A Cost Effective Digital Signal Controller based Maximum Power Tracking Technique for Photovoltaic Power System

Abstract

This paper aims at developing a simple, efficient and cost effective maximum power point tracking(MPPT) system that can be employed for stand-alone Photovoltaic (PV) applications. The power versus voltage characteristics curves of PV system is non linear and variable with sun’s irradiation and temperature. To maximize the power utilization from a PV panel, a dynamic Perturb & Observe (P&O) MPPT algorithm is implemented using voltage and current sensors, a boost converter with digital signal controller (ds PIC4011).In any standalone PV system, the power conditioning unit receives energy from the PV source there by reducing the net power generation. Considering this, the sensor circuits and the components in power conditioning unit is so rationally selected that it is not only cost effective but also consumes very less power for its operation. The suggested technique is highly advantageous in the sense it is compatible photovoltaic system with and without battery banks. Prior to hardware implementation, the proposed system was validated using Matlab/Simulink environment. The simulation and hardware results reveal that the proposed MPPT system is more efficient when compared with existing systems.