Abstract
This paper presents the concept of a control strategy for Solar Array (SA) power regulation using an independent Maximum Power Point Tracking system for each Solar Array section in order to maximize the power extracted from every SA sections. Moreover, it allows to distribute the battery charge current between the power sources in order to evenly divide the switching losses on the power semiconductors of the converters and, thus, extending their life time and to reduce the dissipation power. The proposed strategy can be applied to the Power Control Unit designed for satellites with unregulated power bus architecture. Significant simulation results, obtained using a Matlab/Simulink model, demonstrates the validity of the proposed approach.
Highlights
Solar Array (SA) regulation systems based on Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT) have been largely developed and implemented for spacecraft applications in the last years
At 250s the load transient happens and the SA sections begins to operate at MPP while the battery discharges
This situation lasts for 60s, after that the system returns to the previous state, so that the operating point of the SA sections moves from the MPP towards higher voltage in order to balance the power request of both the load and the battery
Summary
Solar Array (SA) regulation systems based on Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT) have been largely developed and implemented for spacecraft applications in the last years. In the first solution only one MPPT is used to achieve the voltage reference for the entire SA control. Such approach is valid in case the SA panels or wings are exposed to the same environmental conditions (e.g. temperature, illumination) and aging. Sectional architectures, which employ separate MPPTs able to perform an individual tracking for each SA section, are preferred due to their better performances in extracting power from the sources. For this reason, the latter is accounted and discussed in this paper. The control method is applied to each converter using two different control loops in order to regulate at the same time the SA and the output currents
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