Proof of Concept of an Irradiance Estimation System for Reconfigurable Photovoltaic Arrays
Vincenzo Li Vigni,
Damiano La Manna,
Eleonora Riva Sanseverino,
Vincenzo di Dio,
Pietro Romano,
Pietro di Buono,
Maurizio Pinto,
Rosario Miceli,
Costantino Giaconia
Affiliations
Vincenzo Li Vigni
Department of Energy, Information Engineering and Mathematical Models (DEIM), University of Palermo, Viale delle Scienze, Edificio 9, Palermo 90128, Italy
Damiano La Manna
Department of Energy, Information Engineering and Mathematical Models (DEIM), University of Palermo, Viale delle Scienze, Edificio 9, Palermo 90128, Italy
Eleonora Riva Sanseverino
Department of Energy, Information Engineering and Mathematical Models (DEIM), University of Palermo, Viale delle Scienze, Edificio 9, Palermo 90128, Italy
Vincenzo di Dio
Department of Energy, Information Engineering and Mathematical Models (DEIM), University of Palermo, Viale delle Scienze, Edificio 9, Palermo 90128, Italy
Pietro Romano
Department of Energy, Information Engineering and Mathematical Models (DEIM), University of Palermo, Viale delle Scienze, Edificio 9, Palermo 90128, Italy
Pietro di Buono
Department of Energy, Information Engineering and Mathematical Models (DEIM), University of Palermo, Viale delle Scienze, Edificio 9, Palermo 90128, Italy
Maurizio Pinto
Department of Energy, Information Engineering and Mathematical Models (DEIM), University of Palermo, Viale delle Scienze, Edificio 9, Palermo 90128, Italy
Rosario Miceli
Department of Energy, Information Engineering and Mathematical Models (DEIM), University of Palermo, Viale delle Scienze, Edificio 9, Palermo 90128, Italy
Costantino Giaconia
Department of Energy, Information Engineering and Mathematical Models (DEIM), University of Palermo, Viale delle Scienze, Edificio 9, Palermo 90128, Italy
In order to reduce the mismatch effect caused by non-uniform shadows in PV arrays, reconfigurable interconnections approaches have been recently proposed in the literature. These systems usually require the knowledge of the solar radiation affecting every solar module. The aim of this work is to evaluate the effectiveness of three irradiance estimation approaches in order to define which can be well suited for reconfigurable PV arrays. It is presented a real-time solar irradiance estimation device (IrradEst), implementing the three different estimation methods. The proposed system is based on mathematical models of PV modules enabling to estimate irradiation values by sensing a combination of temperature, voltage and current of a PV module. Experimental results showed generally good agreement between the estimated irradiances and the measurements performed by a standard pyranometer taken as reference. Finally one of the three methods was selected as possible solution for a reconfigurable PV system.
