IET Renewable Power Generation

Research Article

ISSN 1752-1416
Solar photovoltaic array fed water pump Received on 26th June 2015
Revised on 22nd August 2015
driven by brushless DC motor using Accepted on 4th September 2015
doi: 10.1049/iet-rpg.2015.0295
Landsman converter www.ietdl.org

Bhim Singh, Rajan Kumar ✉

Department of Electrical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, Hauz Khas, New Delhi 110016, India
✉ E-mail: sonkar.rajankumar36@gmail.com

Abstract: This study deals with the use of a Landsman converter for maximum power point tracking in solar photovoltaic
(SPV) array-based water pump driven by a permanent magnet brushless DC (BLDC) motor. The primary function of a DC–
DC Landsman converter is to optimise the power output of SPV array and it also provides the safe and soft starting of the
BLDC motor with an appropriate control. Amongst various DC–DC converters, Landsman converter meets the desired
performance of proposed water pumping system. The starting, dynamic and steady-state behaviours of the SPV array
fed BLDC motor driven water pump are presented to demonstrate the novelty of the proposed system. The SPV fed
water pumping system under study is simulated using MATLAB/SIMULINK environment and validated on a developed
prototype of the system in order to manifest its performance under practical operating conditions.

1 Introduction converter as an interface between the SPV array and voltage

Solar photovoltaic (SPV) array-based energy generation is receiving
wide attention nowadays to supply the various loads such as water
pumps. The water pumping system based on SPV array targets
mainly the irrigation on the agricultural field, household and
industrial water supply. In spite of such enormously developed
water pumping systems and available literature till date, various
challenges to come up with a cost-effective, simple, efficient and
reliable system have motivated the researchers towards this green
energy fed water pumping.
An electric motor plays a significant role to develop an energy
efficient and economical water pumping system based on the SPV
array. An efficient motor substantially reduces the size of SPV
array and hence its cost. The majority of commercial systems use
DC motors for water pump. Unfortunately, the DC motors have
low efficiency and high-maintenance cost due to their commutator
and brushes [1]. To get over from the aforementioned problems
associated with DC motors, the induction motor is employed to
drive a water pump in [1], due to its robustness, low cost, high
efficiency, availability in local markets and low-maintenance cost.
Nevertheless, this motor is not adapted in this work owing to some
of the limitations it possess which are not favourable for SPV
array-based water pumping, such as requirement of complicated
control and prone to overheating if the voltage is too low [2, 3]. A
permanent magnet brushless DC (BLDC) motor, incorporating the
merits of higher efficiency than an induction motor, high reliability,
high ruggedness, low Electromagnetic Interference (EMI)
problems, simple control, compactness, easy-to-drive, capability to
operate successfully at low voltage and excellent performance over
a wide range of speed [4, 5], appears as a solution to problems
associated with the use of an induction motor in SPV-based water
pumping and hence adapted in this work. The BLDC motor has
already superseded partially the DC and AC motors employed to
drive the water pump using SPV array as the source of electricity
[6–13] and continuously attracting the industrialist and customers.
It is mandatory to optimise the operating point of the SPV array in
order to get maximum possible power output by means of the
superior maximum power point tracking (MPPT) technique [14–
20]. An incremental conductance (INC) algorithm is frequently
reported in the literature as a less confused MPPT technique under
fast varying irradiance [17] and hence adapted in this work. The
MPPT of SPV array is accomplished by introducing a DC–DC
source inverter (VSI) feeding the BLDC motor. A DC–DC boost
converter [6], buck–boost converter [7], Luo converter [8],
canonical switching cell (CSC) converter [9], zeta converter [10]
and Z-source inverter (ZSI) [11] are already utilised with SPV
array fed BLDC motor driven water pump. Investigating the
various non-isolated DC–DC converters viz. buck, boost, buck–
boost, Cuk and single-ended primary inductor converter for
photovoltaic applications, although not based on water pumping, it
is concluded in [21] that the best selection of DC–DC converter in
the PV system is buck–boost converter, allowing an unbounded
region for MPPT. On the contrary to it, a buck–boost converter
always calls for a ripple filter at its both input and output for
coveted operation of the overall system, resulting in an associated
circuitry. Likewise, the converters used in [8–10] also necessitate
filtering elements at either input or output or both. The ZSI used
in [11] needs complex control and additional sensing elements,
and operated with a high-frequency pulse-width modulation
(PWM) switching pulses, resulting in an increased switching loss.
On the other hand, any converter besides the buck–boost topology,
for example buck and boost converter, is not recommended
because of their inability to track MPP independent of the loading
and atmospheric conditions [21].
A Landsman converter, one of the topology of a DC–DC buck–
boost converter, capable to overcome the aforementioned limitations
of various previously used converters in SPV array fed water
pumping, is adapted in this work. This converter is apparently
derived by a CSC [22] or topological transformations on a DC–DC
boost converter [23]. A small input inductor of the Landsman
converter, as shown in Fig. 1, acts as an input-ripple filter,
eliminating the external ripple filtering. This inductor also damps the
oscillation occurred, due to the snubber elements of insulated gate
bipolar transistor (IGBT) module, in the current through the module.
The proposed water pumping system using a DC–DC Landsman
converter is designed such that the operation is not deteriorated by
variation in irradiance level and losses associated with the
converters and motor pump. Moreover, the Landsman converter is
designed to operate always in continuous conduction mode (CCM)
irrespective of the variation in irradiance level, resulting in a
reduced stress on its power devices and components. The VSI is
operated with the pulses of fundamental frequency by means of
electronic commutation, resulting in a reduced switching loss. The
speed of BLDC motor is controlled by variation in the DC-link

IET Renew. Power Gener., 2016, Vol. 10, Iss. 4, pp. 474–484
474 & The Institution of Engineering and Technology 2016
Fig. 1 Configuration of SPV array – Landsman converter fed BLDC motor driven water pumping system

voltage. No additional phase current sensors, additional control or
associated circuitry are imposed unlike in [6, 11–13], for the speed
control. In addition, the DC-link voltage sensing is not required
for control at any stage. Therefore, the resultant motor drive offers
simplicity, compactness, cost effectiveness and easy-to-drive
features without scarifying the performance.
The starting inrush current of BLDC motor is restricted within the
permissible range by appropriate control of Landsman converter
through MPPT algorithm. The motor always attains the required
speed to pump the water irrespective of the atmospheric variation.
The various performances of the proposed water pumping system
are analysed through simulated results in MATLAB/SIMULINK
environment followed by the experimental validation on a
developed system. Simulated and experimental results demonstrate
the suitability of the proposed system for SPV-based water pumping.
configuration shown in Fig. 2a. The inductor current iL flows
through the switch. Since VC1 is larger than the output voltage Vdc,
C1 discharges through the switch, transferring energy to the
inductor L and the output. Therefore, vc1 decreases and iL
increases, as shown in Fig. 2c. The input feeds energy to the input
inductor L1.
3.2 Mode II – when switch is OFF
When the switch is off, diode is forward biased, resulting in a circuit
configuration as shown in Fig. 2b. The inductor current iL flows
through the diode. The inductor L transfers its stored energy to
output through the diode. On the other hand, C1 is charged
through the diode by energy from both the input and L1.
Therefore, vc1 increases and iL decreases, as shown in Fig. 2c.

3.3 Current ripple in input inductor L1

2 Configuration and operation of proposed
system The ripple in input current, that is the current through L1, IL1 is
calculated by considering its waveform as shown in Fig. 2c for
Fig. 1 illustrates the detailed configuration and operation of the CCM of operation, assuming that all of the ripple component in
proposed SPV array-based BLDC motor driven water pumping iL1 flows through C1. The shaded area in the waveform of vc1
system using the Landsman converter. The proposed system represents an additional flux ΔΦ. Therefore, the peak-to-peak
consists of an SPV array, Landsman converter, VSI and the BLDC current ripple DIL1 is written as
motor with a water pump coupled to its shaft. The Landsman
converter, acting as an interface between the SPV array and the
DF 1 1 DVC1 T
VSI, is operated by the execution of INC-MPPT algorithm in DIL = = (1)
order to extract the maximum power available from the SPV array. 1 L1 L1 2 2 2
The VSI, operated through the electronic commutation, feeds the
BLDC motor pump. The motor has three inbuilt low-cost From Fig. 2c during switch off, the current through C1 is as
Hall-effect position sensors, generating a particular combination of
three Hall signals according to the rotor position. DVC
iC1 = IL1 = C1 1
(2)
(1 − D)T
3 Operating principle of Landsman converter where D is the duty ratio and T is the switching period.
The voltage ripple content in vc1 is estimated from (2) as
The Landsman converter is designed to operate in CCM irrespective
of the variation in irradiance level. The circuit operation is divided
IL1
into two modes as shown in Figs. 2a, b, and the associated DVC1 = (1 − D)T (3)
waveforms are shown in Fig. 2c. C1

Therefore, substituting DVC1 from (3) into (1) gives

3.1 Mode I – when switch is ON
1 1 IL1 T
When the switch is on, VC1 , the voltage across intermediate DIL1 = (1 − D)T (4)
capacitor C1 reverse biases the diode, resulting in a circuit L1 2 2C1 2

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& The Institution of Engineering and Technology 2016 475
Fig. 2 Operation of the Landsman converter
a Mode I
b Mode II
c Waveforms

or Therefore, substituting IL1 from (7) into (5) and rearranging the
terms, it gives
1 IL1 (1 − D)
DIL1 = 2
(5)
8L1 C1 fSW DIdc
L1 = 2 C DI
(8)
8fSW 1 L1
It is normalised as

DIL1 1 (1 − D)
= 2
(6)
IL1 8L1 C1 fSW 4 Design of proposed system
where fSW = 1/T is the switching frequency. The configuration of the proposed system presented in Fig. 1 has
From the input–output relationship, it is obvious that various stages viz. SPV array, Landsman converter, BLDC motor
and a water pump. These stages are designed such that the
D operation and performances remain satisfactory and are not
IL1 = I (7)
1 − D dc deteriorated even by the sudden atmospheric disturbances. A
BLDC motor is selected to drive a water pump of 5.8 kW.
where Idc is the output current of Landsman converter. Following sections elaborate the design of various stages.

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476 & The Institution of Engineering and Technology 2016
Table 1 Design of solar PV array converter automatically operates either in buck mode or boost mode.
The estimation of the parameters of Landsman converter is
HB-12100 SPV module
number of cells in a module 36 summarised in Table 2, where C is the output capacitor at the DC
open-circuit voltage, Vo 21 V link of VSI, ΔIL is the permitted current ripple in IL, ΔVdc is the
short-circuit current, Io 7.1 A permitted voltage ripple in Vdc, ωh and ωl are the highest and lowest
voltage at MPP, Vm 17 V values of VSI output voltage frequencies, respectively, in rad/s, f is
current at MPP, Im 6A
the frequency of VSI output voltage in Hz, Ch and Cl are the
Design of SPV array capacitors estimated corresponding to ωh and ωl, respectively, P is
voltage at MPP, Vmpp = vpv 289 V the number of poles in the BLDC motor, Nrated is the rated speed of
power at MPP, Pmpp = ppv 6800 W
current at MPP, Impp = ipv Pmpp/Vmpp = 6800/289 =
the motor and N is the minimum speed required to pump the water.
23.53 A
numbers of modules connected Vmpp/Vm = 289/17 = 17
in series, Ns 4.3 Design of water pump
numbers of modules connected Impp/Im = 23.53/6 = 4
in parallel, Np A water pump is coupled to the shaft of BLDC motor, acting as a load.
open-circuit voltage, Voc Ns × Vo = 17 × 21 = 357 V This pump is designed by its power–speed characteristics as [25]
short-circuit current, Ioc Np × Io = 4 × 7.1 = 28.4 A

Pm 5800 −4

3
Kp = =
3 = 1.87 × 10 W/ rad/s (9)
4.1 Design of SPV array
v3 2 × p × 3000/60

To ensure the successful operation even at the minimum solar
irradiance of 200 W/m2 and considering the losses associated with
converters and motor pump, an SPV array of 6.8 kW peak power
rating is selected and designed for the proposed system. An array
of the required size is made by using HBL Power System Ltd.
make SPV module, HB-12100 with peak power capacity of 100 W
[24]. The maximum voltage of SPV array is selected as 289 V.
The electrical specifications of HB-12100 and designed SPV array
at 1000 W/m2 are estimated in Table 1.
where Kp is proportionality constant, Pm is the rated power and ω is
the rated speed of selected BLDC motor.
5 Control of proposed system
There are two control methodologies used in the proposed system at
two different stages, one for MPPT of SPV array and another for
BLDC motor operation as elaborated in the subsequent sections.

4.2 Design of Landsman converter 5.1 INC-MPP tracking

The Landsman converter is designed to operate in CCM irrespective An INC-MPPT technique [14–18] is applied to track the optimum
of the operating conditions. Following the atmospheric variation, the operating point of SPV array. This technique states that the power

Table 2 Design of Landsman converter

Parameter Expression Design data Value Selected value

Vdc
D Vdc = 310 V 0.52 0.52
Vdc + Vmpp Vmpp = 289 V
D × Idc
C1 D = 0.52 4.76 μF 5 μF
fSW DVC1 Pmpp = 6800 W
Vdc = 310 V
Idc = Pmpp/VdcVC1 = Vmpp + Vdc fSW = 20 kHz
Vmpp = 289 V
ΔVC1 = 20% of VC1
D × Idc
L1 D = 0.52 0.99 mH 1 mH
8 × fSW
2 × C × DI
1 L1 Pmpp = 6800 W
Vdc = 310 V
fSW = 20 kHz
C1 = 5 μF
IL1 = Impp Impp = 23.53 A
ΔIL 1 = 3% of IL 1
D × Vmpp
L D = 0.52 5.45 mH 6 mH
fSW DIL Vmpp = 289 V
fSW = 20 kHz
Idc = Pmpp/Vdc Pmpp = 6800 W
IL = Impp + Idc Vdc = 310 V
Impp = 23.53 A
ΔIL = 3% of IL
a
C vh = 2 × p × f P=6 Ch = 312.7 μF Cl = 853 μF 1000 μF
Nrated = 3000 rpm
2 × p × Nrated × P N = 1100 rpm
=
120 Vdc = 310 V
vl = 2 × p × f Pmpp = 6800 W
2×p×N ×P ΔVdc = 4% of Vdc
=
120
Idc
Ch =
6 × vh × DVdc
Idc
Cl =
6 × vl × DVdc
Idc = Pmpp/Vdc

a
Sixth harmonic component of the motor voltage appears on the DC link of VSI

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& The Institution of Engineering and Technology 2016 477
Table 3 Switching states for electronic commutation of BLDC motor
θ, deg Hall signals Switching states

h3 h2 h1 S1 S2 S3 S4 S5 S6

NA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
0–60 1 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 0
60–120 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 1
120–180 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 1
180–240 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 0
240–300 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 1 0
300–360 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0
NA 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0

slope of the PV array is null, positive and negative, respectively, at

MPP (dppv/dvpv = 0), left of MPP and right of MPP [14]. Due to
this fact, the MPP can be found in terms of INC as

ppv = vpv × ipv (10)

∂ ppv ∂ipv
= ipv + vpv × =0 (11)
∂vpv ∂vpv

∂ipv ipv
=− at MPP (12)
∂vpv vpv

∂ipv ipv
.− at the left of MPP (13)
∂vpv vpv

∂ipv ipv
,− at the right of MPP (14)
∂vpv vpv

To implement the INC-MPPT algorithm, the direct duty ratio control

[17] is adapted in view of the simplicity. This method obviating the
proportional–integral (PI) controller, directly uses duty ratio as the
control parameter. The direct duty ratio perturbation offers very
good stability characteristics and high energy utilisation efficiency
due to the low impact of noise and the absence of oscillation.
Moreover, higher perturbation rates up to the PWM rate can be
used without losing the global stability of the system.
An excellent tracking performance under dynamic condition with
negligible oscillations around optimum operating point is achieved.
Optimally selecting the initial value of duty ratio and its perturbation
size offer soft starting of BLDC motor by slowly increasing the
DC-link voltage of VSI.

5.2 Electronic commutation of BLDC motor

An electronic commutation of BLDC motor stands for commutating

the currents flowing through windings of BLDC motor in a
predefined sequence using a decoder circuit [4]. Three inbuilt
low-cost Hall sensors generate three Hall signals according to the
rotor position at an interval of 60°. These Hall signals are then
converted, using a decoder circuit, into the six switching pulses to
operate the VSI feeding a BLDC motor. In this manner,
fundamental frequency switching of VSI is obtained, resulting in a
reduced switching loss. Table 3 shows the switching states of VSI
for each particular combination of Hall signal states. It is
perceptible that only two switches conduct at a time, resulting in

Table 4 Dynamic variation in solar insolation level

Solar irradiance level, S, W/m2 400 1000 800

duration, s 0.0–0.3 0.3–0.6 0.6–0.9

vpv, V 260 289 269
ipv, A 10 23.53 20
ppv, W 2600 6800 5370 Fig. 3 Performance of SPV array – Landsman converter fed VSI-BLDC
vdc, V 200 310 279 motor pump system at 1000 W/m2
D 0.44 0.52 0.505
N, rpm 2146 3000 2784 a SPV array indices
isa, A 11.0 22.15 18.0 b Landsman converter indices
c BLDC motor pump indices

IET Renew. Power Gener., 2016, Vol. 10, Iss. 4, pp. 474–484
478 & The Institution of Engineering and Technology 2016
Fig. 4 Performance of SPV array – Landsman converter fed VSI-BLDC Fig. 5 Performance of SPV array – Landsman converter fed VSI-BLDC
motor pump system at 200 W/m2 motor pump system under dynamic condition
a SPV array indices a SPV array indices
b Landsman converter indices b Landsman converter indices
c BLDC motor pump indices c BLDC motor pump indices

IET Renew. Power Gener., 2016, Vol. 10, Iss. 4, pp. 474–484
& The Institution of Engineering and Technology 2016 479
120° conduction mode of operation of VSI and hence the reduced
conduction losses.
6 Simulated performance of proposed system
The various starting, dynamic and steady-state performances of the
proposed SPV array fed BLDC motor driven water pump using a
Landsman converter are evaluated in MATLAB/SIMULINK
environment. To illustrate the dynamic responses, sudden variation
in solar irradiance level is considered as indicated in Table 4.
Simulated results shown in Figs. 3–5 demonstrate the worthiness
of the system.
6.1 Starting and steady-state performances at 1000 W/
m2
The starting and steady-state responses of the INC-MPPT, Landsman
converter and BLDC motor pump are presented in Fig. 3 and
elaborated in the following subsections:
(i) Performances of INC-MPPT: Fig. 3a depicts the responses of
voltage, vpv, current, ipv and power, ppv of SPV array for
irradiance level, S of 1000 W/m2. These indices express that MPP
is tracked properly with negligible oscillation around the peak
power point by applying the INC-MPPT technique. The initial
duty ratio and its perturbation are selected appropriately (0 and
0.001, respectively) in order to achieve the soft starting of the
BLDC motor.
(ii) Operation of Landsman converter: Fig. 3b depicts various
converter indices viz. current through L1, iL 1 ; voltage across C1,
vc1 ; current through L, iL; voltage stress across the switch, vSW;
current stress through the switch, iSW; blocking voltage of diode,
vD; current through the diode, iD; duty ratio, D and DC-link
voltage of VSI, vdc. These responses demonstrate the operation of
converter in CCM with reduced stress on power devices. The
operation of the converter in boost mode is observed by duty ratio,
D which is larger than 0.5.
(iii) Performance of BLDC motor pump: The various motor
variables viz. back emf of phase ‘a,’ ea; stator current of phase ‘a,’
isa; speed, N; electromagnetic torque, Te and load torque offered
by pump, TL are shown in Fig. 3c. The BLDC motor develops its
rated torque and attains the rated speed. An electronic
commutation of BLDC motor causes a small pulsation in
electromagnetic torque. The soft starting of the motor is achieved
as shown by the response of isa.
Fig. 6 MPPT performance at
a 1000 W/m2
b 200 W/m2
480
6.2 Starting and steady-state performances at 200 W/m2
The capability of the proposed system to operate at minimum solar
irradiance level of 200 W/m2 is revealed in Fig. 4. The various
starting and steady-state responses are discussed in the following
subsections:
(i) Performances of INC-MPPT: The INC-MPPT is capable of
tracking MPP at 200 W/m2 also, without any deterioration in the
performance, as shown in Fig. 4a.
(ii) Operation of Landsman converter: Fig. 4b shows that the
converter operates in CCM at 200 W/m2. However, it now enters
automatically the buck mode, following the variation in
atmospheric condition.
(iii) Performance of BLDC motor pump: As shown in Fig. 4c, the
motor attains a speed higher than 1100 rpm, minimum speed
required to pump the water. Moreover, the soft starting is also
achieved for this operating condition.
6.3 Dynamic performance of proposed system
Performance of the proposed system is affected by the random
variation in solar irradiance level as shown in Fig. 5. Figs. 5a–c
show the dynamic behaviour of INC-MPPT, Landsman converter
and BLDC motor pump, respectively. All the indices are abided
by the atmospheric conditions and hence follow its variation.
Table 4 indicates various measured indices of SPV array and
BLDC motor under dynamic condition.
7 Hardware validation of proposed system
The various performances of INC-MPPT, Landsman converter and
BLDC motor pump are validated on a developed prototype of the
proposed system. The system constitutes an SPV array simulator
(AMETEK ETS 600 × 17DPVF), Landsman converter, VSI
(SEMIKRON MD B6CI 600/415–35F), real-time DSP controller
(dSPACE 1104) to perform MPPT and electronic commutation,
BLDC motor (Motor Power Company make) coupled with a DC
generator (Benn make) and resistive load bank. A volumetric
pump is realised by driving the DC generator feeding a resistive
load bank. Thus, this motor–generator–load set becomes analogous
to a volumetric pump, possessing proportional relationship
between torque and speed. Owing to the rating constraints,
IET Renew. Power Gener., 2016, Vol. 10, Iss. 4, pp. 474–484
& The Institution of Engineering and Technology 2016
experiments are carried out with a BLDC motor of 1 kW, 3000 rpm.
Detailed specifications of SPV array, Landsman converter and
BLDC motor used for test are given in Appendix. A voltage
sensor (LV-25P) and a current sensor (LA-55P) are used for
MPPT control. To provide the isolation between real-time
controller and gate drivers, the optocouplers (6N136) are used. A
four-channel digital storage oscilloscope (Agilent DSO7014A with
a bandwidth of 100 MHz) is used to record the waveforms.
Experimental performance and operation of the proposed system
are analysed in the following sections.
7.1 Maximum power point tracking
A BLDC motor of 1 kW power rating is supplied by a SPV array of
1200 W peak power capacity (at 1000 W/m2). The performance of
the developed system is tested for solar irradiance level varying
from 200 to 1000 W/m2 at a step of 100 W/m2. The recorded ppv–
vpv and ipv–vpv characteristics shown in Figs. 6a, b, respectively, at
1000 and 200 W/m2 verify the excellent performance of MPPT
technique. Tracking efficiency for both the irradiance levels is
observed more than 99%.
7.2 Steady-state performance at 1000 W/m2
The steady-state performances of SPV array, Landsman converter
and BLDC motor pump at 1000 W/m2 are validated using the
Fig. 7 Steady-state performance of
a SPV array
b and c Landsman converter
d BLDC motor, at 1000 W/m2
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& The Institution of Engineering and Technology 2016
recorded waveforms shown in Fig. 7 and elaborated in the
following sub-sections.
(i) Performance of SPV array: The recorded waveforms of various
SPV array indices vpv, ipv, ppv along with the DC-link voltage, vdc are
shown in Fig. 7a. The operation of Landsman converter in boost
mode is observed by the higher value of vdc = 270 V as compared
with vpv = 204 V. These indices correspond to the MPP.
(ii) Operation of Landsman converter: The Landsman converter is
operated at a switching frequency of 10 kHz. Fig. 7b represents some
of the converter indices vSW, iSW, vD and iD while Fig. 7c represents
the remaining converter indices iL 1 , iL, vC1 and vdc. These indices
justify the operation of converter in CCM and limited stress on its
power devices. The peak voltage and peak current of the switch are
560 V and 10.8 A, respectively. Similarly, the peak voltage and peak
current of the diode are 600 V and 10 A, respectively. The measured
iSW and iD comprise the current of snubber circuit. The snubber
element is directly screwed on the same IGBT and diode module. So,
the direct path to IGBT and diode is not accessible. However, the
oscillation in device current caused by the snubber circuit is damped
by input inductor, L1. The IGBT and diode operate in a
complementary fashion. The waveforms also depict that the converter
is functioning as a boost converter for this operating condition.
(iii) Performance of BLDC motor: Fig. 7d shows the recorded
waveforms of stator currents of all the three phases, isa, isb, isc and
481
Fig. 8 Steady-state performance of
a SPV array
b and c Landsman converter
d BLDC motor, at 200 W/m2
speed, N. The BLDC motor indices reach their rated values of 3000
rpm and 3.6 A; hence the pump is operated at its full capacity.
7.3 Steady-state performance at 200 W/m2
The steady-state behaviour of the proposed system is tested at a
minimum solar irradiance of 200 W/m2 also and desirable
performance is observed as described in the following sub-sections
using the recorded waveforms shown in Fig. 8.
(i) Performance of SPV array: The same indices as in Fig. 7a are
recorded at 200 W/m2 and shown in Fig. 8a. The interest is to verify
the successful operation of INC-MPPT and SPV array. The operation
of Landsman converter in buck mode is observed by a higher value
of vpv = 170 V with respect to vdc = 108 V.
(ii) Operation of Landsman converter: The recording of indices shown
in Figs. 7b, c is repeated at 200 W/m2. These indices are presented in
Figs. 8b, c. The Landsman converter still operates in CCM, reducing
the stress on its power devices. The peak voltage and peak current of
the switch are 300 V and 4 A, respectively. These values for the diode
are 310 V and 3.9 A, respectively. Moreover, the converter is
functioning as a buck converter for this operating condition.
(iii) Performance of BLDC motor: The BLDC motor indices shown
in Fig. 7d are recorded again at 200 W/m2 and are shown in Fig. 8d.
482
The measured stator currents of all the three phases are 1.7 A.
Moreover, BLDC motor attains the speed of 1194 rpm, which is
more than minimum speed required to pump the water. Hence, the
operation is not deteriorated at this operating condition also.
7.4 Starting performance of proposed system
The soft starting of BLDC motor, as represented in Figs. 9a, b at both
the standard and minimum solar irradiance of 1000 and 200 W/m2,
respectively, is demonstrated using the recorded waveforms of ipv,
vdc, isa and N. The initial duty ratio is set at 0.1 to start the BLDC
motor. All these indices reach their steady-state values when MPP
is tracked.
7.5 Dynamic performance of proposed system
To demonstrate the behaviour of system under dynamically varying
atmospheric condition, the solar irradiance is varied from 400 to
1000 W/m2 as shown in Fig. 10a and vice versa, as shown in
Fig. 10b. The recorded waveforms, shown in Fig. 10 are ipv, vdc,
isa and N. It is clearly observed that the MPP is tracked accurately.
The Landsman converter quickly changes its mode of operation
following the change in atmospheric condition. The change in
solar irradiance from 400 to 1000 W/m2 results in the change in
IET Renew. Power Gener., 2016, Vol. 10, Iss. 4, pp. 474–484
& The Institution of Engineering and Technology 2016
Fig. 9 Starting performance of proposed system at
a 1000 W/m2
b 200 W/m2

Fig. 10 Dynamic performance of proposed system under varying solar irradiance

a 400 W/m2 to 1000 W/m2
b 1000 W/m2 to 400 W/m2

Table 5 Efficiency estimation of proposed system

S, W/m2 Ppv, W Pm, W η, %

200 240 178.6 74.4

300 360 277.2 77
400 480 376.7 78.5
500 600 476.4 79.4
600 720 588.5 81.7
700 840 687.9 81.8
800 960 785.4 81.8
900 1080 880.3 81.5
1000 1200 1000 83.3

ipv from 2.5 to 6 A, vdc from 160 to 270 V, isa from 2.3 to 3.6 A and
N from 1800 to 3000 rpm. Thus, the water pumping is not Fig. 11 Efficiency and power with solar insolation level
interrupted at all.

7.6 Efficiency estimation of proposed system of 83.3% at rated load and 1000 W/m2 while the minimum
efficiency is observed as 74.4% at 200 W/m2.
The overall efficiency of the proposed system for different solar
irradiance is estimated considering the experimental data as
indicated in Table 5 where Ppv, Pm and η are, respectively, the
maximum power extracted from the SPV array, mechanical power 8 Conclusions
output of the BLDC motor and efficiency of the overall system.
Fig. 11 is a graphical representation of efficiency and power with A solar PV array-based BLDC motor driven water pump employing
solar insolation level. The proposed system exhibits an efficiency a Landsman converter has been proposed, and its starting, dynamic

IET Renew. Power Gener., 2016, Vol. 10, Iss. 4, pp. 474–484
& The Institution of Engineering and Technology 2016 483
and steady-state behaviours have been analysed through simulation
and implementation on the developed system. The presented
results have demonstrated the suitability of the proposed system
for water pumping irrespective of the practical operating
conditions. The utilisation of Landsman converter has eliminated
external filtering requirement and has also contributed to damp the
oscillations occurred in the module current due to snubber
elements. The speed control of BLDC motor by variable DC-link
voltage has completely eliminated the additional phase current
sensing, DC-link voltage sensing, additional control and associated
circuitry. The distinct features of the proposed system include
simplicity in the structure and control, cost-effectiveness,
compactness, very good efficiency, unbounded MPPT operation,
soft starting of the BLDC motor, operation of the Landsman
converter in CCM resulting in a reduced stress on devices,
fundamental frequency operation of VSI avoiding the
high-frequency switching losses and successful operation up to the
irradiance of 200 W/m2. The Landsman converter with BLDC
motor is hence proved as a compatible and suitable combination
for SPV array-based water pumping.
9 Acknowledgment
The authors were thankful to Department of Science and Technology
(DST), Govt. of India, for supporting this work under grant number:
RP02926.
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11 Appendix
Parameters for BLDC motor (simulated data): Stator phase/phase
resistance, Rs = 0.41 Ω; stator phase/phase inductance, Ls = 2.13
mH; torque constant, Kt = 0.74 Nm/A; voltage constant, Ke = 78
VL-L/krpm; rated speed, Nrated = 3000 rpm at 310 V DC; and
number of poles, P = 6.
Parameters of solar PV array (experimental data): Open-circuit
voltage, Voc = 252 V; short-circuit current, Isc = 7.1 A; maximum
power, Pmpp = 1.2 kW; voltage at MPP, Vmpp = 204 V; current at
MPP, Impp = 6 A; number of cells connected in series in a module,
Nss = 36; number of modules connected in series, Ns = 12; and
number of modules connected in parallel, Np = 1.
Parameters of Landsman converter (experimental data):
Switching frequency, fsw = 10 kHz; intermediate capacitor, C1 = 1
μF; input inductor, L1 = 1.75 mH; inductor, L = 3 mH; and
capacitor, C = 1500 μF.
Parameters for BLDC motor (experimental data): Stator phase/
phase resistance, Rs = 3.58 Ω; stator phase/phase inductance, Ls =
9.13 mH; torque constant, Kt = 0.74 Nm/A; voltage constant, Ke =
78 VL-L/krpm; rated speed, Nrated = 3000 rpm; and number of
poles, P = 4.
IET Renew. Power Gener., 2016, Vol. 10, Iss. 4, pp. 474–484
& The Institution of Engineering and Technology 2016