Preliminary results of a new PV test platform for side-by-side operation of multiple grid-connected PV systems in South Maui

A new PV test platform designed and instrumented by the Hawaii Natural Energy Institute (HNEI) of the University of Hawaii, was commissioned in February 2016 in Kihei, Maui. 15 grid-connected PV systems operate side-by-side on a carport structure, providing performance comparison of different PV module technologies and system architectures. The test bed is instrumented to collect 1-second data sets on the operation of the PV systems and on their environment. The test protocol also includes a multi tracer to collect the IV curves of a sample of every PV modules in test. This document describes shortly the PV systems in test, the test protocol and instrumentation of the new PV test platform. Next, we present the data analysis used to obtain the preliminary performance results presented in the last section, showing the hourly average performance of the grid-connected PV systems operating in the middle of a clear day during the first month of operation.