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Design of a Standalone Photovoltaic System for a Typical Household around

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DOI: 10.12691/ajeee-7-1-1

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American Journal of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, 2019, Vol. 7, No. 1, 1-7
Available online at http://pubs.sciepub.com/ajeee/7/1/1
Published by Science and Education Publishing
DOI:10.12691/ajeee-7-1-1
ISSN (Print): 2328-7365
ISSN (Online): 2328-7357

Design of a Standalone Photovoltaic System

for a Typical Household around Dessie City-Ethiopia
Solomon Derbie Gont*

Electrical and Computer Engineering Department, Debre Berhan University, Debre Berhan, Ethiopia
*Corresponding author: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]
Received December 05, 2018; Revised January 08, 2019; Accepted January 17, 2019
Abstract Standalone, or off-grid, solar power systems consist of solar panels, charge controller, inverter and a
battery bank. They are typically used in rural areas and regions where there is no access to the utility grid. They may
also be appropriate where the grid is somewhat close to the site, but expensive to bring in - for example, across a
neighbor's property. A number of systems have been installed with battery back-up where the grid is available but
where the homeowner has experienced unreliable power in the past or believes that he/she will be subject to power
outages in the future. This research deals with the design of a simple solar photovoltaic system for the house located
around Dessie. Based on the house annual electric demand the photovoltaic (PV) system is selected and designed.
The general over view of solar PV system starting from demand to design are explained in this research. The size of
the PV panel, battery, inverter and cable are selected. Prices for electricity in US dollar’s/kWh also are calculated.
Keywords: photovoltaic system, standalone, Dessie, rural communities, battery, inverter, price of electricity
Cite This Article: Solomon Derbie Gont, “Design of a Standalone Photovoltaic System for
Rural Communities around Dessie City-Ethiopia.” American Journal of Electrical and Electronic Engineering,
vol. 7, no. 1 (2019): 1-7. doi: 10.12691/ajeee-7-1-1.

important issue to how much hours is expected to work

before the battery becomes flat, and the battery bank can
1. Introduction be increased to extend the period before the batteries go
flat. A system will typically be supplied with a battery
Solar electricity is produced only when the modules are charge controller as a back-up to recharge the battery bank
exposed to sunlight. The stronger the solar radiation, the ‘on demand’ [1,2].
more power is produced. The longer the day (for example, Different places on the globe experience different
summer days) the more energy is produced. Cloudy or climatic conditions. Total solar irradiance that reaches the
rainy weather will reduce both the power and energy. surface of earth varies with time of day, season, location
Shading (from trees or other obstructions) will also reduce and weather conditions. Therefore, design of a standalone
both the power and energy produced. PV modules produce solar system cannot have only one standard. Location is a
less power as their temperature increases. major aspect that will affect photovoltaic power system
The solar modules convert power from sunlight into DC design and it varies from place to place [1,2,3]. Ethiopia is
electricity that can be used to recharge the battery bank. blessed with enough sun shine which can meet our energy
Although photovoltaic electricity competes well in remote demand without any compromise and it is also pollution
power production away from the electricity grid, it is free. Standalone PV system is a popular concept
important to install the PV cells in our house to which the in rural areas of Ethiopia where national electricity grid
grid is contributing to supply the electricity demand for connection facility is not available. But in urban areas
the different loads available in the house. The solar energy where grid connection system is easily available, it is not a
source is expected to be expensive to compete directly common practice to use solar power. There is a general
with conventional electricity sources in on-grid applications. impression that grid energy from conventional sources is
The development of so-called ‘thin-film’ solar cells, much less costly compared to solar and other alternate
which require very little semiconductor material solves the energy sources.
problem of cost determination. Two compound thin-film One of the objectives of this paper is to estimate the
technologies, named after their constituents as CdTe and potential of solar photovoltaic power system in rural
CIS (CuInSe2), have shown the greatest potential and are communities taking around Dessie in Ethiopia. For this
now approaching commercialization. purpose, a typical residential house around Dessie is taken
Since there are often longer periods of bad weather, for up for designing and developing a system based on its
the solar power system, a battery bank is necessary to daily load requirement. Equipment specifications are
composite the intermittent source during the time that the provided based on availability of the best components in
house is out of sun light. The size of the battery bank is an market. In addition to the design considerations, a detailed
2 American Journal of Electrical and Electronic Engineering

cost analysis of the system has been done in this paper. As inverter. An inverter converts DC power from the battery
expected initial cost of solar power plant installation has and/or array to AC. Some appliances that require high
been found to be very high and so, the cost of solar energy quality power, such as laser printers, may not run well
consumption unit is much more than conventional energy or at all on the power output of some inverters.
unit. Solar power plants can be implemented if the costs You should consult with inverter dealers or manufacturers
of solar panels are decreased in long terms and the to determine what types of appliances their inverter will or
government subsidizes the people. will not operate. Inverters for residential systems, though
Before presenting the results and analysis of the case becoming more sophisticated, reliable, and less expensive,
under this study, that is, of a typical residential house can still be costly. They may also be noisy, and they
around Dessie, different components of a standalone PV consume 5% to 15% of the PV system power to operate
system and their functions in brief are presented in the [4]. We have considered the various tradeoffs in energy
following section. needs, lifestyle, costs, and spare parts’ availability before
choosing whether to use DC or AC power and we decided
to have an AC supply to the loads in order to have the
2. Selection of the System Components same loads as our house has the same loads as before for
the grid system supplier of AC electricity.
2.1. PV Panels
2.3. Batteries and Inverters
The three most common types of solar cells are
distinguished by the type of silicon used in them: For stand-alone power systems Batteries are the heart of
Monocrystalline, polycrystalline and amorphous. any solar power system. They provide the energy storage
Monocrystalline cells produce the most electricity per unit necessary to ensure the availability of consistent power to
area and amorphous cells the least. If we want to the loads. If the system has batteries, then a battery
maximize solar electricity generation for a given area, enclosure that is vented and protected against freezing
then we should select the most efficient Monocrystalline will be necessary. Car batteries are not optimal for
PV panels we can afford. If, on the other hand, our goal is PV systems as they are designed to deliver a high current
to cover a given area at the lowest cost, then we may wish for a short period, whereas backup batteries for household
to buy amorphous panels. If we are concerned with applications need to deliver a relatively continuous current
maximizing our solar electricity generation for the lowest over extended periods. Special deep-discharge batteries
cost, then it is best to look at the cost-effectiveness of a are best suited. Certain types of deep-discharge batteries
panel regardless of its technology by examining its cost release small quantities of hydrogen when being charged
per rated production [1,2]. and should be kept in a ventilated enclosure, well away
There are several types’ commercially available PV from open flames or sparks.
modules from which the thin film amorphous module type For stand-alone power systems an inverter provides a
is selected because of its cost and efficient power 220V AC output to run standard appliances from the DC
production. These are modules with cells deposited power from the battery bank. They provide high quality
on a stainless steel substrate - the narrow cells are a AC power with features such as, low battery disconnect
uniform dark purple to black color. The cells are normally and over temperature / overload shutdown [17,18].
encapsulated without a glass cover.
2.4. System Sizing
2.2. DC versus AC Systems
In off-grid PV system applications, the PV array and
The voltage requirements of our system loads are an associated battery banks must be carefully sized to be able
important consideration in PV system design. PV modules to meet the load demands through periods with the lowest
and batteries produce direct current (DC) electricity, but solar availability. In grid-connected applications, the
most appliances in Ethiopia operate on 220-volt (V) presence of the grid eliminates the need to closely match
alternating current (AC) and 50 Hz frequency. the system size with the year-round electrical loads. For
The wiring in DC systems is also a consideration. DC net-metered systems where the utility does not pay for
systems are typically low voltage (12, 24, or 48 V) and excess electricity generation, the estimated annual solar
high amperage relative to conventional AC (220 V) power electricity generation should be less than or equal to the
supply. Therefore, DC systems require much thicker annual electricity consumption as there is no financial
wiring than standard AC wiring to operate safely and benefit to generating more electricity than you need. For
efficiently. Wiring costs are directly proportional to systems with a battery bank serving an emergency sub-
thickness and length: the farther away the module/array is panel, the battery bank must be sized factoring in the size
from the battery, the more expensive the wiring will be. of the emergency electrical loads, the PV system size, and
Also, the high amperage capacity fuses and circuit how long emergency backup power is needed [15,16].
breakers necessary in DC systems are expensive, and may The number of modules and the size of the battery bank,
be more difficult to obtain than standard 220 V AC types. wires, controller, fuses, inverter, etc. mainly depend on the
Thick wiring is also difficult to work with. However, for amount of power that we plan to consume, and the amount
systems with a small energy demand and a short array to of solar radiation available at our location on a daily and
battery power transmission distance, DC systems are the seasonal basis. Our system sizing is usually based on the
least expensive. maximum energy demand during the month of lowest
Powering AC appliances with a PV system requires an solar radiation intensity.
 American Journal of Electrical and Electronic Engineering 3

Figure 1. The Standalone PV System

3. Sizing the PV System Table 1. Monthly Irradiance of Dessie

Month Daily Solar Radiation - Horizontal (kWh/m2/day)

3.1. Panel Inclination and Solar Radiation January 6.08

February 6.41
Dessie is situated 11.1° north latitude and 39.6° east
longitude. Therefore, the panel inclination will be 11.1 March 6.52
degree facing south [5]. This research is designed to be April 6.54
implemented around Dessie so that the irradiance data May 6.39
used in the study is taken for the nearby rural areas.
June 5.77
July 5.28
3.2. Load Specification with Daily Load
August 5.35
Profile
September 5.85
For a house, which is located around Dessie, different October 6.19
loads are used in order to install the PV solar module are
listed in the following tables according to the present November 6.07
energy saving loads for the house, which are in application December 5.85
for the grid system electric supplier Ethiopian Electric Annual 6.02
Utility (EEU).
Table 2. Electricity Consuming Components for Lighting
No Location Quantity Power Consum-ption (W) Total Power (kW) Working hours/day Total kWh/day
1 Kitchen 1 11 0.011 2 0.022
2 Dining Room 5 11 0.055 3 0.165
3 Bed Room 1 1 11 0.011 1 0.011
4 Bed Room 2 1 11 0.011 1 0.011
5 Bath Room 1 60 0.06 1 0.06
6 Toilet 1 60 0.06 1 0.06
7 Corridor 2 60 0.12 3 0.36
8 Garden Area 2 60 0.12 1 0.12
Total 0.448 0.81
Total daily average power consumption for light: = 0.81 kWh/day.
Total annual average power consumption for light: = 0.81 kWh/day, *365 day/year = 295.65 kWh/year.

Table 3. Electricity Consuming Appliances in the House

No Appliances Quantity Power (kW) Total Power in kW Working hour/day Total kWh/day
1 Refrigerator 1 0.1 0.1 12 1.2
2 Electric Mitad 1 2.5 2.5 0.05 0.125
2 Electric iron 1 1 1 0.5 0.5
4 Stove 1 1 1 1 1
5 Video/ DVD 1 0.034 0.034 3 0.102
6 Telephone 2 0.014 0.028 24 0.672
7 Computer 2 0.2 0.4 2 0.8
8 Radio 1 0.02 0.02 4 0.08
9 Television 1 0.075 0.075 4 0.3
10 Shaving Machine 1 0.05 0.05 1 0.05
11 Boiler 1 1.2 1.2 0.5 0.6
Total 6.407 5.43
Total daily average appliances consumption = 5.43 kWh/day.
Total annual average appliances power consumption = 1,981.95 kWh/year.
Total power consumption of the household = 0.448+6.407= 6.855 kW
Total daily power consumption of the household = 0.81+5.43 = 6.24 kWh/day.
The total annual power consumption of the household = 295.65+1,981.95 = 2,277.6 kWh/year.
4 American Journal of Electrical and Electronic Engineering

Table 4. Hourly based Load Profile

Hours 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24
Total
Power
0.03 0.03 0.03 0.03 0.60 0.60 0.13 0.13 0.13 0.13 0.13 0.13 0.13 0.13 0.13 0.13 0.19 1.30 1.71 2.63 3.13 0.43 0.03 0.03
Rating
(kW)

Power Curve in One Day

5
Power Rating (kW)

0.2

0.04

0.008
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24
Hours

Figure 2. Daily Power Curve

In Table 2 and Table 3, the load specifications were  The Average Daily Load Demand,
classified according to their power rating. While Table 4  Sizing of the PV Array,
and Figure 2 are used for proper design of energy supply  Sizing of the Battery,
from PV system on hourly based load profile, so it is very  Sizing of the Inverter,
important.  Sizing of the Battery Charge Controller, and
 Sizing of the conductor.
3.3. The Household PV System Configuration (i). Average Daily Solar Energy Input
Table 1 and Table 4 can be used to calculate the
Figure 1 shows the suggested block diagram of the average daily solar energy input over the year (Gav) on a
house-hold stand-alone PV system. Where, the function of south facing surface tilted at an angle equal to the site
the PV array is to convert the sunlight directly into DC latitude (11.1°) to be about 6.02 kWh/m2/day.
electrical power and that of the battery is to store the (ii). Average Daily Load Demand
excess power through using the battery charge controller. The average daily load demand EL is calculated as
The inverter is used to convert the DC electrical power shown in Table 4 above and is equal to 6.24 kWh/day.
into AC power; to match the requirements of the common (iii). Sizing of the PV Array
household AC appliances [15,16]. The size of the PV array, used in this study, can be
calculated by the following equation [1]:
3.3.1. Site Meteorological Data
EL
To predict the performance of a PV system in a site, it is PV area= (1)
G av *ηPV *TCF*ηout
necessary to collect the meteorological or environmental data
for the site location under consideration. The monthly Where:
average daily solar radiation data incident on both  Gav is average solar energy input per day
horizontal and south facing PV array tilted by the latitude  TCF is temperature correction factor
angle of the site is shown in Table 1. It is clear from  ηPV is PV efficiency
the table that the annual average daily solar radiation is  ηout = battery efficiency (ηB) x inverter efficiency (ηInv)
6.02 kWh/m2/day on horizontal. If the cell temperature is assumed to reach 60°C in the
field, then the temperature correction factor (TCF) will be
3.3.2. Energy Requirement in a Household 0.8 as indicated in [1].
The household around Dessie is simple and does not Assuming ηPV = 12.4% [19] and ηout = 0.85x 0.9 =
require large quantities of electrical energy used for 0.765.
lighting and electrical appliances. The electrical load data
6.24
in a residential house are given in Table 4. PV area= =13.65m 2 .
6.02*0.124*0.8*0.765
3.3.3. PV System Design
Thus, using equation (1) the PV area is 13.65 m2.
To design a stand-alone PV system for the considered The PV peak power, at peak solar insolation (PSI) of
household, the following steps are required [15,16]. 1000 W/m2, is thus given by [1,2]:
 The Average Daily Solar Energy Input,
PV peak power=PV area*PSI*ηPV (2)
 American Journal of Electrical and Electronic Engineering 5

PV peak power = 13.65 *1000 * 0.124= 1,692.6 Wp. (v). Sizing of the Battery Charge Controller
The selected modules are polycrystalline silicon The battery charge controller is required to safely
photovoltaic module with 162 W nominal power charge the batteries and to maintain longer lifetime for
(NDQ2E3E/ND162E1), and with the following them. It has to be capable of carrying the short circuit
specifications at standard test conditions (i.e., 1000 W/m2 current of the PV array. Thus, in this case, it can be
and 25°C) [19]: chosen to handle 47.52A (i.e., 7.92 Ax6) and to maintain
 Peak power: 162 WP the DC bus voltage to about 24 V. The type of charge
 Peak-power voltage: 22.8 V controller selected is EPSOLAR; Model Number
 Peak-power current: 7.11 A VS6024N [7].
 Short-circuit current: 7.92 A (vi). Sizing of the Inverter
The used inverter must be able to handle the maximum
1,692.6Wp
Number of Modules= =10.45. expected power of AC loads. Therefore, it can be selected
162Wp as 20% higher than the rated power of the total ac loads
that presented in Table 4. Thus the rated power of the
Thus, 12 Modules are used to supply the required inverter becomes 8,226 W. The specifications of the
energy for the residential house. The series and parallel required inverter will be: 6,855 W+ (0.2*6855W) =8,226W,
configuration of the resulted PV array can be adjusted 24 Vdc, 220 Vac, and 50 Hz. The selected inverter type is
according to the required DC bus voltage and current, SMA sunny boy 7000-US [6].
respectively. (Vii). Sizing of the Conductor
The number of solar modules connected in series is The conductor size can be determined using equation 4
given by: [1,3].
Ns = System Voltage(battery Voltage)/Operating
Voltage of a single module: Ampsx Cable length in feet
VDI= (4)
Ns = 24/22.8 = 1.05 % volt dropx Voltage ( DC )
Approximating, Ns = 2 Modules
The number of solar modules connected in parallel 47.52x82
VDI= =40.59
which are called strings (Np) can be calculated as: 4x24
Np = N/Ns
Where: VDI is Voltage Drop Index, Amps indicate the
∴ Np = 12/2 = 6 Modules.
nominal current of the PV module; cable length is
If the DC bus voltage is chosen to be 24 V, then 2
assumed to be 25 meter = 82 feet as most modules are
modules will be connected in series and 6 strings (each of
installed on the roofs of the house it is a reasonable
2 modules in series) will be connected in parallel.
assumption. % Volt drop is the acceptable voltage drop
(iv). Sizing of the Battery
level (<10%). Typical allowable voltage drop is 2% or 4%
The storage capacity of the battery can be calculated
depending on the application and Voltage (DC) is the
according to the following relation [2,3]:
system DC bus voltage. Then according to VDI result, an
NC E L appropriate conductor size will be selected from the table.
Storage Capacity= (3) From the universal cable size data sheet the nearest
DOD*ηout
voltage drop index (VDI) to this value is found to be
Where, 40.59.Therefore, the size of the cable corresponding to
 NC is largest number of continuous cloudy days of the this VDI is 53.5 mm2 [20].
site
 DOD is maximum permissible depth of discharge of
the battery 4. Life Cycle Cost Analysis
The largest number of continuous cloudy days NC in the
selected site is about 4 days. Thus, for a maximum depth In this section the Life Cycle Cost (LCC) estimation
of discharge for the battery DOD of 0.8: of the designed stand-alone PV system is discussed.
The LCC of an item consists of the total costs of owning
4*6,240 and operating an item over its lifetime, expressed in
Storage Capacity= =40.784kWh
0.8*0.765 today’s money.
=40,784.314Wh. The costs of a stand-alone PV system include
acquisition costs, operating costs, maintenance costs, and
The storage capacity becomes 40,784.314 Wh replacement costs. All these costs have the following
(Equation (3)). Since, the selected DC bus voltage specifications [9]:
is 24 V, then the required ampere- hours of the battery =  The initial cost of the system (the capital cost) is
40,784.314/24 = 1,699.35 Ah. high.
Based on the calculations, the battery type selected is  There are no fuel costs.
N50ZL [8]. If a single battery (N50ZL) of 12 V and 450  Maintenance costs are low.
Ah is used,  Replacement costs are low (mainly for batteries).
Number of batteries = 1,699.35Ah/450Ah The LCC of the PV system includes the sum of all the
=3.776 ≈ 4 Batteries. present worths (PWs) of the costs of the PV modules,
Thus, 2 batteries are connected in series and 2 strings of storage batteries, battery charger, and inverter, the cost of
batteries are connected in parallel; to give an overall the installation, and the maintenance and operation cost
number of 4 batteries. (M&O) of the system.
6 American Journal of Electrical and Electronic Engineering

The lifetime N of all the items is considered to be 25 Hence,

years, except that of the battery which is considered to be
5 years. Thus, an extra 2 groups of batteries (each of 2   1+0.03  
 1-   
batteries) have to be purchased, after 5 years, 10 years, 15 1+0.1  
years and 20 years, assuming inflation rate i of 3% and a ALCC= (15,976.34 ) *   =1,260.60.
 25 

1-  1+0.03 
discount or interest rate d of 10%. Therefore, the PWs of  
all the items can be calculated as follows [9]:   1+0.1  
 PV array cost (CPV) = $3.14/w*12*162
Once the ALCC is known, the unit electrical cost (cost
= $6,104.16 [11]
of 1 kWh) can be calculated, to be $0.553/kWh, from
 Initial cost of batteries (CB) = 0.24x6000
equation (9):
= $1,440 [10]
 The PW of the 1st extra group of batteries ALCC
(purchased after N = 5 years), CB1PW can be Unit Electrical Cost= . (9)
365E L
calculated, to be $1,036.54, from:
N $1,260.60/yr
 1+ i  Unit Electrical Cost= =$0.553/kWh
CB1PW = CB   . (5) 365*6.24kWh/yr
1+ d 
The PW of the 2nd extra group of batteries (purchased Therefore, in remote sites that are too far from the
after N = 10 years) CB2PW, the 3rd extra group (purchased Ethiopian power grid, the PV installers are encouraged to
after N = 15 years) CB3PW, and that of the 4th extra group sell the electricity of their PV systems at a price not lower
(purchased after N = 20 years) CB4PW are calculated, using than $0.553/kWh to earn a profit. It is to be noted, here,
Eq. (5), to be $746.41, $537.38 and $386.893, respectively. that this price is very high compared to the current unit
 Charge controller cost CC = $1,110 [13] cost of electricity in Ethiopia is 0.5 Birr/kWh. That is,
 Inverter cost CInv = $2,555.75 [12] 0.5 Birr/kWh)*($1/28.18Birr) = $0.017/kWh [14]. PV
 Installation cost CInst = 0.1x6,104.16 = $610.416. energy generation will be important in the future
 The PW of the maintenance cost CMPW can be household electrification (in Ethiopia) due to its expected
calculated to be $1,311.73, using the maintenance future lower unit electricity cost, efficiency increase, and
cost per year (M/yr) and the lifetime of the system clean energy generation compared to the conventional
(N = 25 years). And maintenance cost is taken to be utility grid.
2% of the total PV cost, which is equal to $122.1.
  1 + i N  5. Conclusion
1 − 
 M   1 + i    1 + d  .
CMPW =  *  * (6)
 yr   1 + d   1 −  1 + i   Solar energy can be utilized as thermal energy, direct
   electricity, or a combination of both. Within a variety of
 1+ d   renewable and sustainable energy technologies in progress,
Hence, photovoltaic technology appears to be one of the most
promising ways meeting the future energy demands as
  1 + 0.03 25  well as environmental issues.
1 −   
 1 + 0.03    1 + 0.1   Electrification of remote and isolated sites worldwide is
CMPW = (122.1) *  * very important especially in the developing countries as
 1 + 0.1   1 −  1 + 0.03  
    Ethiopia. The photovoltaic systems are considered as the
  1 + 0.1   most promising energy sources for these sites, due to their
= $1, 448.79. high reliability and safety. They represent, at the same
time, a vital and economic alternative to the conventional
Therefore, the LCC of the system can be calculated, to energy generators.
be $15,976.34, from equation (7): An electrification study for a single residential
LCC=CPV+CB+CB1PW+CB2PW+CB3PW household in a remote isolated site of Dessie is carried out
(7) using a stand-alone PV system. This research presents
+CB4PW+CC+CInv +CInst +CMPW .
a complete design of a solar PV system step by step
Hence, LCC = $6,104.16 + $1,440 + $1,036.54 + and its life cycle cost analysis. The results of this study
$746.41 + $537.38 + $386.893 + $1,110 + $2,555.75 + indicate that at the optimal configuration for electrifying
$610.416 + $1,448.79 = $15,976.34. a typical household about 6.855 kW of power is needed.
It is sometimes useful to calculate the LCC of a system The initial installation cost of the standalone PV system
on an annual basis. The annualized LCC (ALCC) of the is high, about USD $15,976.34. However, it is beneficial
PV system in terms of the present day dollars can be and suitable for long term investment as the system life
calculated, to be $1,260.60 per year, from equation (8). expectancy period is about 25 years. If the initial prices
of the PV systems are decreased, this is expected
  1+i   with the advent of technological uplift and the increase
 1-   
1+d   in production volume. So standalone PV energy source is
ALCC=LCC*   (8) a viable energy solution for rural areas. With the
 N
1-  1+i   help of this system we can fulfill our daily energy
  1+d   requirement at any scale. In this study, cost estimation
 American Journal of Electrical and Electronic Engineering 7

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