Modeling of a stand-alone solar photovoltaic water pumping system for irrigation

Abstract

Solar  photovoltaic  water  pumping systems  have  been  research topics in recent decades. The purpose was to develop much more profitable  and  efficient  systems  to  meet  the  needs  of  pumping water for livestock and irrigation. This paper describes the design of  a  stand-alone  photovoltaic  water  pumping  system.  A  Boost converter is used to apply the Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT)  algorithm.  Similarly,  a  three-phase  voltage  source converter (VSC) is used to supply the asynchronous motor. The installation  must  provide  a  continuous  water  flow  during  the irrigation  interval.  It  has  been  verified  that  in  adverse  weather conditions  (cloud  transits or partly cloudy) it is necessary to incorporate a decentralized-hybrid energy storage system (basedon batteries or ultracapacitors), or excessively oversize the stand-alone photovoltaic system, to supply the water pump. The model has  been  simulated  in  Matlab-Simulink.  In  this  way,  different simulations have been developed to verify the basic characteristics of the proposed system. The results of the simulated model and the conclusions obtained are also presented in this paper.