CHENNAI: Solar-Direct Current (DC) Inverterless Technology, pioneered by researchers at Indian Institute of Technology – Madras, is lighting up homes in remote parts of the country which are beyond the reach of electricity grids.
Cygni Energy Private Limited, a startup that was incubated by the Rural Technology Business Incubator (RTBI) of IIT-Madras, is now installing 3,026 units in Manipur villages and another 25,000 units in Assam.
Speaking about the importance of the project, Ashok Jhunjhunwala of IIT-M, who lead the research on this technology, said, “Solar-DC system makes the equipment much smaller in size and cost. It has helped us in these difficult terrains where carrying anything would have been difficult.”
Also, powering homes with DC powerline reduces the power-consumption and would be increasingly deployed with solar in urban and rural India homes, he added.
The said technology uses DC solutions to remove alternate current (AC) to DC and DC to AC conversions. Removing the need of conversion helps in saving 30% to 40% of energy, according to an official release.
This later provides more power backup with lesser size of batteries and solar panel which thus also contributes in reducing the cost of the system, it added.
Source: timesofindia.indiatimes
