A Variable Step Size INC MPPT Method for PV Systems

Maximum power point tracking (MPPT) techniques are employed in photovoltaic (PV) systems to make full utilization of PV array output power which depends on solar irradiation and ambient temperature. Among all the MPPT strategies, the incremental conductance (INC) algorithm is widely used due to the high tracking accuracy at steady state and good adaptability to the rapidly changing atmospheric conditions. In this paper, a modified variable step size INC MPPT algorithm is proposed, which automatically adjusts the step size to track the PV array maximum power point. Compared with the conventional fixed step size method, the proposed approach can effectively improve the MPPT speed and accuracy simultaneously. Furthermore, it is simple and can be easily implemented in digital signal processors. A theoretical analysis and the design principle of the proposed method are provided and its feasibility is also verified by simulation and experimental results.     

Real-Time Identification of Optimal Operating Points in Photovoltaic Power Systems

Photovoltaic power systems are usually integrated with some specific control algorithms to deliver the maximum possible power. Several maximum power point tracking (MPPT) methods that force the operating point to oscillate have been presented in the past few decades. In the MPPT system, the ideal operation is to determine the maximum power point (MPP) of the photovoltaic (PV) array directly rather than to track it by using the active operation of trial and error, which causes undesirable oscillation around the MPP. Since the output features of a PV cell vary with environment changes in irradiance and temperature from time to time, real-time operation is required to trace the variations of local MPPs in PV power systems. The method of real-time estimation proposed in this paper uses polynomials to demonstrate the power–voltage relationship of PV panels and implements the recursive least-squares method and Newton–Raphson method to identify the voltage of the optimal operating point. The effectiveness of the proposed methods is successfully demonstrated by computer simulations and experimental evaluations of two major types of PV panels, namely: 1) crystalline silicon and 2) copper–indium–diselenide thin film.     

Comparative study of maximum power point tracking algorithms

Maximum power point trackers (MPPTs) play an important role in photovoltaic (PV) power systems because they maximize the power output from a PV system for a given set of conditions, and therefore maximize the array efficiency. Thus, an MPPT can minimize the overall system cost. MPPTs find and maintain operation at the maximum power point, using an MPPT algorithm. Many such algorithms have been proposed. However, one particular algorithm, the perturb‐and‐observe (P&O) method, claimed by many in the literature to be inferior to others, continues to be by far the most widely used method in commercial PV MPPTs. Part of the reason for this is that the published comparisons between methods do not include an experimental comparison between multiple algorithms with all algorithms optimized and a standardized MPPT hardware. This paper provides such a comparison. MPPT algorithm performance is quantified through the MPPT efficiency. In this work, results are obtained for three optimized algorithms, using a microprocessor‐controlled MPPT operating from a PV array and also a PV array simulator. It is found that the P&O method, when properly optimized, can have MPPT efficiencies well in excess of 97%, and is highly competitive against other MPPT algorithms. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Flyback Inverter Controlled by Sensorless Current MPPT for Photovoltaic Power System

This paper presents a flyback inverter controlled by sensorless current maximum power point tracking (MPPT) for a small photovoltaic (PV) power system. Although the proposed system has small output power such as 300 W, a few sets of small PV power systems can be easily connected in parallel to yield higher output power. When a PV power system is constructed with a number of small power systems, the total system cost will increase and will be a matter of concern. To overcome this difficulty, this paper proposes a PV system that uses no expensive dc current sensor but utilizes the method of estimating the PV current from the PV voltage. The paper shows that the application of this novel sensorless current flyback inverter to an MPPT-operated PV system exhibits satisfactory MPPT performance similar to the one exhibited by the system with a dc current sensor as well. This paper also deals with the design method and the operation of the unique flyback inverter with center-tapped secondary winding.     

Grid-Connected Photovoltaic Multistring PCS With PV Current Variation Reduction Control

In this paper, a grid-connected photovoltaic (PV) multistring power conditioning system with PV input current reduction control is proposed. An improved maximum power point tracking (MPPT) method for the multistring converter is suggested. The suggested MPPT algorithm tracks the maximum power point even though measurement errors exist. To reduce the PV current variation introduced by the inverter, a PV current variation reduction control is suggested. This PV current variation reduction control reduces the PV current variation without additional components. The low current variation reduces the filter size and improves the MPPT efficiency. All algorithms and controllers are implemented on a single-chip microcontroller. Experimental results obtained on a 3-kW prototype show high performance such as a MPPT efficiency of 99.7%, an almost unity power factor, a power efficiency of 96.7%, and a total harmonic distortion of 2.0%.     

Integrated photovoltaic maximum power point tracking converter

A low-power low-cost highly efficient maximum power point tracker (MPPT) to be integrated into a photovoltaic (PV) panel is proposed. This can result in a 25% energy enhancement compared to a standard photovoltaic panel, while performing functions like battery voltage regulation and matching of the PV array with the load. Instead of using an externally connected MPPT, it is proposed to use an integrated MPPT converter as part of the PV panel. It is proposed that this integrated MPPT uses a simple controller in order to be cost effective. Furthermore, the power converter has to be very efficient, in order to transfer more energy to the load than a directly-coupled system. This is achieved by using a simple soft-switched topology. A much higher conversion efficiency at lower cost will then result, making the MPPT an affordable solution for small PV energy systems     

A PSO‐based maximum power point tracking for photovoltaic systems under environmental and partially shaded conditions

To increase the efficiency of photovoltaic (PV) systems, maximum power point (MPP) tracking of the solar arrays is needed. Solar arrays output power depends on the solar irradiance and temperature. Also the mismatch phenomenon caused by partial shade will affect the output power of solar systems and lead to the incorrect operation of conventional MPP tracker. Under partially shaded conditions, the solar array power–current characteristic has multiple maximum. This paper presents a maximum power point tracking (MPPT) with particle swarm optimization method for PV systems under partially shaded condition. The performance of the proposed method is compared with perturb and observe (P&O), improved P&O, voltage‐based maximum power point tracking and current‐based maximum power point tracking algorithms, especially, under partially shaded condition. Simulation results confirm that proposed MPPT algorithm with high accuracy can track the peak power point under different insolation, temperature and partially shaded conditions, and it has the best performance in comparison with four mentioned MPPT algorithms. Also under rapidly changing atmospheric conditions, the P&O algorithm is diverged. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Development of a microcontroller-based, photovoltaic maximum powerpoint tracking control system

Maximum power point tracking (MPPT) is used in photovoltaic (PV) systems to maximize the photovoltaic array output power, irrespective of the temperature and irradiation conditions and of the load electrical characteristics. A new MPPT system has been developed, consisting of a buck-type DC/DC converter, which is controlled by a microcontroller-based unit. The main difference between the method used in the proposed MPPT system and other techniques used in the past is that the PV array output power is used to directly control the DC/DC converter, thus reducing the complexity of the system. The resulting system has high-efficiency, lower-cost and can be easily modified to handle more energy sources (e.g., wind-generators). The experimental results show that the use of the proposed MPPT control increases the PV output power by as much as 15% compared to the case where the DC/DC converter duty cycle is set such that the PV array produces the maximum power at 1 kW/m² and 25°C     

Experimental Performance of MPPT Algorithm for Photovoltaic Sources Subject to Inhomogeneous Insolation

Photovoltaic (PV) power system performance depends on local irradiance conditions. PV systems are sometimes subject to partial shading, which may produce a nonideal characteristic curve, presenting true and local power maxima in the P -I curve. Traditional maximum power point tracking (MPPT) algorithms can converge to local maximum, which is not the true MPP. In order to solve the problem, this paper investigates the effects of nonuniform solar irradiance distribution on a PV source. An MPPT algorithm that is able to optimize the source instantaneous operating power under nonuniform irradiance is proposed. The ability of the algorithm and its increased performance with respect to traditional algorithms are evaluated by means of experimental tests performed on a real PV power system.     

Toward multiple maximum power point estimation of photovoltaic systems based on semiconductor theory

Environmental conditions, such as temperature, non‐uniform irradiation, and solar shading, deeply affect the characteristics of photovoltaic (PV) modules in PV‐assisted generation systems. Several local maximum power points (MPPs) are found in the power–voltage curve of PV systems constructed by series/parallel‐connected PV modules under partially shaded conditions. The characteristics of PV systems change unpredictably when multiple MPPs occur, so the actual MPP tracking (MPPT) becomes a difficult task. Conventional MPPT methods for the PV systems under partially shaded conditions cannot quickly find the actual MPP such that the optimal utilization of PV systems cannot be achieved. Based on the p–n junction semiconductor theory, we develop a multipoint direct‐estimation (MPDE) method to directly estimate the multiple MPPs of the PV systems under partially shaded conditions and to cope with the mentioned difficulties. Using the proposed MPDE method, the multiple MPPs of the PV systems under partially shaded conditions can be directly determined from their irradiated current–voltage and power–voltage characteristic curves. The performances of the proposed MPDE method are evaluated by examining the characteristics of multiple MPPs of PV systems with respect to different shading strengths and numbers of the shaded PV modules and also tested using the field data. The experimental results demonstrate that the proposed MPDE method can simply and accurately estimate the multiple MPPs of the PV systems under partially shaded conditions. The optimization of MPP control models and the MPPT for PV systems could be achieved promisingly by applying the proposed method. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

An enhanced scanning-based MPPT approach for DMPPT systems

In this paper, an improved maximum power point tracking (MPPT) approach being low parameter dependency, simple structure and limited search interval has been presented for distributed MPPT photovoltaic (PV) systems. Basically, this approach is based on scanning of power–voltage (P-V) characteristic curve of PV modules in a limited duty ratio interval which makes tracking operation simple, fast and efficiently available in both uniform irradiance and partial shading conditions (PSCs). By limiting the scanning interval of maximum and minimum values of duty ratio via some analyses related to P-V characteristic for PSCs, global MPPT (GMPPT) is achieved in an efficient way. So as to validate performance of the proposed approach, a single-ended primary inductance converter has been used in both simulation and experimental studies. PV simulator has been used as a PV source to obtain different module characteristics with different number of bypass diodes and PV power levels. Both simulation and experimental results clarify that improved MPPT approach realises GMPPT effectively. Due to the high performance results, this approach can be an alternative technique in module-integrated converters, smart modules and PV power optimisers in which single module is used.     

An efficient GWO MPPT for a PV system using impedance information acceleration

This paper presents a novel maximum power point tracking (MPPT) method based on the grey wolf optimisation (GWO) technique for photovoltaic (PV) power generation systems. The proposed method utilises previous working duty cycles and their corresponding voltage and current data to compute the instantaneous DC impedance of a PV string. To determine the peak power characteristics of any PV string, the impedance variation of that PV string is used as an efficient shading factor. This shading factor simplifies the calculation of the GWO-MPPT algorithm to obtain multiple peak targets under partial shading conditions. Thus, the efficiency of the proposed power tracking technique can be improved considerably. The effectiveness of this method was validated through both simulation and hardware implementations. Results revealed that the search performance of five iterations of the proposed method was similar to that of ten iterations of a traditional GWO-MPPT method under normal conditions without shading. These results confirm the practicability of the proposed method in various applications.     

光伏电池输出特性与最大功率点跟踪的仿真分析

根据太阳能光伏电池的等效电路特点,建立了相应的光伏电池组件的仿真模型。该模型可以实现在不同光照强度和温度下光伏组件的输出特性,在此模型基础上研究了光伏组件最大功率追踪方法(MPPT)。在众多最大功率追踪方法中,扰动法有着比较优秀的控制效果。针对最常用的最大功率点跟踪方法-扰动观察法,提出一种改进型的扰动法算法,通过仿真结果和实验证明该方法在一定程度上可解决光伏电池输出非线性的问题,有效避免跟踪偏差,提高光伏电池的输出效率,且动态响应速度快,使光伏系统具有良好的动态和稳态性能。     

基于DSP的改进PSO光伏阵列MPPT控制应用

为了解决光伏（PV）系统在局部阴影条件下（PSC）的最大功率点跟踪问题,提出了一种基于改进粒子群算法（PSO）的快速最大功率点跟踪（MPPT）方法。与传统基于PSO的MPPT系统不同的是,采用了基于转换器电流动态行为的变量抽样时间策略（VSTS）,并且为了更快速的实现最大功率点跟踪,引入三个重要因数,即：粒子数、收敛速度以及抽样时间。采用DSP平台对提出系统进行了具体实现和性能评估,实验结果显示相比其他类似系统,在不同条件（包括PSC）下,提出算法均能够实现速度跟踪且精确度较高。     

A Technique for Improving P&O MPPT Performances of Double-Stage Grid-Connected Photovoltaic Systems

In double-stage grid-connected photovoltaic (PV) inverters, the dynamic interactions among the DC/DC and DC/AC stages and the maximum power point tracking (MPPT) controller may reduce the system performances. In this paper, the detrimental effects, particularly in terms of system efficiency and MPPT performances, of the oscillations of the PV array voltage, taking place at the second harmonic of the grid frequency are evidenced. The use of a proper compensation network acting on the error signal between a reference signal provided by the MPPT controller and a signal that is proportional to the PV array voltage is proposed. The guidelines for the proper joint design of the compensation network (which is able to cancel out the PV voltage oscillations) and of the main MPPT parameters are provided in this paper. Simulation results and experimental measurements confirm the effectiveness of the proposed approach.     

光伏电池MPPT扰动观察法的研究现状

为了提高太阳电池的利用率并降低系统成本,需要采用最大功率跟踪(MPPT)控制策略使光伏阵列获得最大功率输出。在众多的MPPT控制方法中,扰动观察法由于原理简单、易于实现而成为MPPT控制中应用和研究最为广泛的方法之一。但传统的扰动观察法在稳态下由于其固定的扰动步长会在最大功率点(MPP)附近形成振荡,并且当外界环境发生快速变化时会出现误判断的现象。为了克服以上不足,研究者们提出了很多改进方案。文章对这些改进方案进行了综述,这些改进方案主要包括以下三类:变步长的改进方法、改进的新方法以及与其他方法结合的扰动观察法。     

Intelligent PV Module for Grid-Connected PV Systems

Most issues carried out about building integrated photovoltaic (PV) system performance show average losses of about 20%–25% in electricity production. The causes are varied, e.g., mismatching losses, partial shadows, variations in current–voltage$(I$–$V)$characteristics of PV modules due to manufacturing processes, differences in the orientations and inclinations of solar surfaces, and temperature effects. These losses can be decreased by means of suitable electronics. This paper presents the intelligent PV module concept, a low-cost high-efficiency dc–dc converter with maximum power point tracking (MPPT) functions, control, and power line communications (PLC). In addition, this paper analyses the alternatives for the architecture of grid-connected PV systems: centralized, string, and modular topologies. The proposed system, i.e., the intelligent PV module, fits within this last group. Its principles of operation, as well as the topology of boost dc–dc converter, are analyzed. Besides, a comparison of MPPT methods is performed, which shows the best results for the incremental conductance method. Regarding communications, PLC in every PV module and its feasibility for grid-connected PV plants are considered and analyzed in this paper. After developing an intelligent PV module (with dc–dc converter) prototype, its optimal performance has been experimentally confirmed by means of the PV system test platform. This paper describes this powerful tool especially designed to evaluate all kinds of PV systems.     

Analytical study and evaluation results of power optimizers for distributed power conditioning in photovoltaic arrays

The use of modular or ‘micro’ maximum power point tracking (MPPT) converters at module level in series association, commercially known as “power optimizers”, allows the individual adaptation of each panel to the load, solving part of the problems related to partial shadows and different tilt and/or orientation angles of the photovoltaic (PV) modules. This is particularly relevant in building integrated PV systems. This paper presents useful behavioural analytical studies of cascade MPPT converters and evaluation test results of a prototype developed under a Spanish national research project. On the one hand, this work focuses on the development of new useful expressions which can be used to identify the behaviour of individual MPPT converters applied to each module and connected in series, in a typical grid‐connected PV system. On the other hand, a novel characterization method of MPPT converters is developed, and experimental results of the prototype are obtained: when individual partial shading is applied, and they are connected in a typical grid connected PV array. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Short-current pulse-based maximum-power-point tracking method formultiple photovoltaic-and-converter module system

This paper proposes a novel maximum-power-point tracking (MPPT) method with a simple algorithm for photovoltaic (PV) power generation systems. The method is based on use of a short-current pulse of the PV to determine an optimum operating current where the maximum output power can be obtained and completely differs from conventional hill-climbing-based methods. In the proposed system, the optimum operating current is instantaneously determined simply by taking a product of the short-current pulse amplitude and a parameter k because the optimum operating current is exactly proportional to the short current under various conditions of illuminance and temperature. Also, the system offers an identification capability of k by means of fast power-versus-current curve scanning, which makes the short-current pulse-based MPPT method adaptive to disturbances such as shades partially covering the PV panels and surface contamination. The above adaptive MPPT algorithm has been introduced into a current-controlled boost chopper and a multiple power converter system composed of PV-and-chopper modules. Various operating characteristics have experimentally been examined on this multiple PV-and-chopper module system from a practical viewpoint and excellent MPPT performance has been confirmed through the tests     

Multiinput converter with power factor correction, maximum power point tracking, and ripple-free input currents

A multiinput converter for photovoltaic (PV) power system applications with power factor correction (PFC), maximum power point tracking (MPPT), and ripple-free input currents (RFIC) is proposed in this paper. With phase-shifted pulse-width-modulation (PWM) control, the multiinput converter can draw power from the utility line and PV arrays individually or simultaneously and deliver it to the load. In addition, an almost unity power factor for the utility line and an MPPT for PV arrays can also be achieved. Moreover, the upper power switches of each input-stage circuit in the proposed converter are operated with zero-current-switching (ZCS) at turn-off transition and the lower ones are operated with zero-voltage-switching (ZVS) at turn-on transition. Hence, the switching losses of the power switches can be reduced. Experimental measurements are demonstrated to verify the performance of the proposed multiinput converter.