Design and Study of an Electronic Charge Controller for optimal Utilization of the Solar Energy

Abstract

newline Energy is available in various forms in the universe. The energy can be converted from one form to another form. Science and Technology have come out with various innovations where energy from different forms can be converted into useful energy which could cater to various human needs. One such converted energy is electrical energy. This energy is not available naturally in the environment. Using the various techniques of science and technology it is possible to convert natural energy from different sources into electrical energy. The need for electrical energy in India has increased so much that the supply-to-demand ratio is not 1:1. The supply is less than the demand. To fulfill the consumer requirement for electrical energy various technologies are adopted. Looking into the various technologies adopted in the generation of electrical energy two categories are adopted in the production of electrical energy namely conventional energy system and non-conventional energy system which is also called renewable energy system. There are several methods of generation of energy from conventional methods including hydroelectricity, thermal electricity, and atomic energy system which are the major contributors of present commercial electric energy suppliers in India. Thermal energy and atomic energy plants cause environmental pollution in different forms. Along with the pollution in some cases like thermal energy, the availability of coal is in scarcity. The availability and transportation of uranium for atomic plants are even risky also. Even with the current conventional methods of energy production is a huge scarcity in the electric energy supply-demand ratio. To overcome this scarcity there is a need for an alternative energy production system. newlineLooking into the demand the technology has given another means of energy production system called renewable energy resource. There are several renewable energy sources which are generating electric energy. Name a few solar energy, wind energy, tidal energy, biomass energy, geothermal energy, etc. Among them, the most popular energy resource is solar energy resource. The reason for the same is the wide range of solar energy production from a few watts to a few megawatts. Also, there is one more reason to switch over to solar energy, the solar plant can be installed anywhere depending on the size like rooftop, plain ground, hilltop, etc. Depending on the budget the solar plant can be installed. A wide range of solar products like solar lanterns, solar street lights, solar energy for home solar energy for agriculture, and High-end solar energy production for commercial use are other reasons for more popularity of solar energy over other renewable energy resources. newlineThe solar energy from the photovoltaic cells depends upon the incident photon which is always changing concerning the position of the sunlight from time to time. This results in variation in the input current as well as the input voltage supply to the battery. This reduces the life of the battery. The battery requires a regulated smooth DC power supply to charge. This increases the life of the battery. In order to get the regulated DC power supply from the solar panel it is very much important to have a charge controller in the solar energy system. There are several types of solar charge controllers are invented based on different input parameters namely series and shunt switch type, PWM, MPPT, etc. Among the different types of charge controllers, MPPT is considered to be the better one which will optimally use solar energy to store in the battery backup. newline