Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage Podcast

ASES Conference: Sean White on Clean Power Hour Podcast with Tim Montegue and John Weaver at the American Solar Energy Society Conference in Boulder Colorado

Sean White was the guest on the Clean Power Hour podcast at the American Solar Energy Society in Boulder Colorado on August 10, 2023. We are reposting this podcasst, which you can also listen to on Tim Montegue's awesome Clean Power Hour podcast, which you can find at www.cleanpowerhour.com

 

The main topic we discussed was, "Can renewables replace fossil fuels".

 

Tim Montegue's co-host is:

 

John Fitzgerald Weaver

Known online as “The Commercial Solar Guy,” Solar professional and project developer. John Fitzgerald Weaver works as the General Manager of CSG Developers LLC and a technical writer for pv magazine USA, where he covers solar industry data, equipment and manufacturers, trends, regulations and much more!

 

Reach John Fitzgerald Weaver here!
LinkedIn Account: www.linkedin.com/in/johnfitzgeraldweaver/
Company Website: www.commercialsolarguy.com/
RSS Feed: www.commercialsolarguy.com/news/

 

Clean Power Show Notes (directly pasted from the Clean Power Hour):
Special guest Sean White, master PV trainer and host of Sean White's Solar and Energy Storage Podcast is joining us LIVE from Boulder Colorado at the ASES Conference (American Solar Energy Society).
Please take our listener survey.

 

Stay up to date with the latest solar, wind, and energy storage news and analysis. Join co-hosts Tim Montague, solar & storage expert, and John Weaver, PV Magazine journalist, as they reflect on the latest tools, technologies, and trends driving the energy transition forward. With a strong commitment to decarbonizing the economy and building a safer, healthier future for humanity, this show is a must-watch for any energy professional looking to stay ahead of the game. Don't forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel, rate and review us on Apple or Spotify, and join us live every Thursday at 12 noon EST / 9 AM Pacific. Contact us at tim@cleanpowerhour.com or visit www.CleanPowerHour.com to learn more.

 

Support the show

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The Clean Power Hour is produced by the Clean Power Consulting Group and created by Tim Montague. Contact us by email: CleanPowerHour@gmail.com

 

Corporate sponsors who share our mission to speed the energy transition are invited to check out https://www.cleanpowerhour.com/support/

 

The Clean Power Hour is brought to you by CPS America, maker of North America’s number one 3-phase string inverter, with over 6GW shipped in the US. With a focus on commercial and utility-scale solar and energy storage, the company partners with customers to provide unparalleled performance and service. The CPS America product lineup includes 3-phase string inverters from 25kW to 275kW, exceptional data communication and controls, and energy storage solutions designed for seamless integration with CPS America systems. Learn more at www.chintpowersystems.com

 

The Clean Power Hour is produced by the Clean Power Consulting Group and created by Tim Montague. Please subscribe on your favorite audio platform and on Youtube: bit.ly/cph-sub | www.CleanPowerHour.com | contact us by email: CleanPowerHour@gmail.com | Speeding the energy transition!

 

For more information on solar, storage and everything else, go to www.solarSEAN.com

Virtual Power Plants (VPP) and Energy Storage Systems (ESS) with Geoff Ferrell, Senior Vice President of Sonnen Inc

Geoff Ferrell is the Senior Vice President of VPP and C&I Projects Business at Sonnen Inc. He also worked as a Chief Technology Officer in Mandalay Homes at Arizona.

 

As the former Chief Technology Officer of Mandalay Homes, Geoff Ferrell was a leader in the development of technology in the construction industry and a specialist in building science.

 

In 2017, Sonnen started working with Soleil Lofts, a multi-family community in Herriman, Utah, south of Salt Lake City, that has 600 units and is totally powered by electricity. It is a part of a project of Rocky Mountain Power.

This podcast was recorded in Jamestown Colorado

 

You can also reach Geoff Ferrell on his social accounts!

Sonnen website: www.sonnenusa.com
Threads: www.threads.net/@geoffferrell
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/geoff-ferrell-733466a8/
Twitter: www.twitter.com/ferrell_geoff?lang=en

 

Greg Smith on Sean's podcast in 2020 (when Greg was with Sonnen):

Part 1: podcasts.apple.com/ph/podcast/greg-smith-of-sonnen-battery-and-formerly-of-sma-part-1/id1441958371?i=1000474026142

 

Part 2: podcasts.apple.com/ph/podcast/greg-smith-of-sonnen-battery-part-2/id1441958371?i=1000474817340

 

Part 3: podcasts.apple.com/ph/podcast/greg-smith-of-sonnen-battery-part-3/id1441958371?i=1000477208295

 

Part 4: podcasts.apple.com/ph/podcast/greg-smith-of-sonnen-battery-part-4-of-4/id1441958371?i=1000486509610

 

 

To find out more and educate yourself, go to www.solarSEAN.com

Energy Storage Systems (ESS) and the NEC with Bill Brooks and Sean White Part 1

In this podcast we have Bill Brooks talking energy storage system (ESS) Codes, including the NEC, IFC, IBC, IRC, IEC, but mostly the NEC.

Be sure to get Sean and Bill’s latest book, which is the 3rd edition of PV and the NEC, based on the 2023 NEC.

To find where to get different versions of the NEC including the 2023 NEC for free check out the NEC tab at solarSEAN.com. 

Disclaimer: This podcast was recorded in 2021.

Keywords/topics covered:

Self-consumption

EVs

Frequency regulation

Voltage regulation

Energy storage systems

Ac-coupled

Dc-coupled

SolarEdge

Generac

Powerwall

Enphase

Ac-modules

Outback Power

Multimode inverter

Sunny Island

Sunny Boy

Article 702, 705, 710

Isolation device vs. transfer switch

Microgrid mode

Interactive inverters

Reverse dc-coupled

400V bus voltage

Dc converters, 690.71

Article 480

Electric supply and distribution network

NEC Handbook Commentary

UL9540

UL 1973

LG Chem

Nominal voltages

Lead-acid 2V

Alkali

Lithium iron phosphate 3.2V

Cobalt type of lithium-ion 3.6V

LiFePo4

Nickel

Charging ranges

Batteries are not constant voltage

Dc-converters required

Storage battery

Telecoms industry battery systems not regulated by NEC

NEC 90.2

Equalization

Sulfation

Trojan L16

Lead-acid battery

IRC

UL 9540 requirements

no UL 9540 listed lead-acid batteries and IRC requires UL 9540 for residential (in dwellings)

Off-gassing

Stratification

Emergency disconnects

Hawaii systems

Energy Storage System Labeling

Rules for protection of battery terminals for wiring

Article 110

Spaces between batteries on NABCEP PVIP exam

Ground fault protection

Links:

Bill Brooks, P.E.: www.brooksolar.com

www.solarSEAN.com

www.HeatSpring.com/SEAN 

NEC Article 690 Part IV Wiring Methods & Materials from PV and the NEC 3rd Edition book by Sean White and Bill Brooks

Buy this book here:

https://www.amazon.com/PV-NEC-Sean-White/dp/100318099X

 

This long podcast is a reading of chapter 5 of the book, which covers NEC Article 690 Part IV of the 2023 NEC.

 

Every 3 years when the NEC comes out, it is a tradition for me to read and post a poetry reading of Article 690 Photovoltaic Systems. I have already posted parts I through III on this podcast, which you can go back and listen to.

 

Sean White and Bill Brooks will be presenting this material at RE+ in Vegas in September and at Intersolar in San Diego in January, so be sure to check out their live workshops in person. The 2023 NEC material will be posted on HeatSpring soon, as it is in production now, so keep an eye out!

 

The NEC can be dry, and we do our best to make it exciting!!

 

Don't get shocked, unless you are shocked about how we present ourselves!!

Rod Matthews of Brevian Energy on Microgrids

Rod Matthews specializes in commercial and industrial (C&I) scale micro-grids and we get into the details of what a microgrid is and how they can benefit customers.

Some of the topics we cover include:

1. Microgrid definitions (NREL and NEC, which are different).
2. Minigrid definition (never connected to the grid)
3. Time-of-Use (TOU) Rates up to $0.74/kWh (or 1 Euro per kWh in Germany)
4. NABCEP PV Technical Sales (PVTS)
5. Lithium Ferrous Phosphate, aka LFP, Lithium Iron Phosphate
6. Dendrites with lithium-metal batteries
7. Silicon anodes
8. Virtual Power Plant (VPP) design
9. Distributed Power Energy Resource Management System Service
10. Artificial Intelligence and Microgrids
11. Internet of Things (IOT) sensors
12. Operation and Maintenance (O&M) contracts
13. Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs)
14. Capital Expenditures (CapEx)
15. Grid controller systems
16. Microgrid Equipment
17. Demand Charges vs. Energy Charges
18. Expensive electricity is good for the industry
19. Living without electricity
20. Intersolar in San Diego in January
21. RE+ in Vegas in September
22. The renewable energy family at the conferences
23. Sailor of the year
24. Doing good for the planet while making money
25. Clean Energy Buyers Association (CEBA)

Check out Rod's Brevian Energy website:

www.brevianenergy.com

To learn more about solar, storage and the solution to all of your and everyone else's troubles, go to www.solarSEAN.com or www.HeatSpring.com/Sean

World’s Largest Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS)

There are many ways to define the largest BESS and since the industry is growing so excitingly fast, it is difficult to explain exactly which is the largest.

 

We are going to talk about 7 big ones here:

 

1. Vistra: Moss Landing California US 2021 400MW/1600MWh

2. Crimson Storage: Blythe California US 2022 350MW/1400MWh

3. Manatee: Florida US 2021 (largest with PV) 409MW/900MWh

4. Victorian Big Battery: NSW Australia 2021 300MW/450MWh

5. McCoy Solar / BESS: Blythe California US 2021 230MW/920MWh

6. Elkhorn Battery: Moss Landing California US 2022 182.5MW/730MWh

 

Number 7 on this list is not the 7th largest battery today, but gets mentioned because it was once the largest in the world, first to reach 100MW way back in 2017 and was made because of a crazy social media bet.

 

If you are listening to this podcast in 10 years, it will be funny to compare these largest systems to the new largest BESSs in the world. What will they be? 100GWhs? Crazy to imagine this kind of growth!!

 

For more knowledge about energy storage systems, go to www.solarSEAN.com and take some energy storage classes!!

Lithium-Ion Battery Chemistries

Sean is recording this podcast from Australia where he is about to teach a utility-scale battery energy storage systems (BESS) course for CPD International. This is some of the material that will be included in the course.

 

In this podcast, we will go over different battery chemistries, focusing on the three main types of lithium-ion batteries used these days, which include:

 

1. Lithium Iron Phosphate (aka LFP or LiFePo or LiFePo4)

2. Lithium Nickel Manganese Cobalt Oxide (aka NMC or NCM)

3. Lithium Nickel Cobalt Aluminum Oxide (aka NCA)

 

We will talk about the availability of these elements on Earth, the toxicity of them, we will compare and contrast to lead-acid and nickel iron batteries and we will take a dive into the controversial Cobalt, which is said to have a supply chain where child labor is often used in the Congo. Australia does lithium and cobalt mining, which is part of the solution, however the use of cobalt free lithium-ion batteries, which means LFP seems to be the solution, however the batteries with cobalt do have a higher specific energy (not to be confused with energy density).

 

Specific energy = energy per weight (most important for EVs)

Energy density = energy per volume

 

For more go to www.solarSEAN.com or take an energy storage class at www.heatspring.com/sean

 

Thanks for listening!!

Jeffrey Max, CEO of Ascent Solar Technologies, Inc., Serial tech entrepreneur and investor

Jeffrey Max is the CEO of Ascent Solar Technologies, Inc. otherwise known on the stock market ticker as ASTI. Jeff is a turnaround CEO and we're going to find out what that means, Serial tech entrepreneur and investor. In over 30 years he has founded, built and incubated different global companies with multiple exits in financial services, payments, mobile commerce, adtech and aerospace. Jeff is driving the company's global positioning as a leader in flexible thin-film solar technologies. In addition to several Board positions, Jeff advises and mentors a select group of portfolio companies and founding executives in aerospace, biomed and adtech. Jeff Max has been the Chief Executive Officer of Ascent Solar Technologies since October. 

Microgrids

"Microgrid" is a term that is thrown around a lot and a lot of people using this term are not using it as it is defined in the NEC. The 2023 NEC has a few new microgrid terms. Additionally the 2023 NEC has renamed AC Coupling and DC Coupling  to be AC Interconnected and DC Interconnected.

 

Have fun and listen and by the way, go to www.solarSEAN.com and become certifiably NABCEPed!

Herve Billiet, Co-founder and CEO, Ipsun Solar and Ipsun Sunvoy

Herve Billiet is an electro-mechanical engineer who co-designed the first Belgian solar car way back when he was 21 years old. Soon after, he was invited by MIT in Boston to advance its sustainable transportation initiatives.

 

He went on to design his first residential solar PV system in 2009 using the 2008 National Electrical Code. Herve is from Europe but he knows the National Electrical Code he's not an expert over there designing solar systems in Europe.

 

And another thing is he worked for a few consulting firms, Accenture among them, and the US Department of Energy as a Strategy Consultant working on some of the largest renewable energy projects in the world. I bet that's getting bigger every day.

 

He's a business partner with Joe Marhamati whom he met at the Department of Energy’s Headquarters to establish Ipsun Solar. Herve and Joe grew Ipsun Solar from a small local installer to a prominent installer in the Northern Virginia Washington DC area doing both residential and commercial solar and advocacy for solar. Herve and Joe were seen roaming the NABCEP conference. Cool dudes! While they were running a solar business Herve saw the need for better software and co-founded Ipsun Sunvoy and we're going to get into what they do but they make tools and things coordinating different types of software and communications together. It’s awesome!

 

He’s a proud father of three boys, a CEO and he is fighting climate change.