Design and Implementation of a Hybrid Solar–Grid Interface for Water Pump Systems

OVERVIEW

The engineering problem.

Solar water pumps often operate from either PV or the grid by switching between sources. This project develops an interface that shares power between both sources through a common DC bus, giving priority to the available solar power.

My work

My work covered system modelling, control design, PCB development, embedded implementation, and hardware testing. The project began during my M.Tech and CRI internship and was completed at IIT Palakkad after the internship ended in November 2025.

THE APPROACH

Two sources. One regulated DC bus.

The PV-side boost converter extracts the maximum available solar power using MPPT. The grid-side PFC boost converter regulates the DC-bus voltage and supplies the remaining load demand.

P_Grid + P_PV = P_Load

Conceptual power balance shown in the project poster.

EXPERIMENTAL WORK

Checking the response on real hardware.

The proof-of-concept measurements document PFC turn-on, a load-current step, and PV-side power injection. These tests show the control behaviour as source availability and load demand change.

The 3 kW and 380 V values are system design specifications. The displayed proof-of-concept traces represent the operating conditions shown in the poster; they are not presented as a full-rated-power validation.