Interconnection Topologies for Floating Photovoltaic System to Enhance the Power Output by Reducing the Mismatch Losses

Floating photovoltaic (FPV) systems are the global trend in solar power generation technology with the added advantage of reducing the water crisis in this climate change. The automatic cooling effect maintaining the panel temperature increase the energy output from these water-based PV systems compared to land-based systems. Like the conventional PV system, the losses due to the shading of panels also contribute to reduce the FPV power output as well. Even though the shades from the trees, buildings and mountains cannot be a major shaded part of the FPV array and the water is readily available for cleaning, the shading caused by clouds, adjacent panels, bird droppings and reservoir walls with drifted water levels over time has its impacts. Thus, the factors that hinder their performance should be eliminated to make the system even more efficient by maximizing the harvested energy. This study attempts to review different re-configurations of the FPV modules in the 5x5 array to reduce the mismatch losses from shadows. The topologies in series-parallel (SP), total cross-tied (TCT), bridge link (BL), and honeycomb (HC) connections are investigated regarding the power output in MATLAB at the uniform irradiance level. Furthermore, the performance of the FPV system is assessed during the fixed and random shading conditions on the array are simulated. Finally, a better interconnection scheme in all possible shaded conditions is discussed.