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Device integrations

SolarEdge

Supported devices: SolarEdge three-phase inverters SE5K to SE120K

Our EMS supports the three-phase inverters from SolarEdge over Modbus TCP. The inverters advertise a SunSpec control model that does not accept a power limit, so our EMS steers them through SolarEdge's own power control protocol instead of the generic SunSpec integration.

Supported devices

Three-phase inverters: SE5K, SE7K, SE8K, SE9K, SE10K, SE12.5K, SE15K, SE16K, SE17K, SE25K, SE27.6K, SE30K, SE33.3K, SE40K, SE50K, SE55K, SE66.6K, SE82.8K, SE90K, SE100K, SE110K and SE120K.

SolarEdge support is available from EMS controller version 0.0.336.

EMS functionality

With the current integration, our EMS enables:

  • Monitoring of AC power, reactive power, DC power, lifetime energy, heat sink temperature and the operating state
  • Curtailment of the active power, as a percentage of the inverter rating
  • Reactive power control through a dynamic cos phi
  • An incident when the inverter reports a fault

Additional functionality may be added over time as integration capabilities evolve.

Setup

  1. Put the inverter on the network

    Connect the inverter to the same network as the Voltmasters Controller, give it a fixed IP address and enable Modbus TCP in the inverter settings. SolarEdge serves Modbus TCP on port 1502 by default.

    Follow the SolarEdge installation manual for the exact menu to enable Modbus TCP and to set the device ID of each inverter.

  2. Add the inverter in the platform

    Add a device of type PV inverter, brand SolarEdge and the model on the nameplate. The form prefills:

    • Port 1502 and Slave ID 1, the SolarEdge defaults
    • Rated power from the model designation

    Fill in the IP address and check that the port and slave ID match the inverter.

  3. Several inverters on one IP address

    A SolarEdge inverter accepts a single Modbus TCP session. When several inverters are reached through the same IP address, add each one with that IP address and its own slave ID, and leave Exclusive connection (under Advanced settings in the communication step) switched off, so they share one connection.

Advanced power control

The power limit only works with advanced power control enabled on the inverter. Our EMS switches it on itself when it finds it off. Committing that setting restarts power production on the inverter. When the setting stays off, or the inverter does not hold the written limit for 5 minutes, the EMS raises an incident and no longer counts on the inverter for curtailment.

Reactive power mode

The first time the EMS asks for reactive power, it switches the inverter to the reactive power mode that follows the dynamic cos phi. The inverter then restarts power production for about two minutes. This happens once, not on every setpoint.

Known limitations

  • The power limit has no fallback on communication loss: the last written limit holds until the next write or until the inverter restarts, which resets it to 100 %.
  • After a restart, the EMS writes the limit again as long as it still commands one.
  • A SolarEdge inverter that was added earlier as a SunSpec Generic device is not converted automatically: switch it to brand SolarEdge and the matching model yourself.