Portable Lithium Ion Solar Charger

Abstract

A solar charger for outdoor use can be very useful when utility supply is remote. For camping, mountain climbing or other activities, the particular solar charger must meet certain requirements such as lightweight, adequate and flexible power, robustness etc. The purpose of the project is to develop a portable device or equipment to SUPPLY or to CHARGE mainly 2 types of portable devices: the mobile phones and netbook (in sleep mode). The solar panel is used as renewable power source. A table of specifications was defined. Since the project was targeted for diploma FYP, power scale has been reduced to minimize cost. As such, performance was much compromised. In this project, the solar panel produces 14.0 volts, feeding a charge controller. The latter charges a battery bank composed of rechargeable lithium ion cells. To create 2 outputs, 2 DC-DC converters are connected, providing 5V and 19 Volts. Simple circuitry and LEDs are connected to monitor battery bank levels. Finally, a portable solar charger was created. The battery bank can be fully charged after 2 days. An entry level smartphone can be 100% fully charged. However, the netbook can be charged up to 50% and only in sleep mode. As a conclusion, this project can be improved with more investment to increase performance.