Sungrow 1+X 2.0 Sets New DC-Side Safety Standard for Utility-Scale PV

As utility-scale solar plants continue to grow in size, voltage, and complexity, one challenge is becoming impossible to ignore: DC-side safety. Industry data consistently shows that the vast majority of serious PV plant incidents originate on the DC side—where dense wiring, countless connection points, and high voltages create a perfect storm for faults, degradation, and fire risk.

Against this backdrop, Sungrow has completed a first-in-industry, real-world field test of its latest 1+X 2.0 modular inverter, conducted jointly with TÜV Rheinland. The results confirm that DC-side safety no longer needs to be reactive. Instead, it can be predictive, precise, and system-wide.

Why the DC Side Is the Real Risk Zone

In large-scale PV plants, even a small DC-side anomaly—such as a loose connector, a minor overcurrent, or a partial arc—can escalate rapidly. Traditional protection approaches rely heavily on passive components like standard fuses and delayed shutdown logic. These solutions often react too late, allowing heat buildup, arcing, or component damage before isolation occurs.

Sungrow’s 1+X 2.0 addresses this vulnerability with an Intelligent DC-Side Full-Scope Safety Solution, built around a clear operational philosophy: Prevent, Diagnose, Contain (PDC). Rather than waiting for catastrophic failure, the system continuously analyzes, identifies, and isolates risks at the earliest possible moment.

Verified Under Real Fault Conditions, Not Simulations

Unlike lab-only testing, the joint Sungrow–TÜV Rheinland program subjected the 1+X 2.0 inverter to four of the most common and dangerous DC-side fault scenarios found in real utility plants.

Instant Short-Circuit Isolation

One of the most revealing tests compared traditional copper fuses with Sungrow’s silver-fuse, multi-breakpoint combiner box design. Under identical short-circuit conditions, copper fuses produced sustained arcing and physical damage, while the silver fuse disconnected within milliseconds, with no arc flash and no damage. The difference is not incremental—it is decisive.

Arc Faults Stopped Before They Spread

DC arc faults are among the most dangerous failure modes in PV systems, capable of exceeding 3000°C in seconds. During testing, the 1+X 2.0 detected and isolated arc faults in just 32 milliseconds, while simultaneously coordinating disconnection across parallel strings. The result: no fire, no equipment damage, and no fault propagation.

This is made possible by Sungrow’s DC parallel arc protection technology, which dynamically adjusts detection thresholds based on operating conditions—something static algorithms simply cannot do reliably.

Loose Connections Identified Without System Shutdown

Loose DC terminals are notoriously difficult to detect early, as temperature rises slowly and current levels often remain within normal ranges. Using high-precision temperature sensors and intelligent analytics, the 1+X 2.0 identified abnormal thermal behavior early, issued warnings, and isolated only the affected branch, without impacting plant output or causing inverter shutdown.

Low-Magnitude Overcurrent Cut in Under 2 ms

Perhaps the most striking result came from low-magnitude overcurrent testing. Traditional fuse-based systems required over half a second to disconnect—long enough to stress IGBTs and internal components. Sungrow’s pyro-fuse protection achieved disconnection in 1.472 milliseconds, leaving the inverter completely unharmed and able to restart immediately.

This system can actively detect up to 15 different DC fault categories, enabling forced, intelligent disconnection before damage occurs.

A New Safety Reference for Utility-Scale Solar

TÜV Rheinland experts who witnessed the entire testing process confirmed that the 1+X 2.0 modular inverter demonstrates industry-leading performance in proactive fault detection, ultra-fast isolation, and coordinated system-level protection.

As PV plants push toward higher DC voltages and larger capacities, this type of verified, field-proven safety architecture will increasingly become a requirement—not an option—for bankability, insurability, and long-term asset performance.

From Compliance to Confidence

With the 1+X 2.0 modular inverter, Sungrow is moving DC-side safety beyond compliance checklists and into measurable operational confidence. For developers, EPCs, and investors, this means reduced fire risk, fewer catastrophic failures, lower O&M exposure, and stronger long-term returns.

As the solar industry continues to scale, technologies that actively prevent failures instead of reacting to them will define the next generation of utility-scale PV standards.