A novel adaptive dynamic photovoltaic reconfiguration system to mitigate mismatch effects

Abstract

Unequal solar irradiance of the Photovoltaic (PV) modules diminishes the PV array's maximum power output; this effect is due to Partial Shading Conditions (PSCs). There are a few technical options to fix this issue. One of these is the dynamic reconfiguration technique, which means that the electrical connections between the PV modules in the array are dynamically modified to spread shading effects and increase the power output. This paper proposed a novel adaptive reconfiguration method for 3×3 Total-Cross-Tied (TCT) PV array to enhance the maximum power under partial shading conditions. In this work, the PV module's electrical connections are altered dynamically with the proposed logic algorithm's help to maintain the identical row currents in the array. This technique is implemented on 3×3 size of an array using MATLAB and validated experimentally using OPAL-RT software. Further, the proposed technique performance is compared with the existing PV array connections such as Series-Parallel (SP), Total-Cross-Tied (TCT), Bridge-Link (BL), Honey-Comb (HC), and Shade Dispersion Positioning (SDP). Additionally, for different reconfiguration methods, revenue generation from energy savings is estimated. Based on the observations from the results, it is understood that the proposed technique enhanced the maximum power of the TCT array at a higher level as compared to the other PV array connections under PSCs.