A Thirteen Level Ladder Type Grid-Tied Solar Power Converter in Varying Irradiance Conditions

This work investigates the implementation of a thirteen-level inverter-based grid-tied solar photovoltaic (PV) system. The proposed system employs a new ladder-type topology that effectively mitigates the common issues of harmonic distortion and low power quality. The name ladder signifies the staircase-type series connection of PV-fed converter cells. This system has six cells per phase with H-bridge module for changing the polarity of the converter voltage. It is formed by fifteen switches whereas CHB requires twenty-four switches to have thirteen-level operation. The system’s performance is analyzed under varying solar irradiation, and simulations are conducted to validate its efficacy. Obtained results demonstrate that the proposed thirteen-level inverter-based system effectively reduce the total harmonic distortion and voltage imbalance while simultaneously improving the overall power quality of the grid-tied solar PV system. The findings suggest that the proposed system has great potential for widespread application in the renewable energy sector, thereby contributing to the establishment of a more sustainable future.