You can get a preliminary yield on your rooftop system directly in Roof Mount. The Beta release is useful if you would like to have an understanding of the energy yield early in the design phase.
In this guide:
How does it work?
The Energy simulation feature is powered by PVcase Yield, which can handle highly complex scenarios and capture the intricate details of your system. Simulations are performed at hourly timestamps, resulting in 8,760 values aggregated into annual results. The Beta version is not fully based on PVcase Yield’s thermal-electric model (thus provides less accuracy). However, it does leverage the detailed irradiance analysis by PVcase Yield’s ray tracing technology, which is one of the most advanced algorithms in the market.
What information is used for Energy simulation?
-
Detailed 3D drawing, including shading objects and objects around the building
-
Module position (tilt angle, azimuth)
-
Supported modules:
-
Only c-Si (crystalline silicon) PV modules.
-
Only monofacial PV modules.
-
Only 1 type of module; must be the same dimensions and same power
-
-
-
Inverter weighted efficiency
Assumptions:
The energy simulation model currently used by PVcase Roof Mount is based on the following assumptions:
-
All PV modules have an anti-reflective coating.
-
Losses associated with the electrical design of the PV system are approximated considering:
-
2% DC cabling loss under Standard Test Conditions.
-
2% module current mismatch loss (also called electrical shading loss).
-
1.5% AC cabling loss under Standard Test Conditions.
-
0% inverter clipping loss.
-
-
Module mismatch loss is constant at 1%.
-
Low light and module temperature losses are calculated applying the ADR model [1] and generalized coefficients for mono c-Si PV modules [2]. According to this model, the maximum power temperature coefficient of the PV module is -0.4%/°C and the low light efficiency at 200 W/m² is -2.2%.
-
Soling loss is constant at 1%.
-
Maximum power point tracking loss is constant at 1%.
-
DC/AC conversion loss is approximated by the inverter weighted efficiency.
-
System unavailability loss is 1% of the total AC energy yield.
What information will I get in the Energy Simulation report?
-
System characteristics
-
Performance information:
-
AC annual yield
-
AC specific yield
-
AC performance ratio
-
AC monthly yield (graph)
-
-
Generalized losses
How to run an energy simulation and get a report
Steps:
1. Go to Energy simulation in the ribbon menu
2. Ensure your project location is correct
3. Enter Module power, W.
4. Enter Inverter efficiency, %.
5. Click Calculate.
6. Once the calculation is complete, you can see a preview of the PDF in the Overview section.
7. Click Review report to review and download the full PDF report.
Frequently Asked Questions
Under the losses section, what does “-” mean?
In the losses section some losses read “-”. This means that the energy lost depends on the PV system layout and the climatic data used for the yield calculation. For instance, “Module temperature loss” is larger at locations where the ambient temperature and irradiation are higher. Currently, we do not isolate the energy lost in each of these loss categories.
How is performance ratio calculated?
The performance ratio is calculated as the ratio between the annual AC energy output and the annual theoretical energy output of the PV system. The theoretical energy output is calculated as the annual in-plane irradiation multiplied by the conversion efficiency of the PV module under Standard Test Conditions (STC).