EE301/PH301

Renewable Energy System

2022

MPPT Solar Charge Controller For A PV System

Name: Khetan Kushal Lal

Student ID: S11185268
Partners: Vishal Kumar – S11184965
Sharneet Chetty – S11185444
Jakob Nand – S11185916

Campus: Laucala campus

Objective
The main objectives of this mini project are:
 Design and simulate output power of PV system without MPPT controller
 Design and simulate output power of PV system with Incremental Conductance
MPPT controller
 Compare the simulations and deliberate the significance of MPPT in a PV system
Acknowlegdement
A project as challenging and difficult as this, is very hard to accomplish if it had not been for
the help provided by certain individuals. As such we as a group wish to acknowledge these
individuals for the support and guidance provided towards the completion of this project
 Mr. Atul Raturi, our course coordinator for guiding and teaching the basis
applied in the project
 Mr. Krishneel Prasad, our Teaching Assistant and Lad Demonstrator who
supervised our simulations and progress of our project
 All group members for their effort towards this project.
Declaration
We hereby declare as a team that this project “MPPT Controller for PV Systems
Simulation”, submitted by the team members below, is a record of effort put in by the team,
under the guidance of the teaching team of Mr. Raturi and our supportive teaching assistant
and lab demonstrator Mr. Prasad.
All resources, academic papers and information from respective sources that have been used
during the compilation of this project have been cited and duly acknowledged.

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Jakob Praneel Nand (S11185916)

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Khetan Lal (S11185268)

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Sharneet Chetty (S11185444)

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Vishal Kumar (S111854965)

Introduction
In terms of extraction and use, fossil fuels such as gasoline and diesel are prohibitively
expensive. One of the primary factors that has increased the extraction of these non-
renewable resources in an unsustainable manner is the use of fossil fuel-powered
automobiles. The transportation of these fuels to rural areas has become an issue in and of
itself. The biggest issue is the greenhouse effect, which is created by the combustion of fossil
fuels, which emits a large amount of CO2 and creates other problems. PV cells turn sunshine
into electricity, which is used to power solar cars' motors. PV cells, unlike solar thermal
energy, which turns sunlight into heat, convert sunlight directly into electricity. According to
current polls, fossil fuels are rapidly decreasing, with the world's entire fossil fuel supply
expected to be gone in less than 5 years. As a result, it is imperative that a new exploration of
natural resources be undertaken, with sunlight being the most promising of these natural
resources. Sunlight is regarded as a source of energy that is used in a variety of everyday
applications. The PV array has a certain operating point where it can provide the most power
to the load. The maximum power point is nonlinear, changing depending on solar irradiation
and cell temperature. To improve the efficiency of the PV system, the MPP must be tracked
and followed, with the PV panel being regulated to function at the MPP operating voltage
point, thus optimizing power production. One of the most essential aspects of the vehicle's
construction is that it is directly linked to the chassis design, with the goal of obtaining
structurally optimum performance. So, in order to make the vehicle move with minimal
power usage, the chassis must be redesigned. The design was created with the goal of being a
high-efficiency, light-weight, and steady mode of transportation with low costs and zero
emissions during operation and energy acquisition. The main disadvantages of solar energy
include the fact that it is not a steady source of power, that the amount of solar energy
accessible varies throughout the day, and that it is completely unavailable at night. A step-
down transformer reduces the domestic electric supply from 23 volts to 24 volts, which is
then converted to DC with a rectifying device to charge the battery. This is used to charge the
battery as a backup or auxiliary source of energy.
In recent years, the utilization of renewable energy in industrial contexts has been researched.
The development of new solutions to meet the growing worldwide need for energy has been
prompted by pollution and the depletion of fossil resources. Solar and wind energy are
growing more prominent among renewable energy sources. Due to the requirement for huge
expenditures on expensive infrastructure, these resources have typically been utilized by large
public or private businesses. This movement is based on the generation of power in both
residential and commercial structures, mostly through the use of solar energy in micro-grids.
Thus, by placing solar panels on the roofs of homes, it is feasible to produce electricity that is
immediately consumed and sold in excess. With the emergence of new trends in the
production and consumption of electricity, a developing subject of research is the creation of
optimal energy management strategies in accordance with new regulatory rules. These tactics
can be assessed using indicators like self-consumption or self-efficiency, which show the
amount of energy directly consumed in a building with a grid-connected PV system. There is
a lot of research out there on how to maximize energy self-consumption in buildings. A
mismatch between production and consumption develops in homes where the occupants
spend the majority of their time outside. Active demand-side management (DSM) in this
situation allows for better self-consumption by controlling when a water heater, a washing
machine, or other programmed appliances turn on. The plug-in electric vehicle (EV) emerges
as a critical agent in the energy management of residential and office buildings when the
ideas of energy storage and DSM are considered. In addition to lowering transportation costs
and CO2 emissions, these cars have the potential to significantly promote self-consumption.
History and background

A photovoltaic (PV) system consists of one or more solar panels, an inverter, and associated
electrical and mechanical components that utilises energy from the sun to generate electricity.
PV systems are available in a variety of sizes, ranging from small rooftop or portable units to
massive utility-scale power plants. Although PV systems can operate off-grid, the focus of
this project is on PV systems that are connected to the utility grid, sometimes known as "grid-
tied PV systems."

Solar cells convert sunlight into electricity in a matter of seconds. Solar cells are widely used
to power calculators and watches. They're made of semiconducting materials similar to those
used in computer chips. The solar energy loosens electrons from their atoms, allowing them
to flow through the material and produce electricity. The conversion of light (photons) to
electricity (voltage) is known as the photovoltaic (PV) effect.
Solar cells are usually constructed into modules of roughly four cells, and several of these
modules are combined to form PV arrays that can be several meters long. These flat-plate PV
arrays can be mounted at a fixed angle facing south or on a tracking device that follows the
sun throughout the day to capture as much sunlight as possible. Several connected PV arrays
can generate enough electricity to power a home; hundreds of arrays can be linked together to
make a single large PV system for large electric utility or industrial applications.
"Thin Film" is a term used to describe a thin film. Solar cells are built up of layers of
semiconductor materials that are a few micrometers thick. Solar cells can now be employed
as roof shingles, roof tiles, building facades, or skylight or atria glazing thanks to thin film
technology. The same level of protection and durability is provided by solar-cell versions of
goods like shingles as traditional asphalt shingles.
Some solar cells are designed to function in low-light environments. These cells are placed in
concentrating collectors, which use a lens to focus sunlight onto the cells. This technology
has both advantages and disadvantages when compared to flat-plate PV arrays. The basic idea
is to capture as much sunlight as possible while using the least amount of expensive
semiconducting PV material possible. Concentrating collectors, on the other hand, are only
utilized in the country's sunniest places since the lenses must be directed toward the sun.
Some concentrating collectors can be mounted on basic tracking systems, but the bulk require
complex tracking technology, limiting their use to power utilities, factories, and large
structures.
"The metric by which a solar cell is judged is the efficiency with which it transforms sunlight
into electricity." Only certain wavelengths of sunlight may be used to create electricity, and
much of it is reflected or absorbed by the components in the cell. As a result, a typical
commercial solar cell has a 5% efficiency, meaning that only roughly one-sixth of the
sunlight that strikes the cell produces electricity. Because of the low efficiency, larger arrays
are required, resulting in greater prices.
"Solar PV systems use cells to convert sunlight into power." A PV cell is made up of one or
two layers of a semiconducting semiconductor, most often silicon. When light shines on a
cell, an electric field is created, causing electricity to flow through the layers. The amount of
power flowing is proportional to the amount of light. The amount of energy produced by PV
cells when exposed to full sunlight is measured in kilowatt peak, or kWp. In solar
photovoltaic (PV) technology, the solar cell is the most important component. PV solar cells,
which are used to power calculators, are well-known to the majority of people. A module is
formed by connecting the cells (a PV solar panel). PV modules capture solar energy in the
form of sunlight and convert it to direct current (DC) power. An inverter can convert this DC
power to alternating current (AC power, which is the type of electricity used in households).
PV solar panel systems are made up of PV modules that are interconnected. Large PV
systems can be fitted into structures to generate electricity. To put it another way, PV systems
are similar to any other electrical power production system; the only difference is that the
equipment utilized is not the same as that used in traditional electromechanical power
generating systems." The principles of operation and interaction with other electrical systems,
on the other hand, are well-established and governed by a set of electrical norms and
standards. Although a PV array generates electricity when exposed to sunlight, it also
necessitates the use of a number of other components to properly conduct, control, convert,
distribute, and store the energy it generates. Depending on the functional and operational
requirements of the system, main components such as a DC-AC power converter, battery
bank, system and battery controller, auxiliary energy sources, and occasionally the prescribed
electrical load may be required (appliances). A wide range of balance of system (BOS)
hardware is supplied, including wiring, overcurrent, surge protection, and disconnect devices,
as well as other power processing equipment. Batteries are commonly used in PV systems to
store energy generated by the PV array throughout the day and supply it to electrical loads as
needed (during the night and periods of cloudy weather). Other benefits of using batteries in
PV systems include operating the PV array at near-maximum output, powering electrical
loads at stable voltages, and providing surge currents to electrical loads and inverters. In these
systems, a battery charge controller is often used to protect the battery from overcharging and
discharging.

Results
Discussion
Conclusion
Reference
Appendix