Projects

Application: Telecom
Location: United States
Product: TriStar MPPT 60
System size: Solar panel and diesel generator (four sites)
Partners include: Motive Energy, EnerSys, Emerson

Motive Energy installed solar, a diesel generator, two 1,500-Ah EnerSys deep-cycle battery strings, eight Emerson NetSure 502 power plant 30-A inverter chargers and TriStar MPPT 60 controllers for four outdoor remote locations without access to commercial power.

Application: Grid-tied battery backup
Location: Newton, Pennsylvania
Year: 2016
Product: TriStar MPPT 600V with DC transfer switch
System size: 6.24-kW solar input with 6-kW grid-tied inverter and 5.5-kW backup inverter charger and 200-Ah, 48-V battery
Partners: Exact Solar

Exact Solar used Morningstar’s charge controller for a DC transfer grid-tied battery backup application in Pennsylvania. The installer chose Morningstar for its low cost, easy installation and compatibility with the small battery and inverter/charger. The TriStar MPPT 600V with DC transfer switch was also a good option in light of concerns with low-voltage shutdown issues associated with AC coupling.

Application: Microwave broadband ethernet links
Location: United States
Year: 2011
Product: SunSaver MPPT
System size: 135-W solar panel with 105-Ah, 12-V battery (more than 20 sites)
Partners: Kyocera Solar

Kyocera Solar and Morningstar partnered to bring microwave broadband ethernet to regions of the Northwest, Heartland and Southeast United States. Morningstar SunSavers’ high efficiency, easy installation and versatile battery load input combinations were factors in their selection.

Application: Grid-tied battery backup
Location: Barbados, Caribbean
Year: 2015
Product: TriStar MPPT 600V with DC transfer switch
System size: 1.5 kW of solar with 275-Ah, 24-V battery

Morningstar provided its TriStar MPPT 600V controller with DC transfer switch for a grid-tied retrofit battery backup application at a business office in the Caribbean islands. The Morningstar controller easily installs and works with virtually any inverter charger. It also accommodates scaling if backup needs increase over time.

Application: Residential
Location: Pennsylvania
Year: 2015
Product: TriStar MPPT 600-V with disconnect box, ground fault protection devices
System size: Several solar sub-arrays for 16.5 kW and a 48-V nominal battery system with 2-V cells in series

A rural home in Pennsylvania used Morningstar’s five TriStar MPPT 600-V charge controllers with several ground fault protection devices. The controllers’ synchronized charging in parallel configurations and support of requirements for battery backup, in addition to quality and reliability, were considerations for the project.

Application: Telecom
Location: Canada
Year: 2014
Product: TriStar MPPT 600V with disconnect box
System size: 7.2 kW of solar, 15-kW generator, 3,000-Ah, 48-V battery (two sites)
Partners: Sunwize, Howell-Mayhew Engineering, East Penn Manufacturing, OutBack Power

Sunwize chose the Morningstar TriStar MPPT 600-V controller for a Verizon facility in Canada because the device could withstand arctic regions with temperatures of -67°F to +86°F (-55°C to +30°C). The controller’s long wire-runs, reliability and ease of installation to produce a low angle of incidence were also considerations for its selection. In addition to solar, the project included a generator that used four, 3.6-kW OutBack Power inverters on a custom control panel. This generator hybrid project saved 70% on fuel consumption for off-grid cell towers with a microwave uplink.

Application: Other
Location: United Arab Emirates
Year: 2015
Product: TriStar MPPT 45A, TriStar PWM 45A
System size: 2.4 kW of solar and 16 200-Ah, 12-V batteries (6 sites)
Partners: SWME

Morningstar TriStar controllers work well in hot temperatures, such as in this application in the Sahara Desert.

Application: Telecom
Location: Mali, West Africa
Year: 2014
Product: TriStar MPPT 600V with disconnect box
System size: 8, 280-W solar modules and 8, 150-Ah, 12-V batteries
Partners include: AECOM International Development (now DT-Global)

Vandals completely destroyed the Gourma-Rharous community radio station during the occupation of armed insurgent groups in Northern Mali from 2012 to 2013. Local authorities and the UN Mission (MINUSMA) needed to restore local radio in the area because the town also hosts an important administrative center.

The United States Agency for International Development’s Mali Transition Initiative funded the project led by AECOM International Development (now DT-Global). A solar installation helped restore power using the TriStar MPPT 600-V controller, which could withstand the Sahara Desert environment. The radio restoration continues to provide critical communication such as media coverage of the reconciliation forums and peace activities undertaken by local authorities and civil society organizations in the region.

Application: Residential
Location: California
Year: 2014
Product: TriStar MPPT 600V controller
System size: 2.4 kW of solar with 1,080-Ah, 48-V flooded lead-acid battery

The TriStar MPPT 600V controller can handle high-voltage PV input while maintaining reliability and performance in California’s desert environment, which sees temperatures of ~19°F to +115°F (-7°C to +46°C).