Generic Photovoltaic System Emulator Based on Lambert ω Function

This paper describes the development of a generic model suitable for emulating Photovoltaic (PV) system characteristics in order to study its impacts on the performance power networks. This model can accurately emulate the dynamic behaviour of the PV system, including the Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT) controller. A new method to emulate the MPPT controller based on the Lambert ω function is introduced. This method can accurately determine the PV array optimum operating voltage point without the need for measuring the output power. This makes the techniques suitable for practical implementation, as the response is fast and does not involves the oscillations usually associated with the Perturbation and Observation (P&O) MPPT. It also provides improved performance in low solar irradiance conditions, as compared with conventional MPPT methods. The proposed emulator is easy to implement in computer modelling of power systems. This model is implemented in Matlab/Simulink Software package and its performance is analysed and presented in this paper.