Simulation and Testing of Intelligent PV Modules via Matlab/Simulink

With the increase in the total installed capacity, the photovoltaic (PV) module faces problems, including decreased output power, hot spots, and decreased investment rate for outdoor works. It has raised new challenges for the development of PV technology. Therefore, the reliability issue between the increasing power demand and the power generation process could be resolved by introducing the sub-string power optimizer. The electrical model for the standard half-cell module is set up with Matlab/Simulink based on the double-diode equivalent circuit, and the simulation accuracy is verified experimentally. The I-V and P-V curve for the smart half-cell module is successfully generated using its Simulink model, illustrating that the smart module’s maximum power is an interval. Under the condition of different irradiance, different temperature, and different shading ratio on the cells, the error for Pm is only 0.38%, 0.2%, and 0.53%, respectively. Thus, the constant power property can be beneficial for a smart module to avoid the mismatch between substrings or modules. The highest performance gain for a smart module under shading is calculated based on a single module and an array built by the Simulink model, which is 32.5% and 10.4%, respectively. Besides, the intelligent modules’ real-time performance and energy generation with no and partial shading are also calculated with the Simulink model. The estimated yield error for the smart half-cell module is +0.16% and +0.30%, and the value for the bifacial smart half-cell module is +0.93% and +0.82%. Consequently, the well-established Simulink model for smart modules is proposed as a solution to the problem that existing tools cannot simulate the output curve of smart modules.