An Online Novel Two-Layered Photovoltaic Fault Monitoring Technique Based Upon the Thermal Signatures

Qamar Navid, Ahmed Hassan, Abbas Ahmad Fardoun and Rashad Ramzan
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Qamar Navid: Emirates Centre for Energy & Environment Research, United Arab Emirates University, 15551 Al Ain, UAE
Ahmed Hassan: Department of Architecture Engineering, College of Engineering, United Arab Emirates University, 15551 Al Ain, UAE
Abbas Ahmad Fardoun: Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Al Mareef University, Beirut 1001, Lebanon
Rashad Ramzan: Department of Electrical Engineering, National University of Computer and Emerging Sciences, Islamabad 44000, Pakistan

Sustainability, 2020, vol. 12, issue 22, 1-13

Abstract: The share of photovoltaic (PV) power generation in the energy mix is increasing at a rapid pace with dramatically increasing capacity addition through utility-scale PV power plants globally. As PV plants are forecasted to be a major energy generator in the future, their reliable operation remains of primary concern due to a possibility of faults in a tremendously huge number of PV panels involved in power generation in larger plants. The precise detection of nature and the location of the faults along with a prompt remedial mechanism is deemed crucial for smoother power plant operation. The existing fault diagnostic methodologies based on thermal imaging of the panels as well as electrical parameters through inverter possess certain limitations. The current article deals with a novel fault diagnostic technique based on PV panel electrical parameters and junction temperatures that can precisely locate and categorize the faults. The proposed scheme has been tested on a 1.6 kW photovoltaic system for short circuit, open circuit, grounding, and partial shading faults. The proposed method showed improved accuracy compared to thermal imaging on panel scale fault detection, offering a possibility to adapt to the PV plant scale.

Keywords: photovoltaic system; fault detection; fault diagnostic; short circuit; open circuit; shaded faults; ground faults; thermal signatures (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
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