SOLAR POWER SUPPLY OF CELLULAR BASE STATIONS

Abstract

The use of solar energy in cellular base stations is mainly conditioned by technical and financial problems of connecting them to traditional energy sources, since the stations are often located at a great distance from the unified distributing electric network. Solar power supply of base stations has some specific features associated with the need for more efficient power generation and uninterrupted power supply to the load at that, it is necessary to take into account as much as possible the real operating conditions of solar power systems, including the meteorological and geographical factors, the possibility of shading of solar modules, the need for remote monitoring, etc.

In this paper, the architecture of a solar power supply system for cellular base stations has been developed, the main components of which are the solar modules, the storage battery, the control and remote monitoring units. The control unit integrates the charge controller, the current converter, the maximum power regulator and the sun tracking electronic device. The remote monitoring unit records the values of meteorological indicators and electrical output parameters. Information is transmitted via GSM modems by sending SMS commands in the duplex mode.

A procedure is proposed for a reasoned choice of the solar system parameters and rational year-round operation mode of the cellular base station. The key points of the procedure are taking into account the average daily energy consumption, the worst annual season (month) of solar radiation, power losses for the entire warranty operation period and additional power of the solar system itself, as well as determining the capacity of batteries to ensure the autonomous functioning of cellular base station in a certain period. The procedure is demonstrated for base stations of various standards.