Paper Title
Comparative Study of Two Different Make of PV I-V Tracers

Abstract
This study consists of comparison of two makes of photovoltaic I-V (Current-Voltage) tracers. I-V tracing is basically done to test the instantaneous performance of PV (Photovoltaic) modules directly at solar power plant site. This data obtained using I-V tracers is then compared with digital multimeter, flash test or specification sheet data provided by the PV module manufacturer. This comparison allows users to decide whether the module’s output parameters at Standard Test Conditions (STC) lies within the limit with those reported by the manufacturer. I-V tracing method for module testing is very popular amongst the PV plant owners for testing the degradation of PV modules at regular intervals. It also plays an important role in Warranty claiming of underperforming PV modules within the warranty period given by the module manufacturer as most of the PV module manufacturers do accept the results obtained by I-V tracing. The two types of I-V tracers compared here are Solmetric PVA-1000S PV Analyzer and PVPM1040C. The main aim behind the comparison of these two I-V tracers is to find out which of them has the measured value of PV module parameters closer to the one mentioned on the specification sheet of the PV module. Index Terms— Photovoltaic Modules, Solar Power Plant, I-V Tracers, Accuracy.