A maximum power point tracker based on particle swarm optimization for PV-battery energy system under partial shading conditions

In this paper, a modified maximum power point tracking (MPPT) algorithm based on particle swarm optimization (PSO) technique is proposed. This algorithm aims to maximize the power extracted from a photovoltaic (PV) system with Lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery under partial shading condition (PSC). The proposed algorithm aims to reduce the time wasted during the exploring phase by using a variable sampling time. To do this, a comparator between the reference voltage given by the PSO algorithm and the output voltage of the PV array is integrated. Once the PV array voltage attains its reference, the corresponding power is stored and the next agent is considered as a new reference voltage for the converter. The whole system modeling and simulation is performed and the algorithm is implemented under Matlab/SIMULINK environment. Simulation results show a good tracking speed; the proposed algorithm, at any condition, can track the global peak (GP) in less than 500 ms.