The future for DC-DC converters in PV solar

eIQ Energy has just announced a range of solar DC-DC modules for PV modules. Their press release says: “Unlike microinverter-based wiring technology, the Parallel Solar approach creates a DC bus that operates at a constant high voltage, allowing an installation’s DC-to-AC conversion to be handled by a single central inverter operating in its most efficient range. This approach means there is only one inverter connection to the outside power grid, rather than hundreds or thousands — greatly reducing the need for connection monitoring and management.” Like so much that’s being written about solar installations, this is just misleading nonsense. Microinverter-based wiring is no more complicated than DC-DC converter wiring, and only involves one connection to the outside power grid – not “hundreds or thousands”. In fact, because you don’t need a central inverter, microinverter wiring is actually simpler. The “DC-DC + central inverter” architecture is going to wither on the vine. Central inverters fail faster than any other part of a solar PV installation – few of them have warranties beyond 5 years – and every failure takes down your complete system. Microinverters are the only way forward.