Nominal power is the nameplate capacity of photovoltaic (PV) devices, such as solar cells, modules and systems. It is determined by measuring the electric current and voltage in a circuit, while varying the resistance under precisely defined conditions. The nominal power is important for designing an installation in order to correctly dimension its cabling and converters.[1]
The peak power is generally not reached under actual radiation conditions. In practice, actual conditions will allow for approximately 15-20% lower generation due to the considerable heating of the solar cells.[2] Moreover, in installations where electricity is converted to AC, such as solar power plants, the actual total electricity generation capacity is limited by the inverter, which is usually sized at a lower peak capacity than the solar system for economic reasons. Since the peak DC power is reached only for a few hours each year, using a smaller inverter allows to save money on the inverter while clipping (wasting) only a very small portion of the total energy production. The capacity of the power plant after DC-AC conversion is usually reported in WAC as opposed to Wp or WDC.
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