Researchers at India’s M. Kumarasamy College of Engineering have developed a novel reconfiguration technique to improve the performance of partially shaded solar photovoltaic systems. The approach, known as the quadrant swapping reconfiguration algorithm, creates new quadrants composed of either shaded or unshaded modules to optimize energy generation.
“The array’s power output is maximized in the proposed reconfiguration technique using series-parallel connections for a 4 × 4 matrix PV array,” the researchers explained. “PV modules are connected in series to form strings, which are then linked in parallel. The proposed quadrant swapping method increases the fill factor under shading conditions while significantly reducing mismatch loss (ML) and power loss (PL).”
In the 4 × 4 setup, each corner of the matrix represents a quadrant containing four panels. Eight switches are incorporated into the circuit to control and regulate current flow between quadrants. When shading occurs, the flow is adjusted accordingly. However, the team did not specify whether the switching was automated or performed manually for each shading scenario.
Each of the 16 panels had a maximum power output of 10 W, for a total of 160 W across the array.
The researchers tested the technique under ten different shading conditions, with solar irradiation levels ranging from 100 W/m² to 1,000 W/m². The new method was compared against four reference configurations — series-parallel (SP), total-cross-tie (TCT), SP-TCT, and honeycomb (HC)-TCT — and demonstrated “improved” performance in all cases.
Image: M. Kumarasamy College of Engineering, Scientific Reports, CC BY 4.0
“Through experimental validation under ten different shading conditions, the proposed approach consistently outperformed conventional configurations such as SP, TCT, SP-TCT, and HC-TCT,” the researchers reported. “Overall power output and fill factor (FF) were both effectively enhanced by the quadrant swapping technique.”
Among the tested cases, what the scientists described as scenario (f) produced the best results. In this setup, four modules were exposed to 900 W/m² of irradiation, six to 700 W/m², and six to 1,000 W/m². The configuration achieved the highest output power of 136 W, a fill factor of 0.57, a mismatch loss (ML) of 2 W, and a power loss (PL) of 1.4%.
At the other end of the spectrum, another set called scenario (i) delivered the lowest performance, producing 80 W of output power with a fill factor of 0.34, a mismatch loss of 5 W, and a power loss of 5.88%. In this case, three modules received 300 W/m² of irradiation, nine modules 400 W/m², and the remaining four modules 1,000 W/m².
The team also carried out a techno-economic analysis, finding that the proposed system has a projected lifespan of six years — about 13.3% longer than that of a traditional SP configuration under scenario (a). “These findings demonstrate that, compared with other configurations, the proposed quadrant swapping reconfiguration technique delivers superior performance and is technically and economically viable,” the researchers concluded.
Their findings were presented in “Quadrant swapping technique for partial shaded solar photovoltaic system,” published in Scientific Reports. Researchers from India’s M. Kumarasamy College of Engineering, SRM Institute of Science and Technology, Sri Ramakrishna Engineering College, Kamaraj College of Engineering and Technology, and Norway’s University of South-Eastern Norway have participated in the study.
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