SMC based MPPT to track the GMPP under Partial Shading

Abstract

This paper presents a technique based on sliding mode controller to track the global maximum power point. This one is designed to control the power of a photovoltaic system composed of three photovoltaic modules, of a sepic converter and a resistive load. This technique is designed to distinguish the global maximum power in a curve composed of a multiple point of maximums. In fact, the multiple maximums appear when the insolation is non-uniform. The proposed technique consists of an algorithm able to locate the global maximum power and to generate the corresponding reference of voltage whenever the insolation changes. In addition, it consists of a sliding mode control able to follow the voltage reference by controlling the duty cycle of the sepic converter. The performances of the proposed approach have been tested and validated through computer simulation.