Design and development of a controller for switching solar based multiple pumps

Abstract

Conventional photovoltaic systems for pumping are designed with panel capacity over 30 to 40 percent so that pumping can be continued during low insulation. This adds much to the cost of such system. The new system eliminates over capacity requirement of PV modules by using a combination of pumps where load become variable with the change of PV power output- This developed system continues pumping even during low solar isolation. Directly fed DC motors drive the pumps to avoid design complexity and eliminate battery and its maintenance cost' The designed system is superior to existing system, increasing the water output for the same installed PV module capacity. The objective of this project is to develop a controller for switching the pumps for reasons described above. The controller will be designed with the micro controller and electronic switch. The input of the controller will be the power from solar panel and the output will be the number of pumps to be switched depending on the isolation'