Enhanced performance metrics under shading conditions through experimental investigations

The phenomenon of partial shading adversely affects photovoltaic arrays, e.g. multiple peak points in – characteristic curves and reducing the output power. Array reconfiguration is the best and efficient way of alleviating the partial shading effects. Physical relocation of panels can be used as a practical solution to prevent shading problems by altering the physical location of panels by not changing its electrical circuit. In this study, a new reconfiguration technique named as Arrow Sudoku pattern is proposed for all the conventional configurations such as, series–parallel, bridge‐link, honeycomb, and total cross‐tied connections to mitigate the shading effects. The proposed approach is tested on a Solar Photo‐Voltaic (SPV) array for different groups of shading conditions. The results are simulated through MATLAB/Simulink and validated through hardware prototype using artificial shade blockers and the results show a good improvement in the diagnosis of output parameters for all the reconfiguration techniques in comparison with their initial configurations. Moreover, the disturbance caused in – characteristic curves by shading is eradicated by using this proposed technique.