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2598 Fortune Way, Suite K

•

Vista, CA 92081

•

Phone 760-597-1642

•

Fax 760-597-1731

•

www.blueskyenergyinc.com

What is Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT) and How Does it Work?

Maximum Power Point Tracking, frequently referred to as MPPT, is an electronic systemthat operates the Photovoltaic (PV) modules in a manner that allows the modules to produce allthe power they are capable of. MPPT is not a mechanical tracking system that “physically moves”the modules to make them point more directly at the sun. MPPT is a fully electronic system thatvaries the electrical operating point of the modules so that the modules are able to delivermaximum available power. Additional power harvested from the modules is then made available asincreased battery charge current. MPPT can be used in conjunction with a mechanical trackingsystem, but the two systems are completely different.To understand how MPPT works, let’s first consider the operation of a conventional (non-MPPT) charge controller. When a conventional controller is charging a discharged battery, itsimply connects the modules directlyto the battery. This forces themodules to operate at batteryvoltage, typically not the idealoperating voltage at which themodules are able to produce theirmaximum available power. The PVModule Power/Voltage/Current graphshows the traditional Current/Voltagecurve for a typical 75W module atstandard test conditions of 25

C celltemperature and 1000W/m

ofinsolation. This graph also shows PVmodule power delivered vs modulevoltage. For the example shown, theconventional controller simplyconnects the module to the battery and therefore forces the module to operate at 12V. By forcingthe 75W module to operate at 12V the conventional controller artificially limits power production to

≈

53W.Rather than simply connecting the module to the battery, the patented MPPT system in aSolar Boost™ charge controller calculates the voltage at which the module is able to producemaximum power. In this example the maximum power voltage of the module (V

) is 17V. TheMPPT system then operates the modules at 17V to extract the full 75W, regardless of presentbattery voltage. A high efficiency DC-to-DC power converter converts the 17V module voltage atthe controller input to battery voltage at the output. If the whole system wiring and all was 100%efficient, battery charge current in this example would be V

MODULE

BATTERY

x I

MODULE

, or 17V

12V x 4.45A = 6.30A. A charge current increase of 1.85A or 42% would be achieved by harvestingmodule power that would have been left behind by a conventional controller and turning it intouseable charge current. But, nothing is 100% efficient and actual charge current increase will be

Typical 75W PV Module Power/Voltage/CurrentAt Standard Test Conditions

2598 Fortune Way, Suite K

•

Vista, CA 92081

•

Phone 760-597-1642

•

Fax 760-597-1731

•

www.blueskyenergyinc.com

somewhat lower as some power is lost in wiring, fuses, circuit breakers, and in the Solar Boostcharge controller.Actual charge current increase varieswith operating conditions. As shown above,the greater the difference between PV modulemaximum power voltage V

and batteryvoltage, the greater the charge currentincrease will be. Cooler PV module celltemperatures tend to produce higher V

andtherefore greater charge current increase.This is because V

and available powerincrease as module cell temperaturedecreases as shown in the PV ModuleTemperature Performance graph. Moduleswith a 25

C V

rating higher than 17V willalso tend to produce more charge currentincrease because the difference betweenactual V

and battery voltage will be greater.A highly discharged battery will also increasecharge current since battery voltage is lower,and output to the battery during MPPT couldbe thought of as being “constant power”.What most people see in cool comfortable temperatures with typical battery conditions is a chargecurrent increase of between 10 – 25%. Cooler temperatures and highly discharged batteries canproduce increases in excess of 30%. Customers in cold climates have reported charge currentincreases in excess of 40%. What this means is that current increase tends to be greatest when itis needed most; in cooler conditions when days are short, sun is low on the horizon, and batteriesmay be more highly discharged. In conditions where extra power is not available (highly chargedbattery and hot PV modules) a Solar Boost charge controller will perform as a conventional PWMtype controller. Home Power Magazine has presented RV Power Products (now Blue Sky Energy,Inc.) with two Things-That-Work articles; Solar Boost 2000 in HP#73 Oct./Nov. 1999, and SolarBoost 50 in HP#77 June/July 2000, Links to these articles can be found on the Blue Sky Energy,Inc. web site at www.blueskyenergyinc.com.Richard A. CullenPresidentBlue Sky Energy, Inc.

Typical PV Module Temperature Performance

Maximum power point tracker

maximum power point tracker

(or

MPPT

) is a high efficiency DC to DC converter which functions as an optimal electrical load for a photovoltaic (PV) cell,most commonly for a solar panel or array, and converts the power to a voltage or current level which is more suitable to whatever load the system isdesigned to drive.PV cells have a single operating point where the values of the current (I) and Voltage (V) of the cell result in a maximum power output. These values correspond to a particular resistance,which is equal to V/I as specified by Ohm's Law.A PV cell has an exponential relationship between current and voltage, and the maximum power point (MPP) occurs at the knee of the curve, where the resistance is equal to the negativeof the differential resistance (V/I = -dV/dI). Maximum power point trackers utilize some type of controlcircuit or logic to search for this point and thus to allow the converter circuit to extract the maximum power available from a cell.Battery-less grid-tied PV inverters utilize MPPTs to extract the maximum power from a PV array, convert this to alternating current (AC) and sell excess energy back to the operators of the power grid. Off-grid power systems also use MPPT charge controllers to extract the maximum power from a PV array. When the immediate power requirements for other devices plugged into the power system are less than thepower currently available, the MPPT stores the "extra" energy -- energy that is not immediately consumedduring the day -- in batteries. When other devices plugged into the power system require more power thanis currently available from the PV array, the MPPT drains energy from those batteries in order to make upthe lack. MPPT charge controllers are quickly becoming more affordable and are more common in use nowthan ever before.The benefits of MPPT regulators are greatest during cold weather, on cloudy or hazy days or when thebattery is deeply discharged. Solar MPPTs can also be used to drive motors directly from solar panels. Thebenefits seen are huge, especially if the motor load is continuously changing. This is due to the fact that theAC impedance across the motor is related to the motor's speed. The MPPT will switch the power to matchthe varying resistance.

Solar cell I-V curves where a lineintersects the knee of the curveswhere the maximum power point islocated