Grid and Solar Photovoltaic Sources Assisted Charging System for Electric Vehicles

Abstract: Power generation using Photovoltaic (PV) cells is the primary source among renewable energy sources. The PV cell, which utilizes solar energy, turns solar radiation into electrical energy without adversely affecting the earth's atmosphere. The key issue regarding PV power generation is that solar irradiation varies with time on an hourly basis. To extract the high power from the PV panel during the change in environmental condition, Single-Ended Primary Inductance-Capacitor (SEPIC) based DC-DC converter, and a highly efficient Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT) algorithm are used. In this study, an isolated SEPIC converter is used to charge the battery of an electric vehicle via a grid or PV source. The incremental Conductance (INC) algorithm is more efficient among the MPPT methods due to the accuracy in steady state and flexibility to the environment, increasing the system's overall efficiency. Therefore, this study uses the INC method to obtain high power output during the change in environmental conditions. The converter, MPPT algorithm, and controller are developed in MATLAB/Simulink environment, and the results are verified through the simulations. The results show the applicability of the SEPIC converter with INC for electric vehicle battery charging applications.