Title :
An Improved Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO)–Based MPPT for PV With Reduced Steady-State Oscillation
Author :
Ishaque, Kashif ; Salam, Zainal ; Amjad, Muhammad ; Mekhilef, Saad
Author_Institution :
Univ. Teknol. Malaysia, Johor Bahru, Malaysia
Abstract :
This paper proposes an improved maximum power point tracking (MPPT) method for the photovoltaic (PV) system using a modified particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm. The main advantage of the method is the reduction of the steady- state oscillation (to practically zero) once the maximum power point (MPP) is located. Furthermore, the proposed method has the ability to track the MPP for the extreme environmental condition, e.g., large fluctuations of insolation and partial shading condition. The algorithm is simple and can be computed very rapidly; thus, its implementation using a low-cost microcontroller is possible. To evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed method, MATLAB simulations are carried out under very challenging conditions, namely step changes in irradiance, step changes in load, and partial shading of the PV array. Its performance is compared with the conventional Hill Climbing (HC) method. Finally, an experimental rig that comprises of a buck-boost converter fed by a custom-designed solar array simulator is set up to emulate the simulation. The soft- ware development is carried out in the Dspace 1104 environment using a TMS320F240 digital signal processor. The superiority of the proposed method over the HC in terms of tracking speed and steady-state oscillations is highlighted by simulation and experimental results.
Keywords :
digital signal processing chips; maximum power point trackers; microcontrollers; particle swarm optimisation; photovoltaic power systems; solar cell arrays; Dspace 1104 environment; HC method; Hill Climbing method; Matlab simulations; PV array; PV system; TMS320F240 digital signal processor; buck-boost converter; custom-designed solar array simulator; environmental condition; improved PSO-based MPPT; improved maximum power point tracking method; improved particle swarm optimization-based MPPT; low-cost microcontroller; photovoltaic system; reduced steady-state oscillation; Arrays; Computational modeling; Electronic mail; Mathematical model; Oscillators; Signal processing algorithms; Steady-state; Buck–boost converter; Hill Climbing (HC); maximum power point tracking (MPPT); partial shading; particle swarm optimization (PSO); photovoltaic (PV) system;
Journal_Title :
Power Electronics, IEEE Transactions on
DOI :
10.1109/TPEL.2012.2185713