Amphenol Industrial is offering a new active trunk and drop cabling solution, in conjunction with Ampt, a designer of active electronics for PV solar modules. The new cabling solution is claimed to reduce the cost of commercial and utility-scale PV systems.
Problem
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Rapidly declining module prices is placing increasing pressure on BOS cost reduction. Providing a simplified alternative to conventional DC wiring in PV systems, by replacing conventional trunk wiring design would reduce installation costs significantly.
Solution
Comprised of one major cable conductor with a number of smaller cables connected to a PV panel, the new assembly allows for up to 40% more modules per string as well as lower current carrying requirements. Ampt's integrated smart technology monitors power generation, ground faults and fire protection on the assembly. When paired with Amphenol's ModLink junction box, the new active trunk and drop cabling solution also maximizes the output of each module, recovers degradation losses, removes the risk of module obsolescence, improves system run time and lowers energy costs. Providing a simplified alternative to conventional DC wiring in PV systems, Amphenol's active trunk and drop cabling replaces the typical trunk wiring design with its pre-fabricated wire harness assembly.
Applications
Commercial and utility-scale PV systems.
Platform
Integrated into Amphenol's ModLink junction box, Ampt's active electronics effectively turn the module from a current source into a power source, monitoring power generation conducted down the trunk and drop cable assembly, while providing power monitoring and optimization for solar panels attached by a wire harness.
The ModLink junction box base has built-in industry standard connections that allow a direct connection between panels using jumper cables available in various standard lengths. The ModLink base can accept a range of smart modules such as DC/DC converters/optimizers, micro-inverters or monitoring modules. Optional wireless communication is also provided with each PV module to eliminate the need of 'smart' string combiners.
Availability
February 2012 onwards.
