Comparative analysis of MPPT algorithms based on Bat algorithm for PV systems under partial shading condition

Abstract

Traditional algorithms, such as Perturb and Observe (P&O), Incremental Conductance (IC), Beta and others, have commonly been used to perform the maximum power point tracking (MPPT) in photovoltaic (PV) system. On the other hand, the overall system performance can be largely impaired when PV systems are subjected to partial shading conditions, once, usually, traditional algorithms operate at the local MPP (LMPP) instead of the global MPP (GMPP). Therefore, to deal with partial shading conditions in PV arrays, this paper presents a comparative analysis involving MPPT algorithms bio-inspired on the Bat-based optimization technique, which are able to reach the GMPP. However, in most metaheuristic algorithms, the methodology employed to achieve the GMPP can lead the system to present high PV power oscillations, even for small variations on solar irradiation. Thus, to reduce power oscillations and improve the PV systems performances, combinations of the Bat-based algorithm with traditional algorithms (P&O, IC and Beta) are proposed. The proposed MPPT algorithms, named in this paper as Bat-P&O, Bat-Beta and Bat-IC, are evaluated and compared to each other by employing a dc-dc Boost converter. Finally, by means of experimental and simulation results, the performance and effectiveness of the Bat-based MPPT techniques are evaluated.