IUT EEE 4531: Energy Conversion 3

Compiled by Navid Fazle Rabbi

Key Takeaways –
1. Concept Map of Electromechanical System Modelling
2. Principles of conservation of energy balance equation
3. Solar Photo voltaic Technologies
4. Solar Cell Applications
5. Solar PV Modelling with Python

Concept Map of Electromechanical System Modelling

Principles of Conservation of Energy Balance Equation
[Show that, dWelec = eidt = dWfld + dWmech; or Develop the Expression for energy balance equation of an
Electromechanical Energy Conversion Device]
1st Law: The total energy of an isolated system is constant; Energy can be transformed from one to another
but can be neither created nor destroyed.
In an energy conversion device, out of the total input energy, some energy is converted into the required
form, some energy is stored and the rest is dissipated.

The equation is written for motor action (positive value) when input electrical energy and output mechanical
energy are positive values.
For generator action these terms will be negative.
Heat Energy arises from 3 causes –
1. Part of electrical energy is converted directly to heat in the resistance of the current paths.
2. Part of developed mechanical energy is absorbed in friction ad windage and converted to heat.
3. Part of energy absorbed by the coupling field is converted to heat in the magnetic core loss (for
magnetic coupling) or dielectric loss (for electric coupling).
If energy losses in the electrical system, the mechanical system and the coupling field are grouped with the
corresponding terms of the equation, the energy balance equation will be –
Let,
Vt = instantaneous terminal voltage
i = instantaneous current
dt = differential time
r = resistance of the device
The, the differential energy input from the electrical source in time dt = Vt . i . dt and Energy loss in the
resistance = i2 . r . dt
Hence, from the equation –
dWelec = Vtidt – i2rdt
 dWelec = (Vt – ir) idt
 dWelec = eidt [e is the counter e. m. f.]
dWelec – Net electrical energy input to the coupling device after resistance losses have been taken into
account.
dWmech – The differential energy converted to mechanical form
dWfld – The differential energy absorbed by the coupling field

dWelec = e i dt = dWfld + dWmech [differential form of energy balance equation]

Solar Photovoltaic Technologies
What is Solar Cell?
Solar PV is a semiconductor device which converts sunlight directly into electricity. Generates voltage as
its output. Amount of electricity produced depends on the amount of sunlight and the size of the PV module.
Electricity Generated – DC; DC is converted to AC by inverter.

Advantages
 In PV technology, the conversion from solar energy to electricity occurs directly without any
intermediate steps.
 It does not have any moving parts in it and does not require any maintenance or very little
maintenance.
 It does not emit any greenhouse gases and harmful particles.

Disadvantages
 Cannot produce electricity in the absence of sunlight. Batteries are required to charge/store energy
so that it can be used at night.
 Power produced by PV Module is proportional to its size. So large area is needed to produce large
amount of power.

Typical Structure of Solar Cell

Solar cell is a semiconductor pn-junction device Metal contacts are deposited at the front and rear side of
the solar cell to collect generated current. Metal contact at the rear side is continuous. Metal contact at front
side is in the form of metal lines to allow sunlight in the cell. Antireflection coating is put on solar cell to
ensure that incident light is not reflected back, rather enters the solar cell and gets absorbed. Si Solar cell,
blue color anti reflecting coating is used. Efficiency of commercially available solar cell is 13 – 16%.

Amount of Power Generated –

15% efficient solar cell

10 cm * 10 cm solar cell
Solar radiation 1000 W/m2
So, Power = (15/100) * .01 * 1000 = 1.5 W

Rated Power and Actual Power

Rated Power The Peak Power that one can get from PV Module. Hypothetically highest.
Actual Power In reality a solar cell will give less power than the rated power due to less amount of
light falling on it.

Output Power vs. Temperature

When the operating temperature increases above the characterization temperature, solar efficiency reduces.
Operating temperature > Characterization temperature (less efficient)
Reduced cell efficiency means lower output power.
Thus as the solar PV Module temperature increases it produces less power.
Single Solar Cell .1 to .3 Watt. 36 Solar Cells = Solar PV Module = 12 Volt Output. Interconnecting PV
Modules = PV Array

Protection of Solar Cell

What are Ethylene Vinyl Acetate (EVA) Films?

In the solar industry, the most common encapsulation is with cross linkable ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA).
With the help of lamination machines, the cells are laminated between the films of EVA in a vacuum, which
is under compression.
This procedure is conducted under temperature of up to 150 degree C. One of the disadvantages of EVA
films is that it is not UV Resistant and for that protective front glass is required for UV Screening.
For standard modules that usually use EVA encapsulation, for the backing usually a layer of tedlar
composite (tedlar polyestar tedlar - TPT) is used, which is a thin opaque film.
Tedlar is the trade name for a film of polyvinyl fluoride (PVF), poly ethylene terephthalate (PET) or metal.
Advantages

 Long term encapsulation and protection

 Once the EVA sheets have been laminated, the ethylene vinyl acetate sheets play an important role
in preventing humidity and dirt penetrating the solar panels.
 Also with the help of EVA, the solar cells are floating between the glass and back sheets, helping
to soften shocks and vibrations and therefore protecting the solar cells and its circuits.
Properties

 Durability
 Quality EVA films are known for its excellent durability, also in difficult weather circumstances,
such as high temperature and high humidity.

 Bonding
Under the right circumstances, EVA film will have excellent adhesive bonding to solar glass (Not
Standard Glass, Solar glass has a rough surface). Also EVA bonds very well to the back sheet.

 Optical
EVA is known for excellent transparency. This means that optical transmission is acceptable and
does not block too much of the sunshine trying to reach the solar cells.

Block Diagram of a PV System

Circuit of Solar Cell

A solar cell can be modified as a circuit with an ideal current source (IL) in parallel with a diode (essential
in a solar cell). Series Resistance, Rs is very small and the Shunt Resistance, Rsh is very large, so both are
negligible.
Solar Cell I-V Characteristics Curves
 Shows the Current and Voltage (I-V) characteristics of a PV Cell, module or array giving detailed
description of its solar energy conversion ability and efficiency.
 PV Solar Cell converts suns radiant light directly into electricity. Increasing demand for a clean
energy source and the suns potential as a free energy source has made solar energy conversion as
part of a mixture of renewable energy sources increasingly important.
 I-V Characteristics Curve summarizes the main electrical characteristics.
 Intensity of the solar radiation (insolation) that hits the cell controls the current (I).
 The increase in the temperature of the solar cell reduces its voltage (V).
The graph shows I-V Characteristics of a typical silicon PV Cell operating under normal condition.
Power = Current * Voltage
If the multiplication is done, point for point, for all voltages from short to open circuit conditions, the power
curve is obtained for a given radiation level.
Solar Cell open circuited, not connected to any load, the current will be at its minimum and the voltage
across the cell will be maximum – Open Circuit Voltage, Voc.
When the solar cell is short circuited, that is the positive and negative leads are connected together the
voltage across the cell is minimum but the current flowing out of the cell reaches its maximum – Short
Circuit Current, Isc.
However, there is one particular combination of current and voltage for which power reaches its max value
at Imp and Vmp. The point at which the cell generates maximum electrical power – Maximum Power Point
(MPP). Ideal operation of a PV cell or panel is at MPP.
MPP of a solar cell is position near the bend in I-V Curve corresponding values of Vmp and Imp can be
estimated from Voc and Isc.
𝑉𝑚𝑝 ≅ (0.8 − 0.9)𝑉𝑜𝑐

And
𝐼𝑚𝑝 ≅ (0.85 − 0.95)𝐼𝑠𝑐

Solar cell output voltage and current both depend on temperature. The actual output power will vary with
changes in ambient temperature.
PV Panels can be wired or connected together in either series or parallel combinations or both to increase
the voltage or current capacity of the solar energy.
Panels Connected in Series – Voltage Increases
Panels Connected in Parallel – Current Increases
However, the solar panels are connected together, the upper right hand corner – MPP of the Array

Solar Array Parameters

 Open Circuit Voltage
Voc = Open Circuit Voltage = Maximum Voltage provided by the array, when there is no load (open
circuit), this is much higher than Vmp which relates to the operation of the PV array which is fixed
by the load. Value depends on number of PV panels connected together in series.

 Short Circuit Current

Isc = Short Circuit Current = Maximum Current Provided by the PV array, when in short circuit
condition. This value is much higher than Imp which relates to the normal operating circuit current.

 Maximum Power Point

Maximum Power Point relates to the point where the power supplied by the array, that is connected
to the load (batteries, inverters) is at its max value.
 𝑀𝑃𝑃 = 𝐼𝑚𝑝 × 𝑉𝑚𝑝

Measured in Watts or Peak Watts (Wp)

 Fill Factor
Fill Factor is essentially a measure of quality of the solar cell, calculated by comparing maximum
power to theoretical power (PT) that would be output at both Voc and Isc together.
Typical Values 0.7 and 0.8.
𝑃𝑚𝑎𝑥 𝐼𝑚𝑝 × 𝑉𝑚𝑝
𝐹𝐹 = =
𝑃𝑇 𝐼𝑠𝑐 × 𝑉𝑜𝑐

 Efficiency
% eff = percent efficiency – Efficiency of a PV Array is the ration between the maximum electrical
power that the array can produce compared to the amount of solar irradiance hitting the array.
Typical efficiency 10 - 12%, depending on the type of cells (monocrystalline, polycrystalline,
amorphous or thin film) being used.
Temperature Measurement Considerations

Crystals used to make PV Cells, like all semiconductors, are sensitive to temperature. When PV Cell is
exposed to higher temperature, Isc increases slightly but Voc decreases more significantly.
For a specific set if ambient conditions, higher temperature results in a decrease in the max power output
Pmax.
Since I-V curve will vary according to temperature, it is beneficial to record the conditions under which the
I-V sweep was conducted. Temperature can be measured using RTDs, thermistors or thermocouples.
Software Implementations
plot_singlediode.py
Calculating a module's IV curves
================================

Examples of modeling IV curves using a single-diode circuit equivalent model.

Calculating a module IV curve for certain operating conditions is a two-step process. Multiple
methods exist for both parts of the process. Here we use the De Soto model [1]_ to calculate the
electrical parameters for an IV curve at a certain irradiance and temperature using the module's
base characteristics at reference conditions. Those parameters are then used to calculate the
module's IV curve by solving the single-diode equation using the Lambert W method.

The single-diode equation is a circuit-equivalent model of a PV cell and has five electrical
parameters that depend on the operating conditions. For more details on the single-diode equation
and the five parameters, see the `PVPMC single diode page <https://pvpmc.sandia.gov/modeling-
steps/2-dc-module-iv/diode-equivalent-circuit-models/>`_.

Calculating IV Curves
-----------------------
This example uses: py:meth:`pvlib.pvsystem.calcparams_desoto` to calculate the 5 electrical
parameters needed to solve the single-diode equation. :py:meth:`pvlib.pvsystem.singlediode` is
then used to generate the IV curves.

from pvlib import pvsystem

import pandas as pd
import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

# Example module parameters for the Canadian Solar CS5P-220M:

parameters = {
'Name': 'Canadian Solar CS5P-220M',
'BIPV': 'N',
'Date': '10/5/2009',
'T_NOCT': 42.4,
'A_c': 1.7,
'N_s': 96,
'I_sc_ref': 5.1,
'V_oc_ref': 59.4,
'I_mp_ref': 4.69,
'V_mp_ref': 46.9,
'alpha_sc': 0.004539,
'beta_oc': -0.22216,
'a_ref': 2.6373,
'I_L_ref': 5.114,
'I_o_ref': 8.196e-10,
'R_s': 1.065,
'R_sh_ref': 381.68,
'Adjust': 8.7,
'gamma_r': -0.476,
'Version': 'MM106',
'PTC': 200.1,
'Technology': 'Mono-c-Si',
}
cases = [
(1000, 55),
(800, 55),
(600, 55),
(400, 25),
(400, 40),
(400, 55)
]

conditions = pd.DataFrame(cases, columns=['Geff', 'Tcell'])

# adjust the reference parameters according to the operating

# conditions using the De Soto model:
IL, I0, Rs, Rsh, nNsVth = pvsystem.calcparams_desoto(
conditions['Geff'],
conditions['Tcell'],
alpha_sc=parameters['alpha_sc'],
a_ref=parameters['a_ref'],
I_L_ref=parameters['I_L_ref'],
I_o_ref=parameters['I_o_ref'],
R_sh_ref=parameters['R_sh_ref'],
R_s=parameters['R_s'],
EgRef=1.121,
dEgdT=-0.0002677
)

# plug the parameters into the SDE and solve for IV curves:
curve_info = pvsystem.singlediode(
photocurrent=IL,
saturation_current=I0,
resistance_series=Rs,
resistance_shunt=Rsh,
nNsVth=nNsVth,
ivcurve_pnts=100,
method='lambertw'
)

# plot the calculated curves:

plt.figure()
for i, case in conditions.iterrows():
label = (
"$G_{eff}$ " + f"{case['Geff']} $W/m^2$\n"
"$T_{cell}$ " + f"{case['Tcell']} $C$"
)
plt.plot(curve_info['v'][i], curve_info['i'][i], label=label)
v_mp = curve_info['v_mp'][i]
i_mp = curve_info['i_mp'][i]
# mark the MPP
plt.plot([v_mp], [i_mp], ls='', marker='o', c='k')
plt.legend(loc=(1.0, 0))
plt.xlabel('Module voltage [V]')
plt.ylabel('Module current [A]')
plt.title(parameters['Name'])
plt.show()
plt.gcf().set_tight_layout(True)

# draw trend arrows

def draw_arrow(ax, label, x0, y0, rotation, size, direction):
style = direction + 'arrow'
bbox_props = dict(boxstyle=style, fc=(0.8, 0.9, 0.9), ec="b", lw=1)
t = ax.text(x0, y0, label, ha="left", va="bottom", rotation=rotation,
 size=size, bbox=bbox_props, zorder=-1)

bb = t.get_bbox_patch()
bb.set_boxstyle(style, pad=0.6)

ax = plt.gca()
draw_arrow(ax, 'Irradiance', 20, 2.5, 90, 15, 'r')
draw_arrow(ax, 'Temperature', 35, 1, 0, 15, 'l')

print(pd.DataFrame({
'i_sc': curve_info['i_sc'],
'v_oc': curve_info['v_oc'],
'i_mp': curve_info['i_mp'],
'v_mp': curve_info['v_mp'],
'p_mp': curve_info['p_mp'],
}))

Output:

i_sc v_oc i_mp v_mp p_mp

0 5.235561 52.129782 4.742078 39.617325 187.868460
1 4.190781 51.483032 3.805385 39.871330 151.725745
2 3.144837 50.649227 2.862258 39.952853 114.355370
3 2.043319 56.987478 1.886511 47.285357 89.204359
4 2.070523 53.238566 1.900933 43.492748 82.676788
5 2.097727 49.474043 1.911758 39.742278 75.977636

References
----------
[1] W. De Soto et al., "Improvement and validation of a model for photovoltaic array
performance", Solar Energy, vol 80, pp. 78-88, 2006.
mpp.py
from typing import OrderedDict
from pvlib import pvsystem
import pandas as pd
import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

info = pvsystem.max_power_point(
photocurrent=4,
saturation_current=.0000000000001,
resistance_series=2,
resistance_shunt=1,
nNsVth=152.8,
d2mutau=0.00020833,
method='newton'
)

for k, v in info.items():
print(k, v)

Output:

i_mp 0.6666666666666665
v_mp 1.9999999999999982
p_mp 1.333333333333332

References
----------
[1] W. De Soto et al., "Improvement and validation of a model for photovoltaic array
performance", Solar Energy, vol 80, pp. 78-88, 2006.
Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT)
Maximum Power Point Tracking is an algorithm implemented in PV inverters to continuously adjust the
impedance seen by the solar array to keep the PV System operating at, or close to peak power point of the
PV Panel under varying conditions, like changing solar irradiance, temperature and load.
Perturbation and Observation
This algorithm perturbs the operating voltage to ensure maximum power.
Algorithm:

Code:
# Based on the Algorithm, Cannot be implemented with hardware. Only Software
implementations.
# To run a data set turn the input into any data structure
import random
Vk1 = int(input("Vk1:"))
Ik1 = int(input("Ik1:"))
Pk1 = Vk1 * Ik1
Vk2 = int(input("Vk2:"))
Ik2 = int(input("Ik2:"))
Pk2 = Vk2 * Ik2

Vref = random.randint(250, 550)

print(f"Initial Vref: {Vref}")
if Pk2 - Pk1 == 0:
print(Vref)
else:
if Pk2 - Pk1 > 0:
if Vk2 - Vk1 > 0:
Vref = Vref + random.randint(1, 10)
print(Vref)
else:
Vref = Vref - random.randint(1, 10)
print(Vref)
else:
if Vk2 - Vk1 > 0:
Vref = Vref - random.randint(1, 10)
print(Vref)
else:
Vref = Vref + random.randint(1, 10)
print(Vref)
Incremental Conductance
This algorithm compares the incremental conductance to the instantaneous conductance in a PV System.
Depending on the result, it increases or decreases the voltage until the maximum power point (MPP) is
reached. Unlike P&O, voltage remains constant once MPP is reached.
Algorithm:
Code:

# Based on the Algorithm, Cannot be implemented with hardware. Only Software

implementations.
# To run a data set turn the input into any data structure
import random
Vk1 = int(input("Vk1:"))
Ik1 = int(input("Ik1:"))
Pk1 = Vk1 * Ik1

Vk2 = int(input("Vk2:"))
Ik2 = int(input("Ik2:"))
Pk2 = Vk2 * Ik2
delV = Vk2 - Vk1
delI = Ik2 - Ik1
delP = Pk2 - Pk1
Vref = random.randint(250, 550)
print(f"Initial Vref: {Vref}")
if delV == 0:
if delI == 0:
print(Vref)
else:
if delI > 0:
Vref = Vref + random.randint(1, 10)
print(Vref)
else:
Vref = Vref - random.randint(1, 10)
print(Vref)
else:
if delP/delV == 0:
print(Vref)
else:
if delP/delV > 0:
Vref = Vref + random.randint(1, 10)
print(Vref)
else:
Vref = Vref - random.randint(1, 10)
print(Vref)
Offline MPPT
 Fractional Short Circuit Current (FSCC)

𝐼𝑚𝑝𝑝 = 𝐾1 × 𝐼𝑠𝑐

 Fractional Open Circuit Voltage (FOCV)

𝑉𝑚𝑝𝑝 = 𝐾2 × 𝑉𝑜𝑐

References
 Github Repository: https://github.com/NavidNaf/UG_EEE4531_EnergyConversion3_SolarPV