Abstract: Even though, at present, most of the Indian villages have been known to reach the ‘100% household electrification’ mark, many remote villages in the desert and hilly areas receive electricity supply only for few hours in a day. After an immense awareness programme on usage of freely available solar energy, run by the government throughout the country, villagers have started using solar panels on their rooftops and other open spaces. However, to install a reliable and cost effective off-grid PV system, it is imperative to choose an efficient battery storage system. In this paper, we analyze three different battery types, viz. Advanced Lead Acid, Lithium Ion and Zinc Bromine Flow battery on the basis of their technical and economic performances, when used with an off-grid PV system. From the techno-economic analysis for a domestic load of 250 kWh/day and an agricultural load of 17.91 kWh/day, it was found that the LI batteries are the most favorable option for use with the designed off-grid PV system.
Keywords: Advanced lead acid battery, lithium-ion battery, zinc bromine flow battery, NPC, state of charge
