A Hybrid PV-Battery Unit Optimised for LV Grids Using GaN Transistors

Under their “Gone Green” deployment scenario, National Grid forecast that energy generated from

photovoltaics (PV) in the UK is expected to rise from 2 to 15 GW over the next 20 years. This is being driven by

the UK’s legal obligations around installing renewable energy sources & cutting greenhouse gases, the rising

cost of energy & concerns around the security of supply – the so-called energy “trilemma”. Power electronic

converters are a key enabling technology for PV and other low-carbon technologies (LCTs). However the use of

LCTs has resulted in problems for the electrical distribution nerwork such as supply voltage distortion and over-

voltages, which threaten to limit or delay their uptake. This project aims to mitigate this threat by exploiting

the benefits of a new Gallium Nitride power transistor module, which will be developed for use in a hybrid PV-

battery unit for residential applications, but will have much broader applications e.g. electric vehicle charging &

micro-CHP. These units will be much smaller, lighter & have lower cost than existing Silicon based units and

their deployment will lead to an increase in the maximum allowable installed capacity on the network.