DESIGN AND DEVELOPMENT OF A COST-EFFECTIVE SOLAR CHARGE CONTROLLER FOR AUTONOMOUS SOLAR POWER PLANT

Currently, the use of solar energy is growing in demand due to increased energy requirements and the depletion of non-renewable sources. But the problem with solar energy is that it is not constant; and depends on weather conditions, such as solar radiation, temperature, that’s why the battery is always connected between the solar panel and the load through the charge controller, to protect the battery from overload and deep discharge. In this article, an economical and efficient solar electrical controller with a circuit breaker and indicator was designed and developed, taking into account the climatic conditions of the Republic of Burundi. This solar charge controller works with the topology of a DC-DC converter to charge the battery. The system is implemented using low-cost and limited hardware components. The developed solar charge controller, in combination with adjustable voltage and current, is suitable for automatic on-off. To increase the service life, the battery recharge cycle is optimized, and due to the reduction of the recharge cycle, the battery life is increased. An integrated IC was used in our system to regulate the voltage of the DC / DC converter. The system architecture for a regulated power supply with an output of 14 V and 3 A is described. The presented system uses resistive control to limit the output signal of a DC / DC converter, as well as to limit voltage or current. Test results confirm that the use of the proposed method leads to a better use of available solar energy.

Authors: N. Ntawuhorakomeye , L. Ndayragije

Direction: Electrical Engineering

Keywords: Charge controller, battery, DC/DC converter, microcontroller, resistive control

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