606 Journal of Electrical Engineering & Technology Vol. 5, No. 4, pp.

606~613, 2010
DOI: 10.5370/JEET.2010.5.4.606

Design and Implementation of Photovoltaic Power Conditioning

System using a Current-based Maximum Power Point Tracking

Sanghoey Lee*, Jae-Eon Kim** and Hanju Cha†

Abstract – This paper proposes a novel current-based maximum power point tracking (CMPPT)
method for a single-phase photovoltaic power conditioning system (PV PCS) by using a modified in-
cremental conductance method. The CMPPT method simplifies the entire control structure of the
power conditioning system and uses an inherent current source characteristic of solar cell arrays.
Therefore, it exhibits robust and fast response under a rapidly changing environmental condition. Digi-
tal phase locked loop technique using an all-pass filter is also introduced to detect the phase of grid
voltage, as well as the peak voltage. Controllers of dc/dc boost converter, dc-link voltage, and dc/ac
inverter are designed for coordinated operation. Furthermore, a current control using a pseudo syn-
chronous d-q transformation is employed for grid current control with unity power factor. A 3 kW pro-
totype PV PCS is built, and its experimental results are given to verify the effectiveness of the pro-
posed control schemes.

Keywords: Single-phase photovoltaic power conditioning system, Digital phase locked loop, dc/dc
boost converter, dc/ac inverter, CMPPT, dP/dI

1. Introduction require solar panel characteristics, but it remains unsuitable

Photovoltaic (PV) energy is currently considered as one
of the most useful renewable natural energy sources in the
world because it is clean, free, abundant, pollution-free,
and inexhaustible. Due to the rapid growth in solar cells
and power electronics technology, PV energy has received
increasing interest in electrical power applications.
However, present energy-conversion efficiency of PV ar-
ray is still low. It requires maximum power point tracking
(MPPT) control techniques to extract the maximum possi-
ble power from PV arrays in order to achieve maximum
operating efficiency [1].
A PV array currently exhibits an extremely nonlinear
voltage that generally varies with array temperature and
solar isolation, making the maximum power point (MPP)
difficult to locate. To overcome this problem, various
methods, such as the perturbation and observation method
[2], [3] and incremental conductance methods [4]-[6], have
been proposed for the MPPT algorithm of PV arrays.
In the perturbation and observation method, the operat-
ing voltage of PV array changes the duty ratio in order to
locate variations in directions for maximizing PV array
current. If power increases, the operating voltage is further
perturbed in the same direction; if it decreases, the direc-
tion of the perturbation is reversed. This method does not
† Corresponding Author: Department of Electrical Engineering
Chungnam National University Daejeon, Korea. (hjcha@cnu.ac.kr)
* Department of Electrical Engineering Chungnam National Univer-
sity Daejeon, Korea. (lee24044@yahoo.co.kr)
** Department of Electrical Engineering Chungbuk National Univer-
sity Cheongju, Korea. (jekim@cbnu.ac.kr)
Received: January 28, 2010; Accepted: July 21, 2010
for applications under rapidly changing atmospheric condi-
tions.
The disadvantage of the perturbation and observation
method can be minimized by comparing the incremental
and instantaneous conductance of PV arrays. This method
is more accurate and can provide good performance under
rapidly changing conditions.
In this paper, a current-based incremental conductance
method that produces smooth transition and fast response
to the MPP is proposed. The proposed current-based
maximum power point tracking (CMPPT) method adjusts a
reference current proportional to the power slope with re-
spect to PV array current, and provides advantages of
smooth and rapid transition to the MPP. In addition, digital
phase locked loop (DPLL), which detects the phase of grid
voltage as well as its peak voltage, is addressed. A PI con-
troller using a pseudo synchronous d-q transformation is
employed for grid current control in the single-phase dc/ac
inverter. Results from analysis, simulation, and hardware
implementation of the power conditioning system are de-
tailed. Experimental results are also obtained by using a 3
kW prototype PV PCS, which then verifies the feasibility
of the proposed control schemes.
2. Photovoltaic Power Conditioning System
Fig. 1 shows the circuit configuration of a 3 kW trans-
former-less PCS with grid connection. The transformer-less
PCS is composed of a PV array, dc/dc boost converter, dc-link,
and dc/ac inverter. L-C filter PV voltage Vpv is set in wide
range variation (150-450 V). The dc/dc boost converter
 Sanghoey Lee, Jae-Eon Kim and Hanju Cha
Fig. 1. Circuit configuration of PV PCS.
controls the PV current Ipv. These two actions perform the
proposed CMPPT function. The dc/ac inverter controls the
grid current with unity power factor.
2.1 Proposed CMPPT
The PV array is nonlinear with existing operating points,
and the PV array produces maximum power, as illustrated
in Fig. 2. The perturbation and observation method meas-
ures voltage and current, allowing for the evaluation of the
momentary operating region. In accordance with the region,
the reference voltage is either increased or decreased, such
that the system operates close to MPP [2], [3].
Implementing the perturbation and observation method
is simple because it only increases or decreases reference
voltage. However, this method cannot readily track any
immediate and rapid change in the environment. One alter-
native is the incremental conductance method; it can track
MPP accurately by comparing the incremental conductance
and instantaneous conductance of a PV array. [4], [5]. In
this paper, the proposed CMPPT is improved from the per-
spective of the incremental conductance method.
The P-I and V-I curves for CMPPT is presented in Fig. 2.
The flowchart shown in Fig.3 presents the systematic pro-
gress of CMPPT, where Vpv(n) and Ipv(n) are the present volt-
age and current of the PV array, and Vpv(n-1) and Ipv(n-1) are
their previous values, respectively. When Vpv(n)/Ipv(n) + dVpv
/ dIpv < 0 or dIpv = 0 and dVpv < 0, decreasing reference cur-
rent Ipv* forces Vpv(n)/Ipv(n) + dVpv / dIpv to approach zero.
When Vpv(n)/Ipv(n) + dVpv / dIpv < 0 or dIpv = 0 and dVpv > 0,
increasing reference current Ipv* forces Vpv(n)/Ipv(n) + dVpv /
dIpv to approach zero. When Vpv(n)/Ipv(n) + dVpv / dIpv = 0 or
Fig. 2. P-I curve and V-I curve for CMPPT.
607
Fig. 3. Flowchart of CMPPT.
dIpv = 0 and dVpv = 0, as the PV array is at the MPP, refer-
ence current Ipv* is kept at a constant value, and thus, oscil-
lation is reduced. The low-frequency ac ripple mitigation
method [12] is used to reduce PV array current ripple.
2.2 Current and Voltage MPPs in PV Array Charac-
teristics
Fig. 4 shows the MPP changes of voltage and current due
to the irradiation characteristics from 0 to 1 at the fixed
temperature of 25 °C. To show the relative values between
the voltage and current MPP, the unit is shown in “per
unit” (p.u.). At the midpoint of irradiation change duration,
voltage MPP changes slowly while current MPP exhibits a
big slope, as shown in Fig. 4.
The current curve is increased linearly by PV array irra-
diation characteristics, indicating that the current MPP
value always changes at any irradiation. The voltage curve
has a small variation in VMPPT; therefore, the controller is
not always needed to control MPP. However, VMPPT can-
not reach an accurate MPP at any irradiation and might
encounter MPP confusion at low irradiation because of the
PV array characteristics, as shown in Fig 4. CMPPT, on the
other hand, can always control the current; it can reach
MPP easily and accurately because of the short circuit cur-
rent characteristics in the PV array. Therefore, CMPPT is
desired if the aim is to increase system efficiency.
Fig. 5 shows the MPP changes of both voltage and cur-
rent due to temperature characteristics (0-45°) at a fixed
irradiation of 1. To show the relative values between volt-
age and current MPP, the unit is shown in “per unit” (p.u.).
At 250V, voltage MPP changes slowly while current
MPP exhibits a big slope. Fig. 5 shows that the current
curve decreases linearly with PV array temperature, indi-
cating that CMPPT always changes current MPP values at
608 Design and Implementation of Photovoltaic Power Conditioning System using a Current-based Maximum~

Fig. 6. P-V curve and dP/dV slope.

Fig. 4. CMPP and VMPP under irradiation-changing condi-
tions [p.u. / 0.5 Irradiation MPP].

Fig. 7. P-I curve and dP/dI slope.

2.3 Dc/dc Boost Converter

Fig. 5. CMPP and VMPP under temperature-changing con-
ditions [p.u. / 25° Temperature MPP].
Fig. 8 shows the block diagram of the dc/dc boost con-
verter controller. This controller is composed of a PI com-
any temperature. Therefore, CMPPT controller can always
pensator, voltage limiter, and PWM generator, where I*pv is
operate to track MPP. The reverse is true for VMPPT be-
calculated from CMPPT method and Va is a dc-
cause of the small change in voltage MPP value.
compensating variable for voltage across switch Sb.
Figs. 4 and 5 show the comparison of the inherent cur-
rent source characteristics of solar cell array and voltage.
Comparative results show that CMPPT has a robust and
fast response under rapidly changing environmental condi-
tions compared with VMPPT.
Fig. 6 shows a VMPPT P-V curve and slope calculated
by dP/dV. As shown in this figure, the slope is 0 when P-V
curve is in MPP. The blue color refers to the value of the
operation region slope. Fig. 8. Block diagram of dc-dc boost converter.
Fig 7 shows a CMPPT P-I curve and the slope calculated
by dP/dI. Results using different methods show that both The transfer function of the dc/dc boost converter can be
curve powers are the same, but the slopes differ. In VMPPT, derived as
slope operation region value changes from 0 to 30, while it
changes from 0 to 350 in CMPPT. This result indicates that I L1 K pv s  Kipv
the CMPPT method has more comparative points com-  (1)
pared with VMPPT. Furthermore, by using the same sam- I pv L1s  K pv s  K ipv
* 2

pling period, results reveal that VMPPT has smaller steps,

hence causing longer comparative time compared with
CMPPT. In effect, CMPPT can track MPP more quickly
and accurately, Hence, CMPPT can track quickly and accu-
rately MPP by using slope as modified MPPT method.
Implementing the CMPPT method is more convenient
due to the independent of slope value on array temperature
and irradiation., as opposed to the VMPPT approach [10], [11].
2.4 Dc-link Voltage Control
Fig. 9 shows the block diagram of the dc-link voltage
control, where Vdc* is the reference dc-link voltage; Pin is
the input power to the dc-link capacitor Cd from solar cell
array, such as (2); Vpeak is the peak value of grid voltage;
and Pout is the output power from the dc-link capacitor Cd
to the grid, as shown (3).
 Sanghoey Lee, Jae-Eon Kim and Hanju Cha 609

Pin  V pv  I pv (2) Tc   2
c (8)
V peak Tc   2
(3)
Pout   I L2
2
Fig. 10 shows the block diagram of digital PLL, where
Band stop filter is used to mitigate the effect of the 2nd Vgrid is the grid voltage, after which it transforms to Vds; Vqs
harmonic voltage resulting in performance degradation. IL2* is a virtual voltage through the aforementioned all-pass
is a command value of the grid current. filter; and Vds and Vqs are converted to Vde and Vqe in the
To balance Pin and Pout, the dc-link voltage controller synchronous frame, where Vde denotes a difference be-
(Fig. 9) is employed. Its transfer function can be derived as tween grid voltage phase and estimated phase [7] [8] . In
(4) [13]: addition to phase estimation, digital PLL can calculate the
instantaneous peak value of the grid voltage. Vpeak is the
same as Vqe., and Vpeak is used to detect voltage sag and
Vdc K dc s  K idc
*
 *
swell in the utility.
Vdc 2CdcVdc 2 (4)
s  K dc s  K idc
V peak

Fig. 10. Block diagram of digital PLL.

Fig. 9. Block diagram of dc-link voltage control.
2.5 Digital Phase Locked Loop
In the utility system, PLL control is needed to synchro-
nize inverter output voltage to the interconnected utility.
Generally, a PLL control system in single-phase is con-
structed with zero crossing detection. However, DPLL is
used in this paper because the phase detection time of its
method is faster compared with the conventional zero
crossing detection method.
The single-phase DPLL is implemented in virtual phase;
that is, it is delayed by 90° from the measured grid voltage
and is generated by passing through an all-pass filter, such as
2.6 Ac/dc Inverter for Unity Power Factor
Fig. 11 shows a block diagram of the current controller
in the dc/ac inverter, where current control using a pseudo
d-q transformation is employed, and which suggests stable
control performance. The proposed current control scheme
is verified through simulation, as shown in Fig. 12, where
Ide is measured grid current Igrid and Iqe is the virtual current
through all-pass filter. All voltages are in a synchronous
frame. In this figure, Iqe and Ide are the dc values, while
Vgrid is in phase with Igrid.

s
H (s)  (5)
s
The all-pass filter in s domain is transferred into z do-
main by using a bilinear transformation, such as

Tc  2  (Tc  2) z 1
H ( z)  (6)
Tc  2  (Tc  2) z 1

Therefore, output y (k) (i.e., in virtual phase) from the

measure grid voltage Vgrid can be obtained as follows:

y ( k )   cy ( k  1)  cv grid ( k )  v grid ( k  1) (7)

where Fig. 11. Block diagram of dc-ac inverter current control.

610 Design and Implementation of Photovoltaic Power Conditioning System using a Current-based Maximum~
3. Experimental Results
The overall system of the 3 kW PV PCS with line con-
nection, as shown in Fig. 13, is implemented fully in a
software that adopts digital signal processing, TMS320F2812.
The switching times of each converter are implemented
fully in the software, and PWM pulses are generated
through an internal pulse generator of the DSP. Voltage and
current signals are measured by using an internal 12-bit-
resolution analog-to-digital converter in the DSP. Further-
more, a 4-channel 12-bit digital-to-analog converter is used
to display all of the waveforms. The switching frequency
of the inverter is 10 kHz while dead time is 3 μsec. Hence,
output command PWM is compensated by the dead time
effect.
To verify the proposed CMPPT, the PV PCS is examined
by a test bed composed of a simulated utility source
(3P4S/1P2S; 12 kVA; model: NIS31411001), simulated
distribution line (12 kVA; model: NIS31477), and dc
power supply for PV simulation (Vmax = 600 V, Imax = 30 A,
15 kW) from NF (Japan). This test bed is used to certify
the Korean license-to-sell protocol for the PV PCS. The
adopted PV array model is based on sol_dow_181U1F_ss
PV module with the following electrical characteristics
during standard testing: maximum delivered power, PM =
186.792 W; short-circuit current, ISC = 7.9A; and open cir-
cuit voltage, VOC = 32.4 V. Experimental results are pre-
sented in Figs. 14-22. All experiments are conducted on the
test bed.
In the experimental test of PV PCS using CMPPT, cur-
rent reference Ipv* is either increased or decreased by a
dP/dI slope value every 1 ms. Therefore, CMPPT can reach
MPP more quickly and accurately because the dP/dI slope
is bigger than the dP/dV slope. Moreover, oscillation is
reduced by maintaining reference current Ipv* at constant
value. The experimental results are given to confirm the
good performance of CMPPT.
Fig. 12. Proposed PV PCS simulation by using PSIM.
Fig. 13 Prototype of the 3 kW PV PCS.
Fig. 14 shows the operation of DPLL, while traces (a)
and (b) represent the measured dq-transformation voltage
Vds and Vqs, where Vqs is generated from the all-pass filter.
As shown in Fig. 15(a), programmable power supply
ES2000S (NF in Japan) generates voltage sag of 30% with
respect to utility grid (220 V, 60 Hz). Fig. 15(b) shows
negative peak voltage Vpeck , which is same as Vqe,. This
peak voltage can be used to detect immediately the voltage
sag. Figs. 16 and 17 show the experimental results by using
CMPPT when irradiation is at 0.5. Fig. 16(a) shows the
utility current that is increased to MPP and then maintained
at MPP with perturbation. The PV array voltage, which is
decreased because of PV array characteristics, is shown in
Fig. 16(b). The PV array current increased to MPP current
by CMPPT is shown in Fig. 16(c).
Fig. 17 shows MPP in V-I and P-V curves when irradia-
tion is at 0.5 and MPPT efficiency is around 99%.
Figs. 18 and 19 show the experimental results of irradia-
tion change from 0.5 to 0.7 by using CMPPT. It exhibits
smooth transition and fast response for MPP.
Fig. 18(a) shows the utility current with changes in irra-
diation ranging from 0.5 to 0.7. The utility current is in-
creased rapidly by the CMPPT controller, thereby generat-
ing maximum power. Fig. 18(b) shows the decreased PV
Fig. 14. Experimental results of DPLL: (a) utility voltage
Vgrid; (b) all-pass filter Vqs; (c) synchronized trans-
formation Vde; and (d) utility phase ˆ [4 ms/div].
 Sanghoey Lee, Jae-Eon Kim and Hanju Cha
Fig. 15. Experimental results of peak voltage: (a) utility
voltage Vgrid; (b) negative peak voltage Vpeck,Vqe;
(c) DA conversion Vgrid; and (d) utility phase ˆ
[10 ms/div].
Fig. 16. Experimental results of CMPPT (irradiation: 0.5):
(a) utility current Igrid [2.5 A/div]; (b) PV array
voltage Vpv [30 V/div]; and (c) PV array current Ipv
[1 A/div][2.5 s/div].
Fig. 17. Experimental results of CMPPT (0.5 irradiation).
array voltage used for tracking until MPP voltage responds
to irradiation change. Fig. 18(c) shows the PV array current
that is increased rapidly until MPP current change occurs
as a response to CMPPT. Fig. 19 shows the MPP in P-V
curve used to verify CMPPT operation maintained at
around 99% MPPT efficiency. Fig. 20 shows the CMPPT
operation when irradiation is influenced by a sudden
change (i.e., from 0.7 to 0.2). With abrupt change, irradia-
tion PV voltage is increased and PV current is decreased by
611
Fig. 18. Experimental results of CMPPT (irradiation change:
0.5 - 0.7): (a) utility current Igrid [2.5 A/div]; (b) PV
array voltage Vpv [30 V/div]; and (c) PV array cur-
rent Ipv [1 A/div][2.5 s/div].
Fig. 19. Experimental results of CMPPT (irradiation change:
0.5 - 0.7).
Fig. 20. Experimental results of CMPPT (irradiation change:
0.7 - 0.2 ): (a) utility voltage Vgrid [100 V/div]; (b)
PV array voltage Vpv [60 V/div]; (c) PV array cur-
rent Ipv [2.5 A/div]; and (d) utility current Igrid [8
A/div] [10 ms/div].
the CMPPT controller. At any condition, the CMPPT algo-
rithm operates continuously to locate MPP. Fig. 21 shows
the manual soft start from standstill to 3 kW power genera-
tion. The utility voltage is shown in Fig. 21(a), while Fig.
21 (b) shows the utility current that is quickly increased.
The PV array voltage is reduced as characteristics in Fig.
21(c). Fig. 21(d) shows the PV array current that is in-
creased in order to track MPP current by CMPPT
612 Design and Implementation of Photovoltaic Power Conditioning System using a Current-based Maximum~
The output grid current and voltage in 3 kW power gen-
eration are shown in Fig. 22. It is noted that the grid cur-
rent is exactly in phase with the grid voltage and is sinu-
soidal current with low distortion.. The power efficiency of
PV PCS is around 96%.
Fig. 21. Experimental results of manual soft start from
standstill to 3 kW power generation: (a) utility
voltage Vgrid [50 V/div]; (b) utility current Igrid
[2.5A/div]; (c) PV array voltage [20 V/div]; and
(d) PV array current [1.6 A/div][0.25 s/div].
Fig. 22. Experimental results of utility: (a) utility voltage
Vgrid [50 V/div] and (b) utility current Igrid [2.5
A/div][5 ms/div].
4. Conclusion
In this paper, the proposed CMPPT method has gener-
ated a solar cell array current command directly by using a
modified incremental conductance method. In addition,
controllers of dc/dc boost converter, dc-link voltage, and
dc-ac inverter are designed and realized for the coordinated
operation of these elements. The DPLL using an all-pass
filter, which can detect phase and peak voltage, is pre-
sented. PI control using a pseudo synchronous d-q trans-
formation is proposed for grid current control. A 3k W pro-
totype PV PCS is built and tested to verify the proposed
schemes. Experimental results of the PV PCS have re-
vealed the advantages of CMPPT with respect to VMPPT.
Acknowledgements
This work is the outcome of the Manpower Develop-
ment Program for Energy and Resources supported by the
Ministry of Knowledge and Economy (MKE)
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Sanghoey Lee received his B.S. degree
in Instrumentation Control Engineering
from Konyang University, Korea in
2002, and M.S. degree in Electrical
Engineering from Chungnam National
University, Korea in 2005. From 2005
to 2007, he worked at the Institute for
Advanced Engineering in Yong-in,
Korea. He is currently pursuing his PhD degree in Electri-
cal Engineering in Chungnam National University, Dae-
jeon, Korea. His research interests are power quality, ad-
vanced converter and control for renewable energy systems,
and micro-grids.
Hanju Cha received his B.S. degree in
Electrical Engineering from Seoul Na-
tional University, Korea, and M.S de-
gree in the same field from Pohang
Institute of Science and Technology,
Korea in 1988 and 1990, respectively.
He obtained his PhD in Electrical En-
gineering from Texas A&M University,
College Station, Texas in 2004. From 1990 to 2001, he was
with LG Industrial Systems in Anyang, Korea where he
was engaged in the development of power electronics and
adjustable speed drives. In 2005, he joined the Department
of Electrical Engineering, Chungnam National University,
Daejeon, Korea. He worked as a visiting professor in
United Technology Research Center, Hartford CT, USA in
2009. His research interests are high power dc-dc con-
verter; ac/dc, dc/ac, and ac/ac converter topologies; power
quality and utility interface issues for distributed energy
system; and micro-grids.

Jae-Eon Kim received his B.S. and

M.S. degrees from the University of
Hanyang in 1982 and 1984, respec-
tively. He was affiliated with KERI as
a researcher from 1984 to 1989; a sen-
ior researcher form 1989 to 1996; and a
team leader of advanced distribution
systems and custom power lab from
1997 to 1998. He received his PhD from Kyoto University,
Japan in 1996. He has been an assistant professor from
1998 to 2004; an associate professor from 2004 to 2009;
and currently, a professor at Chungbuk National University.
His current interests are analysis of power quality; opera-
tion and design of power distribution systems with distrib-
uted generation; and advanced distribution systems, such
as micro-grids or smart grids.