2021 3rd International Conference on Signal Processing and Communication (ICPSC) | 13 – 14 May 2021 | Coimbatore

Solar Photo Voltaic Based Water Pumping Using

BLDC Motor
1sr Loganathan N 2nd Naveen C 3rd Nivashini K
Department of EEE Department of EEE Department of EEE
Sri Krishna College of Engineering and Sri Krishna College of Engineering and Sri Krishna College of Engineering and
Technology Technology Technology
2021 3rd International Conference on Signal Processing and Communication (ICPSC) | 978-1-6654-2864-4/20/$31.00 ©2021 IEEE | DOI: 10.1109/ICSPC51351.2021.9451679

Coimbatore, India Coimbatore, India Coimbatore, India

loganathann@skcet.ac.in 17euee096@skcet.ac.in 17euee106@skcet.ac.in
4th Nivin B 5th Pavurnaa S
Department of EEE Department of EEE
Sri Krishna College of Engineering and Sri Krishna College of Engineering and
Technology Technology
Coimbatore, India Coimbatore, India
17euee108@skcet.ac.in 17euee108@skcet.ac.in

Abstract— The Solar energy is main source of power. In
our day-to-day life the polluting devices replace many solar
powered devices. This paper determines the usage of solar
power to run the BLDC motor by using a buck converter. The
BLDC motor is used to get the maximum efficiency. the
converter is also used for the maximum efficiency and also for
getting the desired output. Also, the converter component is the
only one that allows for continuous monitoring of the PV
array's maximum power point. The maximum power point
tracking is done by using the LDR (light dependent resistor).
The shaft of the BLDC motor is mutually coupled with
centrifugal pump to pump the water. In Simulation using
MATLAB, the performance characteristics of a solar PV
driven BLDC motor drive using a buck converter are analyzed
in various conditions, including steady state and transient
characteristics.
Keywords—Solar Photovoltaic, Maximum power point,
BLDC, Voltage source inverter.
I. INTRODUCTION
Researchers and industry have been encouraged to use
solar photovoltaic (SPV) panels and power electronics
systems to produce power for various applications using
solar PV arrays. Water pumping has gotten a lot of attention
because of how cost-effective it is to use the power provided
by a solar PV array [6].Uses of solar energy is water
pumping. Solar energy can be produced anywhere, so in
rural areas where electricity is not readily available, solar
panels can generate electricity. Solar energy has a high
initial cost, but this cost is quickly resolved in just 5 to 10
years, after which we can use the sun's energy for free. This
will most certainly lower the cost of power, and we will be
able to sell the excess energy after it has been used. Solar
power is used to power the BLDC motor [7]. Small size,
durable and more powerful noiseless operation, and low cost
are just a few of the benefits of the BLDC motor. The
project's scale, expense, and complexity are reduced by
using the DC connection. A MPPT algorithm using DC-DC
converters is used to optimize the performance of solar PV
arrays [8]. In a variety of solar array-based applications,
MPPT has been implemented using various DC-DC
converters, such as Buck-Buck [8]. Finally, we can conclude
that the buck converter is the most powerful converter in a
photovoltaic system due to its ability to achieve optimal
operations. Due to a single turn, the DC-DC buck converter
has a high conversion ratio. It is used to extract the full
amount of energy from array and soft start the BLDC motor
coupled to a water pump. The centrifugal pump was chosen
due to its accessibility. Simplicity, own maintenance needs,
and cost effectiveness are all considerations to consider
when selecting from a broad range of heads and flow rates.
This pump is coupled to a BLDC motor, which has the
advantages of high power, high quality, high hardness,
various speed ranges. The ratings of the solar PV array and
as a result, the BLDC motor are chosen so that the proposed
device can work efficiently under all atmospheric
conditions. The simulated effects in the MATLAB/Simulink
setting are used to analyze the various performances. The
proposed system's suitability for solar PV-based water
pumping is confirmed by simulation performance [2].
II. PROPOSED SYSTEM
This proposed system for water pumping, a solar PV-
based buck converter-fed BLDC motor drive is used. A
solar PV collection, a buck conversion, a voltage inverter, a
BLDC, and a centrifugal pump are all part of the proposed
system. A pump is used to distribute the water. The power is
produced by the solar panel and fed into the buck converter
[4]. The buck converter's switch is controlled by an
Incremental Conductance (INC) MPPT algorithm, which
specifies that the solar PV array's function is optimized and
that the BLDC motor has a soft start [8]. To reduce the
pressure on both the components and the semiconductor, the
buck converter is normally worked in synchronous buck
converter.
The buck converter also supplies power to the Voltage
inverter, that supplies the BLDC motor that is connected to
a pump. The BLDC motor's electronic execution determines
the Voltage Source Inverter (VSI) switching series. The
system of decoding hall effect signals given by the motor's
inbuilt encoder dependent on the rotor position is known as
electronic conversion.

978-1-6654-2864-4/21/$31.00 ©2021 IEEE 513

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 2021 3rd International Conference on Signal Processing and Communication (ICPSC) | 13 – 14 May 2021 | Coimbatore
Figure1. Block Diagram
A. Solar PV Array
Solar photovoltaic array is a system in which supplies
solar power in the form of photovoltaics. It is made up of
photovoltaic cells. These cells change solar energy into
electrical energy. The power produced by the solar
photovoltaic array is used as a power to water pumping. A
photovoltaic cell contains n number of layers in which a
particular layer conducts electricity. For higher power
requirements, many Single Photovoltaic array should be
connected in order of series and parallel according to the
power requirements of the user. So that the user can get the
required output power[9]. The single panel of Photovoltaic
cells is equal as the Single Photovoltaic array in the solar
panel. The user should choose the series connection of
panels, the current conducted remains the same, but the
voltage generated gets doubled. A very important note is that
solar panels or solar PV modules from different
manufacturing companies cannot be put together to supply
the sufficient power for the city or country.
Figure 2. Solar Panel
B. Buck converter
Buck converter which is also known as a power
converter. The main work of the component is to stepdown
the voltage from high to lower to the result load. It must
contain two switches transistor, diode which is of switched
mode power supply[10].
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Figure 3. Buck - Buck Converter
It must have a storage element, It consist of a capacitor
or a inductor. Buck converters are always highly efficient
for performing task. The working of buck converter is
mainly regulated by transistor and diode. The two main
circuit configurations are ON state and OFF state of a
electrical switch. In OFF state the current will be zero. This
converter model defines in terms of inductor voltage and
inductor current which flows through the converter. During
ON state the current will increase and inductor generates an
opposite voltage. The MOSFET combines, in an
exceedingly single device, a bearing input with a MOS
structure and a bipolar power transistor that acts as an output
switch. MOSFETS are suitable for high voltage, high-
current applications, they're designed to drive high-power
applications with a low-power input. Diodes are called
rectifiers because they alter AC (ac) into pulsating DC
(dc)[12]. During negative supply it may produce voltage
higher in the converter circuit, in some cases it might need a
supply which is negative to execute. The diode gets reverse
biased when transistor switch gets turned on. This may not
create output but creates a magnetic circuit field. When
diode operates in forward biased condition the capacitor will
generate an output voltage which is negative. Buck
converter circuits are used in devices like motor control
circuit, Audio amplifier.
C. BLDC motor
The BLDC is referred to as brushless DC motor. The
BLDC motor does not contain the brushes which is mostly
present in the conventional motor. The controller provides
the Pulses which is varied by Pulse width modulation. These
pulses control the speed and the torque of the BLDC motor.
This method reduces the usage of commutators which is
present in the conventional motors. The advantages of
Brushless to brushed motor are in ratio of maximum power
to weight, maximum speed, speed control and also low
maintenance. The application of brushless motor are Hard
drives, E-vehicles, washing machines, fans, pumps.
D. Arduino
Arduino is a microcontroller which performs the given
operation given in the software code. It contains 14 pins out
in that 6 are analog,7 digital and 8 pwm pins. It has power
jack and usb port through which system is connected with
microcontroller and the code is written in software. Arduino
ATMEGA328 is used in modernized projects which play the
key role in performing the actions. It is powered through a
12v battery and have range from 7 to 20 volts.
 2021 3rd International Conference on Signal Processing and Communication (ICPSC) | 13 – 14 May 2021 | Coimbatore

can be found and used in a variety of oversized electrical

and electronic circuits. They're passive machines, which
means they don't need an external power source or
additional circuitry to fulfill their simple linear or rotary
position functions. Dynamic potentiometers are
mechanically diverse and can be installed easily to regulate
voltage, current, or the biasing and gain control of a device
to reach a zero state.

Figure 4 . Arduino

E. Relay Figure 6. Potentiometer

From a very low voltage switch to high voltage switches
III. SCHEME OF THE PROPOSED STRUCTURE
relay is used to make the connection between them or to
break their connection and bring the system to halt. Since
the main principle used is electromagnetic induction, they
are used for safety of the electrical system and prevent
the damage of equipment connected within the system
thanks to over current/voltages. The relay is employed for
the aim of protecting the devices connected with the relay. It
is like an electromagnetic switch which opens and closes the
circuit and save the electrical wirings. relay types have
different applications different standards and they created
with electromagnet. The meaning of relay is an act of giving
something from a point to many as signal is received from
One part and controls the switch functions.

Figure 7. Simulation Diagram

The above simulation diagram represents the working of
proposed system which simplifies what we have done. In this
project, we have used a Solar PV array which produces
maximus efficiency, that is achieved through Maximum
power point algorithm using DC-DC converter[11].

Figure 5. Relay

F. Potentiometer
A potentiometer, also known as a "pot," is a three-
terminal pneumatic system rotary system that responds that Figure 8. Hardware Diagram

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 2021 3rd International Conference on Signal Processing and Communication (ICPSC) | 13 – 14 May 2021 | Coimbatore
The solar panel is connected to batter. The battery
provides the req voltage for the Arduino. The Arduino does
the required action based on the code. The ldr sensor is
connected to the Arduino which senses the sunlight and
sends the signal to the Arduino .The code which is written
acts according to the signal and moves the solar panel in
direction to the sunlight and accordingly the direction of the
movement is displayed in the lcd display. The pot is
connected to the Arduino .The driver is connected to the bldc
motor .The lcd is used to show the direction of solar panel is
moved.
IV. RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS
Solar PV array receives the sun rays and generates
electricity. The electricity generated is fed into the buck
converter. The process of buck converter is to minimize the
amount of electricity to the optimum level required for the
set-up. Thus, the electricity is fed into the battery. The
battery stores the electric energy required for the process to
takes place.
Figure 9 . Output Voltage of Buck-Buck Converter
The voltage regulator which is electronic component that
supplies constant output voltage is used to provide optimum
voltage required for the Arduino. The Arduino is fed with
the code to act according to the signal received from the
LDR sensor. The LDR sensor detects the light falling on and
gives the signal to the Arduino, depending on the direction
of sunlight, the axis of the solar panel is changed by the
geared motor which is dependent on the signal from
Arduino. The tracking system also shows in which direction
the solar panel is moving through the LCD display in the
system. The BLDC motor gets regulated power supply from
the battery and the speed of the BLDC is controlled by ESC
(Electronic Speed Controller). The BLDC motor is mainly
used as they are more efficient than the conventional ones.
The speed of the BLDC motor can also be varied. When the
BLDC motor runs the shaft connected to the centrifugal
pump also runs and the water is pumped out. The simulation
of the experiment is done using MATLAB Simulink and the
results and output characteristics shown in below figures.
Figure 10. Load Voltage
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The output voltage from the converter is connected to the
scope which can be clearly seen in the above mentioned
diagram. In this proposed system also using a BLDC motor
to get the high efficiency output. The speed of the motor is
controlled by Electronic speed controller.
LCD display connected from Arduino shows the
direction of the solar panel, which is moving. The current
from panel charges the battery constantly using buck
converter. The motor Shaft is connected to the water pump,.
So that the required speed can be controlled.
Figure 11. Load Current
V. CONCLUSION
This proposed system was solar PV based buck
converter, BLDC motor's steady state and transient
behaviours have been validated for water pumping. In the
MATLAB/Simulink situation, the proposed system was
modelled, developed, and simulated. A Direct Current (DC)
– Direct Current (DC) buck-buck converter has the ability to
increase and decrease voltage levels, so it does not have a
restricted MPPT range. By this solar photo voltaic power-
driven BLDC motor for water pumping, this proposed
system to achieve solar powered products in future and thus
reduce the conventional methods and by use of BLDC
efficiency is increased. In future can be undertaken to still
improve its efficiency. A proper water pumping model based
on a solar PV array has been produced, taking full advantage
of the buck-buck converter, BLDC motor, and centrifugal
pump's good conversion performance. The system design is
designed in such a way that its optimum performance is
independent of the climate and the converters' and motors'
performance limitations. A buck converter with a BLDC
motor is shown to be a corresponds for water pumping using
MATLAB simulation results. The proposed system's
compatibility with any weather condition has been
demonstrated.
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