Research on Topology Reconfiguration for Maximum Power Generation in Photovoltaic Systems

• Project/Area Number: 15K11991
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Challenging Exploratory Research
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Mathematical informatics
• Research Institution: Nara Institute of Science and Technology
• Principal Investigator: Inoue Michiko 奈良先端科学技術大学院大学, 情報科学研究科, 教授 (30273840)
• Project Period (FY): 2015-04-01 – 2018-03-31
• Project Status: Completed (Fiscal Year 2017)
• Budget Amount: ¥2,860,000 (Direct Cost: ¥2,200,000、Indirect Cost: ¥660,000); Fiscal Year 2017: ¥1,170,000 (Direct Cost: ¥900,000、Indirect Cost: ¥270,000); Fiscal Year 2016: ¥1,040,000 (Direct Cost: ¥800,000、Indirect Cost: ¥240,000); Fiscal Year 2015: ¥650,000 (Direct Cost: ¥500,000、Indirect Cost: ¥150,000)
• Keywords: 太陽光発電 / 接続トポロジー / 再構成 / 発電量最適化 / 太陽光発電システム / 接続トポロジー再構成 / 故障耐性 / 部分影

Outline of Final Research Achievements

We have investigated online algorithms to reconfigure topologies of photovoltaic systems to maximize power generation. We have proposed 1) a mechanism of reconfiguration using standard PV panels and a switching circuit, 2) a method to estimate power generation ability (or I-V curve) of each PV panel or a group of panels, 3) an algorithm to obtain a topology to maximize power generation. The proposed algorithm is simple enough to be used in embedded systems. In an evaluation by simulation, it is more than 750 times faster than a brute force method while obtaining optimum solutions with probability of more than 99%.