485,000 jobs. With this success, the government extended the program to 2018 to bring another million citizens out of the dark.

Read more about the project here. 

Application: Telecom
Location: Multiple Countries
Product: TriStar MPPT 60, TriStar 60
System size: 4 kW of solar (29 sites)

Satellites provide important communication for many areas around the globe. Morningstar equipment helps power these projects. For example, two TriStar MPPT 60 controllers and one TriStar 60 for load control work with 4-kW solar systems at 29 sites, such as this one depicted.

Application: Mobile Hydro
Location: Transylvanian Alps, Romania
Product: TriStar MPPT 60
System size: 3 kW with battery bank

This system in the heart of Transylvanian Alps in Romania supplies energy to a small  hotel and fishery.  A 3-kW micro hydro turbine generates power delivered directly to a battery bank (600 Ah at 48). The installation requires a highly-accurate three-step charging process, only accomplished with a TriStar MPPT 60 and a resistive dump load.

-Photo courtesy of EcoVolt

Application: Telecom
Location: Indonesia
Product: TriStar MPPT 60, TriStar 45, RS-232 Adapter (RSC)

Morningstar’s TriStar MPPT 60, TriStar 45 and RS-232 Adapter (RSC) control this telecom system in Indonesia.