DYNAMIC PERFORMANCE OF A DC SHUNT MOTOR CONNECTED TO A PHOTOVOLTAIC ARRAY

The dynamic performance of a DC shunt motor directly connected to a photovoltaic array is studied. The motor is represented by the dynamic equations of its electrical and mechanical systems. The photovoltaic array is represented by an equivalent circuit whose parameters are computed using experimentally determined voltage-current characteristics. Simultaneous solution of both the motor and array equations is obtained using a Ranga-Kutta computer program. This enabled the transient performance of the motor to be determined during the starting period under different conditions of solar intensity and shaft load. Simulation results as well as those obtained from experiments on a 1-hp, DC shunt motor connected to a 4-kW photovoltaic array confirm that the dynamic performance of a DC shunt motor connected to a photovoltaic array differs from its performance when it is operated from a constant-voltage ource.