Topology reconfiguration for optimization of photovoltaic array output

As more utility scale photovoltaic (PV) power plants are installed, there is a need to improve monitoring and management of PV arrays. A procedure is presented here for optimizing the electrical configuration of a PV array under a variety of operating conditions. Computer simulations and analysis with synthetic and real data are presented in this paper. The performance of the optimization system is evaluated for a variety of partial shading conditions using a SPICE circuit simulator. In general, a 4%–5% gain in power output is achievable by employing active switching in order to reconfigure the array’s electrical configuration.