Title: Cascaded full order terminal sliding mode controller for uncertain photovoltaic systems

Authors: Fateh Attoui; Fayçal Arbaoui; Mohammed Larbi Saidi; Nadir Fergani; Nadir Boutasseta

Addresses: Laboratory of Automation and Signals of Annaba (LASA), Department of Electronics, Faculty of Technology, Badji Mokhtar-Annaba University, P.O. Box 12, Annaba, 23000, Algeria ' Laboratory of Automation and Signals of Annaba (LASA), Department of Electronics, Faculty of Technology, Badji Mokhtar-Annaba University, P.O. Box 12, Annaba, 23000, Algeria ' Laboratory of Automation and Signals of Annaba (LASA), Department of Electronics, Faculty of Technology, Badji Mokhtar-Annaba University, P.O. Box 12, Annaba, 23000, Algeria ' Research Center in Industrial Technologies CRTI, P.O. Box 64, Cheraga, Algiers, 16014, Algeria ' Research Center in Industrial Technologies CRTI, P.O. Box 64, Cheraga, Algiers, 16014, Algeria

Abstract: In this paper, an advanced cascaded full order terminal sliding mode controller (C-FOTSMC) is proposed and applied to an uncertain photovoltaic system. As parameter uncertainty is a significant concern resulting from power converters component aging, the design of a robust controller capable of handling such conditions has a direct impact on the stability and performance of the power conversion stage in renewable energy generation systems. A succession of a first-degree FO-TSMC voltage regulator and a conventional SMC current controller are used in a cascaded scheme in order to track reference voltage changes in the case of a PV system with nominal parameters and in the case of the presence of parameters uncertainties. The performance of the proposed controller is evaluated and compared with that of the classical cascaded PI controller, the cascaded conventional SMC (C-SMC), and the recent simplified parameter-less (PSc) controller. This comparison is based on several performance indices and covers various scenarios involving parametric uncertainties as well as different operating regions. The results demonstrate that the proposed controller achieves a significant reduction in chattering, thereby improving system stability and yielding a faster and smoother dynamic response.

Keywords: cascaded full order terminal SMC; C-FOTSMC; parameters uncertainty; photovoltaic systems; PV; robust control; cascaded conventional SMC.

DOI: 10.1504/IJAMECHS.2026.155358

International Journal of Advanced Mechatronic Systems, 2026 Vol.13 No.3, pp.178 - 187

Received: 23 Sep 2025
Accepted: 19 Jan 2026
Published online: 30 Jul 2026 *

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