[Research Proposal]

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Acknowledgement

I would take this opportunity to thank my research supervisor, family and friends for their support and guidance without which this research would not have been possible (Won, 1994) (Won, 1994).

DECLARATION

I, [type your full first names and surname here], declare that the contents of this dissertation/thesis represent my own unaided work, and that the dissertation/thesis has not previously been submitted for academic examination towards any qualification. Furthermore, it represents my own opinions and not necessarily those of the University (Won, 1994) (Won, 1994).

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Abstract

The electric power supplied by a photovoltaic power generation system depends on the solar radiation and temperature. Designing efficient PV systems heavily emphasizes to track the maximum power operating point. This work develops a novel three-point weight comparison method that avoids the oscillation problem of the perturbation and observation algorithm which is often employed to track the maximum power point. Furthermore, a low cost control unit is developed, based on a single chip to adjust the output voltage of the solar cell array. Finally, experimental results confirm the superior performance of the proposed method (Simoes, 1999).

Table of Content

INTRODUCTIONVI

LITERATURE REVIEWVII

PROPOSED MPT METHODIX

Power Electronics Solar Panel

Introduction

Photovoltaic (PV) generation is becoming increasingly important as a renewable source since it offers many advantages such as incurring no fuel costs, not being polluting, requiring little maintenance, and emitting no noise, among others. PV modules still have relatively low conversion efficiency; therefore, controlling maximum power point tracking (MPPT) for the solar array is essential in a PV system. The amount of power generated by a PV depends on the operating voltage of the array. A PV's maximum power point (MPP) varies with solar insulation and temperature (Simoes, 1999).

It's V-I and V-P characteristic curves specify a unique operating point at which maximum possible power is delivered. At the MPP, the PV operates at its highest efficiency. Therefore, many methods have been developed to determine MPPT. For example: Ibrahimm and Houssing employed the look-up table on a microcomputer, to track MPP. Midya et al. applied a dynamic MPP tracker to PV appliances. Enslin and Snymam suggested the concept of “perturb and observe” (P&O), alternatives to which have been recently presented. Koutroulis et al. and Hussein et al. Offered the incremental conductance (IncCond) technique, since when, enhanced IncCond techniques have been proposed. Several investigations have recently applied fuzzy logic to resolve this problem. In MPPT, most control schema use the P&O technique because it is easy to implement. But the oscillation problem is unavoidable. This research developed an extended P&O technique - a three-point weight comparison method based on an 8-bit single-chip control unit - by utilizing a boost converter to adjust the output voltage of the PV for tracking the MPP. Models and simulations of this PV system and MPPT algorithms are offered with experimental results. The rest of this paper is organized as follows. Section II introduces the basic principle of the PV system. Sections III and IV describe the traditional P&O and the proposed algorithm three-point weight comparison method, ...