A photovoltaic system using supercapacitor energy storage for power equilibrium and voltage stability

Abstract

In a photovoltaic system, a stable voltage and of tolerable power equilibrium is needed. Hence, a dedicated analog charge controller for a storage system which controls energy flow to impose power equilibrium, and therefore, voltage stability on the load is required. We demonstrate here our successful design considerations employing supercapacitors as main energy storage as well as a buffer in a standalone photovoltaic system, incorporating a dedicated supercapacitor charge controller for the first time. Firstly, we demonstrated a photovoltaic system employing supercapacitors as main energy storage as well as a buffer in a standalone photovoltaic system. Secondly, we design a constant voltage maximum power point tracker (MPPT) for peak power extraction from the photovoltaic generator. Thirdly, we incorporated a supercapacitor charge controller for power equilibrium and voltage stability through a dedicated analog charge controller in our design, the first of its kind. Fourthly, we analyzed the use of supercapacitor storage to mitigate disequilibrium between power supply and demands, which, in turn, causes overvoltage or under voltage across the load. Lastly, we then went ahead to demonstrate the control of the energy flow in the system so as to maintain rated voltage across a variant demand load.