Development Of A Solar Cell Model In Matlab For

PV Based Generation System

G. Bhuvaneswari and R. Annamalai

Indian Institute of Technology Delhi,
New Delhi, India


Abstract Solar PV based electricity generation is gaining
importance due to its abundant availability and improvements in
materials and energy conversion technology. Global warming
and fossil fuel depletion is indirectly catalyzing this
transformation process. As the solar power conversion is already
a low efficient conversion process, accurate and reliable
modelling of solar cell is imperative to optimize the design of the
solar PV system. Due to the non-linear nature of its
characteristics, accurate modelling of a solar cell is still a difficult
task. The existing models do suffer in a few issues while
developing an integrated solar PV power conversion system. This
paper compares two of the existing models for solar cell in
MATLAB with a newly proposed model. To analyse and validate
the results of the simulation models, I-V and P-V characteristics
obtained from all the three models are compared with the
experimental characteristics obtained from a 50W photovoltaic
module. Finally relative merits and demerits of all the three
models are discussed.
Keywords-component; Photovoltaic module, MATLAB/
SIMULINK, Solar cell modelling, Simulation, double exponential
model, PV power generation
I. INTRODUCTION
Energy is a basic necessity for human activity and for
economic and social development. Energy is a key driver for
the betterment of human life. But due to growing population
coupled with global warming and depleting fossil resources,
mankind is in desperate need of alternative renewable energy
technologies based on wind, solar energy etc. Further, factors
like continuous technological advancements leading to reduced
product costs, increase in the scale of production of renewable
energy products, renewable energy friendly government
policies are catalyzing the growth of renewable energy
Renewable energy resources such as wind, solar and micro-
hydro for electricity production are being explored by various
researchers as a way to limit the green-house gas emissions and
to combat climate change and global warming menace. Energy
from the sun is being utilized by mankind in different forms
since time immemorial. However the growing need for
sustainable development and concern for global warming has
made us to relook at it with greater importance and real vigor.
Photovoltaic (PV) power generation is reliable, involves no
moving parts and operation and maintenance costs are very low
[1]. The PV cells/modules form the core of the solar PV power
generation unit. A solar PV system uses solar cells to convert
solar energy into electricity based on Photo Electric effect. PV
systems directly convert solar energy into electricity. The basic
building block of a PV system is the PV cell, which is a
semiconductor device that converts solar energy into direct-
current (DC) electricity. PV cells are interconnected to form a
PV module, typically rated up to 50-300 W. The PV modules
combined with a set of additional application dependent system
components form a complete PV system. PV systems are
highly modular and these modules can be linked together to
provide power ranging from a few watts to tens of megawatts.
The output of the solar module is in Direct Current (DC)
form, and so power conditioning is necessary to convert this
power into Alternating current (AC) form through power
electronic circuits either for Stand alone or for grid interfaced
applications. The solar PV energy conversion process itself is a
low efficient one due to major losses involved in the physical
process of conversion within the cell. Hence the available
energy after conversion has to be dealt with utmost care to
utilize it to the maximum extent.
In this context, the modelling and analysis of the solar cell
is very much important and essential too. In fact, accurate and
reliable modelling of solar cell is imperative to optimize the
design of the solar PV system. The mathematical model of the
solar cell had been developed a long time ago. But the recent
spurt in the use of simulation software such as SPICE, SABER,
SIMULINK/MATLAB etc., has made it essential to have
accurate and reliable models for the PV array so that PV based
generating system can be accurately analyzed and its
performance can be studied.
Matlab is one of the more prominent simulation software
used by industries and as well as the institutions due to its
various advantages. To facilitate development of solar PV
based power conversion systems, large numbers of simulation
models developed in MATLAB are available in the literature
[2-5]. Many of these models are based on non-linear equations
describing the solar cell behavior, however, with a few
approximations. In this paper, an attempt has been made to
evaluate the accuracy of two of the existing solar cell models in
MATLAB/SIMULINK and based on the single diode
equations of the Photovoltaic cell a new model has also been
developed as accurately as possible.
II. MATHEMATICAL DESCRIPTION OF SOLAR
CELL
Solar cells consist of a p-n junction fabricated in a thin wafer
or layer of a semiconductor material. In the dark, the I-V
output characteristic of a solar cell has an exponential
characteristic similar to that of a diode [6]. When photons
from the solar energy hits the solar cell, with energy greater
than band gap energy of the semiconductor, electrons are
knocked loose from the atoms in the material, creating
electron-hole pairs. These carriers are swept apart under the
influence of the internal electric fields of the p-n junction and
create a current proportional to the incident radiation. When
the cell is short circuited, this current flows in the external
circuit; when open circuited, this current is shunted internally
by the intrinsic p-n junction diode. The characteristics of this
diode therefore set the open circuit voltage characteristics of
the cell. The photovoltaic modules are made up of silicon
cells. The silicon solar cells which give output voltage of
around 0.7V under open circuit condition. The current rating
of the modules depends on the area of the individual cells.
Higher the cell area high is the current output of the cell.

The double exponential equation of the solar cell derived
from the physics of the pn junction aptly describes the
operation of the solar PV cell [7]. It is equivalently modeled as
a current source with 2 parallel diodes, a shunt and a series
resistance as shown in Fig.1.

q(V+IRse) q(V+IRse)
kT AkT
ph s1 s2
(V+IRse)
Rsh
I=I -I [e -1]-I [e -1]-
(1)

where I
ph
is the photo diode current generated by solar cell
mainly depending upon irradiance and temperature; I
s1
is the
saturation current of diode D1 due to diffusion mechanism; I
s2

is the saturation current due to recombination in space charge
layer ; R
sh
is the shunt resistance representing shunt current
leakage to the ground; R
se
is the series resistance representing
contact resistances etc.; k is Boltzmanns constant, 1.38x10-
23 J/K; q is the electron charge, 1.6 x 10-19 C; T
c
is the Cell
working temperature; V is the terminal voltage of solar cell.

Fig. 1: Double diode Model for solar cell

However the above model can be further simplified by
omitting the current I
s2
, the reverse saturation current of diode
D2 due to recombination of charge carrier in space charge
layer is neglected as the amount of recombination is less and
negligible. This assumption is very much acceptable especially
under standard test conditions and induces error only at very
low values of irradiation such as 100W/m
2
[5]. Hence finally
the generalized model of the solar cell with moderate
complexity is arrived at. This model (as shown in Fig.2) is
mostly used for all analytical and design purposes with
moderate complexity and acceptable accuracy. The equation
of the single diode model is

q (V+IRse)
Ak T
se
ph s
sh
(V+IR )
I=I -I [e -1]-
R
(2)
where,
I r r
I p h = I s c * * [ 1 + ( T c e l l - T r e f ) * K ) ]
1 0 0 0
(3)

Fig.2 Single diode model of solar cell
III. MODELLING AND SIMULATION OF SOLAR
CELL

A typical solar cell of 50W capacity (Waree WS-50) has
been chosen for modelling and analysis in this work. The
details of the solar cell are presented in Table 1. For any
design and development, simulation is the first step to
ascertain the satisfactory working of the system before
proceeding to implementation. Many solar PV cell models
developed in MATLAB have been reported in various
research papers [2-5, 7-10].

The inbuilt model for solar cell available in the simscape
subset of Simulink/ MATLAB is based on double diode
equation model [7]. This model accepts the solar irradiance
and the temperature as input parameters and yields current
characteristics for that particular cell voltage under defined
conditions. The input and output parameters are treated as
physical parameters as simscape works on physical network
modelling approach. Hence in case of interface with a power
conditioning systems, these physical parameters are to be
converted into equivalent electrical parameters by making use
of controlled sources.

Another model proposed [8] for PV electrical module is
based on Shockley diode equation. The investigations in this
particular model draw conclusions on variations in maximum
power point with temperature and insolation. This simulation
model is also based on single diode cell model. Based on solar
insolation, cell temperature and operating voltage of the cell,
this model gives the output in terms of current. The model
parameters are processed in a Matlab script file and the output
current is evaluated in terms of the input insolation and
temperature. Newton Raphson method is used to solve for the
cell current iteratively.
In this paper, an attempt had been made to develop a model
for the solar cell using Matlab/simulink as the tool. The cell
temperature and solar irradiance are given as inputs and the
output is the current of the cell based on its operating voltage.
This model is based on the single diode model with moderate
complexity. The model has been developed by translating the
mathematical equations in to a model with the help of
simulink blocks directly.

This model can be directly programmed as a single cell
module or an array as per the requirements similar to the other
simulink library blocks. The model can be manipulated by the
user from the manufacturers data like open circuit voltage and
short circuit current. It can be custom designed to form a solar
module by specifying the number of cells in series and parallel
according to the requirements. This generalized model can be
directly interfaced with the simpower systems tools in
Matlab/Simulink for implementation of the solar PV power
conversion system. The solar cell block and its sub systems
are as shown in the Figs.3 and 4 respectively.


Fig.3: Solar cell model and its port



Fig.4: Simulink Subsystem of solar cell model

IV. EXPERIMENTATION
The manufacturer specifications of the solar module used
for experimentation are as given in Table1 [11]. In order to
validate the results obtained from the simulation model, an
experimental set up has been arranged to obtain I-V and P-V
characteristics of the solar cell at various temperature and
illumination conditions. Most of the specifications of the
manufacturer are valid at the STC conditions. However, the
solar PV module is rarely operated at these standard
conditions and this gives rise to various uncertainties in terms
of its power delivering capability. Mostly the solar irradiance
over the year on an average sunny day hover around 400
700W/m
2
and temperature depends on the season and climatic
conditions of the location.

Hence in this study, initially the experimental data was
obtained in the actual existing conditions and the same has
been verified with the simulation models. The solar irradiance
was measured with a high accuracy pyranometer to minimise
the errors in the experimentation and the I-V curve is plotted.
The same parameters (irradiance and temperature) that
prevailed during the time of the experimentation process have
been used in all three Matlab simulation models and the I-V
and P-V characteristics are plotted on the same graph.

TABLE 1: TECHNICAL SPECS. OF SOLAR MODULE WS 50

Parameter @ STC Variable Specs.
Maximum power in watts P
m
50
Open circuit voltage in Volts V
oc
21.0
Short Circuit current in Amps I
sc
3.17
Voltage @ max. power V
mp
17.0
Current @ max. power I
mp
2.94
Temperature Coefficients
Voltage -0.123 V/K
Current +4.4 mA/K
Type of cell Mono crystalline silicon

V. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The Current - Voltage (I-V) characteristics and Power-
Voltage (P-V) characteristics of the solar cell at various
irradiance and temperature have been obtained experimentally
as well as from the three simulation models. Figs.4a and 4b
show the I-V and P-V characteristics of all the three
simulation models for solar irradiance of 1000W/m
2
and 25C
temperature (Standard Test Condition). The curves are almost
matching with each other and are in line with the
manufacturers data sheet.


Fig. 4a: I-V curve at STC (1000W/m
2
; 25 C)


Fig. 4b: PV curve at STC (1000W/m
2
; 25 C)

The experimental results are obtained at a
temperature of 23C and with an irradiance of 500 W/m
2
.
Simulations were carried out for all the three models with
23C temperature and irradiance of 500 W/m
2
. Figs. 5 and 6
show the I-V and P-V characteristics of all the three
simulation models and experimental results. Even though all
the I-V and P-V characteristics are fairly coinciding with each
other, it is very clear that I-V characteristics obtained from the
experimental set-up has a slight droop in the constant voltage
region which is not there in the simulated characteristics. This
is actually due the omission of the series resistance R
se
during
the simulation whereas in actual conditions the resistance is
very much present although it is a small value. However, the
error due to omission of R
se
is very marginal. Another notable
thing is the slightly lower actual power output as compared to
the simulation results in the constant current region due to
omission of the shunt resistance R
sh
. But this is almost
negligible as compared to the discrepancy caused by the series
resistance. Hence in most of the cases the shunt resistance can
be grossly neglected and series resistance can be included for
having an appropriate model. Also, the omission of the
Saturation diode D2 affects the output from the simulation at
lower solar irradiance. The P-V and I-V characteristics have
also been obtained for the experimental setup at different
temperatures and the same have been simulated with all the
simulation models. The results are found to match fairly well.


Fig. 5: IV curve at real time condition (500W/m
2
)


Fig. 6: PV curve at real time condition (500W/m
2
)

Model 1 which is based on two diodes as shown in
Fig.1 is more complex than Model 2 and the proposed
simulink model. Model 1 is built using Simscape that deals
with physical signals and hence this is not directly compatible
with power electronic modules in SimPowerSystems toolbox.
In view of this, the output of model 1 in Simscape which is in
the form of numbers has to be converted into equivalent
electrical signals by making use of controlled voltage / current
sources. The developed simulink model is a simplified version
and hence the number of PV cells connected in series and
parallel can be directly fed to obtain the required voltage and
current whereas this feature is missing in Model 1. Further,
model 1 being more complex also takes longer duration for
simulation while connecting many units in series and parallel.
The solution for Model 2 is based on the iterative technique
Newton-Raphson method. Due to this iterative procedure
involved, the computation time is much more than the other
two models. In view of all these, Model 3 proposed in this
paper seems to be a better option as compared to the other two
existing models.

TABLE 2: SUMMARY OF SOLAR CELL MODELS

Description Model 1 Model 2
Simulink
Model 3
Complexity
Most
complex
Moderate Moderate
Accuracy High
Reasonably
acceptable
Reasonably
acceptable
Flexibility in
programming
Low Moderate High
Interface with power
conversion blocks
Difficult Easy Very Easy
Simulation time Large Medium Less
Dynamic
performance
Good Good Very Good

VI. CONCLUSION
An attempt has been made to develop a new model for solar
PV cell in Matlab/ Simulink environment and also to evaluate
the accuracy and simplicity of the newly developed model and
compare it with the existing models. The characteristics
obtained from the models have been cross verified with those
obtained from an actual solar cell module of 50 W rating
under STC conditions as well as other real time operating
conditions. The models are compared in terms of their
complexity, flexibility, ease of programming, ease of
interfacing with power conditioning systems and the P-V and
I-V characteristics generated from the model. Each model has
its own advantages and disadvantages based on computation
time, capability to be interfaced with Simpowersystem blocks
and accuracy of the output characteristics. The model
proposed in this paper using simulink building blocks
performs well for developing solar PV systems models as it
combines features like ease of interface with power conversion
systems, faster dynamic response and reasonable accuracy
with moderate complexity.

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