A Novel Photo-Voltaic Low-Power Boost Converter With Double Coupled Inductors

Solar power has recently been the focus of extensive research. Harvesting power during overcast conditions remains a significant challenge for solar energy systems. To address this, converters must achieve a higher voltage gain. Various approaches have been implemented to increase the voltage gain of the boost converter using the coupled inductors. While cascading the converter can increase their voltage gain, it also results in a greater number of components and reduced reliability. This paper introduces a novel converter featuring double-coupled inductors for low power Photo-Voltaic (PV) harvesting. The proposed topology enhances the overall operations of the harvester in terms of efficiency and functionality particularly during overcast conditions. It operates with higher voltage gains and efficiency concurrently at reduced solar irradiation along with maintaining a compact size and ensuring higher reliability. A prototype was successfully tested, achieving an efficiency of 93.4% during overcast conditions, while operating with a minimum single stage converter.