An Improved Perturb and Observe Checking

Algorithm MPPT for Photovoltaic System under

Partial Shading Condition
Rozana Alik, Awang Jusoh, Nur Ameda Shukri
Department of Electrical Power
Faculty of Electrical Engineering
Universiti Teknologi Malaysia Johor Bahru, Malaysia
rozanaalik16@gmail.com

Abstract—To have an efficient Photovoltaic (PV) system, approximation methods. Therefore, the results of MPP are
Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT) technique is not entirely accurate.
essential. Perturb and Observe (P&O) MPPT is not a new
algorithm in the field of solar energy; nevertheless, it is said to Some researchers use soft computing based method, for
be the simplest and low cost method for MPPT technique. example, Fuzzy Logic Control (FLC) and Artificial Neural
However, its major drawbacks – steady state oscillation Network (ANN) [7-10]. There is no doubt that these
problem and failure to track maximum power point (MPP) methods present good performance and are able to operate
under partial shading condition cause the PV system to become well under varying atmospheric condition. However, these
less efficient. Thus, this paper proposes a modified P&O methods mostly depend on the knowledge that the users
MPPT that can be used under partial shading condition have and they must be trained specifically beforehand
efficiently, by adding a simple checking algorithm to the P&O related to the PV array. There is also an advance technique
algorithm, in which the global maximum power point (MPP) is of Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) [11, 12], which gives
tracked first before the P&O algorithm takes place to produce a better performance compared to other methods, but it is a
optimum duty cycle for the boost converter. A Simulink model little bit complex.
and simulation results from MATLAB/Simulink are also
presented. The most common MPPT technique is the P&O MPPT,
frequently used due to its simplicity and low cost of
Keywords—P&O; MPPT; Partial Shading; Irradiance; PV implementation [7, 13-16]. It also has a simple control
system structure, where it needs only several measured parameters
in order to perform maximum power tracking.
I. INTRODUCTION
Global electricity demand has been increasing
throughout the years, indirectly depleting the conventional
fossil fuel such as coal, petroleum and etc. As alternative,
photovoltaic (PV) energy has been proposed as a part of
renewable energy as it does not cause pollution, has no
greenhouse effect, and low operation and maintenance costs.
Maximum power point tracking (MPPT) technique is
normally used in photovoltaic (PV) system in order to
maximize the PV array output power by tracking
continuously the maximum power point (MPP), which
depends on solar irradiances and cell temperature [1, 2].
There are at least 19 MPPT algorithms reported in
literature review from previous researches [3]; and some are
discussed in this paper. The simplest and easiest offline
method is by using the fixed duty cycle [4], which does not
require any feedback to be implemented. However, its
efficiency is relatively low. Next, researchers have
improved the MPPT to be an approximation methods like
Fractional Short Circuit Current (SCC) and Fractional Open
Circuit Voltage (OCV) [5, 6]. The Maximum Power Point
(MPP) current, IMPP and Maximum Power Point (MPP)
voltage, VMPP are obtained by multiplying both short circuit Figure 1: Conventional P&O MPPT Algorithm
current and open circuit voltage with constant k1 and k2
respectively, such that k1 ranges from 0.78 until 0.9, while The calculation of P&O algorithm is based on the output
k2 ranges between 0.71 and 0.78. These methods are power and power change of PV array by sensing PV voltage

978-1-4799-8598-2/15/$31.00 ©2015 IEEE 398

and current. P&O operates periodically for perturbing and
compares the instantaneous output power by applying the
perturbed voltage to change the operating voltage of the PV
array, as shown in Figure 1. Firstly, the value of V and I
from PV array at present state, n and previous state, n-1 are
measured. Hence, P values are calculated by multiplying
both values V and I. Subsequently, P&O will make the
decision either to shift the PV array for high or low
operating voltage until the MPP is reached.
II. COMMON ISSUE OF PERTURB AND OBSERVE MPPT
There are two common problems with the conventional
P&O algorithm, which are the steady state oscillation
problem and partial shading condition [16-18]. Many
researchers modify the algorithm so that it could work
effectively under any circumstances, as well as neglecting
the steady state oscillation problem. This paper focuses
more on the second problem which is the partial shading
issue.
A. Impact of Partial Shading Condition
Partial shading is a condition where the sun irradiation is
not distributed uniformly to the PV arrays due to the heavy
clouds, trees or nearer buildings that block the sunlight [19-
23]. Basically, the MPP can be tracked easily when the
irradiation is constant, as shown in Figure 2. As the power
increases, the voltage also increases; and vice versa. The
tracking process will continue until it reaches the MPP.
Figure 2: P&O MPPT under normal condition
However, when the PV array is partially shaded, the PV
curve will become nonlinear. As a result, multiple local
MPP occur, as shown in Figure 3. The same tracking
process occurs but with different results. The P&O MPPT is
trapped at the local MPP because the operating voltage is
unable to increase as the power starts to decrease.
Moreover, partially shaded of PV array will alter open
circuit voltage, short circuit current and other attributes. The
shaded cells become reverse biased by other cells and
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exhibit high resistances and cause non-uniform temperature
over the whole cell area. Eventually, breakdown in localized
regions of the cell p-n junction will happen, causing
enormous power dissipation in a small area [24].
Figure 3: P&O MPPT under Partial Shading Condition
B. Modified P&O MPPT for Partial Shading Condition
This issue has drawn lots of attention of researchers
nowadays. A lot of modifications have been made by them
in order to ensure the efficiency of P&O MPPT in PV
system. Reference [25] presented an idea based on
controlling a DC-DC converter as a constant input-power
load connected at the PV array output. The experimental
results revealed that the algorithm was able to track the
global MPP under any irradiation level. The major
advantage is that it can be applied in PV arrays without
requiring knowledge on the PV modules configuration.
However, this technique is quite expensive.
Another efficient hybrid MPPT algorithm has been made
by [9] by using ANN to identify the classification of the
suitable operating voltage corresponding to the irradiance
level. Then, the P&O algorithm will track the MPP within
the local area based on the classification obtained.
Principally, this technique combines the advantages of P&O
and ANN MPPT.
Another method was proposed by [14], which is able to
improve the efficiency of the P&O MPPT by reducing the
steady state oscillation and eliminating the possibility of the
algorithm to lose its tracking direction. A dynamic
perturbation step-size is used to reduce the oscillation, and
boundary conditions are introduced to prevent the tracking
diverging away from the MPP.
III. PROPOSED MODIFIED P&O MPPT
The proposed algorithm is based on the level of solar
irradiance. A sudden change in irradiation level would cause
significant alteration of operating voltage, as well as the
maximum power point. As mentioned before, partial
shading condition could cause multiple local MPP, and the
maximum number of local MPP is 4 [26]. Therefore, the
proposed method is simply adding a checking algorithm
onto the P&O MPPT, as shown in Figure 4.
Figure 4: Proposed modified P&O MPPT algorithm
The checking algorithm is used to identify the maximum
power point. Once the global MPP is detected, the step size
is reduced so that the P&O MPPT that takes place will
operate with higher accuracy, since this method focuses
more on the efficiency of the MPPT in the system. The
algorithm had been tested using Simulink model in
MATLAB/ Simulink.
A. Simulink Model of Photovoltaic System
Figure 5 depicts the full system that had been used for
the simulation. The photovoltaic system consisted of 36
solar cells that had been arranged in series configuration.
Boost converter was used in the system due to its simplicity,
higher accuracy and cost saving. A 1000 Ÿ of resistor was
used as the load for the system.
Meanwhile, the irradiance was varied with time (1000
W/m2, 800 W/m2 and 500 W/m2) in order to get the partial
shading condition, as shown in the Table 1. This would
indicate any abruptly changes of sun irradiation. This paper
concerns on the outputs of MPPT which include the duty
400
cycle, D, as well as the output current, voltage, and power at
the load side.
Figure 5: Full System for Proposed Technique
Table 1: Value of Sun Irradiation for Partial Shading
Condition for Simulation
Time (s) Irradiance (W/m2)
1-3 1000
3-5 800
5-7 Gradually decrease to 500
7 - 10 1000
B. Simulation Results
The maximum voltage for the solar module consisting of
36 series of solar cells, could reach up to 17.5V. The
photovoltaic system had been designed with a converter to
boost the voltage until 40V. It was noticed that when the
irradiance changed, the voltage and current produced by the
solar module varied. In the meantime, the value of duty
cycle, D should be affected so that it could fulfill the
requirement for the boost converter to operate in optimum
condition.
As seen in Figure 6, the D value for the PV system using
P&O MPPT without the innovative checking algorithm
would likely be at the constant value, 0.5. This might be
because the P&O MPPT used was unable to cooperate well
with the partial shading condition. It differed from the
system with modified P&O MPPT which included the
checking algorithm. The duty cycle seemed to have variable
value based on the condition per time interval.
Figure 6: Duty Cycle during Partial Shading Condition
using two methods
Figure 7: Output voltage during Partial Shading Condition
using two methods
As mentioned earlier, the desired output voltage for the
boost converter was 40V. Figure 7 depicts the PV system
with improved P&O checking algorithm MPPT, showing a
better result compared to the PV system without the
checking algorithm. The steady state voltage for the
improved system started at 1.8s. There were some ripples at
the output waveform due to the abrupt changes of the
irradiation level.
Figure 8: Output current during Partial Shading Condition
using two methods
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Figure 9: Output power during Partial Shading Condition
using two methods.
It also can be seen in Figure 8 and 9, that the output
current and power of the improved technique seem to have
steady output which were 0.04A and 1.6W, respectively.
The obtained simulation results have proved that the
innovative P&O checking algorithm MPPT is able to
provide steady output during varying irradiation levels.
IV. CONCLUSION
This research paper has presented a detailed discussion
on the impacts of irradiance variations caused by partial
shading on PV. The tested system has been modeled and
performed using MATLAB/Simulink under varying shading
level.
In short, P&O algorithm is the most frequently used
method of MPPT due to its simplicity and low cost
implementation. However, its drawback of algorithm unable
to operate well under partial shading condition affects the
efficiency of PV system. Thus, in this paper, a simple
modification on the P&O MPPT is suggested, by integrating
a simple checking algorithm with it. In this improved
method, the global MPP will be tracked first before the
P&O algorithm takes place as it is important to produce
optimum duty cycle for the boost converter. The simulation
results have confirmed that the proposed modified P&O
MPPT is able to operate well under different level of
irradiation.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
The authors would like to thank Ministry of Education of
Malaysia (MOE) and Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM)
for providing Research University Grant (RUG) under vote
number Q.J130000.2523.07H82 for this research work.
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