Kipp & Zonen releases latest pyranometer with integrated heating

Kipp & Zonen, a product brand of OTT HydroMet, introduces the new ISO- and IEC-compliant SMP12, a Class A pyranometer that delivers integrated heating with zero moving parts and best-in-class surge protection.

OTT HydroMet’s scientists and engineers focused on making the new instrument fully compliant with the highest class of ISO 9060:2018 and created a “spectrally flat, fast response pyranometer of Class-A.” Its integrated heating based on solid-state technology with no moving parts makes the SMP12 IEC 61724-1:2021 Class A-compliant in all conditions while reducing maintenance needs and failure risks.

Enhanced surge protection helps plant operators to mitigate the impact of poor grounding and finicky power sources on their monitoring system. The SMP12 is designed to reduce failure risks, prevent expensive on-site replacements and maintain performance with a rock-solid leading mean time between failure (MTBF) of 10+ years.

The SMP12 comes with a single glass dome that is heated to prevent morning dew and frost from interfering with the measurement accuracy. Its quartz diffusor acts as a second dome while enabling excellent directional response, the diffusor in combination with the miniature thermopile allows a very fast response time of less than 0.5 seconds. This allows the SMP12 to carry the label “fast response pyranometer” in addition to Class A according to ISO 9060:2018. Furthermore, the use of the diffusor reduces the sensitivity of the instrument for thermal zero offsets and enables internal heating without moving parts.

“After launching pyranometers using diffusor technology in 2016 on the Kipp & Zonen Razon+, it has been a challenge to further develop the technology and design a model that fully complies with the strict requirement for spectrally flat pyranometers of the highest Class of ISO 9060. We are proud to announce today that we managed to do so,” said Joop Mes, Senior Scientist at OTT HydroMet Delft.

The SMP12 comes with two integrated features that help to retain long-term reliability of your measurements. The integrated tilt sensor monitors the installation angle of the pyranometer and detects any move that might occur over time and impact measurement quality. The internal humidity sensor makes sure that the measurement performance of the SMP12 is not affected by humidity.

To make installation as simple as possible, OTT HydroMet equipped the Kipp & Zonen SMP12 with industry-standard RS-485 connectivity and the Modbus protocol that allows for easy integration with all data loggers and SCADA systems as well as every device of OTT HydroMet’s solar monitoring portfolio.

An additional feature is the tilt angle sensor to monitor tilt angle installation down to ±0.5°. Over the months and years, installation angles can slightly vary resulting in drifting measurements. Knowing the exact tilt angle helps to improve the long-term reliability of data.

News item from Kipp & Zonen

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Original Source: https://www.solarpowerworldonline.com/2022/01/kipp-zonen-releases-latest-pyranometer-with-integrated-heating/