Estimation of additional PV Converter Losses operating under PF≠1 based on Manufacturer's Data at PF=1

The increasing penetration of Photovoltaic (PV) systems in distribution networks often causes overvoltage problems. One solution to address this issue is the provision of reactive power (RP) by the PV converters. This can cause increased power losses on the PV converters leading to additional operational costs.

However, the manufacturers of commercially available PV converters provide data regarding the converter losses only under unity power factor (PF). The data are also limited regarding the technical details of the PV converters.

This paper presents a methodology to estimate analytically the power losses in two-stage PV converters under RP provision based on the efficiency curves at PF=1 for different PV voltages and the limited information given in the PV converter datasheet. The losses are separately estimated for the DC/DC converter and the DC/AC inverter, because the losses on the former are not affected by the
RP, while the losses on the latter are.

The method is validated with field measurements of PV converter losses under RP provision and with detailed simulations.