Solar Power Supply for Cathodic Protection by Farwest Corrosion

Reliable Electric Power for Cathodic Protection at Remote Sites

Solar power systems have long been used for remote cathodic protection (CP) power needs.  In fact, in the early 1980’s, Farwest was one of the first providers of solar powered CP systems when we designed, manufactured, and installed hundreds of these systems to protect well casings in the Midwest.

Solar power is still employed for CP applications and can be a reliable source of remote impressed current power.  Using the power of the sun, light energy is directly converted to DC power via solar panels or arrays.  That power is used to operate the CP system during the day and is also stored in the system’s batteries to operate the CP system at night or during periods of low sunlight.

Each system is custom designed for the application and the physical size of the system, and the price, will depend on two main factors; 1) the physical location of the system, 2) the amount of DC power required for protection. 

Solar powered CP systems can be used for any location where power is difficult to obtain.  As the provided power is DC, there is no need for a traditional rectifier.  Instead, power is adjusted via an onboard charge/output controller, that is available in either Constant Current, Constant Voltage, or Auto-Potential versions.


Solar powered CP systems can be used for different industry applications including the protection of pipelines, well casings, storage tanks, or any other CP application where obtaining grid power may be difficult to expensive.


The solar powered CP system includes everything you need to operate and power the CP system. 

  • A powder coated steel support structure that is made to fit the size and needs of the environment and system. Smaller systems utilize a 3” x 3” x 10’ steel pole, while larger systems require customized support structures.
  • All needed installation hardware including enclosures, wiring, conduit, etc.
  • Kyocera Solar or Canadian solar modules. These reliable and virtually maintenance free panels are highly efficient when converting sunlight into useable DC power.
  • SunExtenderR “AGM” (Absorbent Glass Mat) deep cycle batteries with high density plate technology, which provide superior reliability, power, and extended cycle lift. This sealed, non-spillable design never needs maintenance.

If special requirements are needed, such as increased security measures, talk to us about those needs.  We can design a system to fit your application and system requirements.

 

To properly size and design a solar powered system that is right for your application, we will need to know:

  • Where will the unit be installed (nearest city) or GPS coordinates if available.
  • What is the required output of the cathodic protection system (volts/amps)?
  • What type of system control is required?
    • Constant Current - Unit will provide a constant current output to the anode bed. The voltage will adjust in accordance with the change in system resistance to maintain a constant current output.
    • Constant Voltage – Unit will provide a constant voltage output to the anode bed. The current will adjust in accordance with the change in system resistance to maintain a constant voltage output.
    • Automatic Potential – Unit will maintain a constant potential between the structure and a reference cell. The system output will automatically adjust the output voltage and/or the output current to maintain a constant potential on the protected structure.
    • Reduced Energy at Night (REN) – Unit will operate at the set current during the sunny periods and reduce the output to ½ the set current during sunless periods. This is useful when the structure can be polarized during the sunny periods and will maintain the polarization with a reduced current during sunless periods.
  • Autonomy – the battery backup sizing is calculated for optimal system performance by our engineers. If a specific number of days of backup is required, please specify when submitting a request for quote.
  • What type of structure is required for the system?
    • Standard ground mount – Steel poles will be buried to support the solar structure.
    • Optional skid mount – The solar structure is mounted on a skid that can be assembled off site and transported to the installation location.
  • Structure Finish – The structure is powder coated steel and aluminum. Hot dip galvanized structure components are available as an option.

 

Need help with your design?  Contact a Farwest representative and we’ll assist you with your design questions.