Efficiency Evaluation of the Dual System Power Inverter for On-Grid Photovoltaic System

Abstract

The implementation of a dual electric system that is capable of operating with either constant current and variable voltage, or constant voltage and variable current appliances, is one of the possible options to solve low-intensity stochastic energy utilization problems from renewable energy sources. This research paper analyzes the potential benefit of a novel three-phase dual system power inverter over the conventional inverter used in a solar power plant. The concept of such a power inverter is explained, and the digital twin model is created in a MATLAB Simulink environment. The efficiency characteristic of the simulated inverter is compared to the efficiency characteristic of a real conventional inverter. A standalone data logging system and an additional data acquisition system were used to collect and process data from the real inverter. Comparison of the digital twin inverter and the real conventional inverter shows the potential benefit of this novel inverter technology. It is shown that the novel inverter can operate in a wider range of DC input power. The potential economic benefit is also presented and discussed in the paper.