Cascaded Boost Converter for PV Applications

Abstract: Among renewable energy sources, solar power has the potential to become one of the main contributors to the future electricity supply. Low voltage photovoltaic systems require a high voltage gain converter for module’s grid connection through a DC-AC inverter. This paper proposes a converter that achieves a high step-up voltage conversion ratio, which contains a coupled inductor, without extreme duty ratios and numerous turns-ratio; the leakage inductor energy of the coupled inductor is efficiently recycled to the load. Also, switch of the converter isolates energy from the PV panel when the ac module is off. This particular design protects installers and users from electrical hazards. These features explain module’s high efficiency performance. A 15V input voltage, 200V output voltage, and 100W output power circuit of the proposed converter has been implemented. MATLAB is used for the study.

Keywords: AC module, coupled inductor, high step-up voltage gain, microinverter, maximum power point (MPP).