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This paper proposes a novel isolated bidirectional two-switch flyback converter with two integrated non-dissipative inductor–capacitor–diode (LCD) snubbers. In the proposed topology, the main flyback transformer and the LCD snubbers are cross coupled to minimize circulating current that would occur in the non-cross-coupled case, in addition to recycle leakage energy and protect the power transistors. The same current circulation issue also occurs in the bidirectional flyback converter with conventional resistor–capacitor–diode (RCD) snubbers. The main objective of this paper is to illustrate this issue and propose an alternate circuitry to reduce the current circulation and improve the conversion efficiency. The experimental results of a laboratory prototype are reported to verify the design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents three unidirectional step-up ac–dc converter topologies with voltage multiplication on their outputs. The first topology is the hybrid boost rectifier and the other two are novel bridgeless structures, all based on the integration of boost rectifier and the ladder switched-capacitor (SC) cell. The new hybrid structures provide high voltage gain with low voltage stress across the switches, high-power factor, and output voltage regulation. This paper presents the principle of operation, steady-state and dynamic analysis, design methodology, and experimental verification. A different approach is also presented for the design methodology of the SC cell and for the analysis of its influence on the dynamic model. Three 1000-W prototypes with a 220-V input voltage, 800-V output voltage, and 100-kHz switching frequency were designed to corroborate the theoretical study. The best efficiency was 97.1$\%$ in the proposed bridgeless versions and the voltage stress across the switches stands around 400 V. Furthermore, a comparison between the proposed structures and previous topologies is also presented. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In this paper, a new zero voltage zero current transition (ZVZCT) boost DC–DC converter using a coupled inductor is proposed. This topology provides the main switch ZVZCT for the turn-on and zero voltage switching (ZVS) for the turn-off. Moreover, the auxiliary switch turns on at zero current switching (ZCS) and turns off at ZVS. The main diode turns on with ZVT and turns off with ZCS, and other diodes also operate under soft-switching conditions. Besides, due to the coupling effect, the proposed converter improves efficiency additionally since resonant energy in the resonance tank could be transferred to the output, and the circulating current can be limited as well. The soft-switching can be realized in almost all the load rang. In this design, there always exist energy releasing circuits to conduct magnetic flux leakage currents, such that the surge currents are eliminated and switch current stress can be accordingly reduced. All the devices resonate in a unique direction within less than half of a resonance period, so power losses with respect to the resonance can be decreased. In this paper, the converter design and operation principles of the converter are given. It also has been verified by a 1-kW experimental prototype with switching frequency of 100 kHz, and the related experimental results are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

A single-phase common-mode transformerless grid-connected photovoltaic (PV) converter, which is based on the integration of two stages, is proposed in this paper. Transformer elimination in grid-connected PV systems has many advantages. It not only reduces cost, size, and weight but also increases the complete system efficiency. Since there is no galvanic isolation between grid and PV array, a leakage current may appear due to the PV parasitic capacitance to the ground, if this is not taken into account in the converter design. This paper presents a dc/dc boost converter integrated with a full-bridge inverter. The integration of these two stages reduces the ground leakage current. The neutral line of the grid is directly connected to the negative terminal of the PV array, eliminating any possibility of leakage current in this terminal. The principle of operation of the transformerless converter is analyzed, and a 200-W topology is experimentally tested. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Circuit analysis and design criteria of a two-phase bidirectional converter with high voltage gain are presented in this paper. The operating principle of the forward or reverse mode is similar to that of the conventional buck or boost converter. Compared with the conventional converter, the switch stresses can be reduced significantly depending on the operating region of the voltage ratio in the two-phase converter. The power losses can also be reduced due to the use of low-voltage rating switches. The derivate converters are discussed to demonstrate the advantages of the proposed topology. A 200 W/1 MHz two-phase prototype converter with gallium nitride (GaN) devices is built and tested to verify the feasibility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, several new coupled-inductor-based soft-switching dc–dc converters are proposed. These converters are obtained by changing the coupled branch of several existing dc–dc converters. Meanwhile they have similar characteristics to these existing converters, and provide more choices for the practical application. Then by applying an existing efficiency improvement method, which is used in the buck-type soft-switching converter, to all abovementioned converters, several new converters with efficiency improvement characteristics are obtained. This efficiency improvement method utilizes the low conduction performance of the transistor to reduce the loss. In addition, this method has the same control complexity to original topologies, because the auxiliary transistor has the same control timing to one of main transistors. The characteristic of new converters and efficiency improvement method are presented by analyzing two new topologies (boost-type converters). Finally simulation and experimental results are given and analyzed by designing a prototype. Based on these results, soft-switching conditions and efficiency improvement capability are verified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a novel noncoupled inductor high voltage gain single-ended primary-inductor converter (SEPIC) is presented. The proposed converter has various advantages, such as lower voltage stress on the switches, noninverting output voltage, high efficiency, and high voltage gain. Also, the introduced converter has a continuous input current which makes it suitable for renewable energy and fuel cell applications. Moreover, high voltage gain is achieved without using any transformer and coupled inductor, thus there is not any voltage overshoot for the switches during the turn-off process. This effect allows low conduction losses by using lower voltage rating switches and also additional clamping circuit is not needed. The control system of the presented converter is simple and the converter can be easily controlled in continuous conduction mode mode operation. Because, the gating pulses for both of the switches are the same and wide output voltage range is achieved only by changing the duty cycle. Furthermore, the number of the components compared to the other noncoupled inductor, SEPIC-based converters which provide near voltage gain to the proposed converter, is reduced. The detailed operation of the introduced converter and design considerations are discussed. Experimental results are presented to verify the performance of the proposed dc–dc converter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a fully soft-switched bidirectional dc–dc converter is proposed. All semiconductor devices are soft switched, while its control circuit remains pulsewidth modulated. This condition is achieved only by one auxiliary switch. So, the proposed topology has less complexity in comparison with other similar structures. The energy conversion through the proposed topology during buck and boost modes is highly efficient due to achieved soft-switching condition. The auxiliary circuit operates once during each switching cycle. The converter is analyzed and a 250-W laboratory prototype of the proposed converter is constructed. The experimental results are presented that confirm the theoretical analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes two coupled-inductors-based Z-source networks, called the modified series and tapped switched-coupled-inductors quasi-Z-source networks (mSSCL-qZSN and mTSCL-qZSN, respectively). These networks offer high voltage gains with less-than-unity winding turn ratios $(n < {\text{1)}}$ , resulting in a reduced inductive element size. Other advantages include a less number of active components and their lower ratings and a higher efficiency. In addition, a lower magnetic core size is required for the proposed ZSNs due to the lower peak magnetizing current. The performance principles and detailed comparative analysis are provided and confirmed through experiments on a 200-W dc–dc converter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The role of irreversible electroporation using pulsed electric field is to generate high-voltage (HV) pulses with a predefined magnitude and duration. These HV pulses are applied to the treatment chamber until decontamination of the sample is completed. In this paper, a new topology for HV rectangular pulse generation for water disinfection applications is introduced. The proposed topology has four arms comprised of series-connected half bridge modular multilevel converter cells. The rectangular pulse characteristics can be controlled via the software controller without any physical changes in power topology. The converter is capable of generating both bipolar and monopolar HV pulses with microsecond pulse durations at high a frequency rate with different characteristics. Hence, the proposed topology provides flexibility by software control, along with hardware modularity, scalability, and redundancy. Moreover, a cell’s capacitance is relatively small, which drastically reduces the converter footprint. The adopted charging and discharging process of the cell capacitors in this topology eliminate the need of any voltage measurements or complex control for cell-capacitors voltage balance. Consequently, continuity of converter operation is assured under cell malfunction. In this paper, analysis and cell-capacitor sizing of the proposed topology are detailed. Converter operation is verified using MATLAB/Simulink simulation and scaled experimentation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pulse-width-modulated (PWM) converters have been widely applied for power processing, and they are typically the stems of other types of converters, such as quasi-resonant, Z-source, and switched-inductor hybrid converters. Development of PWM converters has been spanning over a century, starting from the buck converter. The well-known PWM converters include buck, boost, buck–boost, Ćuk, single ended primary inductive converter (SEPIC), zeta, Z-source, quasi-Z source, etc. Many attempts have been proposed to develop these converters based mostly on canonical cell concepts and by introducing extra LC filters to the cells. This paper presents an enhancement to the layer and graft schemes by introducing the ideas of dc voltage/current offsetting, capacitor/inductor component splitting, diode grafting, and inverse operation of PWM converters. The PWM converters, which can be operated in continuous conduction mode (CCM) or discontinuous conduction mode (DCM), therefore can be synthesized systematically according to decoded transfer gains. Decoding and synthesizing PWM converters uniquely bridge transfer gains to converter topologies and provide readers a comprehensive understanding of PWM-converter evolution from the original converter, the buck converter. Additionally, in this paper, the Ćuk, SEPIC, and zeta converters all with the same transfer gain of $D/(1 - D)$ are proved to be equivalent to the buck–boost converter with an extra LC filter. For further illustrating the proposed approaches, various types of Z-source converters, switched-capacitor/switched-inductor hybrid converters, and a single-stage interleaved converter are reviewed, and new PWM converters are developed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Switched-capacitor converter (SCC) featuring high efficiency and power density has attracted industry interest, but weak output voltage regulation hinders its application. This paper presents an optimized phase-shift (PS) control strategy for a bridge modular SCC, utilized in energy storage system, to obtain continuous conversion ratio and high-efficiency operation. By employing a small inductor as current buffer, the control strategy could be implemented to regulate output voltage conveniently with excellent steady and dynamic performance in step-down mode as well as step-up mode. Most importantly, the high-efficiency operation mechanism never reported before is revealed here. Correspondingly, the active circumfluence could be controlled through optimizing the range of PS time, which will avoid the loss in circuit self. Meanwhile, the soft-switching conditions of all the switches are comprehensively analyzed and soft-switching operations are achieved according to the logic timing control of the power devices, improving efficiency further. Finally, the prototype of the proposed converter was built and the experimental results validated the principle and features of the conversion method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new single-switch high step-up dc–dc converter is proposed, in this paper, for fuel cell vehicles. The proposed topology utilizes an L2C3D2 network to obtain high voltage gain and reduce the voltage stress on the power switch. Additionally, the proposed converter has a universal input voltage in order to suit the soft output characteristics of the fuel cell. Comprehensive analyses of the steady-state operation in continuous conduction mode and discontinuous conduction mode, and design considerations of the proposed converter are given. Finally, a 400 V/1.6 kW scaled-down prototype is developed to validate the effectiveness and feasibility of the proposed converter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a modular multilevel series/parallel converter (MMSPC) with intermodule switched-inductor power transfer. The switched-inductor voltage conversion feature allows controllable and efficient transfer of energy between modules with nonnegligible voltage difference, providing both step-down and step-up functionalities. Thus, this converter can accurately control and rapidly adjust the voltage of each module to generate an ac output voltage waveform with a controllable number of levels, increasing the quality of the output. Moreover, the intrinsic dc–dc conversion feature can generate a dc controllable output voltage and enable new applications. In this text, we specifically demonstrate how the flexibility of obtaining both ac and dc output with the same setup renders the topology promising for battery energy storage systems and dc microgrid applications. Experimental results validate the topology and concept of an MMSPC with intrinsic switched-inductor conversion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, a novel modulation of an isolated three-phase bidirectional dc–dc converter is proposed for the high-voltage input power supply to low-voltage output energy storage systems. The wye-delta connection of the transformers is employed to reduce the voltage stress at the high side and the current stress at the low side of the transformers. Frequency control allows the output voltage regulation, and a phase-shift algorithm with a resonant tank is proposed following with the switching frequency to reduce the frequency range with the specific power. Furthermore, the zero-voltage-switching condition for all mosfets in the entire power range, which is the major restriction of a single-phase converter, is also discussed in this paper. The three-phase wye-delta converter significantly reduces the ripple of inductor current compared with that of a single-phase converter. A 2 kW prototype converter was built and successfully tested to verify the capability of such control modulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a family of step-up resonant switched-capacitor converters (RSCs) with a continuously adjustable conversion ratio is proposed based on the Cuk dual-resonance core (DRC) featuring two resonant paths. By adopting the on-time fixed frequency modulation, the two resonant paths can conduct simultaneously and satisfy the charge balance of the flying capacitor during the overlapping period. As a result, the conversion ratio—upper bounded by two determined by the circuit configuration—can vary continuously and efficiently even at the light load condition (1/10 of the rated power). A comprehensive analysis—the operation principle, voltage-gain curve, and voltage/current stresses—about the DRC is given. In addition, the Cuk DRC was extended to the series–parallel switched-capacitor converter (SCC), Fibonacci SCC, and voltage doubler to form a family of step-up RSCs, whose voltage-gain curves of different topologies are derived. Moreover, a characteristic comparison between the Cuk DRC and the traditional “direct” and “indirect” resonant core is given. Then, a 48 to 62–94.6 V resonant core with peak efficiency 97.8% and maximum power 120 W under the open loop condition was built. The analyses were verified by both experimental and simulation results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents an overview of resonant and hybrid switched-capacitor converters with a particular focus on multimode operation. The multimode approach is discussed as a tool to affect high efficiency and power density across a wide load range, provide variable regulation, and, as a general framework, to conceptualize the advantages and opportunities of the approach compared to more traditional dc–dc converters. A general analysis is provided to quantify the advantage of hybrid and resonant converters that factors in the tradeoffs between size and loss in the magnetic component and voltage stress on the active devices. A broader set of operating modes is presented that spans continuous and discontinuous conduction and includes resonant, quasi-resonant, and more traditional buck- or boost-like operation. A prototype flying-capacitor multilevel converter is presented to demonstrate the variety of operating modes and motivate important considerations such as voltage balance on the flying capacitors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The trend toward higher switching frequencies and higher power densities in dc–dc conversion led the designers to rediscover resonant topologies. However, the analysis of these converters is often limited to a particular operating mode and/or topology. This paper wants to fill the gap by presenting a state-space-based analysis for a broad class of series-resonant converters including voltage-fed as well as current-fed topologies, either unidirectional or bidirectional. The proposed solution consists of a mathematical framework that solves the trajectory of state variables in the resonant tank, as well as the main characteristic functions such as voltage conversion ratio and transferred power. The matrix approach permits a flexible and compact formulation and easy implementation in computational tools such as MATLAB. The theoretical framework is applied to both voltage-fed and current-fed resonant topologies: the first is used to show the advantages of the proposed model respect to the first harmonic approximation, while a detailed analysis in terms of operating mode boundaries, delivered power, and voltage gain is provided for the second. Simulations and measurements on a 300-W prototype of the current-fed topology are used to validate the correctness of the proposed solution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a new predictive power-factor-correction (PFC) controller for series-interleaved three-level boost (TLB) converters. Compared to the state-of-the-art TLB PFC controllers, where a two-cycle prediction and a detection of an operating region are necessary, the proposed controller achieves a low total harmonic distortion of the input current by using a single equation to predict the input current in all operating regions of the converter, in just one operating cycle. The average current control is achieved by sampling at the peak of the triangular carrier. The proposed PFC controller significantly reduces the distortion of the input ac current near the zero-crossing points, resulting in a low total harmonic distortion of the input current. The operation of the proposed controller was evaluated, and its stability and robustness to parameter changes was confirmed analytically. The controller operating principles were verified in simulations and validated by experiments on a medium-voltage 50-kW converter prototype. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates power shunt filter topologies composed of three standard three-leg converters applied in either three or four-wire system. Compared with the usual three-phase shunt filter, the proposed ones allow us to reduce dc-link voltages, harmonic distortion or/and the semiconductor losses, and fault tolerant operation. Suitable control strategies to adjust filter and circulating currents, as well as the three dc-link voltages are presented. Two pulse-width modulation techniques are developed for the proposed topologies in order to achieve the best voltage-pulse pattern. Comparisons between these techniques are carried out in this paper. Simulation and experimental results are presented to validate the theoretical approach. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

A hybrid boosting converter (HBC) with collective advantages of regulation capability from its boost structure and gain enhancement from its voltage multiplier structure is proposed in this paper. The new converter incorporates a bipolar voltage multiplier, featuring symmetrical configuration, single inductor and single switch, high gain capability with wide regulation range, low component stress, small output ripple and flexible extension, which make it suitable for front-end PV system and some other renewable energy applications. The operation principal, component stress, and voltage ripple are analyzed in this paper. Performance comparison and evaluation with a number of previous single-switch single-inductor converters are provided. A 200-W 35 to 380 V second-order HBC prototype was built with peak efficiency at 95.44%. The experimental results confirms the feasibility of the proposed converter. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In order to further cut down the cost of filter for grid-connected pulsewidth modulation (PWM) converter under the more and more stringent grid code, a new kind of high-order filter, named LCL-LC filter, is presented in this paper. The resonant frequency characteristics of the filter are analyzed, and a parameter design method on the base of the characteristics is also proposed in the paper. The proposed parameter design method can easily make full use of the existing research results about the traditional LCL filter parameter design. And then a parameter robustness analysis method based on four-dimensional graphics is proposed to analyze parameter robustness of the presented filter. Compared with the traditional one, the proposed analysis method can analyze the filter performance under variations of several parameters at a time without any iteration. The comparative analysis and discussion considering the LCL filter, the trap filter, and the LCL- LC filter, are presented and verified through the experiments on a 5 kW grid-connected converter prototype. Experiment results demonstrate the accuracy of theoretical analysis and prove that the presented filter has a better performance than two others. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A synthesis methodology for developing a set of very high step-up dc–dc converters is presented and discussed in this paper. The proposed method makes use of a boost converter as basic topology in which three step-up techniques are combined and incorporated. The studied techniques are the switched capacitors voltage multipliers (VM), the diode VMs, and the coupled-inductors. With the proposed methodology, many well-known converters are identified and two novel converters are proposed. In addition to a detailed analysis of the synthesis of each topology, a comparative analysis among of some important converters is presented. This comparison involves aspects such as voltage gain, voltage stress, component stress factor, component count, and relative cost. By means of these comparisons, the main characteristics and constraints of the analyzed converters are identified. Results from 250 W prototypes, designed according to photovoltaic ac-module specifications, are obtained experimentally to validate the theoretical analyses and point out advantages and limitations of each converter. The results demonstrate that the combination of the three studied techniques provides the best trend off on the comparative analysis carried out in this work. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper introduces a novel boundary conduction mode (BCM) controlled microconverter for photovoltaic (PV) application in order to provide high conversion efficiency over a wide input voltage operating range. Within the wide input range for the PV panel, there is no need to change the operating modes according to the PV panel voltage. The leakage inductance current can work in BCM with fixed switching frequency. The operation mode analysis is given first. Then, the operating principle of the proposed BCM and its implementation are introduced. Loss breakdown of the prototype using GaN devices is analyzed and compared with the same voltage-rating silicon mosfets. A 300-W microconverter was fabricated and experimental results are provided to verify the effectiveness of the proposed BCM control. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The alternate arm converter (AAC) was one of the first modular converter topologies to feature dc-side fault ride-through capability with only a small penalty in power efficiency. However, the simple alternation of its arm conduction periods (with an additional short overlap period) resulted in 1) substantial six-pulse ripples in the dc current waveform, 2) large dc-side filter requirements, and 3) limited operating area close to an energy sweet spot. This paper presents a new mode of operation called extended overlap (EO) based on the extension of the overlap period to 60^\circ , which facilitates a fundamental redefinition of the working principles of the AAC. The EO-AAC has its dc current path decoupled from the ac current paths, a fact allowing 1) smooth dc current waveforms, 2) elimination of dc filters, and 3) restriction lifting on the feasible operating point. Analysis of this new mode and EO-AAC design criteria are presented and subsequently verified with tests on an experimental prototype. Finally, a comparison with other modular converters demonstrates that the EO-AAC is at least as power efficient as a hybrid modular multilevel converter (MMC) (i.e., a dc fault ride-through-capable MMC), while offering a smaller converter footprint because of a reduced requirement for energy storage in the submodules and a reduced inductor volume. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

A CLTCL resonant dc-dc converter is proposed in this paper. Through the dual-transformer architecture, the resonant characteristic of the converter alters and contributes to a wide input voltage range and a greatly broadened output voltage range from zero to the nominal. The transformer leakage inductors also participate in the resonating process, which eliminates their side effects on the conversion performance. Moreover, a simple and effective design method for converters with multiple resonant components is used to guide the resonant parameter design with the assistance of the MATLAB program. Soft switching for both turn-on and turn-off processes of all the inverter and rectifier switches is acquired, and the proposed converter, therefore, achieves lower switching losses among a wide load scope. In the end, a 1-kW prototype with a peak efficiency of 97.3% is fabricated in the laboratory to verify the working principle and design effect of the CLTCL converter. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

A single-switch quadratic buck–boost converter with continuous input port current and continuous output port current is proposed in this paper. Compared with the traditional buck-boost converter, the proposed converter can obtain a wider range of the voltage conversion ratio with the same duty cycle. Moreover, the proposed converter can operate with continuous input port current and continuous output port current compared to the existing counterparts with inherently discontinuous input port current and discontinuous output port current. The operating principle and steady-state performance of the proposed converter under continuous inductor current mode is analyzed in detail. Then, the comparison between the proposed converter and the existing quadratic buck–boost converters has been conducted to demonstrate the unique features of the proposed one. Finally, experimental results from a prototype built in the lab are recorded to verify the effectiveness and validity of the proposed quadratic buck–boost converter. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Maximum power transfer is an important index for an inductive power transfer (IPT) system to make full use of its power transfer capability, and such a capability is usually realized by impedance matching. Traditionally, impedance matching is implemented by placing a power electronics converter such as a dc–dc converter at the secondary side of an IPT system. However, the power electronics converter and its operation mode directly affect its impedance-matching range, which is very limited if a traditional power converter only operates at continuous conduction mode (CCM). To extend the impedance-matching range, this paper proposes a novel impedance matching method based on combined CCM and discontinuous conduction mode (DCM) operation of an impedance matching converter. The impedance-matching range is fully analyzed for CCM and DCM operation, respectively, by taking variation of coupling coefficient into consideration. The analysis results show that the impedance-matching range can be extended by more than double that of the traditional impedance matching method. In addition, a maximum power transfer tracking method is developed using the proposed impedance-matching range extension method, and the experimental results have verified the feasibility of the tracking method. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In this paper, a hybrid bidirectional dc–dc converter is presented, which is a combination of a switched-capacitor converter and an inductor-based converter with low component counts. The input current ripple and peak charging current are small with the help of the inductor. The proposed converter is applicable in the battery charge/discharge systems, such as the distributed renewable energy systems, battery equalizer, auxiliary power supplies, traction drive system, and dual-voltage automotive systems based in new electrical architecture concept, where common ground is not required and within the voltage-gain range of 2–6. A comprehensive analysis of the steady-state operation, small-signal model, and component stress is given. The comparison with an alternative topology shows the advantages of low component counts, low total capacitor voltage stress, low inductor current, and low total active switch stress for the 42/14 V voltage level. A 42/14 V prototype rated at 20–120 W with a peak efficiency of 97.8% in boost mode and 97.62% in buck mode was built to verify the analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Permanent magnet synchronous generator (PMG) based direct-drive wind turbines (DDWTs) have recently drawn the attention of the wind power market given their low operation and maintenance cost, reliability, and longer lifetime. In this paper, a zero dc-link impedance topology for DDWT-PMG systems is presented. The proposed topology eliminates the use of the failure-prone dc bus capacitor by replacing the grid-side converter with a phasor pulse-width modulation (PPWM) boost current source inverter (CSI), also referred to as indirect boost matrix converter. Furthermore, the novelty of the proposed topology lies in utilizing the synchronous inductance of the PMG as the dc-link inductor required by the boost-CSI, thus decreasing the overall system weight and size. In addition, the PPWM boost-CSI enables a high voltage-boosting ratio, which allows the design of a low-voltage PMG. As a result, the PMG size, weight, and high-cost PM material volume can be decreased. The feasibility of the low-voltage generator is investigated through finite-element computations using as a base for comparison an existing 1.5-MW DDWT-PMG. This comparison demonstrates a reduction in the generator volume, PM material, and the total weight of the generator. Finally, the proposed topology is validated through simulations and experiments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a single-stage light-emitting diode (LED) driver based on a bridgeless power factor correction (PFC) converter and a half-bridge CLCL resonant converter for street lighting applications. The proposed single-stage topology integrates the PFC converter and the CLCL resonant converter by sharing active power switches. The bridgeless PFC converter adopts two buck–boost circuits operating in discontinuous-conduction mode to achieve input-current shaping. It uses two diodes instead of a rectifier bridge to reduce the power loss caused by the diodes. Owing to its superior soft-switching characteristics, the CLCL resonant converter is used. The proposed LED driver has superior features, such as high efficiency, near unity power factor, low total harmonic distortion, and relatively few diodes. A 100-W lab prototype is successfully implemented, and the experimental results verify the effectiveness and feasibility of the proposed LED driver. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a soft-switching topology is proposed for the bidirectional dc–dc converter. In order to achieve soft-switching conditions, the auxiliary circuits including a small inductor and two capacitors are introduced to the bidirectional dc–dc converter. By generating and keeping a recycle current in the auxiliary circuits, the proposed topology can provide soft-switching conditions for both switches of the bidirectional dc–dc converter in fixed frequency control application. Meanwhile, no auxiliary switches are introduced. Due to the existence of the auxiliary circuits, the proposed topology can also reduce the current ripple in the main inductor. Based on this soft-switching method, a family of bidirectional soft-switching dc–dc topologies is derived. These topologies have the similar structures and the same characteristics. The topology deduction, operating principles, and design guidelines are presented in detail. Finally, an experimental prototype is built to verify the analysis and characteristics of the proposed topologies. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper presents a dc/dc buck–boost converter topology with high-voltage gain and dual outputs. Unlike many of the high step-down/step-up dc/dc converters, this topology uses a relatively ower number of LC components and three active semiconductor devices switched in a nonoverlapping way. Due to the duty cycle limitation, high gain (typically more than 4) is very difficult to achieve in a single-stage regular buck–boost dc/dc converter. In the proposed converter, the overall gains at both the output ports are nonlinear functions of duty-cycles of the power devices, which help achieve an overall step-down/step-up gain of 10–15. An experimental prototype converting 48 V dc to ±5 V dc at 100 W with closed loop control is developed in order to verify the operation and effectiveness of the proposed converter structure. An output voltage ripple of ±1% and a conversion efficiency of 94% are achieved according to the experimental results. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Generally, an LLC series resonant converter (LLC SRC) is an attractive topology for applications, which require wide input variation and high conversion efficiency because of its wide gain capability and soft-switching capability. However, there is a regulation problem in which the output voltage increases as the load current decreases. In this paper, Bode plot and impedance asymptote analysis were conducted to obtain an intuitive sense of the regulation characteristic of LLC SRC under the light-load condition. Moreover, to improve the regulation capability, a new resonant tank with an additional capacitor is proposed. Its design guidelines were determined by Bode plot and impedance asymptote analysis. Therefore, the proposed LLC SRC achieves very light load regulation, while it maintains the advantages of typical LLC SRCs. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The modular multilevel converter is a well-known modular multilevel topology. This paper proposes a novel branch inductor coupling and compares it to the center-tapped inductor and the standard noncoupled inductor topology. The proposed coupling has a significant influence on the inductor and converter dimensioning. Its properties make it especially well suited for use in single-to-three-phase ac/ac modular multilevel convert-er applications. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Inductive power transfer power supplies for electric vehicle charging in dynamic applications need to tolerate large variations in coupling and tuning with varying loads. This paper investigates the use of a buck converter to regulate the input voltage to a fixed frequency unidirectional switch push–pull converter to meet the requirements of dynamic charging. The presented circuit is optimized to remove some of the additional components introduced. A mathematical model is presented that shows the circuit is capable of operating while extremely mistuned in both the inductive and capacitive regions while maintaining sinusoidal currents. A controller design is also presented allowing constant primary current operation, safe start up, and operation under no load conditions. A 5-kW prototype was built and validated when operated with a dynamic load under severely mistuned conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper proposes a family of magnetic coupling nonisolated bidirectional dc–dc converters, which can achieve soft-switching operation in both power flow directions with a simple auxiliary circuit. Compared with conventional zero-voltage-transition converters, the additional resonant inductor is eliminated and magnetic core number is reduced. Therefore, both high efficiency and low cost are achieved. First, a general zero-voltage-switching (ZVS) magnetic coupling structure is proposed for a bidirectional buck/boost converter, based on which 13 different ZVS topologies with different connections of auxiliary circuit are derived. It is very beneficial in practical industrial applications because engineers can choose an optimal one according to converter performance characteristics, and the topology derivation methodology can be easily extended to other bidirectional dc–dc converters. Second, based on the general structure, operation principle and performance characteristics of all proposed topologies are simultaneously obtained, which can facilitate topology comparison and selection processes. Finally, in order to verify the effectiveness of theoretical analysis, design considerations and experiment results of a 500-W prototype circuit are demonstrated. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper describes the design, implementation, and comparison of high-voltage capacitor chargers for a solid-state pulsed power modulator (SSPPM). The three different converter topologies are a series resonant converter operating at a discontinuous conduction mode with switching frequency control (SRC_DCM_SFC), a series resonant converter operating at a continuous conduction mode with phase shifted pulse width modulation control (SRC_CCM_PSPWMC), and a series–parallel resonant converter operating at the CCM with SFC (SPRC_CCM_SFC). On the basis of these converter topologies, 10\-kW\rm{average} high-voltage capacitor chargers are designed for the three types of SSPPMs, which have the following maximum output specifications: 1) SRC_DCM_SFC: 60 kV, 300 A, 3 kpps, and 50 \mus; 2) SRC_CCM_PSPWMC: 10 kV, 50 A, 50 kpps, and 10 \mus; and 3) SPRC_CCM_SFC: 40 kV, 150 A, 7 kpps, and 10 \mus. Although the pulse output specifications are different, it is worth comparing the resonant inverter topologies and the control methods from the viewpoint of the losses, control characteristics, and merits and demerits of the high-voltage capacitor chargers. From the analysis and investigation of the three resonant inverters, the design procedure, including the determination of the resonant tank parameters, is provided, which considers the design of the high-voltage capacitor charger. PSPICE simulation is used to elucidate the effects of the resonant tank structure and its parameters, and the resonant current waveform and losses of the Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor are compared. Finally, experiments for each charger are performed under various load conditions, and the comparison results of the three capacitor chargers, including the conduction and switching losses, control characteristics, and overall efficiency, are discussed in this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Buck power factor correction (PFC) has attracted a lot of research interests for its low output voltage and high efficiency at low input condition. However, the traditional Buck PFC converter usually has low power factor (PF) and poor harmonic performance due to the inherent dead angle of the input current, especially at low input condition. To solve this problem, this paper proposes a family of hybrid PFC converter topologies combining the advantages of step-up PFC and step-down (Buck) PFC converters, which features low output voltage and continuous input current (high PF). The derivation methodology is presented in detail and two topologies are selected as typical examples to explore their performances. With the improved peak current control scheme, the two proposed converters can achieve high PF under universal input range, and their input current harmonics can easily meet the IEC61000-3-2 Class C limits. The optimal design considerations are presented and two 150–W prototypes are built to verify the theoretical analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper introduces the design procedure for a class of bidirectional zero fundamental ripple or zero first-order ripple (ZFR) dc–dc converters. ZFR topologies eliminate the first-order switching ripples by utilizing a coupled inductor. As a result, these converters require smaller inductive and capacitive filtering elements. After introducing the modes of operation, the average model of a ZFR converter is derived. Using this model, a scheme for optimal design of the damping circuitry is introduced. Also, the overall design procedure for a ZFR converter is introduced using an example. The designed ZFR converter is experimentally evaluated to demonstrate the effectiveness of the design procedure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For the high-voltage direct-current (HVDC) power transmission system of offshore wind power, dc/dc converters are the potential solution to collect the power generated by off-shore wind farms to HVDC terminals. The converters operate with high-voltage gain, high efficiency, and fault tolerance over a wide range of operating conditions. In this paper, an isolated ultrahigh step-up dc/dc converter with a scalable modular structure is proposed for HVDC offshore wind power collection. A flyback-forward converter is employed as the power cell to form the expandable electrically isolated modular dc/dc converter. The duty ratio and phase-shift angle control are also developed for the proposed converter. Fault-tolerant characteristics of the converter are illustrated through the redundancy operation and fault-ride-through tests. Redundancy operation is designed to maintain high operation efficiency of the converters and fault-ride-through operation improves the converter reliability under harsh operating conditions. Analytical studies are carried out, and a 750-W prototype with three modular cells is built and experimentally tested to verify the performance of the proposed modular dc/dc converter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes two nonisolated single-stage high power factor converters requiring low dc-link capacitance for power LEDs systems. Both converters result from the integration of the power factor correction and the LEDs driver stages, and require a relatively low dc-link capacitance value. A high power factor is demonstrated to be an inherent property of the proposed topologies and no input current control is necessary. The LEDs current is regulated by a symmetrical soft-switching half-bridge converter associated with a capacitive output filter. An accurate mathematical analysis valid for the two converters is detailed, yielding the elaboration of a step-by-step design procedure. In order to verify the analyses carried out, experimental results for two 90 W, 50 kHz, and 220 V converters are also presented. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper introduces a new nonisolated converter topology with very high step-down conversion ratio and high efficiency for high current low voltage point-of-load voltage regulator modules. Compared to a conventional two-phase buck converter, the new converter triples the effective duty-ratio and lowers the voltage stress of the transistors, significantly reducing the overall volume of the converter while maintaining high efficiency. The new converter is capable of delivering high current to the output by two interleaved phases and further features an inherent current sharing to balance the load between the phases. The use of lower voltage stress transistors allows operation at high switching frequencies that translates into fast dynamic response to load perturbations. The operation of the topology is verified on a 30 W, 48 V-to-1 V prototype, demonstrating peak efficiency of 91.5% and above 88% for most of the load range. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the integrated reconfigurable converter (IRC) topology for high-voltage series-connected battery module systems, the converter can be reconfigured into a range of operating modes: “feeding a load” mode, “battery modules balancing” mode, “regenerative” mode, “charging” mode, and “backup” mode. In most battery applications, a battery-balancing system operates while another converter is used as a controllable power interface between the battery system and a load. However, during the conventional IRC operation, the “battery modules balancing” and “feeding a load” modes cannot be operated simultaneously. In this paper, a new balancing scheme is proposed that allows balancing the battery modules while they are powering the load. The proposed balancing strategy is able to distribute different amount of load between the battery modules based on their state of charge (SOC). When the load is disconnected, the battery modules can be still balanced using the conventional “battery modules balancing” mode. A scaled down prototype of the IRC is implemented with three series-connected battery modules. Experimental results are provided to verify the viability of the proposed balancing method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Following the recently proposed $\theta$ -converter that reduces voltage ripples, leakage currents, and total capacitance required in a single-phase converter, this paper further improves the $\theta$ -converter by reducing the current stress of the neutral inductor, by relocating it to the dc side without affecting the other functions of the $\theta$-converter. Based on the average circuit model of the proposed converter, it is found that the current flowing through the neutral inductor can be reduced by at least three times, and hence, the size of the inductor can be reduced by at least nine times. How to operate the converter to achieve the reduction of the current stress is discussed in detail. Moreover, the selection criteria on the neutral inductor and other passive components used in the proposed converter are discussed in order to minimize their usage. Intensive experimental results are presented to demonstrate that the proposed converter can indeed reduce the current-stress while the other functions of the $\theta$-converter are not affected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes a new 48-V dc-fed dimmable LED driver based on a resonant-switched-capacitor topology (RSCT), where the analog-based dimming feature is accomplished by means of a variable inductor (VI). The proposed topology is based on the classic RSCT step-up double mode converter and it provides a simple and cost-effective solution while guaranteeing a wide dimming range. In order to implement an analog-based dimming, the control of the dc current in the LED lamp is required. This technique proposes to replace the resonant inductor by a VI, which will control the rms value of the resonant current, and, therefore, the mean value of the LED lamp current. In order to evaluate the feasibility and performance of this method, a 22-W LED lamp and driver prototypes were built. The most relevant experimental results are presented and briefly described. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A two-switch semiquadratic fifth-order buck converter belonging to a minimum-phase family is proposed in this paper. The proposed converter exhibits better dynamic performance, steady-state voltage gain in between conventional buck and quadratic buck converter. In view of this characteristic, it gives more bucking than the traditional buck converter. A time-domain analysis is formulated to predict the converter's steady-state performance. Also, the equations for designing the energy storage elements are established. Salient performance features, voltage bucking and source current ripples, of the proposed converter are compared to other competing/reported buck topologies. Transfer functions are obtained through state-space models, and then these are used in the controller design studies. The converter stabilization characteristics are studied through simulations. The analytical predictions and key features of the proposed converter are verified through experimental results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the reason for operational instability occurring upon neutral line disconnection and reconnection of active three-phase three-level neutral-point-clamped power factor correction rectifiers is revealed and simple solution allowing to maintain correct operation is proposed. It is shown that the neutral line disconnection/reconnection inverts the sign of the partial dc-link voltages balancing loop; thus, reversing the sign of zero-sequence component created by the balancing loop controller would eliminate the mentioned drawback by keeping the balancing loop negative feedback. The proposed finding is experimentally verified on a commercial 25-kVA NPC-PFC front end. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In this paper, a built-in voltage gain extension cell is proposed to give a universal topology derivation on next-generation high step-up converters for large voltage gain conversion systems. Several improved single-switch high step-up converters with built-in transformer voltage multiplier cell are derived with some advantageous performance, which includes extremely large voltage conversion ratio, minimized power device voltage stress, effective diode reverse-recovery alleviation, and soft-switching operation. The turns ratio of the built-in transformer can be employed as another design freedom to extend the voltage gain, which shows great design flexibility. Compared with their active clamp counterpart, only one MOSFET is required to simplify the circuit configuration and improve the system reliability. The over resonance frequency and the below resonance frequency operation modes are studied to explore the circuit performance, and the key parameter design criterion is provided to show a valuable guidance for future industrial applications. Finally, the experimental results from a 500 W 36-380 V prototype are provided to validate the effectiveness of the main contributions in this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a multilevel step-up dc/dc converter for dc-grid-based offshore wind energy conversion applications. The main features of the proposed multilevel converter are as follows: 1) the voltage stress of the power devices can be reduced, making it suitable for high-voltage applications; 2) the boost inductor can be reduced significantly, leading to the outstanding dynamic performance; and 3) high-voltage gain can be obtained and thus is well-suited for high-gain applications. Theoretical analysis was carried out for a four-level step-up converter, based on which, the converter can be extended to any arbitrary number of levels. The proposed four-level converter was verified by a simulation and evaluated by comparing with a conventional multilevel dc/dc converter in terms of the component stress and power device count. The developed topology was implemented on a 2-kW prototype converter to evaluate its feasibility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]