Linear Quadratic Integral optimal control of photovoltaic systems

This study aims to report on the application of Linear Quadratic Integral (LQI) based global maximum power point tracker (GMPPT) method for transferring the available maximum power from photovoltaic (PV) systems to load in unshaded and shaded conditions. For the maximum power transmission under varying the environmental conditions and partially shaded conditions, MPPT technologies are utilized in PV systems. For the improvement of functioning MPPT, a new two-level control structure which decreases difficulty in the control process and efficiently deals with the uncertainties in the PV systems is introduced. In the proposed approach, the reference voltage at the global maximum power point (GMPP) is estimated by a new scanning algorithm. The difference between the reference voltage and the voltage of the PV array is then used by LQI controller to generate the duty cycle for a boost converter. The design process of the proposed approach is explained as step by step. The benefits of the approach are quicker tracking capability, transferring maximum deliverable power and simple implementation. To verify the proposed method, several irradiation profiles that create several peaks in the P-V curve are used. The simulation results show that the proposed method causes PV systems to track the GMPP immediately so that no oscillation around the GMPP is observed. Therefore, maximum efficiency can be derived from the PV system.