Solar home system with peak-shaving function and smart control in hot water supply

Abstract

The hybrid solar PV system (HyPV) with dual energy storage and peak-shaving function was developed. The solar power is stored as heat using an electric water heater when the battery is full. The electric water heater was modified using a smart control and turned it into the main hot water supply system to eliminate a backup heater. Two HyPVs were built for field test. The long-term performance shows that the peak-shaving function is satisfactory and the smart hot water supply was also achieved.