Real-time digital simulation based laboratory test-bench development for research and education on solar pv systems

This paper presents the development of a laboratory test-bench for research and teaching on power electronics for solar PV system integration based on a real-time digital simulation (RTS) platform. The test-bench allows flexible and rapid development through hardware-in-the-loop simulations. Importantly, it allows the wide range of PV system aspects, including maximum power point tracking (MPPT) and dc/dc converter control algorithms for a variety of dc/dc converter topologies and control hardware platforms as well as external interfaces for solar irradiance and temperature measurements to be evaluated. Two example scenarios are presented to demonstrate how the test-bench can be used to facilitate hands-on experimentation on standard control platforms and how it can be used to support and enhance research as well as learning and teaching objectives.