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INTRODUCTION
1.1 INTRODUCTION
In this modern society, electricity is used for carrying out most daily activities at
homes and industries for carrying out operations or tasks that depends on electric
ways including the use of water, winds or steam energy to drive turbines and more
recently the use of gas. Generators, solar energy, and nuclear energy are also
electricity from power generating stations which depends on the use of winds,
water, etc. to operate turbines of power generating plant. This has led to the
increased use of alternative solutions such as the use of electric power generators,
additional power source to generators as well as UPS considering its long duration,
1.1.1 Inverter
Inverter is an electronic device that has the ability to convert the direct current
(DC) from the battery or solar cells (Panels) into an alternating current (AC) which
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is the conventional way most electrical appliances are powered today. Inverter can
Pure sine wave inverters are the most affluent in terms of efficiency and accurate
companies is usually pure sine wave. But commercial inverters could give output
ranging from square wave to pure sine wave. Although pure sine wave is mostly
Modified sine wave inverters are more manageable compared to square or pure
i. Modified sine wave inverter are usually less expensive than true or pure
sine wave inverters. It is because the technology they use is more cost-
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1.1.3 Disadvantages of Modified Sine Wave Inverter
types of inverter because the total harmonic distortion from the motors
ii. A modified sine wave would often cause a disturbing buzz sound to
This project focus on the design and construction of a modified sine wave inverter.
Power failure is the total loss of utility power. It may be caused by the tripping of a
circuit breaker, power distribution failure and excessive demand on the power grid.
Also effects of object on the power transmission line can cause the circuit breaker
In Nigeria, the problem of inconsistent power supply has always been a problem.
This has led to a widespread usage of electric power generators and power supply
from uninterruptible power supply (UPS) systems. Inverters however are more
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efficient and better means of generating power but due to lack of knowledge on
how inverter systems are designed and constructed, they are not generally
which is rated 1kw and is powered by a 12v battery. The frequency of the inverter
would be 50Hz.
iii. To apply the principle from (i) and results of (ii) to design a modified
iv. To couple the components together and construct a modified sine wave
So far in Nigeria, and Africa at large, there seems to be no end to the persistent
the available alternative solutions available are costly, difficult to maintain or not
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expensive alternative means of generating power, a modified sine wave inverter,
can be developed. The sun has the ability to give lots of energy, through the
The following components were used in constructing the modified sign wave
inverter: 12V battery (DC source), transistors, capacitors, resistors, diode (Light
(IC). Full details of the calculation used to obtain parameters for the design are
All components used for the construction were sourced locally and adequate
adjustment were made on all substitute components in order to achieve the best
result. The design was made in such a way that when the AC (alternating current)
mains is not available, the battery provides DC (direct current) supply which is
then converted into 220V AC supply output at the inverter socket. The circuit
charges and discharges the battery when the AC mains is not available respectively
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Fig 1.1: schematic diagram of an inverter system
The project is concerned with the construction and design of modified sine wave
inverters. Hence the procedures and design specifications used in this project
applies only to modified sine wave inverters. The designed frequency of the
The procedures applied in the project can also be applied, with little or no
alteration, in the construction and design of any modified sine wave inverter
This report is written in five chapters. Chapter one contains the introduction, aims
objectives, significance of the project and the scope and limitations of the project.
In chapter two, the literature review is discussed. Chapter three highlight the
methodology which includes the relevant information about the design and the
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calculations carried out while chapter four contains information on the results
obtained, and the discussion of those results. Finally, chapter five discusses the
oxidation of silicon
Bi-stable Multi vibrators is another type of two state device. They have
two stable state and maintain a given output state indefinitely unless an
simple two state devices such as relaxation oscillators, timers and flip-flops.
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Total Harmonic Distortion: is a measurement of the harmonic distortion present
in a signal and is defined as the ratio of the sum of the powers of all harmonic
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CHAPTER TWO
2.0 LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1 HISTORY OF INVERTER
The quest to convert direct current (DC) power to alternating current (AC) power
has been since the late 19th century and from then to the mid-20th century, DC-to-
generator sets (M-G sets). In the early 20th century, vacuum tubes and gas filled
electromagnetic converters explains the source of the term inverters. Early AC-
reversed its connection at exactly the right moment to produce direct current (DC)
From the invention of inverters, a switching device is usually made use as a means
to switch the transformer to ON/ OFF state in order to generate fast rate frequency.
component adopted to ensure the switching of the system to ON/ OFF state at a
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considerable faster rate compared to a manual switching. SCR consist of three
When two SCR are connected to a center tapped transformer, current will flow in
positive half cycle (ON current) and negative half cycle (OFF current). This is the
This generation made use of multi-vibrator, amplifier and transformer. The process
takes input from 12VDC source, and runs from the supply to the multivibrator, and
from the multivibrator to the amplifier, and finally to the transformer which gives
AC voltage as output.
This is inverted to a 240V AC, the multivibrator used may be bistable or astable
which have two stage cycles useful for generating square waves and pulses. The
In this generation, two 555 timer ICs were used for generating oscillations of equal
constant frequency of 50Hz. The frequency generated by each 555 timer ICs is
controlled by the input configuration of the RC circuit. The output from the ICs is
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field-effect transistor (MOSFET).
The NE555 timer IC was used to replace the first generation and second generation
be transmitted in two different ways, namely: Alternating current (AC) and Direct
Current (DC). Alternating current is the form obtained from power outlets in
change in the direction of flow of voltage (and current) can be used to power
Direct current is the form stored up in batteries. It uses are limited and it depends
each can carry. Direct current has a voltage level and travel very far until losses
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2.3 INVERTER TECHNOLOGY
Power Inverters are devices which can convert electrical energy of direct current
(DC) form to that of alternating current (AC). They come in all shapes and sizes,
from low power functions such as powering a car radio to that of backing up a
building power system in case of power outage. The input voltage, output voltage
and frequency, and overall power handling depend on the design of the specific
device or circuitry. The inverter doesn’t provide any power, the power is provided
electrical energy from direct current (DC) to alternating current (AC) or indirect
i. In facilities that require energy at all times, such as hospital and airports,
restore power.
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output of a photovoltaic module or array. The inverter then converts this
Inverter can be broadly classified into three categories which are (Mohan et al,
2002):
i. Square wave inverter: derives its name from the shape of the output
The first versions use a mechanical vibrator type switch to break up the
low voltage DC into pulses. Square wave can produce humming sound
electronics.
square wave. The modified sine wave is the sum of two square waves one
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devices that needs AC power. It does have a drawback as not all devices
iii. Pure sine wave inverter: a power inverter which produces a multiple step
convert the DC supply into a near perfect or pure sine wave, replicating
the supply attained from a domestic AC power source such as a plug. The
sine wave has very little harmonic distortion resulting in a very clean
Fig 2.4: Square, Modified, and Pure Sine Wave. (www.intechopen.com, 2015).
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2.3.3 Input and Output Characteristics of an Inverter
i. Input Voltage:
power source capable of supplying enough current for the intended power
demands of the system (Rashid, 2007). The input voltage depends on the
b) 24, 36, and 48V DC, which are common standards for home
energy systems.
in vehicle-to-grid systems.
stepped up) then the frequency may be much higher for good transformer
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iii. Output voltage
same as the grid line voltage, typically 120 or 240VAC at the distribution
level, even when there are changes in the load that the inverter is driving.
This allows the inverter to power numerous devices designed for standard
kilowatts. This describes the power that would be available to the device
the inverter is driving and, indirectly, the power that would be needed
panels or fuel cells into AC electricity, the applications they can be used for are
extremely diverse.
Jonathan Wilkins (2014), explains factors that can cause the failure of an inverter:
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power output at varying levels of current, however electrolytic capacitors
have a limited lifespan and age faster than dry components. This in itself
ii. Overuse: Using inverters beyond their operating limit can contribute to
iii. Over and – Under Voltage: If either voltage or current increases to a level
the inverter is not rated for, it can cause damage to components in the
device, most frequently, the inverter bridge. Often this damage would be
friction, adding to the unwanted heat generated by the device and further
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2.5 COMPARISON BETWEEN INVERTER AND ELECTRONIC
POWER GENERATOR
Alternative means of generating electricity when the supply from the mains go off
are the use of inverter, electric power generator or uninterruptible power supply.
building.
i. Most of the power generator are noisy during operation which causes
ii. The smoke and black oil from the generators pose threats to the
iii. Most generators are bulky in size, thus making the generation of
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iv. Cost of maintenance of generator is high compared to the cost of
maintenance of an inverter.
2.5.4 An Inverter
UPS (uninterruptible power supply) only provides serves as a backup and do not
These inverters have a square wave-like waveform with an additional step or two.
They may work well with most equipment, but compromises the equipment’s
power or efficiency. Some equipment, such as motor pumps, fans, and refrigerator
pumps, consume more power from the inverter because of low efficiency.
Motors usually consume 20% more power because most modified sine
wave inverters have higher frequencies, which motors cannot use. This is why you
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may notice that fluorescent lights are not as bright as usual, or hear some buzzing
Even appliances with digital clocks and electronic timers will not work properly
because their timing depends on power. As modified sine waves are noisier and
rougher than pure sine waves, the clocks either fun faster or don’t work at all.
In Nigeria, not much research and development has been carried out on solar
thermal energy and associated devices. These devices are yet to become common
universities and research centers. Hence availability of Nigerian made solar energy
generating equipment and accessory has not been achieved. This shows that
Nigeria has a lot of journey to go in the field of solar energy research and device
power in Nigeria is very low. Those that are aware of it think solar energy
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ii. Technology equipment and fabrication: Presently, neither the technology or
value are foreign. These spare part repair and sometimes broken down solar
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