Do solar panels need lightning protection? The short answer is: it depends on your location, system size, and local lightning activity-but most systems benefit from some level of protection.
To protect solar inverters from lightning damage, install appropriate Surge Protection Devices (SPDs) 1 on both AC and DC sides of the system. Select SPDs with voltage ratings matching your system's maximum voltage, and ensure they're properly grounded.
Annex D of IEC 62305-3 deals specifically with the protection of photovoltaic installations. It covers in particular the positioning of PV panels in protection zones, the separation distances to be observed between down conductors and DC cables, and the rules for grounding chassis.
The recommended approach is to use a separate DC grounding electrode for PV arrays and frames, as this enhances protection against lightning and transient voltage.
In this paper, the performance of a lightning protection system (LPS) on a grid-connected photovoltaic (PV) park is studied by simulating different scenarios with the use of an appropriate software tool.
For standard PV power stations, grounding resistance should be below 4 ohms; for large-scale PV power stations or areas with frequent lightning, it should be below 1 ohm.
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