Integrated photovoltaic maximum power point tracking converter

Author

Enslin, Johan H R ; Wolf, Mario S. ; Snyman, Daniël B. ; Swiegers, Wernher

Author_Institution

Dept. of Electr. & Electron. Eng., Stellenbosch Univ., South Africa

Volume

44

Issue

6

fYear

1997

fDate

12/1/1997 12:00:00 AM

Firstpage

769

Lastpage

773

Abstract

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

Keywords

DC-AC power convertors; invertors; optimal control; photovoltaic power systems; power system control; solar cell arrays; switching circuits; voltage control; MPPT power convertor; PV panels; PV power systems; battery voltage regulation; conversion efficiency; load matching; maximum power point tracking converter; soft-switched topology; voltage control optimisation; Batteries; Costs; Helium; Photovoltaic systems; Power generation economics; Regulators; Solar energy; Solar power generation; Topology; Voltage control;

fLanguage

English

Journal_Title

Industrial Electronics, IEEE Transactions on

Publisher

ieee

ISSN

0278-0046

Type

jour

DOI

10.1109/41.649937

Filename

649937