Comparative Analysis of PV array reconfiguration methods under realistic partial shading conditions

Photovoltaic (PV) energy generation is a widely recognized renewable energy source, and its efficiency is much influenced by shading conditions, that leading to power losses and mismatched effects. Several PV array configurations have been created to reduce these losses and improve energy yield. Under partial shading conditions, traditional configurations including Series-Parallel (SP) and Total-Cross-Tied (TCT) often suffer from high mismatch losses, hence advanced reconfiguration techniques must be investigated. This work investigates various PV array configurations including SP, TCT, Sudoku, Spiral, Screw, L-Shape, and Fibonacci Geometric (FFG) patterns, . Under various realistic shading conditions, the performance in terms of power output, efficiency, and mismatch losses were validated for the optimal selection of PV configuration. An extensive performance validation is carried out to measure the effectiveness of each configuration using MATLAB/Simulink. The work offers a comparison of these configurations and highlights the need of strategic reconfiguration in enhancing PV array performance under non-uniform irradiation environments.