A photovoltaic system model for Matlab/Simulink simulations

Solar energy maintains life on the earth and it is an infinite source of clean energy. There is an increasing trend for the use of solar cells in industry and domestic appliances because solar energy is expected to play significant role in future smart grids as a distributed renewable source. Optimal and large-scale integration of renewable sources into smart grid is possible by the aid of computer simulations and hence there is a growing demand for computer modeling and simulation of renewable sources. This study presents a generalized photovoltaic (PV) system simulation model for Matlab/Simulink simulation environment. The proposed model is based on a behavioral cell model for modeling solar radiance to electricity conversion and an electrical driver interface for implementing electrical characteristic of power limited systems in power simulations. The model is efficient in computational complexity and it is easy to configure for representing wide-range of PV installations.