Abstract
This study proposes a novel maximum power point tracking (MPPT) control strategy for the solar photovoltaic power system (SPPS). The proposed system adopts two solar photovoltaic modules of 430 W, which are connected to a boost converter and an MPPT controller, since the traditional MPPT algorithm (such as perturbation and observation [P&O] algorithm) can hardly reach maximum power point (MPP) under low irradiance level and partial shading conditions (PSC), which leads to the low efficiency of the SPPS. The speed of light optical path difference measurement (SLOPDM) MPPT control strategy has been developed in this study to overcome this problem. The estimation of the optical path angle difference is used as the basis for the proposed control strategy. This is done by determining the relationship between the optical path angle difference, solar photovoltaic power impedance Rspv and load Ro, and then calculating the duty cycle corresponding to the MPP, which then drives the boost converter to capture the MPP. The experimental results verify the proposed system, which shows the efficiency comparison between the SLOPDM MPPT algorithm, solar angle and horizon (SAH) algorithm, and P&O algorithm under PSC and uniform irradiance conditions (UIC) at irradiance levels of 700 W/m2 and 65 W/m2. It is evident from the comparison that the efficiency of the SLOPDM MPPT algorithm is 99% under both conditions, which is higher than the SAH and P&O algorithms. The SLOPDM MPPT algorithm can precisely, rapidly, and stably be operated at MPP. The contribution of this study is that the proposed MPPT control strategy can help achieve the high−performance of SPPS without changing the hardware circuit design and requiring any additional solar power meter. This reduces the cost and the complexity of the system significantly.