Modeling of a photovoltaic system with different MPPT techniques using MATLAB/Simulink

Abstract

Solar photovoltaic energy is one of the most growing technologies in the world with a growth rate of 35-40% per year. In this paper, a step-by-step modeling of a PV system is presented. Additionally, a Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT) algorithm finds the maximum power for the operation of the PV system during variations of solar irradiance and ambient temperature. Different MPPT techniques are simulated, namely the Perturbation and Observation (P&O) method, the incremental conductance and a fuzzy logic control, which can improve the efficiency of the PV system generation dramatically. The proposed model is implemented in MATLAB/Simulink. The simulation results have shown that P&O and incremental conductance methods may fail under rapidly changing climatic conditions and present oscillations around the MPP during the steady state period. On the other hand, fuzzy logic control can track the system to the MPP very fast and accurately, even during rapid variations of atmospheric conditions.