New smart inverter to help tackle Australia’s energy challenges

Federation researchers have teamed up with a renewable energy engineering specialist to develop an innovative product they hope will help drive Australia’s transition to renewable energy.

The research team have partnered with Western Australia-based Oztron Energy to develop a solar inverter that will be used in microgrid and edge-of-grid applications.

A microgrid is typically a self-contained power generation system connected to a national grid but can work independently when power is disrupted. These can be powered by solar panels or wind turbines and include battery energy storage. Edge-of-grid refers to locations that generally have fewer customers that are at the edge of the electricity network’s reach.

Microgrids are expected to play a bigger role in meeting Australia’s energy requirements as the country transitions from fossil fuel generation to renewable energy.

Like a home solar set-up, microgrids include an inverter, which can be considered the heart of the system, converting the direct current (DC) electricity generated from the renewable energy source to alternating current (AC) electricity used in electricity grids.

The research team from the Centre for New Energy Transition Research (CfNETR), led by Professor Syed Islam, has worked with Oztron Energy to develop a proof-of-concept for the inverter that will be further developed over the next four years.

The project began as part of the Trailblazer Universities Program – a Federal Government-backed initiative to drive research commercialisation in the university sector with investment in priority areas. Federation was invited to collaborate with Deakin University’s Recycling and Clean Energy Commercialisation Hub (REACH) for the Trailblazer funding. The project – Smart Intelligent Power Inverters for Future Community Microgrids – is worth $1.72 million in cash and in-kind.

Senior manager of business development and commercialisation at Federation’s Research Services Dr Juan Blanco Moya says the project will develop a more capable and cost-effective solution to those already available.

“This is a product that will have an impact in terms of the investment needed to get into renewables – we will be able to help potential buyers save money compared to other available options,” Dr Moya said.

“It will also be saving money during its operation. This will be a smart device that users can optimise to make the operation more efficient during the product’s lifecycle. We are tackling two very important variables for potential customers. This inverter will make it easier for them to get a foot into the market. It will also be more efficient to operate in the long term.

“It will also be a good solution because it will be built to Australian regulations. Currently, in the industry, many companies are using technologies and solutions developed in other geographical contexts. But this smart inverter will be developed exclusively for the Australian market with all the regulations and protocols we need to follow.”

Dr Moya says the project began with the research team identifying a microgrid inverter as the most viable option for presenting a novel product to align with the research priorities of the Trailblazer program.

With background intellectual properties from Federation researchers and Oztron Energy on the inverter, the next step is moving from the proof of concept towards a refined product ready for field testing and market adoptions.

The project started on October 1 and will run until June 30, 2027. One of the first milestones will be an initial workshop to bring together the work already done by Oztron Energy and the researchers at CfNETR.

“Now the work will be to develop the best technology solution and then test it to see how robust it is to get it ready for the market,” Dr Moya said.

“We have the proof of concept, and now the emphasis will be on how we can scale this technology, knowing what the technology challenges we can expect and also putting up a robust test unit on-site – testing this with our partners and getting data from the operation of our test device.

“By the end of the project, we will provide a technology package that can then be taken to the market through a joint venture or IP arrangement between Federation and our partners.

“Australia is facing a big challenge to move industry into renewables. This project uses that opportunity for us to create a great solution for microgrids.”