Seaward PV System - Manual

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Seaward Solar, 6304 Benjamin Road, Suit 506, Tampa, Florida 33634, USA.
Tel: (813) 886 2775 Email: [email protected] Web: www.seawardsolar.com
© 2012 Seaward Electronic Ltd.
All rights reserved
Rev 2: 15.02.2012
Standardizing PV System
Documentation and Verification
SolarPro February/March 2012
International concern regarding the safety and quality of PV system installations is growing.
Incorrectly installed or commissioned systems can create a fire hazard or even increase the risk of
electrocution. Consider the well-documented “thermal event” that occurred in Bakersfield,
California, on April 5, 2009 (see “The Bakersfield Fire,” February/ March 2011, SolarPro magazine). It
is generally accepted that an undetected fault-to-ground was present in a grounded current-carrying
source circuit conductor at this site, and that this first fault set the stage for the eventual fire. A
subsequent analysis of utility-owned and -operated rooftop PV systems in North Carolina revealed the
presence of undetected ground faults in approximately 10% of the systems surveyed.
Proper commissioning procedures are among the best defences against fire or electrocution hazards.
While guidelines and best practices for PV system commissioning in North America are patchwork at
best, in 2009 the International Electrochemical Commission (IEC) published an international standard,
IEC 62446, that defines minimum requirements for documenting, commissioning and inspecting grid-
connected PV systems.
In this article I provide an overview of IEC 62446, which can be purchased in its entirety from the IEC
website (iec.ch) for approximately $150. In addition to the general content outlined here, the
standard includes informative appendices with model certificates, reports and procedures. While
compliance with IEC 62446 is not mandatory in North America at this time, the standard clearly
provides a set of internationally recognized best practices for system integrators and O&M providers.
Since these entities are already performing many of the tasks described in the standard, the effort
and cost to harmonize internal practices with those outlined will be relatively small. Anyone engaged
in the preparation of documents and standards for projects going out to bid will likely find the
requirements outlined in IEC 62446 useful and relevant to their work as well.
IEC 62446
This international standard was published in March 2009. It is formally entitled Grid-Connected
Photovoltaic Systems—Minimum Requirements for System Documentation, Commissioning Tests and
Inspection. The emphasis on documentation is interesting to note. In effect, system documentation is
the evidence used to demonstrate that appropriate precautions and tests have been undertaken prior
to handing over a PV system to the property owner. The standard is organized into two parts: system
documentation requirements and system verification requirements, which include inspection and
testing.
System Documentation
System documentation requirements are laid out in Clause 4, which describes the minimum
documentation that should be provided for the benefit of the customer, inspector or maintenance
technician following the installation of a grid-connected PV system. These requirements are
organized into six categories: system data, wiring diagram, datasheets, mechanical design
information, O&M information, and test results and commissioning data.