Control of three-level quadratic DC-DC boost converters for energy systems using various technique-based MPPT methods

Area of Science:

• Electrical Engineering
• Renewable Energy Systems
• Power Electronics

Background:

• Conventional DC-DC converters in photovoltaic (PV) systems often utilize incremental conductance-based maximum power point tracking (MPPT-IC).
• This architecture, while simple, presents drawbacks like power ripples, overshoot, and slow dynamic response, limiting PV system efficiency.
• Existing MPPT strategies, including Type 1 and Type 2 Fuzzy Logic (MPPT-T1FL, MPPT-T2FL), offer improvements but have limitations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To propose a novel three-level quadratic DC-DC boost converter integrated with a NARX neural network-based maximum power point tracking (MPPT-NARX-NN) strategy.
• To evaluate the performance of the MPPT-NARX-NN strategy against MPPT-IC, MPPT-T1FL, and MPPT-T2FL under various operating conditions.
• To demonstrate the enhanced accuracy, robustness, and dynamic response of the proposed MPPT-NARX-NN strategy for improved PV energy extraction.

Main Methods:

• Development of a three-level quadratic DC-DC boost converter topology.
• Implementation and simulation of the MPPT-NARX-NN algorithm using MATLAB.
• Comparative analysis of MPPT-NARX-NN against MPPT-IC, MPPT-T1FL, and MPPT-T2FL, focusing on key performance metrics.

Main Results:

• The MPPT-NARX-NN strategy significantly improved rise time by up to 97.34% and settling time by up to 66.66% compared to other methods.
• Average tracking efficiency was enhanced by 3.86% over MPPT-IC and 1.12% over MPPT-T1FL.
• Simulation results confirmed superior operational performance, reliability, and energy extraction capabilities of the proposed MPPT-NARX-NN approach.

Conclusions:

• The three-level quadratic DC-DC boost converter combined with the MPPT-NARX-NN strategy offers a highly effective solution for photovoltaic systems.
• This advanced approach significantly boosts energy extraction efficiency, system performance, and reliability.
• The MPPT-NARX-NN strategy represents a promising advancement for more efficient and flexible solar energy utilization.