PHOTOVOLTAIC POWER SYSTEM Yongho Kim, Hyunmin Jo, and Deokjung Kim Power electronics Samsung electronics CO, LTD 82-3 Dodang-Dongwonmi-ku Buchun,Kyunggi-do,Korea,42 1 - 1 30 Phone : 32-680-1 328 Fax : 32-680- I 3 17 ABSTRACT Solar arrays are the most expensive components in photovoltaic power systems. Thus solar arrays should be operated at the maximum power point in order to reduce the overall cost of the system. This paper presents a new peak power tracker (PP?) which forces a photovoltaic systemto extract the maximum power fromsolar arrays, regardless of the change of load demand, insolation and temperature. The benefits of the PPT are simplicity, cost-effectiveness and flexibility. INTRODUCTION In recent years, attention toward natural energy resources such as solar and wind power has increased as concerns about energy security as well as the environment pollution and disruption. Solar energy is inexhaustible, clean, and easy to use, causing the efforts on solar power actively. But solar arrays are still very expensive and spacious. In the interest of efficiency, the energy fiom a solar array should be maximized under all conditions. The power output fiom a solar array depends on the load demand, insolation, and teniperature Figure 1 shows the characteristics of a solar array depending on insolation. The peak power point, for example, moves along the h e P. The power output at point A, B, C, and D is higher than other points in same solar array. TO extract the maximumpower fiom LI solar array, it is necessary to know the peak power point at each instant. The use of maximumpower point tracker (MFPT) optimizes the electrical operation condition of the array. The MPPT consists of two components, power and control. In the some application, solar arrays would be directly connected to battery. The battery establishes the systemvoltage and forces the solar array to operate at battery bus voltage which is chosen such that the array operales at its maxinium power point at noon on clear day. In such applications, the 1673 temperature variance at most sites prevents a good voltage match. For a battery-less direct solar array system, several different topologies of dc to dc converters have been implemented in the design of an MPPT. A solar array, in practice, is operated under different conditions of temperature, insolation, and irradiation angle of the solar array. There is need to connect a solar array in senes andor parallel. Selecting the boost converter as a dc to dc converter is useful for protecting the battery fromovercharging The method to control these dc/dc converters depends on control type. voltage type and current type. For simplicity, one method that the controller puts the operation point at a fixed percentage( 78 %) of its open circuit voltage[l] But this method cant cornpelistile for the temperature and insolation effects. Some sought to approach the peak power by maxmiziiig the solar array voltage[2,3,4] Others used complex mathematicd algorithms and a microprocessor[5,6] Th~s type of controller is fit to large systems and IS too expensive for small systemsuch as automotive applications, road lighting, and so on . It is not suitable to attach the MPPT systemto solar array in large systems. However, in small systems, the photovoltaic power system requires a battery to accuinulate energy and then to feed the load during the dark period The output of the battery can be adapted to any type of load : DC load and DC lo AC converter for AC load. What is important is how to convert power eficiently and extract maximum power from the solar array Ilie controller, taking iito account the overall cost of a photovoltaic power system, uses relatively low cost technology found 111 appliance and consumer products This study proposes a simple and cost-effective peak power tracker implemented with analog circuitry and logics that can be easily integrated mto one chip. And it makes the overall potovoltaic power system simple and flexible The controller senses the battery voltage to prevent battery overcharging. 0-7803-3547-3-711 6 $4.00 0 1996 IEEE Peak Power Point Im Isc current,(A) FIGURE 1. CHARACTERIS7?CS OF SOLAR ARRAY POWER CIRCUIT In general, solar arrays should be protected from damage due to reverse flowing current and not be discharged from dark current leakage in a system when its load is a battery. And it also needs to be disconnected from the array to prevent overcharging. As shown in Fig 2, the power section of the MPPT system is a boost converter. The &ode, D1, contributes to preventing this system from the problems mentioned above and to blocking interference among the systems when operated in parallel. When the battery is fully charged, the controller turns off the switch, S1, in order to prevent battery overchargmg. In this case, if Vs is lager than Vo, the battery continues its charge through the diode resulting in battery damage. The selection of a solar array depends upon the battery voltage and load demand In a steady state, if the difference between Vs and Vo is large, the efficiency of the boost converter becomes lower and the ripple of inductor current becomes larger. To maximlze the efficiency and mnimize the size of the inductor, the criteria for selecting array voltage is as follows 0 Voc(max) =Vo(max) ----_--- where, Voc(max) : open circuit voltage of a array at 100% sun Vo(max) : full-charged battery voltage The switching frequency of the converter is set to 45KHz A MOSFET was chosen as a switching device because of its ease of control, high efficiency, and fast switching speed. And a Schottky diode was used for its low forward drop voltage and low EMI noise. If the inductor value is set for the converter to be operated in continuous current mode over at steady state, the difference between Vs and Vo is small and the duty is small, too. This makes current ripple small and efficiency high. The inductor value is calculated as follows, L >(V * dt) / di = (Vm* t ON) / di(nppi+------- @ where, Vm=the peak power point voltage of array at 100% sun di(nppie) =10% ripple of the inductor current at 100% sun SOLAR ARRAY 1.1 FIGURE 2. POWER SECTION CONTROL SECTION Control Stratea As show m Fig 1, the extracted power of a solar array vanes wth current There is an unique point at which the power become maxunum We can fmd the point by using the technique, hll-climbmg Figure 3 shows the power as a function of tune and the current varies linearly from zero to Isc At the left side of peak power pomt, the former area A mdicatmg tune-integral of power is smaller than the latter area B. It means that the operating current needs to be mcreased more Otherwise, at the nght side of that point, the former area C is larger than D In this case, operating current needs to be decreased As a result, the operating current should be kept around the peak power point In companng the former power and latter, we used the time- lntegral method of power to make the controller noise- mune and stable from fluctuations of current and voltage 1 674 Peak Power Tracker Figure 5(a) is the PPT circuit, and Fig.S(b),(c),(d) show each of the control modes. The real power of solar array, Pout, is converted into two identical current sources. The frequency of the control signal is much smaller than the gate drive clock. Each sampling period can be divided into three portions; Tdl, Td2, and TQ. Tdl and Td2 is 45% percent of sampler period, Ts, and Td3 are the 10 % of Ts. In Fig&), switch S1 is turned on and S2 is turned off during Tdi, charging the PPT capacitor. Fig.4(c) shows the operation of PPT during Tdz Switch S2 (Sl) turns on(ofQ and the PPT capacitor is discharged. At the beginning of T d3, the amount of charge is compared by a simple comparator in order to issue the signal which indicates whether the Pout is increasing or decreasing. Both Switch S1 and S2 are turned on during the Td3 to make voltage across the PPT capacitor zero The overall operation of the PPT can be explained as follows: MODE 1 where the power level remains the same : Since the average power of solar arrays for the first time duration (Tdl) is the same as that of the inext time duration (Td2), the current source ipvdi) equal to ipvdz) , and the amount of the charge is the same as the amount of discharge. The comparator output remains low for this period. MODE 2 where the power level increases The current source i ppdi ) charges the PPT capacitor for the first time duration, and the current source ipqdz) discharge the capacitor for the second time duration. However, in this case, the current source ipqdi) is smaller than ipvdz) of the next time period. The comparator output changes fromlow to high. The output of the D flip flop remains high. MODE 3 Where the power level decreases In thmpenod, the charging current is larger than the discharging current. Thus the comparator output become low, and the output of the D flip flop changes fromhigh to low. This causes the output state to change, reversing the direction of current. power, peak Dower V I . I 1 _ . . . . _ . - . . . . ?+ TT . . . + FIGURE 3. CONTROL STRATEGY The control block of MPPT systemis shown in Fig.4. The instantaneous current and voltage are directly sensed, and converted to power through an analog multiplexer. The PPT converts the output of the multiplier into two very identical current sources, which charge a capacitor for first time duration (Tdl) and discharge for second time duration (Td2), and then compares the amount of charge at the end of the Td2. If the output of comparator is positive, it means the power is decreasing, this causes change in the direction of current. If it is negative, it means the power is increasing, this maintains the direction of the current, increasing or decreasing. To produce a continuos current command, Is*, a toggle flip flop located at the output of the PPT charges or discharges the integrator shown in Fig.4. The current control block is composed of a comparator and a RS latch. The gate drive signal is first turned on by the high frequency clock, and turned off when the sensed array current intersects with the output of the integrator, Is*. Around the peak power point, the output of the integrator would continually oscillate at half the frequency of the sampler. array multiplier PPT current sampler clock EXPERIMENTALRESULTS A prototype peak power tracker has been built and tested with a 63W(peak power) solar array. As already stated, the sampling Gequency is about one-hundredth of the converter frequency, and the sampling time is about 100 times as short as the integration constant which determines the response that solar array reaches to its peak power point. The following waveforms are measu 2dunder the following parameters; solar array ; VOC =14V, Vm=1 lV, Isc =6.6A, Im=5.7A, Pmax =63W, Fill factor F f =0.68 battery ; 12V power secbon parameters ; L 1= 380uH, C1 =0.1 SuF, C2 = 0.47uF, C3 =lOOuF FIGURE 4. CONTROL SECTION 1675 t a) Vref Vref i p FIGURE 5 . a) PPT CIRCUIT b), c), AND d) DURING Tdl, Td2, AND Td3 Figure 6 shows the characteristics of the used solar array- voltagevs power, Fig.6 a) and voltagevs current, Fig.6 b). The steady state waveforms, current, voltage, and power, are shown in Fig.7 The operating power is well operated around the peak power point. Figure8 shows the power of solar array as it reaches its maximumpoint within 150 msec after starting up, and oscillates continuously at its peak power point. The terminal voltages of the PPT comparator are proportional to the power in spite of the 45KHz switching noise. Figure 9 shows the power, voltage, current, and the output of flip flop which determines the direction of current command after start up. The voltage, Vs, is decreased from its open circuit voltage, VOC, to its maximumvoltage, Vm, and then it oscillates at Vm. The current and power increase fromzero and then stay at its maximumpower point, also. In the steady state, the current ripple and voltage ripple degending on control signal (output of flip flop ) are about 10% of maximumvaluesJm, but power ripple is within 1 YO of its peak value. Even if the frequency of control signal is lower than the sampler frequency, the tracking efficiency of the PPT is more than 99%. 0 13-NOV-95 9 57 35 At E I S x v [E-j -) 58 pi5 20 PI5 10 kS/s 0 STOPPED 13-Nov-95 9:58:16 At 0 0 1s x E 88 V U 8.88 V -> 58 pis ZB 145 1 2 V D C M 8 8QnV DC fi 3 8QnV OC 1 4 OC 1.92 V f 8QmV DC b) 10 kS/s 0 STOPPEO FIGURE 6. CHARACTERISTICS OF SOLAR ARRAY a) VOLTAGE VS POWER b) VOLTAGE VS CURRENT 1676 At 0. 0 RO f;q R HR v -> 20 " 5 1 2 v o c a a ea v oc I 3 O O ~ V oc B -r- 2 uc o 27 v 0 8 OPV UC :o a) 13-Nou-U5 7:19:31 A1 E. O /F/ 0. 80 U .ZbW x s / s 0 STOPPED -> 58 i i h 28 ms 1 2 v O C I 0 aenv oc 8 3 D O N oc 6 r- 2 uc o 27 v 4 8 ORV DC 5 0 STOPPCD L5FI L V s b) FIGURE 7. STEADY STATE CHARACTERISTICS OF SOLAR ARRAY a) P-V, b) I-V 13-Nov-95 8 21 211 [E l pq 5a DS 1 2 v D c g 2 2 v O C e 3 V O C E J 4 D C 1 7 6 V fl 8Qi'lW DC 16 0 STUPPEO 100 hS/ s FIGURE 8. TERMINAL VOLTAGE OF THE PPT COMPARATOR, POWER, AND CONTROL SIGNAL AFTER START W 1 2 v o c g 1 8QnV DC g 3 8QnV OC g 1- 2 DC 1 4 4 V 4 8QnV DC 100 hS/s 0 STOPPED 0 STOPPED IXiuRE 9 VOLTAGE, CURRENT, POWER, AND CONTROL SIGNAL AFTER START UP a) ORIGINAL WAVES b) FIL'IBRED WAVES 1 677 11-Oct-95 14:52:54 nt 0.0 pis 7 1 GQ nV Y -> 10.0 !I5 1 4 HFREJ -52.014 HARDCOPY output t o 1 RS232 Centronics I protoco 1- HP 7476 HP 7550 TI FF conpr 50 kS/s 0 STOPPED FIGURE 10. VOLTAGE VERSUS POWER OF SOLAR ARRAY AROUND ITS PEAK POWER Figure 10 indicates the ripple of power is within 1%. The conversion efficiency, rl c , is defined as follow, c =Pm- ( 0.5 * Pnpple) / Pm ------- 0 where, Vm =maximumpower at 100% sun P npple =ripple value around the maximum power CONCLUSION A simple and inexpensive PPT designed and optimized for a small system such as load lighting and automotive applications has been presented. In case of non- homogeneous insolation, temperature, and irradiation angle, it is essential to achleve partial maxL power to ma w e the overall efficiency of the solar array. So the controller must be compact, cost-effective, and easy to connect to each module in parallel and/or in series The PPT is designed with simple analog circuitry - two identical current sources proportional to the power of the solar array, a simple comparator, and a capacitor. Therefore, the control section can easily be integrated on one chip A new PPT extracts average power fromthe array over 99% of the maximum power. This is the benefit of this system CONCLUSION and inexpensive PPT designed and optimized for a small systemsuch as load lighting and automotive applications has been presented. In case of non- homogeneous insolation, temperature, and irradiation angle, it is essential to achieve partial maximumpower to maximize the overall efficiency of the solar array. So the controller must be compact, cost-effective, and easy to connect to each module in parallel and/or in series. The PPT is designed with simple analog circuitry - two identical current sources proportional to the power of the solar array, a simple comparator, and a capacitor. Therefore, the control section can easily be integrated on one chip. A new PPT extracts average power fromthe array over 99% of the maximum power. This is the benefit of this system. A simple REFERENCES 1. Schoeman, J J , and Vanwyk, J. D, 1982, A Simplified Maximal Power controller for Terrestrially Photovoltaic Panel Array,, conference record of PESC, pp. 361-367. 2 Landsman,E. E , 1978, Maximum Power Tracker for Photovoltaic Arrays,MlT/Lincoln laboratory, Boston 3. Martlin, R. W, Sarles, F. W, and Rangarajan, A, 1981, PV Water Pumping with Reciprocating volumetric(Jack) Pumps, proceeding of the 15th IEEE photovoltaic specialist conference, Orlando, FL, U.S.A. 4. 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