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Test bench for Photovoltaic Modules

Article · November 2010

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EFEEA’10 International Symposium on Environment Friendly Energies in Electrical Applications 2-4 November 2010, Ghardaïa, Algeria

Test bench for Photovoltaic Modules

A. Mahrane#1 , A. Guenounou#1, Z. Smara#1, M. Chikh#1, M. Lakehal#1
#1
Renewable Energies Equipment division (EER)
Solar Equipment Development Unit (UDES)
Route Nationale n°11, BP 386, 42415, Bou Ismail, Tipaza, Algeria
a_mahrane@yahoo.ca, aguenounou@yahoo.fr, zoubeyr_smaraa@yahoo.fr,
madjidchikh@yahoo.fr, mounir_msc@yahoo.fr

Abstract— The photovoltaic modules performances are
evaluated from their I-V characteristic. We present in this
article the I-V measurement bench that we have set up at
UDES in order to characterize the photovoltaic modules under
natural conditions. We present, first, the method used for
modeling PV module that allows us to simulate the I-V curve
under a given conditions of illumination and temperature. We
then describe the bench measurement focusing on the power
MOSFETs electronic load that we realized. As an example, the
plot of an I-V characteristic of a c-Si photovoltaic module got
with our testing bench at a given operating conditions and
translated to STC conditions are in good agreement with the
one supplied by the manufacturer with a few correction made.
Keywords- Photovoltaic modules, current-voltage
characteristics, electronic load
I. INTRODUCTION
The combined effects of the gradual depletion of fossil
resources and greenhouse gas emissions have generated
awareness at the global level to adopt new behavior of
energy consumption by focusing on the one hand, on the
energy saving and, on the other hand, trying to have
diversified energy mix.
In this favorable context, solar photovoltaic’s grown
steadily in recent years so that the world market has reached
an annual size of the order of several gigawatts [1].
As a matter of fact, the photovoltaic module is the object
of all issues so all efforts are made in order to achieve a
viable price of peak watts of solar electricity as compared to
the conventional energy which will result to increase the
actual contribution of green energy in the global energy
balance.
The indicator of performance of a photovoltaic module is
its I-V characteristic. The shape of the curve tells us about
the quality and the data allow us to record or extract all the
relevant parameters such as the short circuit current ISC, the
open circuit voltage VOC, the current and the voltage
respectively at the maximum power point Imp, Vmp, the
power at the maximum power point Pmp, the field factor FF,
the series resistance RS and the shunt resistance Rsh. In
production, the I–V characteristic, provided by the
manufacturers, is obtained using a solar simulator under
standard conditions (STC) known as an illumination of
1000W/m², a module temperature of 25 ° C and an Air Mass
AM = 1.5 [2].
However, the usual conditions of use of PV modules in a
natural environment are different. For this purpose we
propose to realize a test platform that will allow us to
characterize and monitor the performance of photovoltaic
modules under natural conditions.
As a first phase, we set up an I -V measurement bench
for PV modules that we describe in this article.
Thus, in paragraph II, we discuss the modeling of PV
module. In section III we describe the electronic load we
made and present its operating principle. In section IV we
tackle the simulation of the I-V module. After having
presented the I-V test bench in section V, we treat, in
section VI, an example of characterization of a PV module
and we analyze in section VI the results obtained by
simulation and measurements.
II. MODELISATION OF PHOTOVOLTAIC MODULE
Rsh
Figure 1 One diode model for PV module
The study of the performance of a photovoltaic (PV)
module is done through its I–V characteristic. The
simulation of this feature for the analysis of the module’s
behavior in terms of operating conditions requires the
modeling of PV module. This last, which is an arrangement
of a series of several solar cells, is based on the model of a
cell, which in the case of a one diode model that we use, is
represented by a diode, a current source, a series resistance
and a shunt resistance. The current source generates a
photocurrent which is a function of solar irradiance and
temperature of the cell. The diode represents the PN

1
EFEEA’10 International Symposium on Environment Friendly Energies in Electrical Applications 2-4 November 2010, Ghardaïa, Algeria

R1
junction solar cell. The I-V characteristic of a module has
Control
the following expression [3]: Stage
2 Power Stage
U
 q ( V + IR s )  V + IR s 2m

I = I ph − I 0  exp( ) − 1 − . (1) T 1

 mNs kT C  R sh R3 M4 R6 M1

1
IRF150 IRF150 100
3
0 103 W

Where I is the current output of the module, Iph is the 2

102

photo current, Io the diode saturation current, NS is the R

V

number of the solar cells in series in the module, V is the R7 R10

C PARAMETERS:
voltage output of the module, q is the electric charge R2
2200u v ar = 25
V7
CMAX
(1.6x10-19 C), k is the Boltzmann constant (1.38x10-23J/K), Iph

Req
TC the cell temperature in degrees Kelvin and m is the
ideality factor comprised between 1 and 2. 0

Figure 3: Representation of the entire PV Module – Electronic load in the

The starting point of the modeling of a given type module is
the I-V characteristic provided by the manufacturer. If the
electrical parameters such as Voc, Pmp, Imp, Vmp and the FF
can be deduced from the I-V characteristic, the parameters
needed for modeling such as (Iph, I0, m, Rs, Rsh) require
special extraction methods. In our case, we used an iterative
method which consists in solving numerically a system of
five nonlinear equations obtained by applying equation 1 to
within five points of a typical experimental I-V. These five
points should be as defined in (2). An interactive program
that we have developed allows us to perform this task [4]:
Figure 2: The five points of the I-V curve which have been used
in the extraction method
III. ELECTRONIC LOAD
The plot of the I-V module characteristic involves the use
of a load. This can be done with a simple rheostat. By
varying its value from zero to its maximum value we can
get different points of the I-V curve. This method is only
applicable to low-power modules because high power
resistors are not available. [5]. We can also use as a load a
capacitor, but getting a reliable I-V curve by this method
requires a high quality capacitor (low equivalent series
resistor) with low loss [6]. Transistors (typically IGBTs or
MOSFETs) can also be used as electronic load for testing
PV modules. The potential advantage of this method is the
rapid variation of the equivalent load resistance [7].
Spice environment.
In our case, the goal was to have an electronic load which
allows us to get the I-V characteristics of the most type of
modules available on the market. We then decided to realize
an electronic load based on MOSFET which has the
advantage of being simple, inexpensive, fast plot and by its
design allows us to increase its power just by adding as
many power units as necessary.
The electronic load that we build (3) consists of two
stages:
A power stage connected directly to the photovoltaic
module, which acts as a variable impedance modifying the
operating point of the module and so collect the two
quantities I and V. This part is composed of four MOSTEFs
(IRF 150) in parallel to increase the absorption capacity of
our load. To increase the power of the load we simply add
more power stages or use more robust MOSFETs. The
power resistors R7-R10 have a role to reduce the power
dissipated by the MOSFETs.
A control stage which controls the power stage, in other
words its impedance, is composed of capacitor C, a push-
button T, a potentiometer R and the resistors R1 to R6.
The operating principle of this stage is based on the
charging and discharging of the capacitor. Indeed, as soon
as we activate the push button T, the capacitor C will charge
through resistor R1. When we release it, it will be
discharging through the resistance Req (potentiometer R and
the resistance R2) resulting in the variation of the gate
voltage VG of MOSFET transistors and thus change their
drain current. We have used for the discharge circuit a
potentiometer whose value is adjusted depending to the
acquisition system utilized. The lower is its value, the faster
is the I-V plot. The resistors R3 to R6 are necessary for the
protection of MOSFET transistors.
IV. SIMULATION OF THE I-V CHARACTERISTIC OF A PV
MODULE
In order to analyze the behavior of a photovoltaic module
according to the irradiance and temperature, we have
implemented the PV module model described in paragraph I

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EFEEA’10 International Symposium on Environment Friendly Energies in Electrical Applications 2-4 November 2010, Ghardaïa, Algeria

and the circuit of electronic charge in the PSPICE

environment [8].
We have treated as an example the case of a Philadelphia
Solar module type MS36 (SN 120-0-21-030110). The data
for Standard Tests Conditions (STC) given by the Oscilloscope
manufacturer are as follow: Isc = 8.37 A, Voc = 22.86 V,
Pmp = 140.7 W, Imp = 7.8 A, Vmp = 18.04 V, FF = 0.736,
η = 14.1%, αIsc = 10 µA/cm²/°C, βVoc = -2.1 mV/Cell/°C.
Computer
Where, η is the yield of the module, αIsc the temperature PV Module
coefficient of the short circuit current, β Voc the
temperature coefficient of the open circuit voltage.
The parameters extracted from the experimental curve Electronic load
are: Iph = 8.386 A, Io = 6.124.10-10 A, m = 1.06, Rs = 0.22 Ω, Figure 5: ‘Outdoor’ I-V test bench for PV modules.
Rsh = 112.30 Ω. These are then injected in the model of the
module developed under SPICE.
VI. EXAMPLE OF MEASUREMENT OF CHARACTERISTIC OF
Figure 4 shows simulated and measured curves obtained PHOTOVOLTAIC MODULE
for the module (MS36 SN-120-0-21-030110) considered. The plot of the I-V characteristic of a PV module under
We note that there is a good agreement between the two natural conditions of illumination and temperature is done
curves which allows us to validate the simulation tool as follow. After the acquisition of I and V raw data, the
developed under SPICE of our I-V test bench for the treatment of these data is necessary. It is done to eliminate
module type considered. noise, to make adjustments, interpolations and
extrapolations of the curve. Then, the electrical parameters
AT STC conditions
are extracted. All these operations are done through the
10
IV of manufacturer program developed by A. Guenounou [4].
IV calculated
8 As an example, we present the measurement of the I-V
characteristic of a monocrystalline silicon module (MS36
SN-120-0-21-030110). The measurement conditions are:
Current [A]

6
Iph=8.386 A G= 900.9 W/m2, T= 46.65°C. The curve obtained after the
4 Io= 6.124E-10 A treatment of the rough data is represented on (6).
m=1.06
Rs=0.22 Ohm
2 Rsh=112.3Ohm

0
0 5 10 15 20 25
Voltage [V]

Figure 4: Simulated and measured I-V Characteristic obtained for the

module (MS36 SN–120-0-21-030110) under standard conditions

V. BENCH MEASUREMENT OF THE I-V CHARACTERISTIC

OF A PHOTOVOLTAIC MODULE

Figure 6: Representation of I-V curve obtained after the treatment of the

The bench 'outdoor' of the I-V characteristic of a PV rough data for the module (MS36 –120-0-21-030110).
module (Figure 5) that we have set put at UDES is
composed of the electronic charge whose terminals are To compare the measured I-V characteristic of the
connected to the PV module, a digital oscilloscope module (MS36 SN-120-0-21-030110) with those provided
TECKTRONIX HRT-710 for the acquisition and display of by the manufacturer, the curve measured under natural
the IV characteristic and a computer to which data are conditions should be translated to standard conditions.
transferred via RS 232 and where they are processed. The To do this we use the following equations of translation [9],
solar radiation received by the PV module under test is [10]:
measured using a pyranometer and the module temperature
is measured using a thermocouple fixed to the rear of the
module PV. Iph
STC
=
G STC
G meas
. Iph
 meas
(
+ α Isc TCSTC − TC
meas
). (2)

3
EFEEA’10 International Symposium on Environment Friendly Energies in Electrical Applications 2-4 November 2010, Ghardaïa, Algeria

3    factor for each type of PV module. In our case, we tried to

 TCSTC 
Io = Io   exp q.Eg  1 − 1 . (3) define a value of this coefficient around the temperature
STC meas  T   m.K  TCmeas TCSTC 
 Cmeas     coefficient of the open circuit voltage.
R sh STC Moreover, in the region where the module behaves as a
G
= meas . (4) current generator, the discrepancy is probably due to
R sh G STC measurement error of the illumination.
meas

Where G and TC are the illumination and temperature. The We recorded in Table 1, in standard conditions, the values of
indices ‘STC’ and ‘meas’ are respectively for Standard Test the electrical parameters provided by the manufacturer and
Conditions and measurements conditions. Eg is the energy those translated from the measurements and we assessed the
gap. differences between the values obtained.
Two other parameters must be translated: the series
resistance RS and the ideality factor m. The series resistance
affects the slope of the I-V characteristic in the region where 10
the module functions as a generator of tension, but this
variation with temperature is not significant to induce an 8
error on the maximum power point so we assume that it
remains constant. We also think that the ideality factor m
6

Current [A]
remains constant [9].
In Figure 7 we have shown the I-V characteristic of the
module (MS36 SN-120-0-21-030110) at standard conditions 4
Manufacturer's I-V caracteristic
translated from the curve measured under natural conditions I-V caracteristic calculated at STC from
G=900.9 W/m²,Tc=46.65°C,
and that provided by the manufacturer under STC. 2
with correction in ideality factor
(alpham = -0.0032).
0
0 5 10 15 20 25
Voltage [V]

Figure 8: Representation of the I-V curves for the module (MS36 SN–120-0-
21-030110) at STC conditions. The first one given by the manufacturer and
the other deduced from that measured at the conditions G=900.9W/m2,
Tc=46.65C with correction of the ideality factor m.

TABLE I. VALUES, AT STANDARD CONDITIONS, OF THE MAIN

ELECTRICAL PARAMETERS
FOR THE PV MODULE (MS36 SN-120-0-21-030110) PROVIDED BY THE
MANUFACTURER AND THOSE CALCULATED AFTER TRANSLATION FROM THE
MEASUREMENTS AT OPERATING CONDITIONS TAKING INTO ACCOUNT THE
IDEALITY FACTOR CORRECTION.

Manufacturer
Calculated Gap (%)
Parameters Data
Data (STC)
Figure 7: Representation of the I-V curves for the module (MS36 SN–120-0- (STC)
21-030110) at STC conditions. The first one is provided by the manufacturer Isc (A) 8.37 8.7 3.94
and the other is translated from the curve obtained at the conditions Voc (V) 22.86 22.98 0.52
G=900.9W/m2, Tc= 46.65C. Pmp (W) 140.7 142.4 1.21
Vmp (V) 18.04 18.23 1.05
We note that there is a gap between the two curves. In the Imp (A) 7.8 7.81 0.13
FF 0.736 0.713 -3.13
region where the module acts as a voltage generator we think η (%) 14.1 16.26 0.15
that the gap is due to the fact that we have neglected the
variation of the ideality factor as a function of temperature.
Indeed, this gap can be reduced (8) by introducing a correction VII. CONCLUSION
factor [10] for the ideality factor whose expression is:
This paper presents a semi automatic I-V test bench for PV
mSTC = m meas[1 + α m (TC − TCmeas )] .
module characterization set up at UDES. Currently, we can get
(5) the I-V plot of any type of PV modules at outdoor conditions
and we can also translate them into any desired operating
It should be noted, nonetheless, that this method requires conditions. However, this testing bench can be improved to
further study to be validated. Because, currently, there is no reach full automation with more precise measurements. Our
accurate method to define a temperature coefficient of ideality goal is to approach fully automatic start up of I-V scan.

4
EFEEA’10 International Symposium on Environment Friendly Energies in Electrical Applications
Furthermore, we intend to improve the electronic load that
will allow us to acquire data close to ISC and VOC. Currently,
our equipment gives us a very large number of data points that
are not practical for analysis. Consequently we intend to
devise a technique that will allow us to optimize the number of
data points to obtain a representative trend of the I-V
characteristic.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
We would like to thank Mr S. Elmetnani (UDES) for his
valuable advices on the writings of this article.
REFERENCES
[1] http://www.solarbuzz.com
[2] CEI 60904-1:1987, Dispositifs photovoltaïques – Partie 1 : Mesures
des caractéristiques courant-tension des dispositifs photovoltaïques.
[3] Engin Karatepe *, Mutlu Boztepe, Metin C¸ olak, «Development of a
suitable model for characterizing photovoltaic arrays with shaded
solar cells», Sol. Energy 2007, doi:10.1016/j.solener.2006.12.001.
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2-4 November 2010, Ghardaïa, Algeria
[4] A. Guenounou, “ Mise au point de nouveaux procédés de mesure des
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“Energies Renouvelables” (CDER / Université de Tlemcen), Janvier
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[5] Duran, E. Piliougine, M. Sidrach-de-Cardona, « Different methods to
obtain the I-V curve of PV modules: A review», Photovoltaic
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[7] Yingying Kuai, S. Yuvarajan, « An electronic load for testing
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[9] W. De Soto, S.A. Klein, W.A. Beckman, “Improvement and
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[10] A. Mermoud, “Conception et Dimensionnement de Systèmes
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