An Experimental Implementation and Testing of GA based Maximum Power Point Tracking for PV System under Varying Ambient Conditions Using dSPACE DS 1104 Controller

- Maximum power point trackers (MPPT) are required to obtain the accurate and high tracking efficiency from the photovoltaic (PV) panel. In this paper, a genetic algorithm (GA) based MPPT is proposed because of its simple design implementation, high convergence speed and excellent capability to get global peak power point under variable weather conditions. Also, cuk converter based PV power system is selected because of excellent buck-boost power capability, better voltage regulation and lower power losses compared to other dc-dc converter. The proposed MPPT tracker has been tested under steady as well as transient operating conditions. The experimental responses are validated through control data acquisition system of real time dSPACE DS 1104 kit, which provides better performance characteristics with small steady state error compared to conventional MPPT algorithm.