Automating groundbreaking DC-Powered house.

‘Living lab’ provides blueprint for sustainable residential electrical systems that could reduce emissions by 55% and save homeowners up to 44% of annual energy costs.

Emerson’s Ovation™ software and technologies act as the ‘brains’ of a 1920s-era home in West Lafayette, Indiana, USA, that has been converted to run entirely on direct current (DC) power. Graduate students live in the house full time while Purdue researchers (LtoR) Eckhard Groll, Jonathan Ore and Alex Boanta monitor the energy efficiency of its self-contained DC nanogrid. (Pic Perdue University)

Purdue University in West Lafayette (IND USA), is using global software and engineering leader Emerson’s advanced digital technologies to automate its Nanogrid House, a living lab for energy-efficient home research. Compared to today’s homes and businesses that are powered predominantly by alternating current (AC) power, the Nanogrid House can shift between AC and direct current (DC) power, which increases the ability to use renewable energy and lowers homeowners’ energy costs.

High-voltage AC power from the grid must be converted to DC power to run household devices, wasting time and money. And while new renewable energy sources such as solar and wind deliver DC power directly, this power is not compatible with existing home electrical infrastructure. The Nanogrid House enables researchers to develop technologies to address these challenges in anticipation of a future nationwide shift to DC power.

"As we continue to face extreme weather, a DC-powered home is uniquely suited to the future of energy generation, empowering homeowners to turn their houses into nanogrids of efficient, self-sufficient production and consumption,” said Bob Yeager, president of Emerson’s power and water business.

Using Emerson’s renewable power expertise and Ovation^™ software and technologies, Purdue University researchers have retrofitted an entire house to run on its own DC-powered nanogrid. The nanogrid integrates both AC power from local electric utilities and DC power from solar panels, wind turbines or battery storage.

These sustainable energy sources help reduce the house’s carbon footprint by an estimated 55% and lower annual energy costs by up to 44%. The Nanogrid House can also sustain itself for short periods of time by generating its own renewable energy and detaching from the grid through the help of on-site stored energy.

“As consumers add sustainable, DC-based electrical solutions to their homes, the need for a low-voltage, more energy efficient infrastructure will continue to increase,” said Eckhard A. Groll, William E. and Florence E. Perry head of mechanical engineering and Reilly professor of mechanical engineering, Purdue University. “Emerson’s expertise in automation software for power generation and sustainability helped us design a DC nanogrid solution that may someday become the national standard.”

Emerson’s Ovation software and technologies provide the project with a digital automation foundation integrating data provided by the home’s energy generation, heat and cooling production and battery storage assets. Ovation software operates as the “brain” of the home by managing voltage control, power distribution and load and intelligently optimising operation of the nanogrid equipment.

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Energy efficiency at energy show

Visitors to Carlo Gavazzi’s stand at the Energy Event (8/9 Sept 2010) will witness the debut of a newly enhanced power analyser together with demonstrations of the company’s full range of innovative energy-efficient products addressing the energy market.

Their new power analyser has been launched in response to demand for a higher performance power analyser that provides accurate and precise measurements and analysis, whilst remaining compact and simple to install. Further highlights on the stand include the newly announced Eos-Array Lite – a modular control and management solution to boost performance, efficiency and return on investment in small to large solar and photovoltaic installations; and the extensive family of innovative MID-certified energy meters.

The latest power analyser - WM40-96
The new WM40-96 compact modular power analyser with enhanced intelligence complements the company’s proven energy management range. The WM40-96 power analyser delivers high accuracy measurements including current, voltage, power, energy and harmonics – with precise parametric analysis, control, data stamping and retransmission. It is all packaged in a compact plug-and–play modular format that simplifies installation and streamlines inventory management.

The base unit provides the display, touch-panel, power supply and measurement inputs, and users can then add up to three slim-line modules to the rear for alarms, pulse outputs, I/O and data communications interfaces. On the front panel is an optical communication port to enable easy programming and fast access to measurements and all necessary information is available at a glance on the customisable home page, readily configured by the user.

Greener energy sources
Also on the stand will be the newly announced Eos-Array Lite: a versatile controller enabling small to medium or high power solar photovoltaic (PV) plants to meet the growing demands for clean and green sources of energy. It offers increased modularity for cost-sensitive applications from 10kWp upwards to provide localised diagnostics, supporting rapid identification of faults. This minimises the cost of repairs and increases uptime, thereby maximising return on investment for solar generating capacity.

Operators benefit from simplified installation as there is no need for power supply or bus wiring among modules, and industry-standard RS-485 Modbus communications simplify integration into the customer’s PV management system. The Eos-Array Lite modular control system enables a space-optimised solution for any PV installation, and can comprise from two to 16 single-DIN modules, up to a maximum width of 280mm. It is supported by Eos-ArrayLSoft software, which is designed specifically for use with Eos-Array Lite to facilitate configuration of modules during plant commissioning as well as read-back of data in normal operation.

MID certified energy meters
Carlo Gavazzi’s extensive family of MID-certified energy meters ranges from the ultra-compact DIN-rail mounted single phase 32A energy meters, up to a three-phase 65A energy analysers offering built-in hot/cold water, gas and remote heating measurements and load monitoring, and will also be demonstrated on the stand.

Alternative energy and high efficiency influence product range

Farnell has selected the alternative energy sector as its latest focus market. The emphasis in this area of high importance has seen the leading multi-channel distributor add over 1,000 new products targeted at applications in alternative energy and high efficiency product design. Suppliers include leading industry names such as Microchip, ST Microelectronics and Tyco plus niche suppliers such as Advanced Linear Devices. The new additions take Farnell’s total number of products in this sector to over 5,000.

The latest issue of the company’s informative Technology First Journal looks in detail at alternative energy through a range of topical articles and features. Additionally, the element14 technology portal and e-community will feature a dedicated discussion and information group covering the topic to provide support and information for design engineers working on new projects.

Alternative energy encompasses areas such as wind power generation, hydro power and solar energy as well as less publicised techniques such as harnessing vibration and thermal energy to produce electricity. High efficiency is crucially important in the electronic circuitry that supports alternative energy systems to ensure that a minimal amount of the power generated is wasted in the form of electrical losses. The company also recognises that when considering the wider electronics market, components that have low power consumption or support energy efficient design, are crucial in helping engineers in the development of end products that have low total cost of ownership and deliver environmental benefits.

Lynn Ma, Technical Marketing Manager-Europe, Farnell said: “The development of alternative energy sources and the efficiency of both industrial and consumer electronics equipment remains under the spotlight as globally we seek to address the unsustainable rate at which the world’s natural resources are being consumed. The electronics industry has a key role to play in the development of effective systems to support alternative energy generation and energy efficient design as a whole. Through our focus in this area we are seeking to simplify component selection and sourcing and speed the design process for our design engineering customer base.”