Photovoltaic System Design for the A.M.I.G.A. Project

M. VIDELA; A. ALMELA; A. CANCIO; A. FUSTER; F. GALLO; M.R. HAMPEL; A. LUCERO; A. MANCILLA; J. MAYA; M. PLATINO; F. SUAREZ; O. WAINBERG; D. YELOS; B. GARCIA

Otro; Pierre Auger Internal Technical Note; 2015

Pierre Auger Observatory

This report explains the design of the photovoltaic system for the moun counters of the Auger Muon Infill for the Ground Array (AMIGA) project. The design focuses on the final stage of the engineering array: production. This report seeks to overturn all the experiences and knowledge gained during the prototype stage or Unitary Cell (UC). The proposed photovoltaic system consists in two solar panels connected in parallel configuration (170 Wp +280 Wp) each one with its own charge regulator. Two batteries with a capacity of 220 Ah connected in series will storage the necessary energy for the system with 4 days of autonomy. The frames for the solar panels will allow a 60o tilt and will be made of galvanized iron. The solar panels with their frames will be mounted in recycled poles of 4.3 m height to avoid damage by the local fauna and shadows from the typical flora. The installation of the batteries, charge regulators and auxiliary boards will be done using a custom battery box similar to the boxes used in the unitary cell. For the AMIGA electronics upgrade an alternative photovoltaic system was considered. In this case only one solar panel of 280 Wp can supply the amount of energy necessary for the muon counter. And therefore the battery size can be reduced to a capacity of 150 Ah. With this configuration only one regulator is needed to charge the batteries of the system.