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Solar PV System with MPPT Using Boost Converter

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This example shows the design of a boost converter for controlling the power output of a solar PV system and helps you to:

  • Determine how the panels should be arranged in terms of the number of series-connected strings and the number of panels per string to achieve the required power rating.

  • Implement the MPPT algorithm using boost converter.

  • Operate the solar PVsystem in the voltage control mode.

  • Select a suitable proportional gain $\left(K_v \right)$ and phase-lead time constant $\left(T_v \right)$ for the PI controller, $\frac{k_v (sT_v+1)}{sT_v }$.

The DC load is connected across the boost converter output. The solar PV system operates in both maximum power point tracking and de-rated voltage control modes. To track the maximum power point (MPP) of the solar PV, you can choose between two maximum power point tracking (MPPT) techniques:

  • Incremental conductance

  • Perturbation and observation

You can specify the output DC bus voltage, solar PV system operating temperature and solar panel specification. Solar panel manufacturer data is used to determine number of PV panels required to deliver the specified generation capability.

Solar PV System with MPPT Using Boost Converter

To open a script that designs the Solar PV System with MPPT Using Boost Converter, at the MATLAB® command line, enter: edit 'SolarPVMPPTBoostData'

The chosen solar PV plant parameters are:

***********************************************************************************************
****                PV Plant Parameters for the Specified Solar Panel                 ****
***********************************************************************************************
*** Power rating input from the user  =  2.00 kW 
*** Minimum number of panel required per string  =  8 
*** Maximum number of panel connected per string without reaching maximum voltage  =  10 
*** Minimum power rating of the solar PV plant  =  1.80 kW 
*** Maximum power possible per string without reaching maximum DC voltage  =  2.25 kW 
*** Actual number of panel per string  =  9 
*** Number of strings connected in parallel  =  1 
*** Actual solar PV plant power  =  2.03 kW
***********************************************************************************************

Solar Plant Subsystem

The solar plant subsystem models a solar plant that contains parallel-connected strings of solar panels. The solar panel is modeled using the Solar Cell block from the Simscape™ Electrical™ library. Given the specified DC bus voltage, solar cell characteristics and specified power rating, a calculation is made of the solar panel string length and number of parallel-connected strings. Connecting multiple panels can slow the simulation because it increases the number of elements in a model. By assuming uniform irradiance and temperature across all the solar panels, it is possible to reduce the number of solar elements by using the controlled current and voltage sources as shown in the solar panel subsystem.

Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT)

Two MPPT techniques are implemented using the variant subsystem. Set the variant variable MPPT to 0 to choose the perturbation and observation MPPT method. Set the variable MPPT to 1 to choose the incremental conductance method.

Intermediate Boost DC-DC Converter

A boost DC-DC converter is used to control the solar PV power. The boost converter operates in both MPPT mode and voltage control mode. The voltage control mode is used only when load power is less than the maximum power generated by solar PV plant given the incident irradiance and panel temperature.

Simulation Output (MPPT Mode)