| Group |
2021-10 |
Status |
completed |
| Title |
An I x V Tracer for Photovoltaic (PV) Panels (1) |
| Supervisor |
Luiz A.C. Lopez & Chunyan Lai |
| Description |
Photovoltaic panels are nonlinear electric power sources whose output voltage and power vary with the current demanded by the load, temperature and age of the cells. There are a few commercial “I x V tracers” for plotting the I x V curves of solar panels/arrays. They employ variable/controllable impedances that can be essentially of three types: Linear resistance (MOSFET), switched DC-DC converters and inductor/capacitor with mechanical switch. The sensed voltage, current, solar irradiance and temperature are to be sensed and stored in a way that allows the plotting of I x V curve accurately and with reduced data storage requirements. A microcontroller is typically employed for controlling the variable impedance and collecting, storing and/or displaying the sensed quantities and curve.
The objective of this project is the analysis, design and implementation of low-cost I x V tracers. The trade-offs between a simple variable impedance and a complex algorithm for sampling and storing the sensed quantities are to be considered. Suitable approaches for displaying the results/plots and transferring data to a memory stick, computer or the internet/cloud are to be developed. Working prototypes implemented on a printed circuit board (PCB) should be presented at the conclusion of the project.
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| Student Requirement |
ELEC-331 and ELEC-433 |
| Tools |
PSIM, TI microcontroller, MATLAB |
| Number of Students |
6 |
| Students |
Jasen Ratnam, Bahnan Danho, Valentina Pieters, Thushanth Sithambararajan, Rabih Ghobril, Nathalie Huynh |
| Comments: |
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