Solar Charge Controller

Principle of solar charge controller

Solar panels belong to photovoltaic devices (the main part is semiconductor materials), which generate electricity through the photoelectric effect after being irradiated by light. Due to the properties and limitations of materials and light, the generated current is also a fluctuating curve. If the generated current is directly charged into the battery or directly supplies power to the load, it is easy to cause damage to the battery and the load and reduce their lifespan. Therefore, we must send the current into the solar controller first, use a series of dedicated chip circuits to digitally adjust it, add multi-level charge and discharge protection, and use a three-stage charging mode to ensure the safe operation and service life of the battery and load. When supplying power to the load, the current of the battery also flows into the solar controller first, and after its adjustment, the current is sent to the load. 

What is difference between MPPT and PWM

PWM solar controller is the second generation technology, which is the most on the market now. The working method is PWM control. Compared with ordinary solar controller, it has improved a lot and can solve the problem of battery dissatisfaction. The charging conversion efficiency is 75-80%. , but the solar panels are not fully utilized.
MPPT solar controller is the third generation technology, the most high-end solar controller. MPPT cahrger refers to a solar controller with the function of "Maximum PowerPoint Tracking". It is an upgraded product of PWM solar controller. The MPPT solar controller can detect the voltage and current of the solar panel in real time, and continuously track the maximum Power (P=U*I), so that the system always charges the battery with the maximum power, the MPPT tracking efficiency is 99%, the power generation efficiency of the whole system is as high as 97%, and it has excellent management of the battery, which is divided into MPPT charging, constant Voltage equalization charge and constant voltage float charge. With the advancement of technology and energy saving, the trend of MPPT solar controller to replace traditional PWM solar controller is irreversible.

How to choose a solar charge regulator

1.    Check the PV system voltage and power
2.    Check the battery voltage