CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

Due to the concerns of global warming, environmental pollution, and the instability of oil prices,
the development of renewable energy based Distributed Generation is moving fast to meet the
worldwide urgent needs of utilizing clean energy sources and minimizing costs. Researchers
have identified many renewable energy sources. Among these sources, photovoltaic (PV) can be
considered the most essential resource because of the ubiquity, abundance, and sustainability of
solar radiant energy [1]. This method of utilizing solar energy is through PV cells in the form of
electrical energy. A group of cells forms a PV module and a combination of PV modules is
called a solar panel, while a group of solar panels is called a PV array which is connected to the
grid, India has tremendous scope of generating solar energy. The reason being the geographical
location and it receives solar radiation almost throughout the year, which amounts to 3000 h of
sunshine. This is equal to more than 5000 trillion kW h. Almost all parts of India receive 4–7 kW
h of solar radiation per square meters (Sudhakar et al., 2013). India has an ambitious plan to
build large grid-connected solar power plants, with a cumulative installed capacity of 20,000
MW by 2020, under the National Solar Mission (Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, 2014).

In a past year standalone solar systems are self-contained or portable solar PV systems that are
not connected to any local utility or mains electrical grid as they are generally used in remote and
rural areas. This generally means that the electrical appliances are a long way from the nearest
fixed electrical supply, or were the cost of extending a power line from the local grid may be
very expensive.

This chapter presents the background and the motivation for the research work, with an overview
of Research and Development in the area of solar energy utilization in the past, present and
future; the economics of solar PV energy generation; and, lastly the realization of the renewable
generation through subsystem approach such as micro-grid while touching upon the technical
issues in the control of converters in micro grids. Finally, the aims and objectives of the research
work are briefed and the organization of the thesis is presented.

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1.1 WORLD ENERGY SCENARIO

Power generation from renewable energy sources is gaining more and more attention and
visibility because of the exponential growth of energy demand, along with the fact that the
energy sector is the key domain in limiting the climate changes. Fossil fuel based power
generation contributes for CO2 emission, but the growth of this generation has continued over
decades as seen from the International Energy Agency (IEA) Market Report (2011-2013)as
given in Figure 1.1, and Table 1.1.

Figure 1.1 Total World Electricity Generation mix by Fuel (Source: IEA 2011)

Every year approximately 7 million tons of carbon dioxide is exhausted from coal-fired power
generating stations around the globe. Perhaps the coal-fired power plants are the major
contributors of greenhouse gas emissions and a major cause for the environmental implications
as seen from a report of IEA shown in Figure1.2

Figure1.2 Greenhouse gas emissions from electricity production.

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Table 1.1 Percentage of coal based electricity generation in various countries

Electricity
Country generated
from coal (%)

South Africa 93

Australia 78

India 68

Israel 58

Greece 54

Poland 87

Kazakhastan 75

Czech Rep 51

USA 45

PR China 79

Source: IEA, 2012.

The total coal consumption and greenhouse gas emissions are going on rising in an unstoppable
manner that has been the driver for drawing increased attention for renewable energy since the
year 2000. In the recent years, wind and solar photovoltaic technologies have seen a major scale-
up. Renewable electricity generation grew at a yearly average of 2.8%, whereas the growth seen

3
in the total electricity generation is 3%. As per EIA as Renewable energy market report (2013),
to achieve reduction in energy related CO2 emission to half from today‘s levels by 2020 the
renewable generation must be doubled to that of the present figures. Renewable energy is now
the fastest-growing power sector with the objectives of making the global energy system much
cleaner and diversified which will make up almost a quarter of the global power mix by 2018.

Non-OECD countries with China as a leader should be the major stakeholder of the global
increase in renewable energy generation from now until 2018. Such a rapid deployment in
OECD countries is expected to compensate for slower growth in other parts of the globe such as
Europe and the US.

1.2 ENERGY SCENARIO IN INDIA

The capacity addition of coal-based generation has been consistently increasing in China and

India over the last few decades as presented in Figure1.3 This is of utmost
concern for International bodies like IPCC (2013), UNDP, and UNEP etc., who are working on
the assessment of climate changes. Remedial measures at various levels have been taken, to cut
or slow down the growth of emissions in India in various sectors like energy, transport, industry
etc. Because of the continued action plans and monitoring now, the scenario is showing positive
trends.

Figure 1.3 Trend of installed capacity in coal based generation

Because of the policy uncertainties, the capacity addition of both on-shores as well as off-shore
wind forms is becoming volatile. As per IEAs projected statistics (2013) as seen inFigure1.4, a
strong growth in Solar PV capacity addition is seen in countries like India, China, Middle East

4
and Latin America. India is blessed with a great solar potential with an average of more than 300
days of sunshine over a year. Besides this, the other reasons are strong government backing with
Five Year Plans, eased rules for grid connection, generation based incentives, generous low cost
finance and robust manufacturing etc.

Figure1.4 Solar Photovoltaic (PV) capacity additions in GW (Source: IEA-2013)

Yet there are some emerging challenges in the deployment of solar PV systems like challenging
economic conditions, policy uncertainties, and most importantly the technology-related grid
integration issues.

1.3 INTERCONNECTION OF RENEWABLE ENERGY SOURCES INTO THE GRID

TECHNICAL ISSUES
The electrical energy systems are going to undergo large-scale uplifts due to the interconnection
of various Renewable energy sources (RES) into them. The outcome of such a transition will
thus provide high standard utility services through distributed energy resources, sophisticated
sensors and measuring units, better communications and net metering facilities enabling
bidirectional power management etc. The integration of RES into the utility will modify the
nature and direction of power flow in them that was originally following a radial path. These

5
capabilities are to be attained through power electronics that serves as the interface between the
generator and the utility/grid.

Besides the control capabilities of the power electronics, energy management becomes a
challenging task when, a major share of the generation is from RES in the utility. Under such
circumstances, the effect of removal or reconnection of RES will create a major impact on the
utility. The other major technical issues with increased RES usage are the electricity supply and
demand balance, i.e. they should be balanced in shorter periods typically as low as a few hours or
even shorter than that. Additional challenges are put forth on the power system planning and
operation with high renewable energy generation allowed or penetrated into the grid, including
management under low-demand periods by curtailment of excess electricity generation. Thus, a
more flexible system better than the present one is needed to accommodate increasing levels of
renewable generation. Increase in the system flexibility requires a large range of supply side and
demand side options, requiring a huge technological advance, new operating procedures,
advanced business solutions, and new government rules.

With higher energy demand, growth and high levels of renewable penetration will increase the
grid integration challenges. From the point of view of the power system-planning, increased
renewable energy penetration into a power system increases the vulnerability of it due to loss of
generation thus decreasing the stiffness of the power systems. This may restrict the growth of
renewable energy generation due to requirement of capacity increase of spinning reserves,
adding of necessary storage into the grid, addition of fast responding power plants to tackle high
wind/solar seasons, adding of large energy storages, strict demand management etc. These
factors restrict the renewable energy penetration levels in growing economies, where the
electricity even today is treated as a fuel, with weak grids of low short circuit impedances.

1.4 MICRO-GRIDS
A micro-grid is the recent attempt for the solution of the renewable penetration problem in
growing economies as reported by various authors viz. Robert. H Lasseter & Paolo Piagi (2004),
Bagnan Beidou et al. (2010), Kueck et al. (2005), Reed et al. (2010), DOE Smart Grid report
(2009), Robin Podmore & Marck Ramon Robinson (2012), Meysam Shamshiri et al.(2012) and
Mehrizi-Sani & Reza Iravani (2010)(2012). A micro-grid approach treats the generation and the
associated loads as a subsystem. i.e. it consists of a collection of loads and sources operating as a
single controlled region that powers a local area. This gives the flexibility to control the

6
generation locally, thus eliminating the need for central load dispatch and making the system
more reliable. The supply demand balance can be maintained within the controlled region even
for very short periods. Varieties of sources of generation are available within micro-grids such as
diesel engines, gas/micro-turbines, photovoltaic, fuel cells and wind turbines etc. The micro-grid
does have a utility interconnection point, and it can operate with or without the utility
connection, depending on the mode of operation, the availability of generation, presence of the
utility etc. Converter systems through which most of the generators are tied to the system enable
the control capabilities for the micro-grids.

1.5 Technical challenges in microgrid

Protection system is one of the major challenges for microgrid which must react to both main
grid and microgrid faults. The protection system should cut off the microgrid from the main grid
as rapidly as necessary to protect the microgrid loads for the first case and for the second case the
protection system should isolate the smallest part of the microgrid when clears the fault [30]. A
segmentation of microgrid, i.e. a design of multiple islands or sub-microgrids must be supported
by microsource and load controllers.

1.6. Motivation of project work

The microgrid concept acts as a solution to the conundrum of integrating large amounts
of micro generation without disrupting the operation of the utility network. With
intelligent coordination of loads and micro-generation, the distribution network
subsystem (or 'microgrid') would be less troublesome to the utility network, than
conventional microgeneration. The net microgrid could even provide ancillary services
such as local voltage control. In case of disturbances on the main network, microgrids
could potentially disconnect and continue to operate separately. This operation improves
power quality to the customer. From the grid’s perception, the benefit of a microgrid is
that it can be considered as a controlled entity within the power system that can be
functioned as a single aggregated load. Customers can get benefits from a microgrid
because it is designed and operated to meet their local needs for heat and power as well
as provide uninterruptible power, enhance local reliability, reduce feeder losses, and
support local voltages/correct voltage sag. In addition to generating technologies,
microgrid also includes storage, load control and heat recovery equipment. The ability of

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the microgrid to operate when connected to the grid as well as smooth transition to and
from the island mode is another important function.

1.7. Objective of the thesis

The main objective of this thesis is the development of a 400 Watt PV solar array
microgrid system which will reduce the process of multiple reverse conversions
associated with individual Photovoltaic (PV) system .In order to analyze the operation of
microgrid system both the modeling and controlling of the system are important issues.
Hence the control and modeling (to be discussed detail in Chapter 4) are also the part of
this thesis work. As a part of the thesis work the overall system is simulated using
MATLAB environment. In simulation work the system is modeled using different state
equations.

1.8. Thesis organization

The thesis has been organized into six chapters. Following the chapter one introduction, the rest
of the thesis is outlind as follows.

Chapter 2 explains detailed literature review modelling of solar PV array microgrid with the
implantation of maximum power point tracking.

Chapter 3 represents explains the problem identification in previous work of the 250 watt
microgrid system in detail.
In chapter 4 the overall configuration of the 400 watt solar PV array microgrid system was
implemented. Along with the operation of the grid and modeling and control of the used
converters are described. In this chapter the detail explanation is made using block diagrams and
different algebraic equations.
Chapter 5 presents all the simulation results which are found using MATLAB/ SIMULINK
environment.
Chapter 6 provides comprehensive summary and conclusions of the work undertaken in this
thesis and also acknowledge about the future work. The references taken for the purpose of
research work are also the part of this chapter
.

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 CHAPTER-2
LITERATURE REVIEW

The review of literature made it clear that no studies were made in the area of designing ,
developing and test a micro-grid connected converter with a dynamic, effective and reliable
control scheme with MPPT which can work satisfactorily even during transient conditions. This
present research will full fill this requirement.

B. Shiva Kumar and K. Sudhakar et.alin the year 2015published a paper on ELSEVIER states
that, the growing energy demand in developing nations has triggered the issue of energy security.
This has made essential to utilize the untapped potential of renewable resources. Grid connected
PV systems have become the best alternatives in renewable energy at large scale. Performance
analysis of these grid connected plants could help in designing, operating and maintenance of
new grid connected systems. A 10 MW photovoltaic grid connected power plant commissioned
at Ramagundam is one of the largest solar power plants with the site receiving a good average
solar radiation of 4.97kWh/m2/day and annual average temperature of about 27.3 degrees
centigrade. The plant is designed to operate with a seasonal tilt. In this study the solar PV plant
design aspects along with its annual performance is elaborated. The various types of power
losses (temperature, internal network, power electronics, grid connected etc.) and performance
ratio are also calculated. The performance results of the plant are also compared with the
simulation values obtained from PV syst and PV-GIS software. The final yield (YF) of plant
ranged from 1.96 to 5.07 h/d, and annual performance ratio (PR) of 86.12%. It has 17.68% CUF
with annual energy generation of 15 798.192 MW h/Annum (Performance evaluation of 10 MW
grid connected solar photovoltaic power plant in India.[1]

,Vikrant Sharma and S.S. Chandelet.alin the year 2013 published a paper on ECONPAPERS
states that, the performance analysis of a 190 kWp solar photovoltaic power plant installed at
Khatkar-Kalan, India, is carried out. The final yield, reference yield and performance ratio, are
found to vary from 1.45 to 2.84 kWh/kWp-day, 2.29 to 3.53 kWh/kWp-day and 55–83%
respectively. The annual average performance ratio, capacity factor and system efficiency are
found to be 74%, 9.27% and 8.3% respectively. The average annual measured energy yield of
the plant is found to be 812.76 kWh/kWp. The average annual predicted energy yield is found to
be 823 kWh/kWp using PVSYST. The estimated energy yield is in close agreement with

9
measured results with an uncertainty of 1.4%. The total estimated system losses due to
irradiance.[2]

The Ministry of Electricity and Renewable Energy (MERE) et.al in the year 2012 published a
article which began promoting the system of ‗Feed-in Tariff‘ in billing. The introduced system
allows the user to generate electricity through solar panels mounted on the roofs of residential
buildings and governmental organizations and tied to the grid. To benefit from MERE‘s
approach, the National Water Research Center (NWRC) (Qanatir, Egypt) set up a pilot rooftop
91 kW PV system. All the generated electricity is fed into the 220 V, 50 Hz low voltage grid
serving NWRC premises. In this manuscript a MATLAB Simulink model is constructed
mimicking a detailed representation of the system tied either to the local low voltage grid or to
the national high voltage grid. The aim of such modeling effort is to provide early evaluation of
the system performance. The economical savings of both scenarios are compared based on the
new billing system. Results show that the current system saves 100 thousand L.E./year, while
tying the system to the national grid will save 235.8 thousand L.E./year.© 2017 National Water
Research .[3]

L.M. Ayompe et.al in the year 2011 published a paper on ELSEVIER states that this paper
presents results obtained from monitoring a 1.72 kWp photovoltaic system installed on a flat 24
roof of a 12 m high building in Dublin, Ireland (latitude 53.4N and longitude 6.3E). The system
was 25 monitored between November 2008 and October 2009 and all the electricity generated
was fed into 26 the low voltage supply to the building. Monthly average daily and annual
performance parameters of 27 the PV system evaluated include: final yield, reference yield, array
yield, system losses, array capture 28 losses, cell temperature losses, PV module efficiency,
system efficiency, inverter efficiency, performance 29 ratio and capacity factor. The maximum
solar radiation, ambient temperature and PV module tempera- 30 ture recorded were 1241 W/m
31 2 in March, 29.5 C and 46.9 C in June respectively. The annual total energy generated was
885.1 kW h/kWp while the annual average daily final yield, ref- 32 erence yield and array yield
were 2.41 kW h/kWp/day, 2.85 kW h/kWp/day and 2.62 kW h/kWp/day 33 respectively. The
annual average daily PV module efficiency, system efficiency and inverter efficiency 34 were
14.9%, 12.6% and 89.2% respectively while the annual average daily performance ratio and
capacity 35 factor were 81.5% and 10.1% respectively. The annual average daily system losses,

10
capture losses and cell 36 temperature losses were 0.23 h/day, 0.22 h/day and 0.00 h/day
respectively. 37 Comparison of this system with other systems in different locations showed that
the system had the 38 highest annual average daily PV module efficiency, system efficiency and
performance ratio of 14.9%, 39 12.6% and 81.5% respectively. The PV system‘s annual average
daily final yield of 2.4 kW h/kWp/day is 40 higher than those reported in Germany, Poland and
Northern Ireland. It is comparable to results from 41 some parts of Spain but it is lower than the
reported yields in most parts of Italy and Spain. Despite 42 low insulation levels, high average
wind speeds and low ambient temperature improve Ireland‘s 43 suitability. Temperature, module
quality, array mismatch, ohmic wiring and inverter, are found to be 31.7%. The study shows that
energy generated is maximum during March, September, and October and minimum in January.
The performance of the system is compared with PV systems installed worldwide and found
comparable. The results presented provide insight to the long-term performance of the solar
power plant under actual operating conditions in India. The need for optimizing solar panel
inclination is emphasized for maximizing power generation. Further, follow-up research studies
are also identified power load. The results were claimed to be suitable for further experiments of
inverters and the maximum power point tracking in the PV system.[4]

Tsai et.al. in the year 2010 presented in their paper a novel model of photovoltaic (PV) module
which is implemented in Matlab/Simulink. The effect of irradiance and temperature is taken into
account for the proposed model. The output current and power characteristics are simulated and
analyzed using the proposed PV model. The model verification has been confirmed through an
experimental measurement.[5]

Di Piazza et al. in the year 2010discussed a simulator of a photovoltaic (PV) field in which the
I-V characteristic is obtained either with a fully analytical model or with a numerical model. The
power circuit used is a dc-dc buck converter controlled by the I-V relation of the PV array. The
new algorithm for the PV array modelling is as follows: A continuous surface in the irradiance
domain is considered and a relation between temperature and irradiance is obtained by least
square regression method, and a thermal constant of the PV field is introduced. A PV simulator
prototype is experimentally tested.[6]

Yuan Li et.al in the year 2009 presented an article states that the hybrid control strategy for
photovoltaic (PV) emulator. The mathematic modelling of the I-V curve of PV arrays is

11
presented and the emulator can work in four different modes. The control unit of the emulator is
designed using TMS320LF2407 DSP. A 2-kW prototype is reported to be built and tested with a
variable resistive load and a constant.[7]

Atlas & Sharaf et.al in the year 2007 presented a simulation model for photovoltaic array (PVA)
inMatlab-Simulink. The model is developed using basic circuit equations of the photovoltaic
(PV) solar cells including the effects of solar irradiation and temperature changes. The testing of
the model is done with dc as well as ac loads. The test results were also presented.[8]

Martin-Segura et.al in the year 2007 published in their paper proposed a PV arrayemulator with
new model forPV array. The proposed system consists of a 4.4 kW AC/DC power converter
based on a DC/DC full-bridge structure and High Frequency (HF) transformer, that allows
testing PV inverters'.[9]

Eftichios Koutroulis, et.al.in the year 2006 proposed a novel real-time PV simulator using
FPGAs. It consisted of a Buck converter controlled by an FPGA generating the PWM pulses.
The user can select the type of PV module and the ambient conditions. It can be used in the
prototype development of power converters. The experimental results showed an accuracy of
1.03% for the emulated I-V characteristics performance up to 4 kW with a 650 V and 7 A
input.[10]

Hiroshi Nagayoshi et al. in the year 2003 described in their second paper about the developed
aphoto-sensor temperature based 30 W module/array simulator circuit using an I-V magnifier
circuit. The voltage and current gain was independently adjusted using the feedback control of
the current signal from the photo sensor. An LED light output controls the simulator output
power. The experimental results of the simulator was claimed to exhibit the temperature
dependence characteristics of PV modules.[11]

Hiroshi Nagayoshi et al. in the year 2002 described in their paper about the basic characteristics
of the PV module/array simulator circuit implemented in hardware. For obtaining the solar cell
characteristics the authors magnified the output of a small pn photo-sensor using analog circuits.

12
A variation in fill factor is made available for the user, thus making the simulator a general
purpose one which can simulate many kinds of PV modules or arrays.[12]

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 CHAPTER 3
PROBLEM IDENTIFICATION:

Renewable energy resources such as solar and wind energies are highly advantageous compared
to the conventional sources of power in many ways that they clean and available infinitely.
Various issues and challenges that need to be addressed in grid integration of renewable energy
systems. The importance of the simulation tools in grid integration studies is demonstrated
through several case studies. Integration of renewable energy into the utility grid can be at either
the transmission level or the distribution level, depending on the scale of generation. Large
renewable energy generation such as wind farms are directly interconnected to the transmission
system. The application of the proposed methods to identify problems and to find the suitable
solutions is also highlighted.

Due to the chaotic nature of weather systems and the uncertainties involved in atmospheric
conditions such as temperature, cloud amount, dust and relative humidity, precise solar power
forecasting can be extremely difficult. A number of forecasting models have been developed for
solar resources and power output of PV plants at utility scale level in the past few years.

With installation of grid tied PV generators in residences, power is now generated in small units
distributed across the network. This calls for reviewing the systems protection setup of existing
network. The increase in fault current contribution as penetration of PV system in network
increases with time is likely to need a revisit of the fault interruption capacity of devices as well
as need for revisiting the protection coordination. With research work progressing for
performance reliability and improvement of PV systems, there has been substantial research
done to address and understand the protection issues arising out of the increase in PV penetration
in power distribution network.

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 CHAPTER 4
METHODOLOGY

4.1 SOLAR/ PV CELL:

A solar cell basically is a p-n semiconductor junction. Energy from the sun comes to Earth in
tiny pieces called photons. Photons can hit atoms and give off energy. photons have travelled all
the way from the Sun and are hitting the atoms to produce heat. Since they produce electricity
from light, solar cells are also called photovoltaic cells (―photo‖ is Greek for light and ―volt‖ is
a unit of electricity). A photovoltaic cell works by capturing a photon from the sun using special
metals called semiconductors. When photons hit semiconductors, they can produce electricity
instead of heat. By using semiconductors to build solar cells, we can produce electricity from
sunlight. Solar cell offers several advantages such as: high reliability, low maintenance cost, no
environmental pollution, and absence of noise.

Figure4.1 Schematic of the basic structure of a silicon solar cell(Source WBDG)

15
A simple solar cell consists of solid state p-n junction fabricated from a semiconductor material
(usually silicon). In dark, the IV characteristic of a solar cell has an exponential characteristic
similar to that of a diode[1]. However when the solar energy (photons) hits on the solar cell,
energy greater than the band gap energy of the semiconductor, and release electrons from the
atoms in the semiconductor material, creating electron-hole pairs [2]. The charged carriers are
moved apart under the influence of internal electric fields of the p-n junction and hence a current
proportional to the incident photon radiation is developed. This phenomenon is called
photovoltaic effect. When the cell is short circuited, current flows in the external circuit but
when open circuited, current is shunted internally by the intrinsic p-n junction diode.

Although Photovoltaic panel is a simple and elegant method of harnessing the sun's energy and it
directly convert the incident solar radiation into electricity, with no noise, pollution or moving
parts, making them robust, reliable and long lasting but there are many factors affecting the panel
efficiency such as tilt angle, shading, dust, solar radiation level, temperature and wiring losses.
Among these factors, solar radiation level and temperature are more prominent. The solar
radiation level falling on the PV panels varies depending on the location of the panel and the
time intervals in a day. Therefore, solar radiation level has a direct effect on the panel power.

In order to carry out the research, a step by step method has been used to achieve the final target
of the work. For the research work to be carried out it is important that the selected software
should have adequate features to allow modelling of PV system and equivalent sources, simulate
the performance of the system. The software checked for suitability is MATLAB. MATLAB
stands for matrix laboratory. It is a powerful tool for designing and analyzing GUI and Simulink
model of any particular system. We can design and simulate the Simulink model of photovoltaic
arrays. Therefore for the purpose of this research work MATLAB has been exclusively used.
Grid connected PV system consists of solar panels, DC–DC converter, MPPT controller, inverter
and grid connection equipment. It has no energy storage losses since there are no batteries used
as it is not a standalone system. The system‘s components are modelled in MATLAB/Simulink
software environment. MATLAB/Simulink is selected, due to its reusability, extendibility, and
flexibility in such systems. It is a dynamic model where the simulation time is 3s; sampling time
is 10−5s, since the time step has to be lower than the propagation time.

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4.2 GRID CONNECTED PV SYSTEMS:

In recent years, however, the number of solar powered homes connected to the local electricity
grid has increased dramatically. These Grid Connected PV Systems have solar panels that
provide some or even most of their power needs during the day time, while still being connected
to the local electrical grid network during the night time. in grid connected PV systems,
electricity flows back-and-forth to and from the mains grid according to sunlight conditions and
the actual electrical demand at that time. Solar powered PV systems can sometimes produce
more electricity than is actually needed or consumed, especially during the long hot summer
months. This extra or surplus electricity is either stored in batteries or as in most grid connected
PV systems, fed directly back into the electrical grid network. Performance analysis of these grid
connected plants could help in designing, operating and maintenance of new grid connected
systems(ss). In a grid connected PV system, also known as a ―grid-tied‖, or ―on-grid‖ solar
system, the PV solar panels or array are electrically connected or ―tied‖ to the local mains
electricity grid which feeds electrical energy back into the grid.

Fig 4.2 : Grid connected PV system (Source MNRE 2011

17
Grid connected PV system always have a connection to the public electricity grid via a suitable
inverter because a photovoltaic panel or array (multiple PV panels) only deliver DC power. As
well as the solar panels, the additional components that make up a grid connected PV system
compared to a stand alone PV system are:

 Inverter: The inverter is the most important part of any grid connected system. The
inverter extracts as much DC (direct current) electricity as possible from the PV array
and converts it into clean mains AC (alternating current) electricity at the right voltage
and frequency for feeding into the grid or for supplying domestic loads. It is important
to choose the best quality inverter possible for the budget allowed as the main
considerations in grid connected inverter choice are: Power – Maximum high and low
voltage power the inverter can handle and Efficiency – How efficiently does the inverter
convert solar power to AC power.

 Electricity Meter: The electricity meter also called a Kilowatt hour (kWh) meter is used
to record the flow of electricity to and from the grid. Twin kWh meters can be used,
one to indicate the electrical energy being consumed and the other to record the solar
electricity being sent to the grid. A single bidirectional kWh meter can also be used to
indicate the net amount of electricity taken from the grid. A grid connected PV system
will slow down or halt the aluminium disc in the electric meter and may cause it to spin
backwards. This is generally referred to as net metering.

 AC Breaker Panel and Fuses: The breaker panel or fuse box is the normal type of fuse
box provided with a domestic electricity supply and installation with the exception of
additional breakers for inverter and/or filter connections.

 Safety Switches and Cabling: A photovoltaic array will always produce a voltage
output in sunlight so it must be possible to disconnect it from the inverter for
maintenance or testing. Isolator switches rated for the maximum DC voltage and
current of the array and inverter safety switches must be provided separately with easy
access to disconnect the system. Other safety features demanded by the electrical
company may include earthing and fuses. The electrical cables used to connect the
various components must also be correctly rated and sized.

18
 
 The Electricity Grid: Finally the electricity grid itself to connect too, because without
the utility grid it is not a Grid Connected PV System.

Solar energy gathered by photovoltaic solar panels, intended for delivery to a power grid,
must be conditioned, or processed for use, by a grid-connected inverter. Fundamentally, an
inverter changes the DC input voltage from the PV to AC voltage for the grid. This inverter
sits between the solar array and the grid, draws energy from each, and may be a large stand-
alone unit or may be a collection of small inverters, each physically attached to individual
solar panels. The inverter must monitor grid voltage, waveform, and frequency. One reason
for monitoring is if the grid is dead or strays too far out of its nominal specifications, the
inverter must not pass along any solar energy. An inverter connected to a malfunctioning
power line will automatically disconnect in accordance with safety rules

Performance analysis of these grid connected plants could help in designing, operating and
maintenance of new grid connected systems (ss). India receives solar energy in the region of 5 to
7 kWh/m2 for 300 to 330 days in a year. This energy is sufficient to set up 20 MW solar power
plant per square kilometre land area. A 10 MW photovoltaic grid connected power plant
commissioned at Ramagundam is one of the largest solar power plants with the site receiving a
good average solar radiation of 4.97kWh/m2/day and annual average temperature of about 27.3
degrees centigrade. A 5MWSPV power plant was designed (Besarati et al., 2013) for 50 cities of
Iran. Elhodeiby et al. (2011) presented a performance analysis of 3.6 kW Rooftop grid connected
solar photovoltaic system in Egypt. The system was monitored for one year and all the electricity
generated was fed into the 220 V, 50 Hz low voltage grid to the consumer.

4.3 MATHEMATICAL MODEL 0F PV PANEL WITH EXTRACTED PARAMETERS:

In a solar cell, when photons of the incident radiation collide with the valence electrons of the
silicon they will be absorbed, releasing electrons and holes into the crystal lattice. On open
circuit a direct emf or voltage appears across its terminals. When an external electrical circuit is
connected to its terminal a direct electric current flows. A solar cell is basically a current
generator, whose output current and voltage depend on the irradiance G and the Cell temperature
TC. Figure 4.3 shows the equivalent circuit of a single solar cell. The V-I characteristics of the

19
cell are determined by the diode. The i-v characteristics of a commercial solar module S115 is
presented in Figure 5.2.

Figure 4.3 Equivalent circuit of solar PV cell (Source 1M4P)

Figure 4.4 I-V characteristics of Solar PV panel

There are four manufacture dependent parameters present in equation (5.1), viz, Iph, IO, A and
RS. The values of these parameters are unique for a module and depend on the type of
semiconducting materials used, type and amount of doping and the processing technology used

20
and also the physical size of the panel. For an accurate modeling these parameters are to be
known, and generally they are not available and some typical values for these parameters are
assumed in models. In the proposed research work the values of the manufacture-dependent
parameters viz, Iph, IO, A and RS, pertaining to a particular PV panel are extracted from the i-v
characteristics published in the data sheet of that particular PV panel. A curve fitting based
extraction technique is adapted for the extraction of the model parameters.

4.4 DESCRIPTION OF THE SOLAR PV MICRO GRID SYSTEM

A grid-connected PV system consists of solar panels, inverters, a power conditioning unit and
grid connection equipment. It has effective utilization of power that is generated from solar
energy as there are no energy storage losses. When conditions are right, the grid-connected PV
system supplies the excess power, beyond consumption by the connected load to the utility grid.
But, in stand-alone systems batteries are used to store energy or else energy has to be directly
connected to load (see Fig. 4.5).

4.4.1 GEOGRAPHICAL LOCATION OF THE SITE

The NTPC 10 MW solar power plant is located at a longitude of 18.75′′ N, latitude 79.46′′ E and
at an altitude of 169 m. The National Thermal Power plant (NTPC) opted this site for their
construction of its 10 MW Solar Plant as it located at geographically good location where it can
absorb more solar radiation for the entire year as power generated by solar plant completely
depends up on its sun‘s insolation.

4.4.2 PLANT LAYOUT

The total rating of the plant is 10 MW occupied over 50 acres of land. This plant area is divided
into eight different blocks with each two equal blocks. Each individual block has the generating
capacity of about 625 kW thus total of sixteen blocks combined to form a 10 MW generation
capacity. Each block of solar panels consists of about 230 strings each and a total of 1852
strings.

These large numbers of solar panels in single block are again divided into two blocks of strings.
Each string consists of 24 solar panels connected in series and about 120 of these strings are
connected in parallel to a single inverter through a main string combined box. Three phases

21
double fed primary winding transformer is used. Converted AC power from the two inverters is
fed to these two primaries of the transformer. Each string consists of 24 modules in that way 16
strings are connected to one string combined box (SCB). Total 15 SCB‘S are connected to one
main string combined box (MSCB‘S). Each inverter is connected with one main string combined
box. Total 16 inverters are connected to eight transformers with each two. The output of
transformer is connected directly to 33 kV grid (see Fig. 4.4).

The plant is installed in such a way that it is cost effective, more reliable, and more energy
output. During nights when there is no power generation due to lack of solar radiation, the power
is taken back from grid for internal power requirement. The power is utilized for lighting, initial
starting of the batteries, control room appliances.

Figure 4.5 Plant layout.

4.4.3 TILT ANGLE:

The tilt angle of the PV array is kept as equal to the latitude of the corresponding location to get
maximum solar radiation (Labed and Lorenzo, 2004).

22
This solar plant uses modern technology for tilting of solar panels. It is designed in such a way
that, manual seasonal tilt technology is used in order to absorb more solar radiation and to extract
more power output. The tilting of the solar panels is arranged as follows. From November to
February as it is winter season the tilt should be somewhat higher (33.75°) and from May to
August the tilt is of lesser value (3.75°) as it is summer season anyhow more radiation is
absorbed whatever the tilt angle may be. But, in rest of four months September, October, March
and April moderate tilt angle of 18.75° is provided. The tilt angle is considered according to the
geographical location of the plant.

Figure 4.6 Schematic diagram of NTPC 10 MW solar plant.(Source NTPC Hyderabad)

4.4.4 SPECIFICATION OF SOLAR PANEL

The solar panels mounted at NTPC 10MWsolar power plant are of 225wp rating and made up of
polycrystalline. These panels have an efficiency of 14.06% and are of fixed type. Polycrystalline
panel ratings are open circuit voltage (VOC) of 36.42 V and short circuit current (ISC) of 8.09 A.

23
It has a maximum operating temperature of 43.2° centigrade. The solar panels are installed in such a
way that structure to structure and leg center to center distance is at 4 m. The distance between panels
(Panel to panel) is of 25 mm. Distance between grounds to lower edge of the module is 400 mm. To
have a better yield panels are cleaned twice in a month.
4.45 Power conditioning units
Inverter converts DC power into AC power. The inverter power rating is 630 kW. PV voltage of 874
V and supply DC current 845 A is fed as input to inverter. The output AC voltage and current from
inverter are 350 V and 1040 A respectively. The output of the inverter is synchronized automatically
with same voltage and frequency as that of grid.

4.4.5 POWER EVACUATION

The rated power of the transformer is 1.5MVAand manufacture type is of Vector group DY5Y5. The
primary voltage of the transformer is 385 V and secondary is directly connected to 33 kV switchyard.
The current rating is given as 2.24 A/1124.70 A. The efficiency of transformer is almost 97%.

4.5 MODEL FORMULATION AND STRUCTURE

Typically, grid-connected PV system consists of solar panels, DC–DC converter, MPPT controller,
inverter and grid connection equipment. It has no energy storage losses since there are no batteries
used as it is not a standalone system. The system‘s components are modeled in Matlab/Simulink
software environment. Matlab/Simulink is selected, due to its reusability, extendibility, and flexibility
in such systems. It is a dynamic model where the simulation time is 3 s, sampling time is 10−5 s,
since the time step has to be lower than the propagation time. The model can predict the performance
of the system and assess it by comparing the set up to new introduced set ups with added
components, solving a set of non-linear equations.

4.6 GENERAL INFORMATION REGARDING MICROGRID

As electric distribution technology steps into the next century, many trends are becoming
noticeable that will change the requirements of energy delivery. These modifications are
being driven from both the demand side where higher energy availability and efficiency are
desired and from the supply side where the integration of distributed generation and peak-
shaving technologies must be accommodated [1].

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 Fig 1.1. Microgrid power system

Power systems currently undergo considerable change in operating requirements mainly

as a result of deregulation and due to an increasing amount of distributed energy resources
(DER). In many cases DERs include different technologies that allow generation in small
scale (microsources) and some of them take advantage of renewable energy resources (RES)
such as solar, wind or hydro energy. Having microsources close to the load has the advantage
of reducing transmission losses as well as preventing network congestions. Moreover, the
possibility of having a power supply interruption of end-customers connected to a low
voltage (LV) distribution grid (in Europe 230 V and in the USA 110 V) is diminished since
adjacent microsources, controllable loads and energy storage systems can operate in the
islanded mode in case of severe system disturbances. This is identified nowadays as a
microgrid. Figure 1.1 depicts a typical microgrid. The distinctive microgrid has the similar
size as a low voltage distribution feeder and will rare exceed a capacity of 1 MVA and a
geographic span of 1 km. Generally more than 90% of low voltage domestic customers are
supplied by underground cable when the rest is supplied by overhead lines. The microgrid
25
often psupplies both electricity and heat to the customers by means of combined heat and
power plants (CHP), gas turbines, fuel cells, photovoltaic (PV) systems, wind turbines, etc.
The energy storage systems usually include batteries and flywheels [2].The storing device in
the microgrid is equivalent to the rotating reserve of large generators in the conventional grid
which ensures the balance between energy generation and consumption especially during
rapid changes in load or generation [3].

From the customer point of view, microgrids deliver both thermal and electricity
requirements and in addition improve local reliability, reduce emissions, improve power
excellence by supportive voltage and reducing voltage dips and potentially lower costs of
energy supply. From the utility viewpoint, application of distributed energy sources can
potentially reduce the demand for distribution and transmission facilities. Clearly, distributed
generation located close to loads will reduce flows in transmission and distribution circuits
with two important effects: loss reduction and ability to potentially substitute for network
assets. In addition, the presence of generation close to demand could increase service quality
seen by end customers. Microgrids can offer network support during the time of stress by
relieving congestions and aiding restoration after faults. The development of microgrids can
contribute to the reduction of emissions and the mitigation of climate changes. This is due to
the availability and developing technologies for distributed generation units are based on
renewable sources and micro sources that are characterized by very low emissions [4]. There
are various advantages offered by microgrids to end-consumers, utilities and society, such as:
improved energy efficiency, minimized overall energy consumption, reduced greenhouse
gases and pollutant emissions, improved service quality and reliability, cost efficient
electricity infrastructure replacement [2].

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 CHAPTER 5
RESULT AND DISCUUSION
Modelling and simulation of 400 kW Micro grid

The 400 kW PV array micro grid consists of four PV arrays delivering each a maximum of 100
kW at 1000 W/m2 sun irradiance. A single PV array block consist of 64 parallel strings where
each string has 5 Sun Power SPR-315E modules connected in series. Each PV array is connected
to a DC/DC converter (average model). The outputs of the boost converters are connected to a
common DC bus of 500 V. Each boost is controlled by individual Maximum Power Point
Trackers (MPPT). The MPPTs use the "Perturb and Observe" technique to vary the voltage
across the terminals of the PV array in order get the maximum possible power.

A three-phase Voltage Source Converter (VSC) converts the 500 V DC to 260 V AC and keeps
unity power factor. A 400-kVA 260V/25kV three-phase coupling transformer is used to connect
the converter to the grid. The grid model consists of typical 25-kV distribution feeders and 120-
kV equivalent transmission system.

In the average model the boost and VSC converters are represented by equivalent voltage
sources generating the AC voltage averaged over one cycle of the switching frequency. Such a
model does not represent harmonics, but the dynamics resulting from control system and power
system interaction is preserved. This model allows using much larger time steps (50 us),
resulting in a much faster simulation.

Note that in the average model the four PV-array models contain an algebraic loop. Algebraic
loops are required to get an iterative and accurate solution of the PV models when large sample
times are used. These algebraic loops are easily solved by Simulink.

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 Figure 1.5 Matlab / Simulink model of 400 kW PV array Micro grid.

Simulation Waveform

28
Start the simulation and see the resulting signals on the various scopes. This three-second
simulation allows us to observe the operation of each individual PV Array system under varying
irradiances.

Figure 1.6 Output waveform of VI PQ grid

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Figure 1.7 Output waveform of PV1-(yellow) , PV2-(magenta), PV3-(cyan), PV4-(red)

30
 CHAPTER 6
CONCLUSION AND FUTURE SCOPE

The objective of this research work is to design a 400 kW PV array micro grid from PV array
to a micro-grid, with Maximum Power Point Tracking capability under all ambient conditions
including partial shading conditions. The major conclusions of this research work have been
presented. The Matlab / Simulink model of 400 kW PV array connected microgrid is designed in
matlab 2015 environment. The simuation wave form shows the VI PQ of the grid. The future
work will design of more than 400 kW micro grid.

31
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Technology, Bhopal 462003, MP, India “Performance evaluation of 10 MW grid connected
solar photovoltaic power plant in India” 2015
[2] Amit KumarYadavad VikrantSharmab HasmatMalikc S.S.ChandelaDaily array yield
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Basis Function Neural Network
[3] Gridconnected pv array www.mnre.gov.in 2012
[4] Lacour Ayompe, Dublin Institute of Technology Aidan Duffy, Sarah McCormack
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[5]Sharma, Vikrant, Chandel, S.S., 2013. Performance analysis of a 190 kW p grid interactive
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[6]Ahmad, G.E., Schmid, J., 2001. Feasibility study of brackish water desalination in the
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