MPPT solar charge controller with automatic DC load management for standalone solar systems.

Abstract

This paper presents the design and prototype of maximum power point tracking (MPPT) solar charge controller with automatic DC load control to continuously track and operate the system at maximum power from a solar panel using a DC-DC buck converter and an Arduino Nano microcontroller. The automatic DC load control involves selectively controlling the categorized loads depending on the system voltage of a 12V 7AH sealed rechargeable solar deep cycle battery using digital signals used to switch on/off the transistors and drive the load MOSFETs. The MPPT algorithm has been implemented using an Arduino Nano with the Perturb and Observe technique. To validate the proposed system, both simulation and hardware implementation are carried out in Proteus environments and laboratory set up, respectively. Protective measures against reverse polarity, under/over battery charge/discharge, short-circuit, and open circuit has been implemented using 10A fuses, IRFZ44N MOSFET, P6KE36CA diodes; both on input and output of the system. The proposed MPPT-SCC can handle the maximum current of 10A at 12V voltage.