A Fast-Dynamic Control Scheme for a Power-Electronics-Based PV Emulator

The dynamic performance of a photovoltaic (PV) emulator is critical for testing applications with fast maximum power point tracking (MPPT) algorithms. In this article, a power-electronics-based PV emulator (PVE) is proposed to achieve fast-dynamic response, as well as, to emulate accurately in all regions of the current-voltage (I-V) characteristic curve. The control scheme of the proposed PVE consists of an instantaneous output impedance matching (IOIM) controller based on load resistance feedback to generate the voltage reference signal and an inner boundary control (BC) scheme to regulate the converter at a given reference within a short period of time. The IOIM controller overcomes the drawback of conventional PVEs that suffer from oscillating reference signal in a certain region of the I-V characteristic curve. Moreover, use of load resistance feedback in the reference generation algorithm allows the decoupling of the reference signal generator from the inner control loop. The BC scheme adapts a corrected second-order switching surface to achieve a faster response time and robust operation with switching converter loads. Detailed small signal model of the PVE is derived to design the IOIM control loop and to ensure a stable and fast convergent emulation in the entire I-V characteristic curve. Experimental results of a 130 W (VMPP = 35.2 V, IMPP = 3.69 A) prototype are presented with both resistive loads and an MPPT converter to verify its performance under fast varying irradiance and load conditions.