DC-DC Converter for Photovoltaic Application with MPPT function embedded interleaved 4

Abstract

We present a DC-DC converter for photovoltaic (PV) applications that is suitable for a distributed power conversion approach, obtained by transferring part of the electronics from the inverter to the module. The proposed circuit is a high-efficiency four-phase interleaved boost converter employing relatively low-valued inductive and capacitive components. Its realization is made possible thanks to the design of a dedicated integrated circuit (IC) performing the converter control section as well as the Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT) algorithm. The solution is designed for a maximum delivered power of 300 W and to work with MPPT voltage between 9 V and 40 V, with maximum allowed panel current of 9 A. Experimental measurements show that the average power conversion efficiency is between 96% and 99% and that the MPPT efficiency is always greater than 99.7%.