Boost Power Factor Correction Converter Research Articles

Empirical Investigation of a Single-phase Input Switched AC-DC Boost Converter with Improved Power Quality

The Boost converter topology is most widely used for power factor correction (PFC) converters. The conventional passive Boost PFC converter inherently suffers from the lack of controllability and non-ideal characteristics of the diode-bridge rectifier. Replacing diodes with active switch(es) offers viable solutions but increases the circuit complexity. Addressing this trade-off, a novel design of a single–phase input switched AC to DC Boost converter has been presented in this article. The active switch of the Boost DC converter is shifted to the input side of the full-bridge diode rectifier which provides more control on the input current without increasing much of the circuit complexity. Two Boost inductors and two output split capacitors are used for providing higher step-up operation compared to the conventional. The converter has been simulated both in open-loop and closed-loop conditions using the PSIM software. The simulation results show that the proposed converter provides good dynamic response and can maintain a constant stable output voltage during sudden load change. Furthermore, to evaluate the experimental performance of the suggested converter, a prototype converter has been developed. A scaled-down experiment has been performed which shows that the converter can achieve up to 85.2 % efficiency and an input power factor of 0.9.

Efficiency and PF Improving Techniques with a Digital Control for Totem-Pole Bridgeless CRM Boost PFC Converters

A totem-pole bridgeless boost converter is one of the most promising topologies for the power factor correction (PFC) stage in high-power applications due to its high efficiency and small number of components. However, due to the totem-pole structure of the field-effect transistor (FET), very high switching loss occurs via the reverse recovery current of the body diode. To solve these problems, critical mode (CRM) control is a good solution to achieve the valley switching technique. With valley switching of CRM control, the switching loss decreases drastically with decreasing turn-on voltage. But, although the CRM control enables valley switching, it is hard to make an exact valley switching control with general zero-voltage detection circuits. In addition, when a frequency limitation scheme is applied to prevent a very high frequency, the switch can operate with hard switching at the boundary of the frequency limitation. Furthermore, the CRM boost PFC has a low PF and high total harmonic distortion (THD) under light-load conditions due to the large negative current resulting from resonance between the inductor and parasitic capacitance. It becomes worse at near-zero input voltage since the resonance current becomes larger near zero-input voltage. Therefore, in this paper, a totem-pole bridgeless boost PFC converter with high efficiency, high PF, and low THD is developed using TMS320F28377 by Texas Instruments. Based on the basic digital structure of the totem-pole bridgeless converter, the proposed controls help with exact valley switching, PF and THD improvement, and frequency limitation. The prototype converter is verified using 90–264 VAC input voltages and 450 V/3.3 kW output specifications.

Frequency Modulation Scheme for CCM Boost PFC Converter to Improve THD in Light-Load Condition

This study proposes a novel frequency modulation scheme for a continuous conduction mode (CCM) boost power factor correction (PFC) converter. The aim is to improve the total harmonic distortion (THD) under light-load conditions. Boost converters are widely utilized with CCM control for the PFC stage owing to their ability to achieve high efficiency with minimal components. In addition, they have a high power factor (PF) and low THD. However, despite being designed for CCM operation, the boost PFC converter transitions into discontinuous conduction mode (DCM) as the output load decreases. This mode, known as mixed conduction mode, degrades the PF and THD of the PFC converter. To address these issues, we propose a novel frequency modulation scheme. The CCM boost PFC converter adopts frequency variation to reduce the DCM region. To validate the feasibility of the proposed concept, a prototype with a 60 Hz/230 Vac input and 850 W/380 V output was utilized. Consequently, the boost PFC converter attains a high PF and low THD with simplified circuits.

Performance Analysis of Meta-Heuristic Algorithms for Optimal PI Tuning of PFC

The popularity of the average current mode (ACM) controlled boost type power factor correction (PFC) topologies is increasing due to their suitability for power quality problems. Proportional-Integral (PI) controller method is generally used in ACM controlled boost PFC circuits which include two controllers. However, the most important complexity of ACM controlled PFC circuits is tuning the coefficients of the PI controllers optimally. Therefore, this paper proposes the optimal tuning of PI coefficients used in ACM controlled boost PFC circuits using different meta-heuristics algorithms. First, the proposed ACM controller-based boost PFC topology is analyzed in MATLAB/Simulink software by using variable loads. Then the simulation results of the Cuckoo Optimization Algorithm (COA) based ACM controlled boost PFC converter are compared with the results determined via Ziegler-Nichols (ZN), Genetic Algorithm (GA), Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO), Imperialistic Competitive Algorithm (ICA), and Invasive Weed Optimization (IWO). Finally, the experimental verification of the topology has been done using a 600 W prototype and eZdsp F28335. As COA showed better results among other evolutionary algorithms used in this paper, we used COA parameters to observe the performance of the proposed tuning method. The experimental studies have been done under different load variations similar to the simulation studies.

PLL-based Enhanced Control of Boost PFC Converter for Smart Farming Lighting Application

Controlled environment farming has become an attractive solution to increase the food production with limited use of resources. LED lights are often used in this type of farming to increase plant yield. LED lights are dc load, whereas the grid provides ac power. This necessitates the use of power factor correction (PFC) converter as an interface between the grid and the lights. This paper proposes an innovative control method for the boost PFC converter, where an advanced phase-locked loop scheme is developed that can eliminate measurement dc offset and provide harmonic robust estimation of the grid voltage fundamental component. The applied nonlinear control uses the existing two-loop control architecture. Based on a baseline PI controller, a nonlinear function is added to make the controller react faster when it is far from the reference and vice-versa. Comprehensive simulation studies are conducted to assess the performance of the proposed method under various challenging test scenarios. Compared to the baseline method, the proposed technique achieved 42%∼65% reduction in total harmonic distortion depending on the test cases, which makes the technique a suitable candidate for improving the operational efficiency and, consequently, the running cost of a smart farming lighting system on an industrial scale. Results show the effectiveness of the proposed method over the conventional counterpart.

Current Zero-Crossing Prediction-Based Critical Conduction Mode Control of Totem-Pole PFC Rectifiers

Critical conduction mode (CRM) is widely used in totem-pole Boost power factor correction converters due to its compatibility with soft-switching and high switching frequency. Conventionally, a current sensor or zero-current detector is required to realize CRM operation. The system performances highly rely on the behaviors of peripheral circuits. Additional power loss and delay are also introduced. Moreover, the inductor current contains obvious differential mode noise, which brings interferences to the sensing signals. To address this issue, a novel CRM realization method is proposed. It utilizes an inductor current estimator model to estimate the averaged current and to predict the current zero-crossings. The noisy sensing signal is replaced by estimated values. Therefore, the zero-current detection circuit is removed, which simplifies the peripheral circuit design. Valley-switching and zero-voltage switching can also be achieved. Operation principles, digital implementation, and error suppression of the proposed control are analyzed. The proposed concepts are validated on a <inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\rm{550}~W$</tex-math></inline-formula> , <inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$150\mathrm{k}Hz-1.6\mathrm{M}Hz$</tex-math></inline-formula> , GaN-based prototype. Experimental results record 98.96% peak efficiency with a 0.9972 power factor.

Boost power factor correction converter with adaptive harmonic compensation control

AbstractIn low‐voltage distribution systems, the increased penetration of power electronic devices leads to the decentralization of harmonic sources, which puts the sensitive loads or communication systems in the risk status. The conventional methods of point‐to‐point harmonic control are not applicable. In order to solve this problem without increasing additional investments, this paper focuses on mitigating the harmonic interference through the power factor correction (PFC) converter. Hence, a critical conduction mode (CRM) single‐phase boost PFC converter with adaptive harmonic compensation (AHC) control is proposed to reduce the harmonic interference at user side. Firstly, the feed‐forward control loop of a PFC converter is decoupled into the fundamental branch and harmonic branch to trace the harmonic interference and generate the compensation current. Then the compensation gain is designed by the compensation loop gain and compensation capacity of PFC converter. Meanwhile, the characteristics of the PFC converter are analyzed to study the effect of the AHC control on the active power transmission and output load, which can provide important support for the proposed method in application. Finally, a 160‐W experimental prototype is built to verify the effectiveness of the proposed AHC control.

Stabilizing the Boost PFC Converter with a Time Delay Feedback Controller

The One-Cycle Controlled Boost Power Factor Correction converter has one voltage control loop, which may exhibit instability when the load is light. The instability results in a low Power Factor. To ensure that the Power Factor is high, a time delay circuit was adopted in this paper to control the instability of the converter. The architecture of the time delay circuit is described, and its transfer function is derived. The double averaging method was applied to the converter to determine the parameters in the control method. Experimental results verified the time delay control method in the converter. The power factor increased from 0.82 to 0.99 after activating the delay control circuit.

Development of an Advanced AC Drive for the Heating Circulation Pumps with Dry-Rotor Using a Synchronous Reluctance Motor

This study presents an enhanced AC drive for the SynRMs coupled with a circulation pump (CP) and an improved control system based on the field orientation. A grid-fed 900 W motor driver consisting of an electromagnetic interference filter (EMI), power factor correction (PFC), and three-phase inverter is designed to drive 0.75 kW SynRM. A boost PFC converter is designed as an interface between the AC power line and the motor drive. PFC is used to recover the bad power factor performance of the SynRM. In addition, the boosted and well-regulated DC-link voltage improves the motor driving performance. Control strategies and practical implementation based on the field-oriented control of synchronous reluctance motors are presented. Dynamic and steady-state responses of the CP SynRM drive in various conditions are verified experimentally. Low current and voltage ripples, unity power factor, maximum torque per ampere with low fluctuation and low EMI noise are achieved with the low cost efficiently. All of the improvements are obtained by fewer circuit elements and higher energy conversion efficiency. The advantages of using SynRMs in dry-rotor circulation pumps for heating applications have been demonstrated experimentally.

A Unified Control for PFC Converter With Seamless Transition Between PWM/PFM Modes

Discontinuous conduction mode is often used in boost power factor correction converter. This article proposes a unified control method to achieve both pulsewidth modulation control and pulse frequency modulation control, which is based on the virtual impedance principle. The control modes can easily be changed by only adjusting one control parameter. Consequently, by comprehensively considering current ripple, switching frequency, and efficiency, the converter can operate flexibly in the situation of variable loads. This article first introduces the operation principle of the proposed unified control method. Then, the operation condition for each control mode is discussed. Besides, the current ripple, the switching frequency, and the power loss are analyzed. Finally, the experimental results of steady-state test and load switching test are presented. And the efficiency of the converter is more than 95% in the range from half load to full load. These experimental results fully verify the effectiveness of the proposed control.

Adaptive Charge-Compensation-Based Variable On-Time Control to Improve Input Current Distortion for CRM Boost PFC Converter

For boost power factor correction (PFC) converters operating in critical conduction mode (CRM), charge compensation strategies are utilized to improve input current distortion. However, since massive calculations are required under complex working conditions, it is difficult to achieve accurate charge compensation with limited real-time computing resources. To solve this issue, this paper proposes an adaptive charge-compensation-based variable on-time (ACVOT) control strategy. The ACVOT controller calculates the required switching on-time by adding a fundamental value and an extended on-time. The fundamental value is adjusted by the loop compensator in each half-line cycle to provide a basic bias. The extended on-time is calculated based on partial charge compensation equation in each switching cycle to reduce the distortion. Compared with conventional digital variable on-time (VOT) control, the proposed strategy improves the input current total harmonics distortion (THD) and reduces the LUT/register resources by 54%/43% in FPGA realization. To verify the effectiveness of the proposed strategy, a 200 W prototype is built using the GaN HEMT transistor, where the THD is reduced to 1.4% at full load.

Non‐linear control of a boost PFC converter with a small inductor based on feedforward correction and frequency variation

To reduce total harmonic distortion (THD) and improve the power factor (PF) of a boost power factor correction (PFC) converter, here, the authors propose a non-linear control algorithm that includes the feedforward correction (FC) algorithm in the continuous conduction mode (CCM) and the non-linear frequency variation (FV) algorithm in the mixed conduction mode (MCM). The proposed FC algorithm achieves current out of distortion through zero crossing with a lower current loop bandwidth. The proposed non-linear FV algorithm achieves high PF and low THD under minimal load conditions. The non-linear FV algorithm comprises a third harmonic extraction algorithm, a harmonic control loop for reducing THD and a frequency production algorithm. By using this non-linear FV algorithm, the inductor size is reduced, which leads to lower cost and also achieves better THD and PF. The proposed algorithms are verified experimentally in terms of current tracking, current THD, PF, heating and loss on a 2000-W boost PFC converter hardware prototype.

Linear Quadratic Regulator-Based PI Control of a Non-Ideal Quadratic Boost PFC Converter for Low-Power Wind Energy Conversion Systems Supplying Uninterruptible DC Power

DC–DC converters are efficient in providing a regulated power with power factor control in switch-mode power supplies and also in electric vehicle charging stations. The aim of this research work is to design an efficient DC–DC quadratic boost power factor correction converter for Wind Energy Conversion Systems (WECS) to provide uninterruptible DC power in case of one or two modules loss for low-power applications. The state-space model of the converter is derived using a state-space averaging technique through small signal modeling by considering the non-linearities. The reduced-order model is obtained using Routh-Pade's approximation method to reduce the complexity involved in the design of the controller parameters for the outer and inner loops. The outer voltage is regulated using an Internal Mode Control (IMC)-based proportional integral (PI) controller to overcome the effect of right-half plane zero (RHP) and three-phase currents are shaped by using three PI controllers. The three inner PI controllers for each phase are tuned using three methodologies like Zieglar Nichols, Skogestad and Linear Quadratic Regulator (LQR)-based PI control. The transient and steady-state performances of the closed-loop system are analyzed for variations in the load and set point using extensive computer-based simulation studies. The results reveal that the LQR-based PI controller show considerably better performance in terms of less settling time, overshoot, power factor and %THD, including parasitic parameters of the components.

Parallel Fixed Switching Frequency CRM and DCM Boost PFC Converter With High Power Factor

Critical conduction mode (CRM) or discontinuous conduction mode (DCM) boost power factor correction (PFC) converter is widely used in low power applications for its advantages of zero-current turn-on of the switch, no reverse recovery in diode and simple control. The input current of fixed switching frequency control CRM boost PFC converter and the input current of constant duty-cycle control DCM boost PFC converter mainly contain third harmonic. Moreover, the phase of the third harmonics is opposite. This paper proposes a harmonic elimination parallel control to connect these two converters in parallel. The input current third harmonic of the parallel converter can be eliminated completely so as to improve the PF to nearly unity in the whole input voltage range. This parallel method is an interesting way to extend power, and is different from the existing method of parallel DCM boost PFC converter or parallel CRM boost PFC converter. The experimental results verify the accuracy of the theoretical analysis.

Differential Mode Noise Prediction and Analysis in Single-Phase Boost PFC for the New Frequency Range of 9–150 kHz

High penetration of power electronics due to the concentration of switching frequency in the range of 9–150 kHz may create new challenging issues. Currently, regarding the recent version standard (IEC 61000-6-3), there is a lack of enough insight and fundamental studies despite reported electromagnetic interference (EMI) noise problems in this frequency range. Hence, this article proposes a time-frequency analytical modeling method for characterizing differential mode (DM) noise in a single-phase power factor correction (PFC) converter in this new frequency range. Provided comparative simulation analysis shows the proposed method's ability to estimate DM noise with a 9–150 kHz frequency range at high accuracy utilizing the double Fourier analysis method. Moreover, the obtained experimental results on a 1-kW single-phase boost PFC converter validate the proposed EMI modeling approach's effectiveness, demonstrating an error of less than 1.8 dB for the considered experimental case studies.

Mirror-Bridge Phase-Shift Modulation With Low Common-Mode Noise for Single-Phase CHB PFC

For ac/dc power conversion applications like server power supply, telecom power supply, and on-board charger of an electric vehicle, the rising electricity demand has presented challenges toward high efficiency and high power density. The cascaded H-bridge (CHB) based multilevel power factor correction (PFC) converter has much higher power density than that of traditional boost PFC converter. However, the CHB-PFC converter has multiple floating dc outputs, which leads to a common mode (CM) electromagnetic interference (EMI) issue due to the parasitic capacitance of cascaded dc/dc stages and layouts and distributed noise sources existing in the ac/dc system. Thus, a large EMI filter is necessary for the PFC system that sharply degrades the system's power density. In order to quantify the CM noise caused by the floating outputs and cascaded parasitic capacitance, a unified equivalent CM circuit model is derived in this article, which decouples the effects among the multiple CM noise sources in the CHB converter. Based on the derived circuit model, a mirror-bridge phase-shift modulation is proposed to cancel the CM noise within the CHB converter itself. A single-phase 2-kW CHB PFC prototype has been built up to verify the analysis, and 40-dB CM noise reduction compared with conventional unipolar modulation is achieved by the proposed modulation scheme.

Unified Pulsewidth-Cycle Control Strategy to Achieve Mixed DCM/CRM Operation and Consistent Valley Switching for Boost PFC Converter

This article proposes a unified pulsewidth-cycle (UPWC) control strategy to achieve mixed-mode operation and consistent valley switching (VS) for boost power factor correction converter. Compared with conventional single-mode controllers, it has a unified scheme to achieve single discontinuous conduction mode (DCM), single critical conduction mode (CRM), or mixed DCM/CRM operations in each half-line cycle. To regulate the input current as a sinusoid, the UPWC controller adopts a variable pulsewidth and a near-constant switching cycle under DCM, while adopts a constant pulsewidth and a variable switching cycle under CRM. To facilitate analysis, normalized mapping of operation modes is provided, along with the final pulsewidth and switching cycle. Furthermore, to ensure consistent VS, a controlled zero current detection method is proposed to fix the turn-on point of the power switch. No matter in DCM or CRM, consistent VS reduces both the switching loss and current distortion caused by parasitic resonance. To further reduce the current distortion caused by fixing the turn-on point, a compensation gain is provided that reshapes the input current as a sinusoid. Finally, through mixed DCM/CRM operation and consistent VS, the proposed UPWC controller achieves preferable performances in the power range, efficiency, power factor, and current distortion.

A Power Factor Corrected Resonant EV Charger Using Reduced Sensor Based Bridgeless Boost PFC Converter

A reduced sensor based bridgeless boost (BLB) power factor correction (PFC) converter fed full-bridge inductor–inductor capacitor (FBLLC) converter for electric vehicle (EV) charging, is presented in this article. This converter is a twin stage converter, where the first stage is a PFC-BLB converter operating in continuous conduction mode of its boost inductors, and the second stage is an FBLLC converter, which converts the output voltage of the PFC-BLB converter to an isolated low voltage for constant current/constant voltage (CC/CV) charging of an EV battery. The BLB converter is switched at fixed frequency using pulsewidth modulated control, whereas FBLLC converter employs a pulse frequency modulation control to enable CC/CV charging of EV battery. An experimental prototype of EV charger is developed and the digital control of PFC-BLB and FBLLC converter, is implemented using a 32 bit <inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$TMS320F28035$</tex-math></inline-formula> digital signal processor to charge an EV battery with a maximum power of <inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$2.7\text{ kW}$</tex-math></inline-formula> and a current of <inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$50\text{ A}$</tex-math></inline-formula> .

A Hybrid Control Scheme with Fast Transient and Low Harmonic for Boost PFC Converter

In this study, a new control strategy was proposed to improve transient response and the input current harmonic distortion of power factor correction (PFC) regulators operating in an average current mode. The proposed technique required only two additional gain selectors and a peak detector circuit on the feedforward voltage loop and output voltage feedback loops. It provided a direct reading for the average voltage value of feedback control loops and the peak voltage of feedforward control loops, producing PFC boost regulators with fast dynamic responses and low-input current harmonic distortion. The use of digital potentiometers for directly changing the gain of control loops did not require any divider or squarer to reduce the complexity of control circuits. The operating principles and control strategies of 300 W boost PFC with the new control strategy are presented with detailed analysis and discussion. The experimental results were satisfactory.

A Review on Quadratic Boost Topology-Based PFC Techniques

Electronic devices require DC voltage for their operation so rectification (AC to DC conversion) is needed to convert AC voltage from the mains to DC. During this conversion, harmonics are generated in the system as well as power factor (PF) gets poor hence degrading power quality. Power factor correction (PFC) converters are being commonly used to increase PF and reduce harmonics. Boost PFC Converter is the mostly used topology for active power factor correction because of several benefits like series input inductor, high PF, but its voltage gain is not that good and it has output voltage ripple. Quadratic Boost PFC Converter can be used to overcome these two drawbacks by providing high voltage gain and less outputvoltage ripples. This paper represents applications and topologies of Quadratic Boost Converter, latest control techniques to achieve high voltage gain, regulated output and, high PF. Also, comparison is made between Boost Converter and Quadratic Boost PFC Converter. Finally, conclusion is made of this survey