Hybrid Inverter-FL-IVEM3024

Description

• Hybrid Inverter-FL-IVEM3024

• A hybrid inverter (sometimes referred to as a multi-mode inverter) is an all-in-one solution that contains three totally different functions.  It has an integrated solar charge controller that connects to the solar panel(s) and serves to regulate the voltage from the output of the solar panel to the loads and/or batteries.  Note:   Utility power and generator power can often also be inputs for incoming energy.  A hybrid inverter offers multiple system design options, creating flexibility to implement the right solution for each customer’s conditions.

• This product “inverts” the current from direct current (DC) coming from the solar panels, to alternating current (AC) so typical home and business appliances and equipment can operate.  If approved in the local area, the utility grid can also use the energy created by the solar panels.  This alternating current can normally be 50 or 60 cycles per second or Hertz (Hz), and as each cycle has a rise and fall, the AC current would pass by zero 100 or 120 times per second.

• The hybrid inverter also serves as a battery charger, taking power from PV and/or an AC source to charge the batteries. The energy stored in the batteries can then be used later.

Inverters come with several AC output curves.  Here is a quick review of each type

• Square Wave Inverters – The easiest to design and manufacture, and the cheapest, where the 100 or 120 voltage changes per second would occur only vertically, producing square waves.   These inverters do not allow the AC loads to work under the “normal” conditions they were designed for. This means for some loads such as motors and compressors, these will tend to operate at higher temperatures and lower efficiencies caused by the deviation from a perfect sine wave, for which they were designed. Power supplies as they are used for computers, phones and audio equipment will see more electrical noise and may suffer from decreased life expectancy. These inverters can be less reliable and potentially unsafe for certain equipment (some European countries have banned these products).  To avoid load damage, often only resistive loads (such as heating elements) are used with this type of inverter.  See fig 1

• (Pure) Sine Wave Inverters – This output is ideal for all loads including sensitive equipment. The wave of the output current is one that equals the mathematical sinewave.   See fig 1This is the waveform that allows equipment to operate under optimal conditions, likely providing a much longer equipment life. Because the AC loads used with such an inverter are operating under the same conditions as a clean power grid, for which they were designed, efficiency is also optimized and electrical noise is minimized. This is often a requirement for audio equipment to function as intended. See Phocos Hybrid Sine Wave Inverter options All Phocos inverters are of the pure sine wave type.

• Modified Square Wave or Modified Sine Wave Inverters – Between square wave inverters and sine wave inverters, there is also a “modified square wave” inverter type that some manufacturers have called “modified sine wave” as this sounds more appealing. This is incorrect however, as these types of inverters start as square wave inverters, and the square wave is modified slightly to produce a wave somewhat closer to a sine wave.  See fig 1The advantage is that the drawbacks of square wave inverters regarding AC load temperature, efficiency, life expectancy and electrical noise may be slightly less pronounced. The bad news is there is usually still a strong deviation from a perfect sine wave and that users may never know the difference. For a typical customer there is no way to really know how much of the output is a square wave or not, unless of course an oscilloscope is used to analyze the signal.  It is worth noting, there is some equipment that does not work with square waves, like clocks for example.  This equipment cannot function accurately using modified square wave or square wave inverter outputs.