A Reconfigurable Solar Photovoltaic Grid-Tied Inverter Architecture for Enhanced Energy Access in Backup Power Applications

In this article, a photovoltaic (PV) reconfigurable grid-tied inverter (RGTI) scheme is proposed. Unlike a conventional grid-tied inverter (GTI) that ceases operation during a power outage, the RGTI is designed to act as a regular GTI in the on-grid mode but it is reconfigured to function as a dc-dc charge-controller that continues operation during a grid outage. During this period, the RGTI is tied to the battery-bank of an external uninterruptible power supply (UPS)-based backup power system to augment it with solar power. Such an operation in off-grid mode without employing high-bandwidth communication with the UPS is challenging, as the RGTI control must not conflict with the battery management system of the UPS. The hardware and control design aspects of this requirement are discussed in this article. A battery emulation control scheme is proposed for the RGTI that facilitates seamless functioning of the RGTI in parallel with the physical UPS battery to reduce its discharge current. A system-level control scheme for overall operation and power management is presented to handle the dynamic variations in solar irradiation and UPS loads during the day, such that the battery discharge burden is minimized. The design and operation of the proposed RGTI system are independent of the external UPS and can be integrated with an UPS supplied by any manufacturer. Experimental results on a 4 kVA hardware setup validate the proposed RGTI concept, its operation, and control.