Novel Simplified Mathematical Model for Limiting the Maximum Tangent Slope of the I-V Curve of Solar Array Simulators

Solar array simulators (SASs) are extensively used in both terrestrial and non-terrestrial power conversion units which are usually employed to replace solar panels to generate specific current-voltage (I-V) power curves for tested power systems. However, given the limit of the dynamic response performance of the power hardware unit of SAS devices, it is quite difficult to simulate set I-V curves with increased slopes. Therefore, the maximum value of the tangent slope of the I-V curve set by the user should be limited to prevent hardware output power oscillations. This study proposes a simplified maximum tangent slope mathematical model (MTSMM) for I-V curves based on the exponential mathematical model of solar cells that can easily and conveniently calculate the required maximum slope of the set I-V curves. The proposed, simplified MTSMM avoids complex mathematical operations, such as indices and logarithms that cannot be realized by general-purpose digital processors. Finally, the experimental data confirmed that the maximum slope values calculated by the simplified MTSMM are compared with the theoretical maximum slope values. As indicated, the worst relative error accuracy of the data points is -0.952%. This finding verifies the validity of the proposed, simplified MTSMM.