r&D big ideas in solar
by delivering predictable,
controllable power output,
the Dri makes renewables
interchangeable with
conventional energy
sources. Then the solar or
wind system “could almost
be thought of like a peaking
plant, as opposed to,
frankly, as a nuisance,
as some utilities see it.”
As it concludes this fall, SEGIS will have
invested more than $20 million in matching
funds to SEGIS participants. Along with Princeton Power, the final participants include Petra
Solar, PV Powered and a collaboration of the
Florida Solar Energy Center and SatCon Technology Corp. These companies are part of a coming wave of smart grid-compatible inverters that
promise game-changing benefits for large-scale
renewable energy. Princeton Power’s R&D 100
Award-winning DRI exemplifies the promise of
these breakthroughs.
By reducing the cost per kilowatt-hour of solar
electricity, the DRI has the potential to help overcome a major barrier to widespread deployment.
But Princeton Power Systems’ Darren Hammell
sees the greatest market-shifting potential in
some of the DRI’s advanced grid applications.
44 September/October 2011 SOLAR TODA Y solartoday.org
Copyright © 2011 by the American Solar Energy Society Inc. All rights reserved.
