KYAMBOGO UNIVERSITY

FACULTY OF ENGINEERING

DEPARTMENT OF ELECTRICAL AND ELECTRONICS ENGINEERING

P.O. BOX 1, KYAMBOGO

INDUSTRIAL TRAINING 1 REPORT

AT

SOLARNOW SERVICES (U) LTD

P.O.BOX 10776, KAMPALA, UGANDA

BY: NYEKO SOLOMON

REGISTRATION NUMBER: 18/U/BEL/17934/PD

STUDY YEAR: YEAR THREE SEMESTER TWO

COURSE CODE: TEEE 3209.

PROGRAM OF STUDY: BACHELOR OF ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING

DURATION: FEBRUARY 06TH, 2023 TO MARCH 18TH, 2023

Industrial training Report Submitted to Electrical and Electronics

Department of Kyambogo University
As a partial fulfilment of the requirement for the award of bachelor’s degree
in Electrical Engineering
 DECLARATION

I Nyeko Solomon declare that the information in this booklet is as a result of my effort and that
this is an original piece of work which has been done by me and has never been submitted to any
institution for any reward.

Signature ………………………………………………………………………..

Date ……………………………………………………………………………..

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 APPROVAL

This is to certify that Nyeko Solomon carried out the industrial training at SolarNow Services
Limited (Engineering Department) from 06th February 2023 to 18nd March 2023 under my
supervision and approval.

Name of company supervisor ………………………………………………………………

Signature …………………………………………………………………………

Date ………………………………………………………………………………

Name of University supervisor ………………………………………………………………

Signature …………………………………………………………………………

Date ………………………………………………………………………………

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 DEDICATION

With pleasure I would love to dedicate this report to my supervisors Mr. Amos Odhiambo, my
Colleagues Samuel, Peter and Kenneth, for giving me their best during the training. With lots of
love please may you receive abundant blessing from God almighty.

I also don’t forget to dedicate the report with appreciation to all my family members for giving
me the required support during the training above all to my mother Mrs. Aloyo Betty and my
Lovely fiancé Eunice Agape for supporting me all the way through my training not forgetting my
son Jeremiah and daughter Jemimah.

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 AKNOWLEDGEMENT

I would wish to give a special appreciation to the Almighty Father in heaven for the precious
moment he gave me during the industrial training at SolarNow, May He be Glorified, Amen.

I don’t forget to extend my sincere appreciation to my dear Mother Mrs. Aloyo Betty for her
support towards my Education. To my brothers Emmy, Steve, Franklin and Brian, thanks for
your endless support, my two sisters Joyce and Susan, you have been always supportive.

I also wish to thank SolarNow as a Company for offering me a placement to successfully

conduct and complete the Industrial training.

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TABLE OF CONTENT

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 LIST OF FIGURES.
Figure 1. SolarNow Organizational structure................................................................................................................6

LIST OF ACRONYMS.

AC: Alternating current, this is an electric current that reverses direction at regular intervals.

amp: Ampere, this is a unit of electric current (refers to flow of current); one ampere

DC: Direct current, this is an electric current in which electrons flow in one direction only.

GW: Gigawatt, this is equivalent to 1,000,000,000 watts.

W: Watt, is the unit of electric power, or amount of work (J), done in a unit of time.

kW: Kilowatt, this is equal to 1,000 watts.

kWh: Kilowatt-hour This is the measure of kilowatt production of power in kilowatts and time
in hours.

MW: Megawatt, this is equivalent to 1,000,000 watts.

V: Volt, is a standard unit of voltage

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 ABSTRACT

This internship report describes the activities that I carried and the experience I gained during my
6 weeks of industrial training done at SolarNow Services (U) ltd.
At the beginning of the internship, the report shows a general overview of the company structure
and different departments. This helped me settle and get used to the working environment as fast
as possible.
The report further shows that during orientation, I was introduced to a number of tools,
instruments, components and modules their use, operation and specifications. I was also taught a
number of safety measures and precautions in the same process.
The report further shows that the technical works carried out like; solar system sizing, quotation
making, designing, installation and maintenance were all successfully done and the practical
knowledge and the technical skills I gained were so massive.
In addition to this, the report shows that a number of other skills acquired during my internship
include; communication skills, computer skills, team work and leadership skill, navigation skills
and so many others.
The report shows that the internship training was completed successfully in spite of a number of
challenges which included; limited time to learn everything, lack of enough facilitation in terms
of money for transport and upkeep, lack of enough tools and equipment and many others.

Finally, the report recommends that; the internship period should be increased in order for
students to fully benefit from it, the university should consider facilitating students with
internship money as it is the case with other universities to help them throughout the internship
period, organizations should consider offering paid internship to students and many other.

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 CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION.

1.1. Kyambogo university.

Kyambogo University (KYU) is a public university in Uganda. It is one of the eight public
universities and degree-awarding institutions in the country
1.2. Location.
Kyambogo is located on Banda Hill, which rises to an altitude of 1,240 meters (4,070 ft), above
sea level. The neighborhood is bordered by Kiwatule to the north, Banda to the east, Kinawataka
to the southeast, Mbuya to the south, Nakawa to the southwest, Ntinda to the west and northwest.
The location of the neighborhood is approximately 10 kilometers (6.2 mi), by road, east of
Kampala's central business district. The coordinates of Kyambogo are: 0°20'54.0"N
32°37'49.0"E (Latitude: 0.348334; Longitude: 32.630275).
1.3. History.
Kyambogo University was established in 2003 by the Universities and Other Tertiary Institutions
Act 2001 by merging Uganda Polytechnic Kyambogo (UPK), the Institute of Teacher Education,
Kyambogo (ITEK), and the Uganda National Institute of Special Education (UNISE)
Uganda Polytechnic Kyambogo.
In 1928 the trade and technical courses at Makerere College (now Makerere University) were
split off into the new Kampala Technical School. The school moved to Nakawa and became the
Kampala Technical Institute. In 1958 that school was moved to Kyambogo renamed Uganda
Technical College and then was finally renamed Uganda Polytechnic, Kyambogo.

Institute of Teacher Education, Kyambogo.

ITEK started as a government teacher training college in 1948 at Nyakasura, Kabarole District.
In 1954, it transferred to Kyambogo Hill as a national teachers’ college and later became ITEK
by statute of parliament in 1989.

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Uganda National Institute of Special Education.
UNISE was affiliated to the Department of Special Education at the faculty of education
of Makerere University, becoming an autonomous institution by Act of Parliament in 1998.

Vision and mission.

Kyambogo University was established with the vision of becoming Centre of excellence in
professional studies. The main motive is to advance and promote knowledge and development of
skills in Science, Technology and Education, and in such other fields having regards for quality,
equity, progress and transformation of society.

Objectives.
The objectives for which Kyambogo University was established as stipulated by (Establishment
of Kyambogo University) Instrument, Number 37 of 2003 are:

 To equitably expand access to higher education.

 To produce highly and practically skilled manpower for service to society.

 To reduce duplication of areas of study in institutions with close proximity and to

enhance efficiency and cost effectiveness.
 To initiate and promote innovations in education and technology.

 To equip technicians, engineers and teachers of technical subjects with required skills for
manning the construction service, manufacturing industries and educational institutions,
including universities, schools and research organization.
 To promote better understanding of the basic principles and methodology along with
practical knowledge of construction, application, properties, operations and limitations of
engineering systems, materials, processes and equipment.
 To provide scientific and mathematical foundation to enable the recipient handles
competently the technological aspects of the training.
 To equip graduates with the analytical tools required to solve problems utilizing their
scientific knowledge and appropriate technology either under the supervision of an
engineer or independently.

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  To initiate, encourage and promote specific and specialized research in scientific,
technical and technological fields in accordance with the needs of Uganda.
 To promote the acquisition, adaptation and application of information technology and to
solve the social, economic and educational problems of Uganda.
 To aim at ensuring an increased number of learners with special educational needs and
ensure that the learners receive equitable and quality education, through providing
professional manpower to secure effective support of training needs.
 To provide training for teachers and other personnel working in the field of special needs
education and rehabilitation, and to cater for all kinds of persons with disabilities and
special learning needs.
 To provide a resource Centre for the production and dissemination of information relating
to persons with disabilities and special learning needs.
 To undertake research in disabilities and other related fields for better understanding and
development of persons with disabilities and special learning needs.
 To initiate outreach programs to promote greater awareness among teachers, parents,
leaders and the general public about persons with disabilities and special learning needs,
and to promote partnership and collaboration among agencies involved in dealing with
persons with disabilities.

All about Industrial Training.

Industrial training is an organized method or activity of enhancing and improving skill set and
knowledge of architecture and engineering students which boost their performance and
consequently helping them to meet their career objectives. A ten weeks training in Kyambogo is
crucial for students because it is the best way to acquire as much mastery about their field as
possible which helps in building confidence of the students. Training helps learners to acquire
the latest techniques, skills, methodologies and to build a strong foundation for their career
growth. In other words, it helps in boosting career of students, since by the end of this training;
students are turned into professionals in their specialized area.

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Objective of Industrial Training.

 To provide comprehensive learning platform to students where they can enhance their
employ ability skills and become job ready along with real corporate exposure.
 To enhance students’ knowledge in one particular technology.

 To Increase self-confidence of students and helps in finding their own proficiency

 To cultivate student’s leadership ability and responsibility to perform or execute the

given task.
 To provide learners hands on practice within a real job situation.

Significance of the training.

 Capability to acquire and apply fundamental principles of engineering.

 Become master in one’s specialized technology.

 Become updated with all the latest changes in technological world.

 Ability to communicate efficiently.

 Ability to conduct research in the chosen fields of engineering.

 Ability to be a multi-skilled engineer with good technical knowledge, management,

leadership and entrepreneurship skills.
 Ability to identify, formulate and model problems and find architectural and engineering
solution based on a systems approach.
 Capability and enthusiasm for self-improvement through continuous professional
development and life-long learning.
 Awareness of the social, cultural, global and environmental responsibility as an engineer.

 Understanding of the importance of sustainability and cost-effectiveness in design and

developments of engineering solution.

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1.2. SolarNow (U) Ltd.

Background of SolarNow services (U) Ltd.

SolarNow Services (U) Limited started in 2011 and is currently the leading solar provider in
Uganda. It is centrally located at Kampala – Kansanga along Ggaba Road. SolarNow has won a
lot of awards among which is the recent Consumers Award, they currently offer jobs to over 30
employees permanently employed. The company has head offices both in Kampala Uganda and
in Nairobi Kenya.

SolarNow sells a wide range of products which are categorized in three main groups. These are
Large Solar Home Systems (LSHS), Small Home Systems (SHS) and Agricultural products.
LSHS ranges between 500 Wp to kilowatts which are purely AC whereas the SHS ranges
between 50 Wp and 250 Wp.

Vision.
Transforming lives by providing sustainable energy solutions

Mission.
To lead the sustainable energy market by offering quality services at affordable prices
through client focused committed professionals

Values.
 Be the client
 Have fun
 Be passionate
 Do the right thing

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 SOLARNOW ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE

Figure 1. SolarNow Organizational structure.

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 CHAPTER TWO: METHODOLOGY.

2.1. Service case at Kolping Hotel Kampala.

we went to Kolping Kampala Hotel to replace a 5kW Growatt inverter and install an Automatic Voltage
Supply (AVS) along with a manual change over switch.

Type of the solar system at SOS.

The solar system at SOS is a hybrid solar system which integrates both off-grid and on-grid solar
systems.

Size of the solar system.

The system is a 4.4kWp solar system

Components of the system.

The system contained;
 One (1) 5kW Growatt inverter.

 12 pieces of batteries of 12V, 200Ah lead acid deep cycle batteries.

 16 pieces of 275Wp panels.

Connection of the panels.
 16 panels connected in two strings of 8 panels in each string, producing a total power of
4400Wp at Standard Test Condition (STC), Open circuit voltage of 298.4V and short
circuit current of 18.72A.

 These values were still in the rated inverter parameters and therefore the inverter was safe.
 A joint where all the 2 groups of strings joining together in parallel was located from the
panel end between the two lines of panel mounts
 We measured the voltage coming from the PV side and was within the range

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Battery connections
 A total of 12 batteries were connected in 3 strings. Each string had 4 batteries to produce
48V system which matches the parameter of the inverter.
 To ensure safety, a 100A/250V DC Circuit breaker was installed in between the battery
bank and the inverter to offer protection in case of fault from either side.

Figure 2: Battery and inverter setup at the power station

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Installation of the AVS and the manual Changeover switch.
 AVS Installation
An AVS was installed to harness the inverter in case of power surge. When the voltage spikes
beyond the rated about, it switches it off and wait until when it normalizes. This was installed at
the premises because following the recent report, the client was experiencing unstable voltage
from the grid which made the inverter to multifunction.
By installing the AVS, it would consider safety at the inverter since it regulates the incoming
voltage and outputs a stable voltage to the inverter.

 Manual Changeover switch installation

A manual changeover switch is used to manually transition from the main source of electrical
supply to the solar system installed in case of a power outage and prevents the power flowing
back into the generator or grid.
The idea of installing a manual changeover switch came about due to the fact that sometimes
solar multifunction and the client would manually switch to grid at the system is being worked
on.
In single phase manual changeover switch, the upper portion of the changeover switch is
directly connected to the main power supply while the lower first and right connections slots are
connected to the backup power supply i.e., inverter. The left side of lower slots are connected to
the main board as load.
This way, power supply will continue to the load points through the inverter or generator. When
power supply restores from the power house, simply switch back the changeover switch position
to the Main Power Supply.

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Figure 3. Fully installed AVS and Manual Changeover switch
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Power logger installation at Ministry of Internal Affairs.

Literature review for Dent power logger

The ELITEpro XC energy data logger is a complete, portable solution for pinpointing electric
usage and recording building performance metrics. It is capable of measuring, storing, and
analyzing electrical consumption data which is derived from the voltage and current inputs. The
ELITEpro XC portable power data logger uses direct connections to each phase of the voltage
and various interchangeable current sensor options such as split-core, clamp-on, or flexible
Rogowski RoCoil current transformers (designed for large loads or large cables and busbars) to
monitor current on each phase.
The ideal tool for energy audits, the ELITEpro XC power meter can capture kWh/kW energy and
demand data as well as virtually all relevant energy parameters for diagnostics and monitoring on
three-phase or single-phase circuit installations. Electrical load diagnostic parameters, such as
power factor (both Apparent and Displacement), are captured in addition to energy and demand
values.
In addition to recording kWh/kW data, the ELITEpro XC electric data logger also features four
analog input channels which can be configured for voltage or current input used in any
combination among channels. Analog inputs are especially helpful when used in conjunction
with power measurements to correlate the consumption of electricity with environmental, HVAC
plant performance, or other process conditions. Typical uses might include logging ambient
temperature, building temperatures, solar insolation, tank pressures, duct flows, etc. Obtain this
valuable normalized data using just one meter: The ELITEpro XC Power Logger.

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Installation
The dent power logger was configured using an elog software to set up the phases and duration it
is to capture data at Ministry of internal Affair. The logger was successfully installed at the main
distribution board as shown below;

Figure 4: Installation of the Dent data logger the 3-phase main distribution board of Ministry of internal
Affairs

2.2. Solar system installation at ASA Microfinance Kayunga.

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There are five major steps we used to install a solar system at solar now and these included.
 Engineering site visit

 Solar system sizing.

 Solar system quotation

 Solar panel installation

 Inverter connection and configuration.

Engineering site survey.

This majorly included the power requirement calculation for all the loads that shall be powered
using the solar system.
Following the site visit conducted at ASA Microfinance office Kayunga, below are the loads;
Desktop computer to be operating for at least 8 hours a day
Phone charging
Two indoor lights for 4 hours
One outdoor light for 12 hours

Results of the site Survey.

Basing on the rating of each load and the total number of loads on the site we came up with the
total power consumption of the site to be about 250Wp.

Solar system quotation.

After coming up with the right size of the solar system to install at ASA Microfinance Kayunga.
we had to come up with a quotation showing all the details of the solar system.
We used a quotation template which resembles Microsoft excel to come up with the quotation.
The items shown on the quotation include the number of panels, batteries, loads, transport fees,
labor fees, other installation materials and the overall price of the system.

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Figure 5: Sizing and quotation for ASA Microfinance Kayunga Branch Office.

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Solar panels.

The solar panels used are of type sun-link and are rated 250W peak. The rest of the specifications
are shown in the figure below.

Figure 6. Solar Panel Rating.

Given;

Total Energy consumption = 1kWh

solar panel power = 250W peak

number of sun light hours = 4 hours

Energy from panels = pt

Energy from panels = 250 × 4

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Energy from panels = 1000Wh
Total energy consumption
Number of solar panels =

Energy from panels

Number of solar panels = 672
1000

Number of solar panels = 1 𝑝𝑎𝑛e𝑙.

1 panel would be required to design an appropriate solar system that would sufficiently power up the
ASA Microfinance office at Kayunga.

Inverter type and Charge Controller ratings

An inverter converts DC to AC which can be used to power the loads.

The type of inverters used for this installation is a pure sinewave inverter. The rating of the inverter is
700W.

A 50A MPPT Charge controller was used since the inverter in use doesn’t have and inbuild charge
controller. The charge controller helps to charge the battery and power the DC loads i.e. lights and
phone charging.

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Figure 7. Block diagram for the connection of DC/AC solar solution

Function of the main parts.

 MPPT charge controller.
The maximum power point (MPP) describes the point on a current voltage (I-V) curve at which
the solar PV device generates the largest output i.e., where the product of current intensity (I) and
voltage (V) is maximum. The MPP may change due to external factors such as temperature, light
conditions and workmanship of the device. In order to ensure maximum power output (P-max) of
a solar PV device in view of these external factors, maximum power output trackers (MPPT)
may be operated to regulate the resistance of the device.

The MPPT solar charge controller detects the DC voltage and output current of the main circuit,
calculates the output power of the solar array, and track the maximum power point. The
disturbance resistor R and the MOSFET are connected in series, and the average current through
the resistor is changed by changing the duty ratio of the MOSFET under the condition that the
output voltage is substantially stable, thus causing a disturbance of the current.

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Function

Figure 8. MPPT Block Diagram.

graph 1. MPPT Graph.

 Working Principle of an Inverter.

The working principle of an inverter is that it combines inverter and transformer functionality. The
following activities take place during the working of an inverter transformer.

 The inverter takes input from a DC power supply source or battery if it is stored energy.

 A series of MOSFETs in the inverter assembly acts as a switch for converting the
current from DC to AC.

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  As the MOSFETs are often connected in parallel to the center-taped the alternating
current reaches the primary winding of a transformer.
 The transformer has a magnetic core around which the primary and secondary windings
are wound.
 Due to the electromagnetic effect, the power transfers from the primary winding to the
secondary winding. The voltage can be stepped-up or stepped-down.
 The AC current from the secondary winding of the transformer can then supply power
to the load.

Power station connection and installation.

At the power, it consists of the following components; 50A MPPT Charge controller 12V/24V, 700W pure
sinewave inverter 12V and a 32A Manual Changeover switch. This is shown in the figure below;

Figure 9: Power station showing components connections and complete connection

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Manual Changeover switch installation
A 32A Changeover switch was included in the design of the system. The fact that the premises had grid
connection, installation of the changeover switch is to aid the client Interswitch between power sources, i.e.
switch back to grid in case the solar battery is low.
Operation
The metallic routes of the changeover switch are set up such that they will link to one another and move the
handle manually.
In general, one load and the changeover switch can be connected to two distinct power sources. The load
will therefore disconnect from one source and connect to another source when the handle is moved. There
are three locations available for the changeover switch’s handle;
 Source 1,
 Source 2, and
 OFF condition.
The load will be separated from both power sources if the handle is left in the off position. The load will be
connected to source 1 and separated from source 2 if the handle is kept in source 1. The load will be
connected to source 2 and disconnected from source 1 if the handle is held in the source 2 position.

Figure 10: Connection of a 32A Manual Changeover switch

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2.3. Service case at Royal Palace of Tooro Kingdom Busiga
The client reported a service case that the entire system went off and the inverter blinking red.

Type of system.
The system is a 2.475kW peak solar hybrid system with 9 panels of 275Wp and 8 batteries of
200Ah capacity with one 5kW Growatt hybrid inverter.

Procedure for trouble shooting.

 One reaching the site and accessing the power station, the inverter was blinking red and
indicating error code 05 which from the operation manual indicates short circuit at the
output of the inverter.
 Disconnected the load cable from the inverter and checked for continuity between the
live conductor and the neutral and realized that there is continuity between the two cable
implying a short circuit.
 Tressed the line in different adaptable boxes to identify the short-circuited cable.

Results.

 We discovered that a four core armored cable got a serious burnt at the joint
underground which caused the cable insulations to get serious burns that caused the
short circuit.
 Removed the cable and replace with a new working cable at the point of the short
circuit.
 Tested the rest of the cable left, was short positive results and checked with the circuit breaker,
they were operational then connected back power and the system returned to working normally.

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 Figure 11. Trouble shooting Diagram.

Solution to the problem.

 Tested for the continuity using a multimeter to identify the fault
 Identify the underground armored cable and removed it from the ground pickaxe.
 A masking tape was used to cover the open parts of the cable

 Replaced the burn cable and replaced with a new one.

 Checked the entire circuit and protective components and everything was sound then
connected back power and everything worked perfectly.
Recommendations.
Since Client was advised to consider installing a Surge Protective device at the output of the
inverter to offer more protection at the output of the inverter in case of power surge brought
about by short circuit, transient or any other fault that may affect the inverter operation.

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2.4. Solar installation at Shell Fort Portal

SolarNow designed, supplied and installed a grid-tied 8kWp solar system for Vivo Energy Fort Portal
under the code M100835 and Sales Order SO235258.

The project consisted of the following components;

 22 Solar Panels each of 380Wp

 SMA Grid-tie Inverter 10KW

 Cabling (Both AC and DC)

 Balance of system components; Breakers (AC and DC), SPDs (AC and DC), Energy Meters, etc.

 Distribution board consisting of din rails for mounting CBs and SPDs

 Cable trays and trunking

 Current Transformers

Insight on system operation

The system has been designed to cut the energy bill during the day. The solar panels produce electricity
in the form of direct current (DC) and the inverter converts it to alternating current (AC) that is
consumed by the different appliances used at the station i.e.; the pumps, lights, compressor etc.

The power produced by the solar system is connected in parallel with the grid at the grid connection
point before the main Isolator. A Sunny Home Manager 2.0 (energy meter) is installed and configured to
block the inverter from feeding back electricity to the grid when the solar energy produced by the panels
is in excess of what is being consumed by the appliances at the station. This can be changed in case net
metering becomes an option in the future.

The energy meter is connected to an internet router; therefore, the system can be monitored remotely.
The system has no battery bank for backup, so the solar energy will only be used during the day when
there is sunshine and only when there is UMEME since it’s a grid-tie.

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 SUMMARY OF RESULTS

Site Survey
The SolarNow team visited the site for a survey led by the Project Manager.
After site inspection, the positioning for PVC conduit pipes, inverters, Solar distribution board
and cable runway were determined. A suitable roof for mounting the panels was also identified
which in this case was the rooftop of the service bay.

Figure 12: Installed PVC conduit and rooftop preferred for panel mounting

Solar Panel Installation

54 Polycrystalline Solar panels of 275Wp were installed, three (3) strings of 18 panels each to
obtain maximum voltage and current based on the inverter specifications. The solar panels
were mounted on roof of the shop (337.5m ). 2

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Table1. Module Specifications

Technical Parameters Values Units

Power (Pmax) 275 W

Open Circuit Voltage (Voc) 38.1 V

Operating Voltage (Vmpp) 31.5 V

Short circuit Current (Isc) 8.32 A

Operating Current (Impp) 8.3 A

Efficiency 16.9 %

Figure 13: Panel installation on the roof

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The combiner box was wired and installed on the roof adjacent to the panels. Six cables,
4mm double insulated UV rated (3 black and 3 red) were connected to the combiner box
2

from the 3 strings of panels, and two output PV cables (positive and negative) connected
from the combiner box on the shop roof top to the SMA Inverter in the power house.
Note:
(i) The combiner box has 4 pairs of DC fuses (15A, 1000V), DC Breaker/Disconnect (32A
and 1000V) and a Surge Protection Device (SPD).
(ii) The SPD in the combiner was connected to the external lightning protection system for
earthing.
More details about the Combiner box can be found here;

Figure 14: Combiner box with all the three string connections

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Cabling
The 4 mm PV cables run through a 25mm PVC pipe to protect them from any adverse
2 2

environmental effects and mechanical damages. The two PV cable drawn from the combiner
box to the inverter in the power room run through the ceiling. Ac cables, earth cable and
Ethernet cable were drawn through the installed conduits.

Installation of Inverter.
The installed inverter, SMA SUNNY TRIPOWER STP15000TL-30, 20000TL has a 3-phase
ac output coupled in parallel with the grid at a line voltage of 415V and 240V ac between
phases (R-N, Y-N, B-N).
It is also designed with 2 maximum power-point trackers (MPPT), A and B, each with a
maximum of 32A and 1000V dc. Only one MPPT (A) was used since we had only 3 strings
of 16 panels each.
The inverter has an ethernet (speed-wire) connection that enables it to communicate to the
energy meter and internet for active PV remote monitoring. The datasheet is attached to the
appendix and more details about the inverter and its operation can be found here: 

Figure 15: Inverter and Solar Distribution Box Installed

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Combining AC from Solar PV and AC from UMEME.
The system has an AC breaker/Disconnect of 32A, 4-pole and 415V, an Earth Leakage circuit
breaker of 300mA, 4-pole and an AC Surge Protection Device (SPD).
Since the station runs at currents higher than 63A, the energy meter was configured with
100/5A Sigma current transformers to provide current usage figures on each phase.

Connection between the Transformers, energy meter and Router

The Current Transformers were installed inside the DB of the grid’s mains isolator. The
Energy meter was installed in the Grid’s main DB. The Signal cable was run in a separate
PVC conduit from the energy meter to the Router which is installed in the Solar DB. The
signal cable from the Inverter was also connected to the internet router The system was added
to sunny portal and the link will be shared in the emails of the necessary personnel of vivo
Energy Uganda.

Figure 16: AC distribution box containing Current Transformers

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System Earthing

A separate solar earthing was conducted to provide an extra protection to the solar panels and
the grid -tied SMA inverter. During earthing, charcoal dust, sodium salt, loam soil was used
to provide enough conductivity to the soil in case of earth leakage.

A (600x600x300 mm) copper plate electrode was buried to the ground along the above-
mentioned ingredients about 2m below the ground.

Figure 16: AC distribution box containing Current Transformers

System Testing.
The system was successfully tested and the retailer was trained on operation of the whole
system. The operations and maintenance manuals can be obtained from the SMA website.

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 CHAPTER THREE: OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES.

3.1. Opportunities.

These include;
Visiting SolarNow clients at their residences to trouble shot their systems. In this way, I had a
chance to travel to different places which helped me learn the locations of different locations in
the country.

Visiting different departments in the organization and also seeing and learning the kind of work
they do. For example, marketing, sales, logistics, welfare, workshop and others. In this way, I
learnt a lot from people working in those departments and I acquired many skills some of which
include teamwork, communication, computer skills to mention but a few.

Working with so many professionals at SolarNow the experienced young engineers helped me a
lot to grow as a professional. The so many skills they taught me and other things helped me grow
professionally.

Attending conferences and meetings almost twice every week. In doing so, I gained confidence,
computer skills, communication skills, leadership skills and so many others because I was
interacting with different people.

Accessing workshop at any time of the day and this helped me a lot as it exposed me to working
with electrical tools and equipment like the multimeter, screw drivers and others as well as
learning how to repair electrical components such as solar charges, inverters and many others.

Attained more skills in operating some new instruments like the data logger to capture data
which is more accurate and simpler to use to carryout complex site surveys.

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3.2. challenges
Following the industrial training held at SolarNow Services LTD, the following were some of the
challenges faced;

 Problem in using some measuring instruments and tools e.g., Voltage regulator used
to adjust the DC Voltage level during the repair.
 Sourcing the organization information, it was very hard to access the institution’s
information and data particularly total energy consumption of industries in the commercial
and industrial sector and the institution’s structural composition, this in a way limited me in
completing the internship report in time. But as time went by, I managed to speak to the
Human Resource SolarNow who helped me with the company’s data.
 The industrial training period given was very short for a wide coverage which was a
barrier to learning more skills and hands on skills.
 Transport fare from home to the training center daily was very costly during this
internship period which emerged as one of the major barriers.

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 CHAPTER FOUR: CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION.

4.1. Conclusion.
Generally, the training was so impactful, I learnt a lot on sizing and system design, Service case
approaches of different types of clients, installation of different system kinds i.e., Off-grid,
hybrid and grid-tied solar systems, learnt administrative skills, how to make reports and different
reporting lines. I also made new friends, new ideas and how to work as team in task
accomplishment.

However, it would have been better if the training period was extended because there was a lot to
learn but time wasn’t enough. It was all in all a cheerful moment to remember since I learnt a lot
and thanks to the University for giving this opportunity to do industrial training and to SolarNow
for offering such a wonderful training environment.

4.2. Recommendation.
Following the industrial training held at SolarNow Services (U) LTD,
I would recommend the training period should be prolonged, this will greatly make internees to
have more learning time and more experience on practical knowledge.

The industrial period and time should be changed in such a way that the study period should
accommodate three years and one full year should be dedicated for industrial training. By doing
this, it shall not only fuel the student’s practical skills, but also offer experience in a specific field
of work being done.

I also recommend that the university should put it into consideration giving students internship
allowance because in most cases, many students do not go for industrial training on a daily basis
because of lack of money for transport and up keep.

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 REFERENCE.

 https://www.greenmatch.co.uk/blog/2014/09/solar-panel-installation-and-maintenance.

 https://unboundsolar.com/blog/how-to-size-solar-system.

 https://www.energy.gov/eere/solar/solar-photovoltaic-system-design-basics.
 S. Kucuksari et al., “An Integrated GIS, optimization and simulation framework for
optimal PV size and location in campus area environments,” Appl. Energy, vol. 113, pp.
1601– 1613, 2014.
 https://www.sma.de/en/
 https://us.growatt.com/
 https://sunlinkenergies.com/

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APPENDICES

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