A 600 W Photovoltaic Groundwater Pumping System Based on LLC Converter and Constant Voltage MPPT

Abstract

The work consists of the development of a market-friendly 600 W photovoltaic battery-less water pumping system. The system is composed of four 280 Wp solar panels, an auxiliary 10 W solar panel, a three-phase converter and a ½ horsepower (hp) submersible water pump. The electronic stage involves a resonant DC-DC converter in series with a voltage source three-phase inverter. The novelties of this work are related to the use of a resonant DC-DC converter with fixed duty-cycle and frequency for water pumping application, the use of Silicon Carbide Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor Field-Effect Transistors (MOSFETs) for solving converter startup issues, and the use of a constant voltage maximum power tracking (MPPT) algorithm with auxiliary panels. The work displays the design of the converter, simulation and experimental results, discussions, and cost evaluation. The feasibility of the system is studied for the water requirements of a beef cattle farm in Brazil.

Keywords

• photovoltaic water pumping
• resonant DC-DC converter
• constant voltage MPPT