Maximizing output power from solar cells/panels through the development of an integrated voltage regulator/MPPT circuit

This paper presents the initial results of our research effort to fully integrate a voltage regulator with a Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT) circuit in order to harvest maximum power from solar cells or panels. We take a novel approach to emulate the inductor in a buck-boost voltage regulator us...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in2016 IEEE 59th International Midwest Symposium on Circuits and Systems (MWSCAS) pp. 1 - 4
Main Authors O'Connor, Joseph, Michael, Sherif, Ashton, Robert, Madren, Joseph
Format Conference Proceeding
LanguageEnglish
Published IEEE 01.10.2016
Subjects
Impedance
Inductance
Inductors
Integrated circuit modeling
Load modeling
Regulators
Voltage control
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Summary:This paper presents the initial results of our research effort to fully integrate a voltage regulator with a Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT) circuit in order to harvest maximum power from solar cells or panels. We take a novel approach to emulate the inductor in a buck-boost voltage regulator using a Generalized Impedance Converter (GIC), thereby eliminating the requirement for the grounded inductor which impedes full integration. LTSPICE™ models are developed to compare a traditional "inductive" voltage regulator with a "GIC" voltage regulator, and experimental results are discussed. Component size, switching frequency, and load-matching are optimized to achieve maximum efficiency; however, GIC operational-amplifier power consumption was an obstacle to high-efficiency operation.
ISSN:1558-3899
DOI:10.1109/MWSCAS.2016.7870104