Analysis and design of a high-voltage-gain hybrid switched-capacitor buck converter

This paper presents an analysis on the effect of having different number of capacitors n in the first-stage switched-capacitor circuit of an improved hybrid switched-capacitor buck converter for high-voltage-gain conversion. Various aspects of the topology, operation, and efficiency are investigated. It is shown both analytically and experimentally that a higher n in the step-down capacitor stage does not necessarily lead to an overall improved power efficiency. A design and optimization method is thus proposed for the improved SC-buck converter. © 2012 IEEE.published_or_final_versio

Morphing Switched-Capacitor Converters with Variable Conversion Ratio

High-voltage-gain and wide-input-range dc-dc converters are widely used in various electronics and industrial products such as portable devices, telecommunication, automotive, and aerospace systems. The two-stage converter is a widely adopted architecture for such applications, and it is proven to have a higher efficiency as compared with that of the single-stage converter. This paper presents a modular-cell-based morphing switched-capacitor (SC) converter for application as a front-end converter of the two-stage converter. The conversion ratio of this converter is flexible and variable and can be freely extended by increasing more SC modules. The varying conversion ratio is achieved through the morphing of the converter's structure corresponding to the amplitude of the input voltage. This converter is light and compact, and is highly efficient over a very wide range of input voltage and load conditions. Experimental work on a 25-W, 6-30-V input, 3.5-8.5-V output prototype, is performed. For a single SC module, the efficiency over the entire input voltage range is higher than 98%. Applied into the two-stage converter, the overall efficiency achievable over the entire operating range is 80% including the driver's loss

Hybrid switched-capacitor/switched-quasi-Z-source bidirectional DC-DC converter with wide-voltage-gain range for hybrid energy sources EVs

In this paper, a hybrid switched-capacitor/ switched-quasi-Z-source bidirectional dc-dc converter is proposed for electric vehicles (EVs) with hybrid energy sources, which has a wide voltage gain range in the bidirectional energy flows. Compared with the traditional quasi-Z-source bidirectional dc-dc converter, the proposed converter only changes the position of the main power switch, and employs a switched-capacitor cell at the output of the high voltage side. Therefore, the advantages of the wide voltage gain range and the lower voltage stresses across the power switches can be achieved. The operating principle, the voltage and current stresses across the power switches and the comparisons with other converters are analyzed in detail. Furthermore, the parameter design of the main components, the dynamic modelling analysis and the voltage control scheme are also presented. Finally, the experimental results obtained from a 400W prototype validate the characteristics and the theoretical analysis of the proposed converter

A common ground switched-quasi-Z-source bidirectional DC-DC converter with wide-voltage-gain range for EVs with hybrid energy sources

A common ground switched-quasi-Z-source bidirectional DC-DC converter is proposed for electric vehicles (EVs) with hybrid energy sources. The proposed converter is based on the traditional two-level quasi-Z-source bidirectional DC-DC converter, changing the position of the main power switch. It has the advantages of a wide voltage gain range, a lower voltage stress across the power switches, and an absolute common ground. The operating principle, the voltage and current stresses on the power switches, the comparisons with the other converters, the small signal analysis and the controller design are presented in this paper. Finally, a 300W prototype with Uhigh=240V and Ulow=40~120V is developed, and the experimental results validate the performance and the feasibility of the proposed converter

A Comprehensive Review of DC-DC Converters for EV Applications

DC-DC converters in Electric vehicles (EVs) have the role of interfacing power sources to the DC-link and the DC-link to the required voltage levels for usage of different systems in EVs like DC drive, electric traction, entertainment, safety and etc. Improvement of gain and performance in these converters has a huge impact on the overall performance and future of EVs. So, different configurations have been suggested by many researches. In this paper, bidirectional DC-DC converters (BDCs) are divided into four categories as isolated-soft, isolated-hard, non-isolated-soft and non-isolated-hard depending on the isolation and type of switching. Moreover, the control strategies, comparative factors, selection for a specific application and recent trends are reviewed completely. As a matter of fact, over than 200 papers have been categorized and considered to help the researchers who work on BDCs for EV application

Survey of DC-DC Non-Isolated Topologies for Unidirectional Power Flow in Fuel Cell Vehicles

The automobile companies are focusing on recent technologies such as growing Hydrogen (H2) and Fuel Cell (FC) Vehicular Power Train (VPT) to improve the Tank-To-Wheel (TTW) efficiency. Benefits, the lower cost, `Eco\u27 friendly, zero-emission and high-power capacity, etc. In the power train of fuel cell vehicles, the DC-DC power converters play a vital role to boost the fuel cell stack voltage. Hence, satisfy the demand of the motor and transmission in the vehicles. Several DC-DC converter topologies have proposed for various vehicular applications like fuel cell, battery, and renewable energy fed hybrid vehicles etc. Most cases, the DC-DC power converters are viable and cost-effective solutions for FC-VPT with reduced size and increased efficiency. This article describes the state-of-the-art in unidirectional non-isolated DC-DC Multistage Power Converter (MPC) topologies for FC-VPT application. The paper presented the comprehensive review, comparison of different topologies and stated the suitability for different vehicular applications. This article also discusses the DC-DC MPC applications more specific to the power train of a small vehicle to large vehicles (bus, trucks etc.). Further, the advantages and disadvantages pointed out with the prominent features for converters. Finally, the classification of the DC-DC converters, its challenges, and applications for FC technology is presented in the review article as state-of-the-art in research

Analysis of a Bidirectional DC-DC Converter with High Voltage Gain

A novel bidirectional DC-DC converter with high conversion ratio is proposed in this paper. The proposed converter uses the three windings coupled-inductor to achieved high voltage conversion ratio. The primary side consist of a winding and secondary side consist of two windings, which these two windings are series to achieved high voltage gain.In the boost mode, a capacitor is parallel charged and series discharged by the coupled inductor. Thus, high step-up voltage gain can be achieved with an appropriate duty ratio. In the buck mode, a capacitor is series charged and parallel discharged by the coupled inductor. The bidirectional converter can have high step-down voltage gain.The stress voltage of main switches can be reduced, and efficiency can be improved. The operating principle and the steady-state analyses of the voltage gain are discussed. Finally, in 24V for low voltage, and 400V for high voltage, and 200W for output power, this converter is simulated in MATLAB

Interleaved switched-capacitor bidirectional DC-DC converter with wide voltage-gain range for energy storage systems

In this paper, an interleaved switched-capacitor bidirectional DC-DC converter with a high step-up/step-down voltage gain is proposed. The interleaved structure is adopted in the low-voltage side of this converter to reduce the ripple of the current through the low-voltage side, and the series-connected structure is adopted in the high-voltage side to achieve the high step-up/step-down voltage gain. In addition, the bidirectional synchronous rectification operations are carried out without requiring any extra hardware, and the efficiency of the converter is improved. Furthermore, the operating principles, voltage and current stresses, and current ripple characteristics of the converter are analyzed. Finally, a 1kW prototype has been developed which verifies a wide voltage-gain range of this converter between the variable low-voltage side (50V-120V) and the constant high-voltage side (400V). The maximum efficiency of the converter is 95.21% in the step-up mode and 95.30% in the step-down mode. The experimental results also validate the feasibility and the effectiveness of the proposed topology

Isolated Single-stage Power Electronic Building Blocks Using Medium Voltage Series-stacked Wide-bandgap Switches

The demand for efficient power conversion systems that can process the energy at high power and voltage levels is increasing every day. These systems are to be used in microgrid applications. Wide-bandgap semiconductor devices (i.e. Silicon Carbide (SiC) and Gallium Nitride (GaN) devices) are very promising candidates due to their lower conduction and switching losses compared to the state-of-the-art Silicon (Si) devices. The main challenge for these devices is that their breakdown voltages are relatively lower compared to their Si counterpart. In addition, the high frequency operation of the wide-bandgap devices are impeded in many cases by the magnetic core losses of the magnetic coupling components (i.e. coupled inductors and/or high frequency transformers) utilized in the power converter circuit. Six new dc-dc converter topologies are propose. The converters have reduced voltage stresses on the switches. Three of them are unidirectional step-up converters with universal input voltage which make them excellent candidates for photovoltaic and fuel cell applications. The other three converters are bidirectional dc-dc converters with wide voltage conversion ratios. These converters are very good candidates for the applications that require bidirectional power flow capability. In addition, the wide voltage conversion ratios of these converters can be utilized for applications such as energy storage systems with wide voltage swings