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Xiamen University DC Microgrid

Current status, energy mix, organizations, suppliers, equipment, controls, reported specifications, and project updates—with source-level citations.

CoverageDetailed public record
Named organizations13
System facts22
Sources reviewed8
Evidence reviewed2026-07-20

Xiamen University's project is a 150 kWp, 380 V DC building microgrid at the School of Energy's engineering complex on the Xiang'an campus—not at the university library as the legacy record states. Announced in 2012 and reported operating successfully in March 2014, it directly couples rooftop PV, a DC storage unit, AC/DC backup, and DC building loads. Xiamen University's current instrument platform still lists the custom DC microgrid system as online, with Emerson Network Power named as manufacturer. That asset-register attribution complements rather than automatically replaces the earlier implementation alliance led by Xiamen University with CGN Solar, Nextek, People Power, Canadian Solar, Intel, and LBNL.

Research status
The first phase moved from alliance announcement in March 2012 to successful operation in 2014. University reporting documented air conditioning, EV charging, resistive test load, and planned LED lighting on the 380 V DC bus. The current School of Energy equipment platform lists asset 1504738G as online in Engineering Building C and describes it as a rooftop-PV building-supply system. This is meaningful current continuity evidence, but no 2025/26 production, storage-health, load, availability, or research-use log was found; 'online' is an asset-platform state, not a generation guarantee.
Historical classification
University
Reported capacity
150 kW
Coordinates
24.43862, 118.09681
Evidence note: “Every company” cannot be proven from public material alone. This page lists every organization found in the recovered record and reviewed sources, preserves unknown roles, and explicitly marks undisclosed controller or equipment details.
Report missing evidenceResearch methodology

Project delivery

Who was involved in Xiamen University DC Microgrid?

13 publicly identified organizations. Where a recovered source named a participant without explaining its work, the role remains explicitly unspecified.

Organization

Canadian Solar

Publicly named participant; role not specified in the recovered record [1]

Organization

Canadian Solar Inc.

Committed customized rooftop solar modules for the original alliance implementation. No module model or verified final installed count was found. [4]

Organization

China General Nuclear Power Solar Energy Development Co., Ltd. (CGN Solar)

Joint developer identified by Xiamen University's 2014 commissioning/operation report. [2]

Organization

Emerson Network Power Co., Ltd.

Manufacturer assigned to the custom system in Xiamen University's current equipment asset registry; the public page does not explain its scope relative to the 2012 alliance partners. [3]

Organization

Intel

Publicly named participant; role not specified in the recovered record [1]

Organization

Intel Corporation

Technical-advisory participant in the original DC microgrid research alliance. [4][5]

Organization

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

Developed methods and algorithms for optimal equipment selection and operation of DC microgrids. [4][5]

Organization

LBNL

Publicly named participant; role not specified in the recovered record [1]

Organization

Nextek

Publicly named participant; role not specified in the recovered record [1]

Organization

Nextek Power Systems

Introduced its Direct Coupling DC distribution/microgrid platform for diverse DC building loads. [4][5]

Organization

People Power Company

Provided the planned cloud-based energy-management, control, behavioral-analytics, mobile, and web applications. [4][5]

Organization

Xiamen University

Publicly named participant; role not specified in the recovered record [1]

Organization

Xiamen University School of Energy / Institute of Solar Energy

Owner/host, research lead, and current equipment custodian; Professor Fengyan Zhang led development of the DC microgrid. [2][3][4]

System evidence

Energy mix, capacity, and specifications

Values can describe different project phases, generation sources, storage systems, or other components. Source citations are attached to each figure so discrepancies remain visible.

KW Solar
150 [1]
Photovoltaic capacity
150 kWp rooftop solar on the engineering laboratory building, the principal DC energy source. [2][4][5]
DC bus voltage
380 V DC, following the commercial-building DC level promoted internationally at the time. [2][7]
Documented DC loads
30 kW DC variable-speed heating/cooling air conditioning, a 40 kW outdoor DC EV charging station, a 30 kW resistive load, and 20 kW of planned DC LED lighting. [2]
Storage and backup
A DC energy-storage unit and AC/DC backup supply were included for stable, continuous service. No authoritative public kW/kWh, chemistry, voltage, manufacturer, model, or current state of health was found. [2][6]
EV charging claim
University reporting said the 40 kW DC station could complete a fast charge in approximately 1.5 hours for more than 250 km of driving range. The vehicle, battery size, test standard, and present charger availability were not stated. [2]
Asset-register value
The current university platform identifies custom/non-standard asset 1504738G, lists a purchase price of CNY 950,000, places it in Engineering Building C, and marks it online. The purchase date is blank/invalid on the page. [3]
Research efficiency results
A Xiamen University poster reports DC-versus-AC conversion-chain efficiencies of 92% versus 78% for lighting, 93% versus 87% for air conditioning, 78% versus 64% for a data center, and 94% versus 76% for EV charging. These are project research results, not annual whole-building energy savings. [5]
Location
Three School of Energy buildings in the east area of Xiamen University's Xiang'an campus—Engineering Building and its north/south buildings. The archived 'Xiamen University Library' location is unsupported and retired. [8][2][3]

Controls and hardware

Equipment and controller details

Manufacturer and model are shown only when a source names them. Generic descriptions are not converted into guessed product assignments.

01

Custom DC microgrid system

Emerson Network Power Co., Ltd. — Non-standard/custom; XMU asset 1504738G

Current university equipment-register attribution for the integrated system in Engineering Building C. It does not identify individual converter, storage, or protection models. [3]

02

Photovoltaic modules

Canadian Solar (original alliance commitment)

Customized rooftop modules for a 150 kWp array. Final installed module model and count were not found, and the 2014 report does not re-confirm brand. [4][2]

03

DC distribution platform

Nextek Power Systems — Direct Coupling

Original alliance platform for directly linking renewable generation/storage with lighting, HVAC, data-center, EV, and plug loads. [4][5]

04

Energy-management software

People Power Company

Cloud-based monitoring, management, behavioral analytics, and mobile/web control were committed in the alliance and shown in the research poster; no current software version was found. [4][5]

05

DC air conditioning

Model not publicly disclosed

30 kW reversible variable-frequency DC HVAC reported stable during the 2014 operation announcement; manufacturer/model undisclosed. [2]

06

DC EV charger

Model not publicly disclosed

40 kW outdoor DC fast-charging station; manufacturer, connector, protocol, and vehicle-to-grid capability undisclosed. [2]

07

Energy storage

Model not publicly disclosed

DC-coupled storage supporting stable and continuous operation. No reliable public chemistry, power, energy, manufacturer, or model was located. [2][6]

Technical record

Architecture, performance, and project updates

Concise technical facts, milestones, operating results, and later developments. Dated notes distinguish historical design claims from current evidence.

  • Management

    DC Coupling microgrid [1]

  • DC architecture

    Rooftop PV feeds a 380 V DC bus serving native-DC loads and storage, avoiding repeated DC-to-AC-to-DC conversions. AC/DC backup supports continuity, and the design could be expanded into an AC/DC hybrid microgrid. [2][5]

  • Control and optimization

    People Power supplied the planned cloud/user-control layer, while LBNL contributed optimal sizing and operating algorithms. The sources do not disclose final control protocols, protection settings, cybersecurity, or present software maintenance. [4][5]

  • Project evolution

    The 2012 international alliance described intended roles; Xiamen University's 2014 report names CGN Solar as joint developer; the current asset registry names Emerson Network Power as manufacturer. These are preserved as phase/scope evidence rather than treated as mutually exclusive errors. [4][2][3]

  • Identity correction

    The system is associated with the School of Energy engineering complex on the Xiang'an campus. No credible source supports the legacy library location. [8][2][3]

  • Current-data gap

    The current university platform marks the asset online, but no public 2025/26 data were found for PV yield, storage state of health, renewable fraction, grid imports, load uptime, EV sessions, outages, or research utilization. Online listing is not equated with continuous full-capability operation. [3]

Provenance

8 sources

Primary owner, government, university, supplier, and engineering sources are preferred. Archived references preserve claims whose original pages moved or disappeared.

  1. [1]
    Recovered Microgrid Projects record

    Internet Archive · Archived source · captured 2020-07-06

  2. [2]
  3. [3]
  4. [4]
  5. [5]
    DC Microgrid at Xiamen University, Xiamen, China

    Xiamen University / Microgrid Symposium · Primary source

  6. [6]
  7. [7]
  8. [8]
    Xiamen University DC Microgrid - archived legacy record

    Microgrid Projects via Internet Archive · Archived source

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