Proceedings of the 2016 5th International Conference on
2
Systems and Control, Cadi Ayyad University, Marrakesh,
Morocco, May 25-27, 2016
dSPACE Real-Time Implementation of Maximum Power Point
Tracking Based on Ripple Correlation Control (RCC) Structure for
Photovoltaic System
T. Boutabba, S. Drid, L. Chrifi-Alaoui, M. Ouriagli and M.E.H. Benbouzid

Abstract—In this paper, we will discuss the technique of
ripple correlation control (RCC) applied to photovoltaic
maximum power point tracking (MPPT). To deliver maximum
power from the photovoltaic system to the load under climatic
variations, and to control a boost converter, MPPT based on
ripple correlation control (RCC) technique has been used. Also
to improve the performance of this MPPT and to overcome the
uncertainties and perturbations in the photovoltaic system, a
strategy of two-layer control structure are developed to
effectively handle it. The first part of the strategy use the ripple
correlation control (RCC) technique, and the second part use
aPI controller. This algorithm was experimentally
implemented. Data acquisition and control system were
implemented using dSPACE1104. The practical results show
that the proposed system tracked the maximum power
accurately and successfully under the change of solar
irradiation.
Keywords—Photovoltaic; ripple correlation control;
dSPACE ;RCC; boost DC-DC; MPPT.
I. INTRODUCTION
One of thebiggest issues facing us right now is global
warming, which is mainly due to the emissions ofgreenhouse
gases into the atmosphere [16]. Indeed, one of the largest
sources of those emissions is from burning fossil fuels for
electricity production.
In order to reduce global warming, several environmentally
friendly techniques, based on the use of solar energy, for
electricity production have been developed. Among them,
photovoltaic solar energy conversionis one of the most used
methods [15].
In recent years, research and development of materials and
techniques to increase the efficiency of photovoltaic cells and
panels have become very important. Researchers have
concentrated their efforts on finding solutions to the energy
generated by the photovoltaic panel to be extracted more
efficiently. A feature that makes it difficult to extract energy
T. Boutabba. is with the University of Khenchela and the laboratory of
induction and propulsion systems, Algeria (boutabba_tarek@yahoo.fr)
S. Drid is with the laboratory of induction and propulsion systems, electrical
engineering Dep, University of Batna2, Algeria
(s_drid@yahoo.fr,saiddrid@ieee.org)
L. Chrifi-Alaoui is with the University of Picardie Jules Verne, LTI
(EA,3899), 13 av F. Mitterrand, 02880 Cuffies, France (larbi.alaoui@u-
picardie.fr)
M. Ouriagli is with Laboratoy of sciences and engineering (LSI). Faculté
polydisciplinaire de Taza Maroc Route d’Oujda, B.P :1223 Taza Maroc
(omenstz@yahoo.fr)
M.E.H. Benbouzid is with the University of Brest, EA 4325 LBMS Rue de
Kergoat- CS 93837, 29238 Brest, France(m.benbouzid@ieee.org)
978-1-4673-8953-2/16/$31.00 ©2016 IEEE
FrAA.
from the solar panels is the nonlinear behavior of the output
voltage and current provided on its output.
For each solar irradiation value there is only one point where
the maximum power load is delivered. This value is the
"maximum power point" or MPP (Maximum Power Point).
The power value generated by the panels depends mainly on
the intensity of the solar radiation incident on its surface and
ambient temperature. Because these parameters are
constantly changing, changes in maximum power point will
occur at all times, so the tracking control of the maximum
power point is not a trivial problem. To overcome this
problem several control strategies in screening have been
proposed, such as disturbance and observation, incremental
conductance, parasitic capacitance, constant tension, neural
networks and fuzzy logic (fuzzy), etc.
For maximum transfer of power generated by the source
(photovoltaic panel) to the next stage (typically a static
converter DC / DC), the load curve must intersect the MPP.
At this point the system efficiency "generator - load" is
maximum. When the system does not operate in MPP, the
power supplied to the load is less than the maximum energy
that could be transferred.
To ensure maximum efficiency, it is necessary to use
techniques that seek the MPP continuously. They are called
"maximum power point tracking techniques" (MPPT -
Maximum Power Point Tracking). The voltage and current
values corresponding to the MPP are used to modify the input
impedance curve of the static converter so that it intersects
the point of maximum power instantaneously.
Since 1970s, Several MPPT algorithms [17, 18, 19], have
been performing the digital realization, implementation
complexity and operating cost [4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12]. The
Control Structure MPPT depend on both the ripple
correlation control (RCC) algorithm and PI controller, where
they are the solution to solve the MPPT problems. This
algorithm used the integration of the correlation between the
ripple power component and the ripple current or voltage
component in the power electronic systems to obtain the duty
cycle of the optimal power output. As a result, the
performance of the power output is improved. The
performance of the RCC-MPPT method is evaluated by
MATLAB/SIMULINK and experimental implementation,
using dSPACE1104 software and digital signal processor
card on PC.
371
 II. GENERAL SOLAR CELL MODEL 70 90

A. Conventional one diode electrical Model

80
60

70

The relationship between the voltage (V) and current (I) to 50

60

the model of a diode is given by equation (01):

P u is s a n c e P p v ( V )
40 50

 V  Rs I 
  V  Rs I
40

Va 
30

I  I pv  I 0 [e t   1]  (01) 30

Rp 20

20

10
10

0 0
0 5 10 15 20 25 0 5 10 15 20 25

(a) (b)
Fig.2. Simulated waveforms showing the effect of
(a) Irradiation and (b) temperature on P-V characteristics.

The manufacturer’s data at standard conditions are given as

Pmax= 50W, Imax= 2.75 A and Vmax = 18.1V.

Fig. 1 Equivalent circuit of PV cell

Where R is the series resistance (Ω), Rp is the parallel
resistance (Ω), n is the diode switch (usually 1.2), T is the
cell temperature (K), q is the electron charge(1.6021x10-19
C), k is the Boltzmann's constant (1.3845x10-23 JK-1), Iph is
the current generated by the light radiation is Is is the
saturation current.
The current Iph is given by:
III. CONVERTERS DC-DC VOLTAGE
The DC-DC voltage converters are electronic circuits which
receive a voltage level or DC at its input terminals and,
according to the system requirements, set to another value of
the regulated voltage or current output. In the MPPT circuit,
the DC-DC converter is an essential part, for it is through
him that is made changing the voltage of the PV panel [1]
[2], as shown in Fig 3.

∗
                                                                02
Where C0 is a coefficient that relates Iph with irradiation (A),
C1 is the coefficient expressing the relationship between Iph
and the temperature (AK-1), and G* is irradiated to the
reference conditions (Wm-2). The C0 and C1 constants are
obtained by the following expressions:
                                                                03

                                                                         04
Fig. 3 Control systemscheme.
Where Isc1 and Isc2 are short-circuit currents on the T1 and T2
temperatures. The dependence of the saturation current with IV. MAXIMUM POWER ALGORITHMS
respect to temperature is given by: The MPPT algorithms studied in this article are described in
                                                                         05 this section.
A. Perturbed and observed - P & O
Where the constants C2 and C3 are expressed by:
The perturbed and Observe (P & O) algorithm is shown in
                                                                                    06 Fig. 8. This method is widely used due to its low complexity
. and it originated several methods such as P & O Modified,
   Hill Climbing and Hill Climbing Modified.
                                                           07
This algorithm works periodically incrementing or
1 decrementing the voltage of the photovoltaic system and
Obtaining Iph and Is parameters through the equations 2 and compares the output power with its previous value. If the
5, and resistors Rs and Rp by the Newton-Raphson method, power delivered increased, the direction of the disturbance
allow tracing the curve characteristics of the photovoltaic will continue in the same direction in the next cycle,
panel, for different values of solar radiation and temperature. otherwise the direction of the disturbance changes [13]. This
Fig .2 shows the Behavioral characteristics of Photovoltaic means that the voltage of the PV system will be disturbed
cell with different irradiations and temperatures in every cycle. When MPP is reached, the P & O algorithm
MATLAB/SIMULINK environment. We can observe from oscillate around it.
the simulation results as shown in Fig. 2(a, b), that the photo
current is directly proportional to irradiation,and the terminal
voltage increases with decreasing temperature.

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Fig. 4 The perturbed and Observe (P & O) algorithm
B. Incremental Conductance - INC
The Conductance Incremental algorithm is often considered
the best technique based on the method of disturbance and
observation. This method has good performance at steady
state and a rapid response during changes in incident solar
radiation.
This technique uses the derivative of the power curve in
relation to the voltage ( / ), which ensures fewer
disturbances in the steady state of the P & O method.
Therefore, it is known that the MPP / = 0. This
derivative can be written in terms of voltage and current of
the solar system, as seen in (08).
∆
                                      08
∆
Fig. 5 The incremental conductance (CI) algorithm
The algorithm periodically compares the conductance /
with your ΔI/ΔV increment. As seen in Figure 5. Note that:
 If / = Δ /Δ , the algorithm found the point of maximum
power;
 If / > Δ /Δ , it is necessary to increase the voltage to
978-1-4673-8953-2/16/$31.00 ©2016 IEEE
find the MPP;
 If / > Δ /Δ , it is necessary to decrement the voltage to
find the MPP;
C. Ripple Correlation - RCC
In July 1996, at the annual conference of IEEE as part of
projects developed in the power electronics field, it
performed a recent MPPT technical design based on control
of the oscillation current and voltage [5]. This oscillation,
known as ripple correlation control (RCC), is caused by
switching of the DC-DC converter switching element. This
described technique is to correlate the variation of the
derivative of the power, in order to time, with the variation
of the derivative of voltage or current from the PV panel, the
driving power of the gradient to zero, the maximum power
point [6]. Thus, the MPPT algorithm can be used for any
type of converter, this being controlled duty cycle. The
diagram of this method is shown in Fig. 06.
Fig. 6 Block diagram of the RCC method
Thus, it is possible to deduce that the power of the PV panel
is to the right or left of the maximum power point of it,
according to the example in figure 7.
Fig. 7 Change of voltage or current at the time of the PV panel
As shown in Figure 7, the change of voltage or current at the
time of the PV panel to increase (V> 0 and I> 0) and output
the same to follow this trend (P>0), it can be seen how the
operating point lies below the MPP (V<VMPP or I<IMPP).
On the other hand, if the voltage or current increase and
power decrease (P <0), then the operating point lies above the
MPP (V>VMPP or I>IMPP) [14]. It is observed then that the
multiplication of the output voltage or current is positive
when it is left MPP negative and right of this zero when it
reaches the maximum power point [5]. To mitigate the array
capacitance in the circuit, it is desired to use the ripple
373
voltage component in the correlation, as the following TABLE I. PV MODULE PARAMETERS AT STANDARD TEST CONDITIONS
formula to calculate the duty cycle shown: Short circuit currentIsc 3.02 A
p v 0 when  V∗ Open circuit voltage Voc 22.1 V
p v 0 when  V∗ Current at maximum power point IMPP 2.75 A
Voltage at maximum power point VMPP 18.1V
p v 0 when Vpv V ∗ Number of cells in series Ns 36
The maximum power point can be obtained when the Pmax 50W
derivation of d is equal to zero because that is the place
where the voltage array is equal to the nominal one and the MATLABTM/SIMULINKTM models of MPPT algorithm have
change of d can be assumed to zero. Given the developed and laboratory based real time simulations have
mathematically proof for the stability of the RCC algorithm, been carried out for two algorithms (incremental conductance
the corresponding duty cycle for the maximum power point INC and ripple correlation RCC) based on the response for
under various solar insolations can be achieved. step change in the solar irradiation. Step change in the solar
Alternatively, the control algorithm by mean of the ripple radiation of the two halogen lamps was introduced using
current component can be realized as well because the P-I toggle switches.
curve and P-V curve are similar to each other [3]. One In the present work the RCC control algorithm have been
modification is the sign of the gain value of k needs to be programmed with MATLABTM and implemented using
reversed. However, due to the practical implementation, the dSPACETM ds1104 controller board. Four channels of
issue of the parasite capacitor is necessary to be considered, analogue data input and one channel of PWM output channel
the voltage ripple component is obviously advantageous than have been used to interface four sensors (voltage, current)
the current ripple component. As inferred from the literature and one output signal (duty-ratio).
review in Section 1, many improved and alternative version The dSPACETM system samples and converts the sensor
of RCC algorithms have been developed to replace the outputs to digital signals, processes them as per program in
original one, another way to propose the RCC algorithm is MATLABTM and then outputs the pulse-width-modulated
using the direct integrand of the ratio between the power (PWM) signal to the driving circuit of the boost converter via
output and the ripple component of the voltage or the power PWM output channel fig.8. As per the specifications of the
output and the ripple component of the current: dSPACETM for analogue input in the range -10 V to +10 V,
d k dt                                                                            09 the SIMULINKTM output is in the range -1 V to +1 V [13].
Hence proper gains for input and output signals need to be
The control law in (09) is hard to expect working due to the chosen. One of the PWM channels of the ds1104 is used to
complexity of realizing the integrand of this ratio in the output the 80 KHz pulses whose duty-ratio is adjusted by
circuit. Moreover, like the drawback of P&O MPPT MPPT controller.
algorithm, the ratio of signal-to-noise is unavailable and
hence the (09) is not sufficient to make the judgment that the
duty cycle for the maximum power point is achieved because
the ratio between the ripple power and voltage component is
impossible to maintain ideally being zero for quite amount of
time. Due to the effect of noise, this control law is not
reliable to make the determination.
With increasing focus on the simple implementation of the
algorithm in circuit, one useful control law makes use of the
sign function to track the MPP in the circuit. As shown the
control law is:
d k sgn sgn dt                                                  10
The effect of noise is mitigated because of the sign function
only focus on whether the derivation of d is larger, smaller or
Fig. 8 MPPT SIMULINK model implemented in dSPACE 1104.
equal to zero. And this control law is easy to realize in
electronics hardware by using logic circuit at an inexpensive
cost. This control law was also proved mathematically that it
is stable, and thus it is an alternative RCC algorithm to be
used in this project.
V. REAL TIME IMPLEMENTATION OF PROPOSED AND
EXISTING MPPT TECHNIQUES
A. Hardware details
A mono-crystalline solar PV module (Solar World SW 50
Poly RGP) of specifications mentioned in Table 2, with
boost converter has been used for experimental analysis of
proposed and existing MPPT techniques. Fig .9: The hardware setup of the system.

978-1-4673-8953-2/16/$31.00 ©2016 IEEE 374

 VI. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The proposed MPPT is designed by ripple correlation RCC
algorithm and its robustness to irradiance, and load is
investigated. To show the robustness, different operating
variation they with the both MPPT algorithms RCC and INC
to give the appropriate duty D applied to the controller and
PWM to make pulse of theboost's switch, so that the actual
power is increased tooperation in this point Fig 10.
10

points are used by considering different values of irradiance 9 RCC

INC
and load. 8

Fig.13 shows the MPPT characteristic P-V with 100 % of 7

irradiation and half of the load value (50 Ω) and prove the 6

Ppv(W)
5
efficiency of the technique of maximization.
4

A. Solar irradiation change and load Fixe 3

2
Fig.10 shows the evolution power of the PV system for 1

successive irradiance step applied at t= [0 to 11.5] seg 50% 0

0 5 10 15 20
(one halogen lamp) and at t= [11.5 to 20] seg 100% (two Time (s)

halogen lamps) .It can be seen than the system reaches the Fig. 13 Response of the power for a load variation
maximum power point in each step. Fig.11 and 12 shows the 8

PV characteristics and we can see clearly when the 7

irradiation change, the two algorithms (RCC and INC 6
algorithm) jumps to the new maximum power point and
5
steers the system operation to this point with a less ripple

Ppv(A)
with the use of RCC algorithm . 4

6 3

5.5 2
RCC
5 1 INC

4.5 100% 0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18
50%
Ppv(W)

Vpv(V)
4

3.5 Fig. 14 MPPT characteristic P-V with load variation

0.4
3
RCC
0.35
2.5 INC
0.3
2
0 5 10 15 20 0.25
Time (s)
Ipv(A)

Fig. 10 Response of the power with irradiation variation 0.2

0.38 0.15
2nd MPP at 100% 0.1
0.36
RCC
0.05 INC
st
0.34
1 MPP at 50% 0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18
Ipv(A)

0.32 Vpv(V)

0.3 Fig. 15 MPPT characteristic I-V with load variation

0.28
INC
RCC
VII. CONCLUSIONS
0.26
6 8 10 12 14 16 18 In this paper, a ripple correlation RCC algorithm of the boost
Vpv(V)
converter has been analyzed. The reported controller uses the
Fig. 11 MPPT characteristic I-V with irradiation variation output power of the PV array, output voltage of the converter
6
and an input signal, which in this case is the switching signal.
5.5
A practical case developed in a Matlab/Simulink simulation
5
platform has been presented, and the results confirm the
4.5
performance of the designed control. Real time simulations
Ppv(A)

4
of the proposed and conventional MPPT algorithms have
3.5
been carried out for performance analysis and validation. The
3
INC
RCC
experimental results show that the proposed approach can
2.5
achieve a good efficiency based MPPT techniques under
2
6 8 10 12
Vpv(V)
14 16 18
rapidly changing solar radiations and load.
Fig. 12 MPPT characteristic P-V with irradiation variation
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