On the Perturb-and-Observe and Incremental Conductance MPPT Methods for PV Systems

This paper presents a detailed analysis of the two most well-known hill-climbing maximum power point tracking (MPPT) algorithms: the perturb-and-observe (P&O) and incremental conductance (INC). The purpose of the analysis is to clarify some common misconceptions in the literature regarding these two trackers, therefore helping the selection process for a suitable MPPT for both researchers and industry. The two methods are thoroughly analyzed both from a mathematical and practical implementation point of view. Their mathematical analysis reveals that there is no difference between the two. This has been confirmed by experimental tests according to the EN 50530 standard, resulting in a deviation between their efficiencies of 0.13% in dynamic and as low as 0.02% under static conditions. The results show that despite the common opinion in the literature, the P&O and INC are equivalent.