industrial use solar power

Re: industrial use solar power

Yes, you need to figure out your Watt*Hours or kWatt*hours (kilo-watt-hours).

Assuming you are off grid, solar/battery power is going to cost you north of $1.00 per kWhr (compared to $0.07-$0.30 per kWhr for typical utility power).

Also, off-grid battery powered systems tend to only be around 60% efficient (compared with Grid Tied solar which is ~95% efficient)... Requiring you to about double the number of solar panels ($$$ or $4-$5 per watt just for the panels) for the same amount of power.

You should figure out how much your fuel costs are for generator use (and upkeep) to see how you would like to allocate your resources.

In the end, there are some very worthwhile ways to approach the "energy problem" depending on your needs. If the 1-15 HP motors run only an hour or so per day (like water pump, shaft lifts, etc.), you can build a pretty cost effective way to Solar/Battery power your system and save money vs running a generator 12 hours per day for a real need of 20 seconds of intermittent power.

So, for example, you have lighting needs (CFL/LEDs, and occasional shaft hoist). Power those with batteries/inverters which have very little energy waste for low power application (like lighting) and can manage short surges (lift) very nicely without wasting generator fuel for a generator that runs 98% of the time with 2% load (just to power that occasional 80% load from a hoist).

Next, if you need to pump water from the mine, then use a solar system that only pumps when the sun is shining. Perhaps you would need to size the pump larger (to pump 4-5 hours per day vs a smaller pump running 24/7). Grundfos SQFlex Pumps look very interesting. They can run off of pure solar panels, or, with an automatic switch, can run from 120/240 VAC genset/inverter+battery just fine too.

Then, lastly, for the 15 HP load--run your genset for this. When you need the (example) rock crusher (after you tipped your loads to the input hopper/conveyor), you run the genset at 25-80% capacity (most fuel efficient power band), and can even use the excess power to recharge your battery banks for off-peak loads (sometimes called a hybrid generator system).

Arrange your loads to use the generator efficiently, and use battery/inverters for off peak / low power loads (quiet and fuel efficient).

Use solar PV for special purpose loads (like pumps) and for charging your battery bank (can be shared with generator power).

Lastly, if you need heat--can you use solar hot water/hot air for those applications (cabin heat, hot water, ore drying, etc.)? Generally, solar thermal collector systems will be 1/4 to 1/2 the cost of trying the same thing with solar PV (and even much cheaper than trying to do resistance heating with battery systems).

I will stop here--just some ideas to think over.

-Bill

Also, should add that solar / RE makes great sense for power that is needed 24/7/365 days per year. Generally, does not make near as much sense for occasional power usage (summer weekends, or off season winter weekends when not much sun may be available). The systems are expensive if unused for much of the year. At least, a fuel based generator does not consume any fuel when the site is shutdown.

-BB