MPPT based Solar Inverter with Power Factor Correction

The world demand for electric energy is constantly increasing and conventional energy resources are diminishing and are at the edge of extinction, moreover their prices are rising. For all these reasons , the need for alternative energy sources has become necessary and solar energy in particular has

Project Title

MPPT based Solar Inverter with Power Factor Correction

Project Area of Specialization

Electrical/Electronic Engineering

Project Summary

The world demand for electric energy is constantly increasing and conventional energy resources are diminishing and are at the edge of extinction, moreover their prices are rising. For all these reasons , the need for alternative energy sources has become necessary and solar energy in particular has proved to be a very promising alternative because of its easy availability and pollution-free nature. Due to increasing efficiency, decreasing cost of solar panels and improvement of the switching technology used for the power conversion we are interested in developing an inverter powered by pv panels that could supply stand-alone ac loads.

Solar panels produce direct currents (dc) and to use them in home and industrial appliances , we should have ac output at certain required voltage level and frequency. Thus , solar inverter converts the solar energy of sun into useful electrical energy (dc to ac).

The basic task is to make PV power system operate at it’s MPOP (maximum power operating point). Using MPPT algorithm -- Conferring to maximum power transfer theorem, maximum quantity of power is conveyed when the load impedance equals the output impedance of solar module. MPOP –normally depends upon the radiations of sun, load current and temperature of solar module.

Another major issue is of power factor, which gets disturbed due to capacitive and inductive elements in AC circuit. Therefore, this issue also needs to be addressed to have better efficiency.

Project Objectives

We will develop a fully functional MPPT based solar inverter. Inverter will be able to run all the three earlier mentioned MPPT algorithms at the same time and will be able to choose the most efficient one out of them depending upon the conditions. The inverter will be able to rectify the reactive power, thus increasing the power factor of load for better efficiency. Axis control of solar panels i.e. Solar panel movement towards high intensity of light will also be delivered. This will help having the maximum efficiency from the PV power system.

Project Implementation Method

Voltage produced from the solar panel is fed to the dc-dc boost circuit, whose duty cycle is being controlled by the mppt algorithm which makes it operate at the MPOP. This helps in matching the output impedance with the load impedance. Voltage and current from solar panel will be sensed and fed to the controller in charge.

controller – will run all the three MPPT algorithms i.e.

1.Perturbation and observation

2.Incremental conductance

3.Fractional order.

The output power produced by all three algorithms under the same defined conditions will be compared and the most efficient one out of them will be chosen for operation at the given set of conditions. An algorithm will calculate the instantaneous power and by comparing it with previous power it will increase or decrease the duty cycle of dc-dc booster, thus making it work on MPOP. Pulse width modulation block will cause switching in boost converter.

Then a feed back mechanism will be used to help power factor logic circuit to use the capacitor bank accordingly for removing the reactive part of output power. This will help having the maximum efficiency from the PV power system.

The solar probe method will be implemented on the PV panels, for tracking the maximum sunlight (intensity based). So that, the maximum efficiency can be obtained from the panels.

Benefits of the Project

The technological innovation of solar energy enables solar panels to capture the heat of the sun and utilize the energy to generate power and electricity for homes, buildings and cities. Solar panels help maximize the earth's resources and conserve energy. The major issue in our case is that the solar inverters and its parts are imported and there is no
local manufacturer i.e only assembly is being done by some importers. Thus by manufacturing our very own technology on the local level our project will help people in providing cheap, ecient and need desired inverters.
The benefits for society are as under:
1. There are many ways in which the use of solar energy can help stimulate the economy of the a ected areas. With more people able to nd employment as a result of the increased number of jobs created by the development and operation of solar energy panels, more people would have money to contribute the the nation's economy.

2. When cities or companies decide to build and operate solar energy facilities, the projects often help to create numerous jobs. For instance, workers are needed to plan the project, develop and implement the project, build the solar energy plant, manage the equipment and operate the facility. Thus, many new jobs can be ful lled by workers as a result of a city or state using solar energy facilities to generate electricity for the area, and this would in turn help decrease the unemployment rate of the given area.

3. Generating energy from solar panels emits very little pollution into the air, and thus solar energy is a much cleaner source of energy than the burning of fossil fuels. Cities or areas that decide to use solar energy to power the buildings would thus enjoy a cleaner quality of air in the region, which in turn can make the citizens and workers in the area more healthy. Furthermore, studies indicate that burning fossil fuels helps facilitate global warming. However, because solar panels emit very low amount of hazardous pollution into the air, solar energy does not damage the atmosphere or cause global warming.

4. In Pakistan, factories that burn fossil fuels to generate energy and power for homes and businesses rely on oil to generate the energy. As a result, Pakistan is dependent on oil that often comes from foreign nations to create the electricity, and sometimes the money the US pays for foreign oil is used to harbor or support terrorism. However, if Pakistan adopted policies and implemented more solar energy programs, not as much oil would be needed in the country and thus the amount that Pakistan purchases from foreign nations would be reduced.

5. With the development of the technology on local basis, technology will be encouraged in thecountry. This will motivate the newer generation to work more hardly and to focus on the upcoming technologies.

Technical Details of Final Deliverable

We will develop a fully functional MPPT based solar inverter. Inverter will be able to run all the three earlier mentioned MPPT algorithms at the same time and will be able to choose the most efficient one out of them depending upon the conditions. The inverter will be able to rectify the reactive power, thus increasing the power factor of load for better efficiency. Axis control of solar panels i.e. Solar panel movement towards high intensity of light will also be delivered. This will help having the maximum efficiency from the PV power system.

Final Deliverable of the Project

HW/SW integrated system

Core Industry

Energy

Other Industries

Core Technology

Others

Other Technologies

Artificial Intelligence(AI)

Sustainable Development Goals

Affordable and Clean Energy

Required Resources

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