Tracer 5415AN suitability?

[Aussie Collie]

Hello,
I am looking at buying a Epever Tracer 5415AN controller. It has a rated charging current of 50 amps.
I am new to lithium. Question is: Would this controller be suited to the two Enercore LiFePO4 batteries I have?
I plan to set them up in series for 24v, which is ok for these according to the datasheet (max 48v).

Battery specs:
Rated Capacity: 100Ah
Nominal Voltage: 12.8V
Cut-off Voltage: 9.2V
Energy: 1280Wh
Max. Charge Voltage: 14.4~14.6V
Max. Charge Current: 50A (≤ 0.5C)
Max. Continues Discharge current: 100A (≤ 1C)
Max. Discharge Current: 2.3 Seconds 200A

Panels will be 2 x 400 watt in series. 41.2 Voc and 12.28 Isc each panel.

Any advice would be appreciated.
Collie?

 

[sunshine_eggo]

Yes. Almost any can provided:

Bulk/absorp/boost is less than 14.6V.
Float is not more than 13.6V
Temperature compensation is disabled
Equalization is disabled or set to same as bulk/absorp/boost.

Many AGM or sealed programs are good provided you can turn off temperature compensation.

 

[Aussie Collie]

Thanks sunshine_eggo.

I'm a little worried about the batteries max charge current of 50 amps and the controller also being 50 amps.

Will the batteries suffer from being charged at 50 amps over the long term?
From what I can see there is no way to lower the amp output on the 5415AN controller.

Or am I worrying about a non-issue??

 

[12VoltInstalls]

Or am I worrying about a non-issue?

Yes. And no.

You probably ain’t gonna ever see 100% ratings out of the panels anyways. But it could happen.
Yesterday I was shocked at 66V and 4.3?A from three 21.6VOC panels in series. 8*F and high haze clouds do it could happen. In your case the SCC should never output over 50A so a 50A charge-rate battery should never be over out of range

 

[sunshine_eggo]

800W/24V = 33.3A, so you're nowhere near 50A.

 

[Aussie Collie]

800W/24V = 33.3A, so you're nowhere near 50A.

I'm worried about the output/charge amps of the controller. It being an mppt, doesn't it raise the amps and lower the voltage (find the maximum power point)?
The 2 panels together in series have a max voltage of 68.4v and max current of 11.7.

 

[sunshine_eggo]

Your 2X 400W panels produce 800W of power.

If you take 800W of power and put it into a 24V battery, you will get:

800W/24V = 33.3A

The controller is capable of 50A output max, but it will not create more power than is input into it.

 

[Aussie Collie]

So the controller will not find the maximum power point?

 

[sunshine_eggo]

At this point, I'm starting to think you're just trolling me. I'll give you the benefit of the doubt this last time.

MPPT means the controller finds the maximum POWER available from the ATTACHED ARRAY, i.e., they will typically operate at a panel's Vmp.

MPPT doesn't mean you get to create energy from nothing. You don't get more than you put into something. You could put 800W onto a controller capable of 80A, but you'd only get 33.3A from it because you're only putting 800W onto it.

Conversely, you could put 800W on a controller capable of only 20A, and you would only get 20A - because the circuitry of the controller can't handle more than 20A output.

The 50A is a LIMIT. You must attach enough panels to attain the 50A. In the case of 24V, you would need:

50A * 24V = 1200W.

 

[Aussie Collie]

At this point, I'm starting to think you're just trolling me. I'll give you the benefit of the doubt this last time.

MPPT means the controller finds the maximum POWER available from the ATTACHED ARRAY, i.e., they will typically operate at a panel's Vmp.

MPPT doesn't mean you get to create energy from nothing. You don't get more than you put into something. You could put 800W onto a controller capable of 80A, but you'd only get 33.3A from it because you're only putting 800W onto it.

Conversely, you could put 800W on a controller capable of only 20A, and you would only get 20A - because the circuitry of the controller can't handle more than 20A output.

The 50A is a LIMIT. You must attach enough panels to attain the 50A. In the case of 24V, you would need:

50A * 24V = 1200W.

I'm sorry if I came across as being a TROLL sunshine_ego.
Please forgive my ignorance. That is WHY I posted these questions in the BEGINNERS section.

I re-read your last post and I totally understand your answers to my question.

Thank you for your reply and once again, sorry for the blonde moment.

 

[12VoltInstalls]

So the controller will not find the maximum power point?

You got good answers but as you mentioned Beginner I thought I’d say something that might be useful.
The following isn’t exactly “correct” scientifically but it’s what happens in practical, anecdotal terms.

The maximum power point is the result of sampling the input available from the solar panels and determining with “software” and electronics the maximum volts/amps achievable under the conditions. It then goes about converting that to a suitable voltage output. The output amps are just the mathematical result of the input amps/volts per ohm’s law minus the SCC inefficiency and cabling losses.
The charge controller will output the available current up to the maximum of the SCC’s out put limit which in this case is 50A. If you have enough panels to achieve 50A…
(Just never exceed the maximum volt rating of the SCC with panel VOC as THAT is likely to kill the SCC)

I hope this was enlightening. Eggo provided good info and hopefully this expanded your understanding of the SCC.

 

[Aussie Collie]

The charge controller will output the available current up to the maximum of the SCC’s out put limit which in this case is 50A. If you have enough panels to achieve 50A…

Thanks'
My batteries have a Max. Charge Current: 50A (≤ 0.5C)
I got a great deal on three 400watt panels. Will charging these batteries so close to their max charge current adversely effect their life?

 

[sunshine_eggo]

Thanks'
My batteries have a Max. Charge Current: 50A (≤ 0.5C) each, two in series 24v total.
I got a great deal on three 400watt panels. Will charging these batteries so close to their max charge current adversely effect their life

No. Their specs and cycle life go hand-in-hand. If you keep it under spec, you get cycle life. If you use it below spec, you'll likely get longer cycle life. Again, it's going to be infrequent and brief that you will ever get 50A of charging out of 1200W of panels.

Panels produce rated power when 1000W/m^2 of solar irradiance are hitting them. This is a very rare occurrence - high noon, sun at your latitude, panels perfectly perpendicular to the sun, etc.

 

[Aussie Collie]

No. Their specs and cycle life go hand-in-hand. If you keep it under spec, you get cycle life. If you use it below spec, you'll likely get longer cycle life. Again, it's going to be infrequent and brief that you will ever get 50A of charging out of 1200W of panels.

Panels produce rated power when 1000W/m^2 of solar irradiance are hitting them. This is a very rare occurrence - high noon, sun at your latitude, panels perfectly perpendicular to the sun, etc.

Thanks mate, good to know.