Design of a photovoltaic system using SAM and ETAP software

Electricity is important in our life. The majority of electricity comes from thermal and hydropower stations which use fossil fuel. There are many disadvantages associated with the use of fossil fuel such as emission of greenhouse gases which pollute the environment. Among all renewable energy systems, the solar photovoltaic (PV) system is one of the most promising technologies due to its ability to resolve the drawbacks of the conventional energy resources. In this paper, 1.47 MW DC photovoltaic power system is designed and simulated using System Advisor Model (SAM) and PVWatts modeling tools. The simulation shows the annual energy production through 25 years and the monthly based performance of the system. Electrical Transient Analyzer Program (ETAP) is employed to simulate a distribution system that feeds a commercial area integrated with PV systems. ETAP is used to perform power flow analysis, transient analysis, and harmonic distortion analysis. Also, single-tuned passive filters are designed to reduce the effects of harmonics.