Adaptive photovoltaic cell simulation with maximum power point tracking simulation for accurate energy predictions

Abstract

This paper presents a modelling tool for photovoltaic (PV) cells, which can build and optimise a simulation model based on measured data, and can plot the I-V (Current-Voltage) and the P-V (Power-Voltage) curve. Furthermore, it allows using solar irradiation and temperature profiles to make cumulative energy simulations during a day, for example, and compare the efficiency of different MPPT algorithms by simulating their behaviour and performance. It was found out that realistic temperature data is very crucial for estimating the effects of MPPT algorithms. The tool is implemented in LabVIEWTM, which makes it easy to combine with actual measurements and offers a suitable graphic user interface (GUI).