Data Release: Effect of AC Loads on Solar Generators

The reason that Solar Generators fail is often not the grid: it is the loads that are plugged in. Following our Technical Note Issue 02 and webinar: "Effect of AC Loads on Solar Generators" the A2EI now shares the full dataset as an interactive notebook, free for anyone to explore:

A2EI Interactive Data Notebook - Effect of AC Loads

To understand how real appliances behave, we measured 20 everyday AC loads in households and small businesses in Abuja, ranging from fridges and hair dryers to drills and water pumps. What we recorded was often surprising: for example, many loads draw an inrush current several times their rated value. The most demanding of these loads were recreated in the A2EI lab to reproduce their inrush and transient behavior in a controlled, repeatable way. Selected inverters were exposed to these loads, the analysis of which resulted in design and installation recommendations.

These measurements are now published in the notebook. An interactive table allows a quick overview and classification, after which each load is documented in detail. For the most demanding loads the notebook shows a recreation on the Cinergia EL+20 programmable AC source side-by-side to the original measurement.

We hope to support the product design and testing in the Energy Access community with this work. Please contact us for feedback, further questions, or requests for more detailed data.

Read the original Technical Note Issue 02 here: A2EI Technical Note #02 - Effect of AC loads