Combined operation of DC isolated distribution and PV systems for supplying unbalanced AC loads

This paper describes a DC isolated network which is fed by distributed generation (DG) from photovoltaic (PV) renewable sources to supply unbalanced AC loads. The battery energy storage bank has been connected to the DC network via DC/DC converter called storage converter to control the network voltage and optimize the operation of the PV generation units. The PV units are connected to the DC network via its own DC/DC converter called PV converter to ensure the required power flow. The unbalanced AC loads are connected to the DC network via its own DC/AC converter called load converter without transformer. This paper proposes a novel control strategy for storage converter which has a DC voltage droop regulator. Also a novel control system based on Clarke and Park rotating frame has been proposed for load converters. In this paper, the proposed operation method is demonstrated by simulation of power transfer between PV units, unbalanced AC loads and battery units. The simulation results based on PSCAD/EMTDC software show that DC isolated distribution system including PV units can provide the balanced voltages to supply unbalanced AC loads.     

Photovoltaic field emulation including dynamic and partial shadow conditions

In this paper the development of a new laboratory prototype for the emulation of a photovoltaic (PV) field is presented. The proposed system is based on a DC/DC step-down converter topology and allows to obtain the solar array I–V curves, taking into account the environmental changes in solar irradiance and cell temperature. The DC/DC converter control strategy is deduced by using a comprehensive mathematical model of the PV field whose parameters are obtained from the knowledge of: (a) maximum power point data, measured when the PV plant power converter is running, (b) open circuit voltage and short-circuit current, measured off-line. This approach allows the most accurate representation of the PV source. Computer simulations and experimental results demonstrate that the proposed circuit acts as a highly accurate and efficient laboratory simulator of the photovoltaic array electrical characteristics both in steady state and transient conditions. Partial shading and fluctuating conditions can be reproduced too. Moreover the dynamic behaviour of the proposed laboratory emulator is suitable to its effective connection to power electronic interface to the utility or to load through a DC/DC boost converter.     

A maximum power point tracking control strategy with variable weather parameters for photovoltaic systems with DC bus

In photovoltaic (PV) system, the most commonly used DC/DC converter is the basic buck or boost circuit to implement the maximum point power tracking (MPPT) due to their simple structure and low cost while there are some MPPT constraint conditions. By contrast, the conventional buck/boost DC/DC converter without MPPT constraint condition is seldom used because of its high cost or poor performance. To keep the advantages of these three DC/DC converters while overcoming their shortcomings, in this paper, the constraint conditions of capturing the maximum power point (MPP) of PV systems with direct-current (DC) bus are found out. Then, on the basis of this work, a MPPT control strategy with variable weather parameters is proposed. In this strategy, a new buck/boost DC/DC converter is proposed, which not only avoids the MPPT constraint conditions of basic buck or boost DC/DC converter but also overcomes the shortcomings of conventional buck/boost DC/DC converter. Finally, lots of simulated experiments verify the accuracy of MPPT constraint conditions, test the feasibility and availability of proposed MPPT control strategy, analyze the MPPT performance of proposed PV system and compare the output transient-state performance with conventional perturb and observe (P&O) method.     

Energy management and control of a hybrid water pumping system with storage

This paper aims to define a control and management strategy for water pumping system which would be powered by a hybrid PV/diesel generator system with battery storage. The particularity of the proposed power management method is to ensure the water volume in need and to maximize the use of PV generator while limiting the use of the diesel generator. In order to capture the maximum power from PV generator, a fuzzy logic maximum power point tracking controller is applied. On the other hand, a PI regulator is used with a boost converter in order to adapt the voltage of the battery bank to the DC bus. The water flow of the pump is also controlled. The developed power management and control strategy has been implemented using SIMPOWER toolbox in Matlab/Simulink. The obtained satisfying simulation results prove the efficiency of the proposed solution that assures continuous supply of water and electricity.     

Fuzzy logic based MPPT controller for high conversion ratio quadratic boost converter

In this study, a maximum power point tracking DC–DC quadratic boost converter for high conversion ratio required applications is proposed. The proposed system consists of a quadratic boost converter with high step-up ratio and fuzzy logic based maximum power point tracking controller. The fuzzy logic based maximum power point tracking algorithm is used to generate the converter reference signal, and the change in PV power and the change in PV voltage are selected as fuzzy variables. Determined membership functions and fuzzy rules which are design to track the maximum power point of the PV system generates the output signal of the fuzzy logic controller's output. It is seen from MATLAB/Simulink simulation and experimental results that the quadratic boost converter provides high step-up function with robustness and stability. In addition, this process is achieved with low duty cycle ratio when compared to the traditional boost converter. Furthermore, simulation and experimental results have validated that the proposed system has fast response, and it is suitable for rapidly changing atmospheric conditions. The steady state maximum power point tracking efficiency of the proposed system is obtained as 99.10%. Besides, the output power oscillation of the converter, which is a major problem of the maximum power point trackers, is also reduced.     

局部阴影条件下基于改进电导增量法的光伏系统最大功率跟踪方法

在局部阴影的情况下,由于串联式光伏组件的输出特性不同而产生多个极值点,使得传统的最大功率追踪（maximum power point tracking, MPPT）方法陷入局部极值点而失效。文中提出一种针对两级并网光伏系统的改进电导增量法以适应光伏阵列在局部阴影下的多峰值最大功率跟踪,通过分析最大功率点电压的变化范围,设定最大功率电压搜索范围以提高搜索效率,并通过DC/DC Boost变换器占空比实现输入电压控制,保证算法不陷入局部极值点。最后利用仿真实验验证了该算法在有、无阴影情况下均能准确地跟踪光伏方阵最大功率,有效提高了光伏阵列输出效率。     

Distributed energy storage system‐based control strategy for hybrid DC/AC microgrids in grid‐connected mode

This paper concentrates on the issues with the aim of providing a constant dc‐link voltage and desired power sharing for a distributed energy storage system (DESS)‐based hybrid microgrid under load variations. The hybrid microgrid which is consisted of PV system, lithium battery‐based storage system and a grid‐connected dc/ac converter are controlled by designing a controller based on the zero dynamics‐based mathematical equations of all used converters. Two buck and bidirectional buck‐boost dc/dc converters employed in PV and DESS systems, respectively, are responsible for damping the dc‐link voltage fluctuations, and also the grid‐connected converter is set to enhance the grid power quality and supply continuously the grid‐connected loads. The main contributions of the proposed control technique are simplicity and providing the simultaneous stable performance for both DC and AC sides under both DC and grid‐connected loads variations. Moreover, another contribution of the proposed control technique is providing accurate coordination in both steady‐state and dynamic conditions. To analyze the proposed controller, the dynamic operations of the converters in various operating conditions are evaluated. In this evaluation, several curves based on their zero dynamics are achieved, and their desired operations are completely investigated in different operating conditions. Simulation results in MATLAB/SIMULINK verify the proposed controller ability at reaching the desired zero dynamics and the stable performance of the proposed hybrid microgrid.     

A power allocation strategy of a hybrid energy storage system for a PV grid-connected system

针对光伏并网系统中光伏微电源出力的波动性和间歇性,将蓄电池和超级电容器构成的混合储能系统HESS（hybrid energy storage system）应用到光伏并网系统中可以实现光伏功率平滑、能量平衡以及提高并网电能质量。在同时考虑蓄电池的功率上限和超级电容的荷电状态（SOC）的情况下,对混合储能系统提出了基于超级电容SOC的功率分配策略;该策略以超级电容的SOC和功率分配单元的输出功率作为参考值,对混合储能系统充放电过程进行设计。超级电容和蓄电池以Bi-direction DC/DC变换器与500 V直流母线连接,其中超级电容通过双闭环控制策略对直流母线电压进行控制。仿真结果表明,所提功率分配策略能对混合储能系统功率合理分配,而且实现了单位功率因数并网,稳定了直流母线电压。     

A highly efficient PV system using a series connection of DC–DC converter output with a photovoltaic panel

A photovoltaic (PV) power conditioning system (PCS) must have high conversion efficiency and low cost. Generally, a PV PCS uses either a single string converter or a multilevel module integrated converter (MIC). Each of these approaches has both advantages and disadvantages. For a high conversion efficiency and low cost PV module, a series connection of a module integrated DC–DC converter output with a photovoltaic panel was proposed. The output voltage of the PV panel is connected to the output capacitor of the fly-back converter. Thus, the converter output voltage is added to the output voltage of the PV panel. The isolated DC–DC converter generates only the difference voltage between the PV panel voltage and the required total output voltage. This method reduces the power level of the DC–DC converter and enhances energy conversion efficiency compared with a conventional DC–DC converter.     

A photovoltaic power-generation system with peak power cut function

This paper presents a photovoltaic-peak power-cutting (PV-PPC) system capable of cutting peak load power. The proposed system is composed of a PV generator, DC–DC converter, storage battery, and an inverter. The function of the proposed PV-PPC system is to use PV energy to cut the peak load power in response to the change in the load demand and generating power. Four possible power flow scenarios are examined in detail through the bidirectional operation of the DC–DC converter and inverter, through the charging and discharging of the battery. The suggested PV-PPC system operation algorithm first selects the operational state by using differentiated charge and load information, with a simple structure to enable stopping in the case of system failure, and operates depending on the selected state. Then, the analysis modelling and operational control algorithm of the PV-PPC-generation system are performed in detail. Finally, the simulation and experimental results are presented to confirm the validity of the system.     

Single-stage sine-wave inverter for an autonomous operation of solar photovoltaic energy conversion system

This paper proposes a high performance single-stage inverter topology for the autonomous operation of a solar photovoltaic system. The proposed configuration which can boost the low voltage of photovoltaic (PV) array, can also convert the solar dc power into high quality ac power for driving autonomous loads without any filter. An MPPT circuit with parallel connection is implemented so that the part of the energy generated is processed by the dc–dc converter to supply dc loads. The line current total harmonic distortion (THD) obtained using this configuration is quite reasonable. The proposed topology has several desirable features such as low cost and compact size as number of switches used, are limited to four as against six switches used in classical two-stage inverters. In this paper analysis, simulation and experimental results are presented.     

The concept of distribution flexible network PV system

In stand-alone photovoltaic (PV) systems, when the battery is fully charged, the excess generated power is wasted. To solve the problems of wasted excess power, a distributed flexible network photovoltaic (DFNPV) system is studied. It incorporates many PV subsystems each consisting of PV panel, DC/DC converter, and load, and are connected to each other with shared batteries. The excess generated power of the subsystem is transferred between PV subsystems to compensate the lack of power in other subsystems.The control method of transferring power is based on simple voltage control of the subsystems. The output voltage in a given subsystem decreases if a transient excessive load is larger than the generated power; as a result excess power is transferred from another subsystem that has sufficient power and higher voltage output. In this study, this proposed operation method is demonstrated by simulation of power transfer between two subsystems and among four subsystems. Furthermore, to estimate the size of the DFNPV system within an acceptable voltage drop, the relationships between cable length, power loss, and cable types are discussed.     

Real-time simulation platform for photovoltaic system with a boost converter using MPPT algorithm in a DSP controller

Recently, real-time simulation of renewable energy sources are indispensible for evaluating the performance of the maximum power point tracking (MPPT) controller, especially in the photovoltaic (PV) system in order to reduce cost in the testing phase. Nowadays, real time PV simulators are obtained by using analog and/or digital components. In this paper, a real-time simulation of a PV system with a boost converter was proposed using only the digital signal processor (DSP) processor with two DC voltage sources to emulate the temperature and irradiation in the PV system. A MATLAB/Simulink environment was used to develop the real-time PV system with a boost converter into a C-program and build it into a DSP controller TMS320F28335. Besides, the performance of the real-time DSP-based PV was tested in different temperature and irradiation conditions to observe the P-V and V-I characteristics. Further, the performance of the PV with a boost converter was tested at different temperatures and irradiations using MPPT algorithms. This scheme was tested through simulation and the results were validated with that of standard conditions given in the PV data sheets. Implementation of this project helped to attract more researchers to study renewable energy applications without real sources. This might facilitate the study of PV systems in a real-time scenario and the evaluation of what should be expected for PV modules available in the market.     

PV powered smart charging station for PHEVs

A huge inrush of PHEVs is envisioned in the future. There is a growing risk that, this proliferation in the number of PHEVs will trigger extreme surges in demand while charging them during rush hours. To mitigate this impact, a smart charging station is proposed in which the charging of the PHEVs is controlled in such a way that the impact of charging during peak load period is not felt on the grid. The power needed to charge the plug in hybrids comes from grid-connected photovoltaic generation or the utility or both. The three way interaction between the PV, PHEVs and the grid ensures optimal usage of available power, charging time and grid stability. The system designed to achieve the desired objective consists of a photovoltaic system, DC/DC boost converter, DC/AC bi-directional converter and DC/DC buck converter. The output of DC/DC boost converter and input of DC/AC bi-directional converter share a common DC link. A unique control strategy based on DC link voltage sensing is proposed for the above system for efficient transfer of energy.     

Theoretical assessment of the maximum power point tracking efficiency of photovoltaic facilities with different converter topologies

The operating point of a photovoltaic generator that is connected to a load is determined by the intersection point of its characteristic curves. In general, this point is not the same as the generator’s maximum power point. This difference means losses in the system performance. DC/DC converters together with maximum power point tracking systems (MPPT) are used to avoid these losses. Different algorithms have been proposed for maximum power point tracking. Nevertheless, the choice of the configuration of the right converter has not been studied so widely, although this choice, as demonstrated in this work, has an important influence in the optimum performance of the photovoltaic system. In this article, we conduct a study of the three basic topologies of DC/DC converters with resistive load connected to photovoltaic modules. This article demonstrates that there is a limitation in the system’s performance according to the type of converter used. Two fundamental conclusions are derived from this study: (1) the buck–boost DC/DC converter topology is the only one which allows the follow-up of the PV module maximum power point regardless of temperature, irradiance and connected load and (2) the connection of a buck–boost DC/DC converter in a photovoltaic facility to the panel output could be a good practice to improve performance.     

Modeling,control and power management of hybrid photovoltaic fuel cells with battery bank supplying electric vehicle

In this paper, modeling, control and power management (PM) of hybrid Photovoltaic Fuel cell/Battery bank system supplying electric vehicle is presented. The HPS is used to produce energy without interruption. It consists of a photovoltaic generator (PV), a proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC), and a battery bank supplying an electric vehicle of 3 kW. In our work, PV and PEMFC systems work in parallel via DC/DC converter and the battery bank is used to store the excess of energy. The mathematical model topology and it power management of HPS with battery bank system supplying electric vehicle (EV) are the significant contribution of this paper. Obtained results under Matlab/Simulink and some experimental ones are presented and discussed.     

A Single-Stage Single-Phase Transformer-Less Doubly Grounded Grid-Connected PV Interface

A transformer provides galvanic isolation and grounding of the photovoltaic (PV) array in a PV-fed grid-connected inverter. Inclusion of the transformer, however, may increase the cost and/or bulk of the system. To overcome this drawback, a single-phase, single-stage [no extra converter for voltage boost or maximum power point tracking (MPPT)], doubly grounded, transformer-less PV interface, based on the buck–boost principle, is presented. The configuration is compact and uses lesser components. Only one (undivided) PV source and one buck–boost inductor are used and shared between the two half cycles, which prevents asymmetrical operation and parameter mismatch problems. Total harmonic distortion and dc component of the current supplied to the grid is low, compared to existing topologies and conform to standards like IEEE 1547. A brief review of the existing, transformer-less, grid-connected inverter topologies is also included. It is demonstrated that, as compared to the split PV source topology, the proposed configuration is more effective in MPPT and array utilization. Design and analysis of the inverter in discontinuous conduction mode is carried out. Simulation and experimental results are presented.      

SMC-DPC based active and reactive power control of grid-tied three phase inverter for PV systems

In this paper, sliding mode control (SMC) – direct power controller (DPC) based active and reactive power controller for three-phase grid-tied photovoltaic (PV) system is proposed. The proposed system consists of two main controllers: the DC/DC boost converter to track the possible maximum power from the PV panels and the grid-tied three-phase inverter. The Perturb and Observe (P&O) algorithm is used to transfer the maximum power from the PV panels. Control of the active and reactive powers is performed using the SMC-DPC strategy without any rotating coordinate transformations or phase angle tracking of the grid voltage. In addition, extra current control cycles are not used to simplify the system design and to increase transient performance. The fixed switching frequency is obtained by using space vector modulation (SVM). The proposed system provides very good results both in transient and steady states with the simple algorithms of P&O and SMC-DPC methods. Moreover, the results are evaluated by comparing the SMC-DPC method developed for MPPT and the traditional PI control method. The proposed controller method is achieved with TMS320F28335 DSP processor and the system is experimentally tested for 12 kW PV generation systems.     

A fuel-cell/battery hybrid DC backup power system via a new high step-up three port converter

In this paper, a fuel-cell (FC)/battery hybrid direct-current (DC) backup power system is proposed for high step-up applications. This system is composed of a newly developed non-isolated three-port converter, which achieves a high voltage gain by taking the advantage of a quasi Z-source network and an energy transfer capacitor. After analyzing the converter, a comprehensive comparison study and a design procedure are provided. Moreover, the controllers regulating the source power levels while smoothing the FC power profile according to the proposed energy management strategy (EMS) are designed based on the developed small-signal model of the proposed converter. Both hardware and controller design procedures are validated through the PSIM model of the whole system. As a result, it is shown that the proposed system can effectively couple FC and battery while transferring their energies to a high voltage DC bus according to the offered EMS.     

Power quality investigation of a solar PV transformer-less grid-connected system fed DVR

This paper presents a single stage transformer-less grid-connected solar photovoltaic (PV) system with an active and reactive power control. In the absence of active input power, the grid-tied voltage source converter (VSC) is operated in a reactive power generation mode, which powers the control circuitry, and maintains a regulated DC voltage to the VSC. A data-based maximum power point tracking (MPPT) control scheme which performs power quality control at a maximum power by reducing the total harmonic distortion (THD) in grid injected current as per IEEE-519/1547 standards is implemented. A proportional-integral (PI) controller based dynamic voltage restorer (DVR) control scheme is implemented which controls the grid side converter during single-phase to ground fault. The analysis includes the grid current THD along with the corresponding variation of the active and reactive power during the fault condition. The MPPT tracks the actual variable DC link voltage while deriving the maximum power from the solar PV array, and maintains the DC link voltage constant by changing the modulation index of the VSC. Simulation results using Matlab/Simulink are presented to demonstrate the feasibility and validations of the proposed novel MPPT and DVR control systems under different environmental conditions.