An Improved PSO-Based MPPT Control Strategy for Photovoltaic Systems

Abstract

This paper presents a control strategy proposed for power maximizing which is a critical mechanism to ensure power track is maximized. Many tracking algorithms have been proposed for this purpose. One of the more commonly used techniques is the incremental conductance method. In this paper, an improved particle swarm optimization- (IPSO-) based MPPT technique for photovoltaic system operating under varying environmental conditions is proposed. The approach of linearly decreasing scheme for weighting factor and cognitive and social parameter is modified. The proposed control scheme can overcome deficiency and accelerate convergence of the IPSO-based MPPT algorithm. The approach is not only capable of tracking the maximum power point under uniform insolation state, but also able to find the maximum power point under fast changing nonuniform insolation conditions. The photovoltaic systematic process with control schemes is created using MATLAB Simulink to verify the effectiveness with several simulations being carried out and then compared with the conventional incremental conductance technique. Lastly, the effectiveness of the intended techniques is proven using real data obtained form previous literature. With the change in insolation and temperature portrait, it produces exceptional MPPT maximization. This shows that optimum performance is achieved using the intended method compared to the typical method.