Dynamic Maximum Power Point Tracking of Photovoltaic Arrays based on Simplified Ripple Correlation Control

Abstract

Maximum power point tracking is an essential feature of photovoltaic technology. Numerous techniques have been established over the years to address this requirement. This paper takes a fresh look at maximum power point tracking using Ripple Correlation Control. A simplified implementation is proposed, which can be based on the injection of a carrier signal through standard converter hardware or through utilisation of the first harmonic of the inherent pulse width modulation switching. The paper identifies a novel simplified control strategy to extract the tracking error information and use it to obtain dynamic tracking even in the presence of capacitance at the array terminals. Simulation results show the effectiveness of the proposed simplified implementation.