Step-up Mode Research Articles

Dual mode variable voltage converter configuration using single topology: design and analysis

ABSTRACT This paper introduces an optimised design procedure for a DC–DC buck, boost and buck-boost configurations in a single circuit with an integrated dissipative snubber, aiming to enhance performance and efficiency. The conventional buck-boost converter’s versatility in adjusting the output voltage is complemented by a dissipative snubber, mitigating hard switching challenges in power semiconductors. Utilising advanced control techniques for seamless transitions between step-down and step-up modes, the proposed circuit ensures optimal operation across varying input voltages. The research delves into the snubber’s impact on limiting the maximum voltage stress across the switch, considering power losses in the snubber resistor. Simulation, analysis and experimental results validate the design’s effectiveness in meeting voltage regulation requirements, showcasing its adaptability to diverse electronic applications. This optimised design methodology holds promise for improving DC–DC converter efficiency in practical applications where mitigating switching losses and optimising voltage stress are critical considerations. Also this proposed converter provides output simultaneously for buck and boost configurations. The simulation and mathematical analysis are validated using the experimental prototype.

Model predictive power control for grid-tied T-type three-level quasi-Z-source inverter with low complexity

Abstract The appealing design known as T-type three-level quasi-Z-source inverters (T2LQZSI) can function in both step-down and step-up modes. Model predictive control for converters has also received a lot of interest. This article suggests a low-complexity model predictive power control for T-type quasi-Z-source inverters with neutral-point voltage (NP-V) balance to address the shortcomings of conventional model predictive control and achieve improved performance. The resulting voltage is produced by using a variety of vectors. For NP-V balance, the tiny vector is employed. In addition, a strong optimum sector selection approach is suggested, which significantly lowers the processing complexity. Results from experiments show how effective and better the suggested technique is.

New single-switch buck–boost converter with continuous input/output currents and a wide conversion range

The main aim of this paper is to introduce a new high step-up/down buck-boost converter with a minimum number of switches which provides the benefit of having the continuity of the input/output current. This single-switch semi-quadratic converter is suitable for high step-up applications while being able to provide step-down voltage gains. Also, by applying some minor changes to the circuit elements, another single-switch buck-boost converter is suggested which has two operative outputs with different voltage gains. One of the outputs of this topology has quadratic buck-boost converter voltage gain which is appropriate for high step-up/step-down applications. The other output could vary from input voltage to minus infinity, ideally. After studying the steady-state operation of the proposed converters in Continuous Conduction Mode (C.C.M), the simulation results are presented. In addition, a comparison among related converters proposed in the literature is made. Finally, experimental results are evaluated by implementing a laboratory prototype of the proposed converter in both step-down and step-up modes. Theoretical, simulation, and experimental results are compatible with each other.

Prospects for the development of charger-discharge devices of spacecraft power supply systems

Power supply system (PSS) is designed to ensure uninterrupted autonomous power supply of on-board equipment in all modes and at all stages during the active life of spacecraft. Lots of PSS makes up a significant proportion of the mass spacecraft and improvement of specific energy characteristics PSS this leads to a synergistic effect when the mass and energy consumption resources available for the payload are simultaneously increased, which increases efficiency of spacecraft generally. The article considers the evolution of structural and circuit solutions for PSS spacecraft, its energy-converting equipment and the effect of these changes on energy-mass characteristics PSS. It is shown that a significant effect on energy and mass characteristics PSS provide structural and circuit design solutions for charger and discharge devices of energy-converting equipment and the choice of voltage value accumulator batteries (AB). The development of the element base, the creation of programmable digital devices capable of functioning under the influence of space factors and the emergence of new circuit design and management solutions for pulse converters that have occurred in the last decade opens up new opportunities for improvement of the PSS of spacecraft. In the article as a charger and discharge device PSS reviewed pulse voltage converter (PVC) with a new modulation strategy, with the ability to reverse the flow of energy and the ability to work in a step-up mode with high efficiency. Its application as a single charger-discharge device (CDD) allows for a significant improvement in performance CDD and PSS in general, such as efficiency, energy mass, reliability and a number of others. Ability PVC to reverse the flow of energy and the possibility of working in a step-up mode opens up the possibility to abandon the use of AB with a voltage lower than the voltage at the main output PSS and switch to using AB with an average discharge voltage close to the voltage at the main output PSS. Such a structural and circuit design solution CDD and AB will allow you to increase efficiency of CDD up to 99 % and additionally improve energy and mass characteristics PSS.

A Wide-Output-Range DC-DC Converter and Minimum Loss Collaborative Control Strategy

In response to the challenges faced by traditional LLC resonant converters in simultaneously achieving a wide output voltage and high efficiency, this paper proposes a cascaded DC-DC converter. The front stage of the converter adopts a new LLC topology, and it is cascaded with a boost converter through a reutilization of the output-side inductor. The proposed DC-DC converter leverages the electrical isolation and wide output voltage range advantages of LLC and boost converters, enabling the overall system to achieve broad output voltage regulation and high-efficiency operation. The reutilization of the inductor design further enhances the integration density of the DC-DC converter. A minimum loss collaborative control strategy is introduced for the proposed DC-DC converter. When determining the output voltage and operating the circuit in step-up mode, the duty cycles of the switch in the proposed LLC converter and the switch in the boost converter are adjusted to minimize overall circuit losses while ensuring the rated output voltage. Ultimately, the correctness and practicality of the proposed DC-DC converter and its control strategy are validated through a simulation and an experiment. The overall efficiency of the DC-DC converter can reach up to 94% under optimal conditions.

Wide voltage range and low current ripple bidirectional DC/DC converter

ABSTRACT Along with the prosperous growth of battery energy storage system being applied in renewable energy system, wide voltage range regulation and low current ripple bidirectional DC/DC converters attract much attention of researchers. Based on a basic boost–buck converter and voltage multiplying unit (VMU), this article proposes a two-stage DC/DC converter. The front stage is an input parallel output serial connected boost–buck converter and the back stage contains a dual-coupled inductors VMU. The storage inductors of the front stage aremagnetically coupled with those in back stage. Employing dual coupled inductors VMU can increase voltage gain while not increasing main switch voltage stress during step-up mode, which can widen the application scenarios. During step-down mode, a fully controlled method can obtain a greater step-down voltage ratio. Due to the interleaving control mode of the main switches, the current ripple of the battery side is lower when the converter works bidirectionally. The proposed converter has the advantages of widening voltage range regulation and lowering current ripple while avoiding extreme switch duty cycle. This article discusses theoretical step-up and step-down work mode of the proposed converter. Experimental results sampled from a 12 V/115 V prototype are presented to verify the analysis of the proposed converter.

Contemporary materials for semiconductor switches in an isolated bidirectional DC-DC converter using a closed loop system with linear quadratic regulator control

This research seeks to create a novel bidirectional DC-DC converter capable of high step-up/down power transfer for diverse applications, such as grid systems, energy backup systems, fuel cell vehicles and hybrid electric vehicles. The converter features an inductor linked to an electric power grid to facilitate multi-layer energy conversion with galvanic isolation for improved voltage ratio and galvanic isolation. Notable among its features is this converter's capacity to recycle energy from a leaky inductor without needing additional snubber mechanisms or clamped circuits. To facilitate efficient operation, the converter employs power switches capable of soft switching both step-up and step-down modes. This option permits using MOSFETs with low on-state resistance, which is advantageous due to reduced voltage endurance at the primary side. This research explores the application of a linear quadratic regulator (LQR) for use with a constant frequency bidirectional DC-DC converter. Leveraging the high-order nature of converters, LQR controllers make full use of their potential by offering rapid dynamic response time, reliability and minimal changes in settling time for an array of operating conditions. Thorough analyses were carried out into the availability and stability conditions of an LQR controller in step-up mode using MATLAB/Simulink simulation results as evidence. This study also emphasizes the significance of performance and effectiveness in electronic power-switching devices, which rely heavily on material properties for operation. While silicon has traditionally been employed for these switches, advances in material science have seen wider band-gap semiconductors adopted to improve switching device performance. Therefore, this research encompasses selecting and implementing appropriate semiconductor materials into power electronic switches used by DC-DC converters.

Development of a Bidirectional DC/DC Converter with Dual-Battery Energy Storage for a Hybrid Electric Vehicle System

Abstract: This study develops a newly designed, patented, bidirectional DC/DC converter (BDC) that interfaces a main energy storage (ES1), an auxiliary energy storage (ES2), and a DC-bus of different voltage levels, for application in hybrid electric vehicle systems. The proposed converter can operate in a step-up mode (i.e., low-voltage dual-source-powering mode) and a stepdown (i.e., high-voltage dc-link energy-regenerating mode), both with bidirectional power flow control. In addition, the model can independently control power flow between any two low-voltage sources (i.e., low-voltage dual-source buck/boost mode). Herein, the circuit configuration, operation, steady-state analysis, and closed-loop control of the proposed BDC are discussed according to its three modes of power transfer.

Combined Heat and Mass Transfer Associated with Kinetics Models for Analyzing Convective Stepwise Drying of Carrot Cubes.

Stepwise drying is an effective technique that promotes energy saving without additional capital cost. The stepwise drying mode was investigated for energy consumption and dried product qualities using a coupled heat and mass transfer model associated with kinetics equations of volume shrinkage and degradation of β-carotene in carrot cubes. Simulations were performed using a finite element method with extension of a chemical species transport. Validation experiments were carried out under constant drying modes at 60 °C, 70 °C and 80 °C using a lab-scale convective hot air dryer. The verified models were subsequently employed to investigate the effects of two step-up drying modes (60 to 70 °C and 60 to -80 °C). The optimal drying condition was determined using the synthetic evaluation index (SI) with criteria of high specific moisture evaporation rate (SMER), low shrinkage ratio and β-carotene degradation. Simulated results showed comparable agreement with experimental data of moisture content, shrinkage ratio and β-carotene ratio. Step-up drying of 60 to 70 °C gave the highest SMER of 0.50 × 10-3 kg of water evaporated per kWh, while the operation at constant temperature of 80 °C gave the lowest value of 0.19 × 10-3 kg of water evaporated per kWh. Model-predicted results showed less shrinkage of carrot cubes, but higher degradation of β-carotene under step-up drying compared to single-stage drying under temperature of 60 °C. Based on the highest SI value (0.36), carrot cubes were optimally dried under step-up mode of 60 to 70 °C.

Novel Bidirectional Isolated DC/DC Converter with High Gain Ratio and Wide Input Voltage for Electric Vehicle Storage Systems

This study proposes a novel bidirectional isolated DC/DC converter with a high gain ratio and wide input voltage for electric vehicle (EV) storage systems. The DC bus of an EV can be used to charge its battery, and the battery pack can discharge energy to the DC bus through the bidirectional converter when the DC bus lacks power. The input voltage range of the proposed converter is 24 to 58 V on the low-voltage side, which meets the voltage specifications of most servers and batteries on the market. The proposed topology is verified through design, simulation, and implementation, and voltage gain, voltage stress, and current stress are investigated. The control bidirectional converter is simple. Only one set of complementary signals is required for step-up and step-down modes, which greatly reduces costs. The converter also features a continuous current at the low-voltage side, a leakage inductance function for energy recovery, and zero-voltage switching (ZVS) on certain switches, which can prevent voltage spikes on the switches and increase the efficiency of the proposed converter. A bidirectional converter with a total power of 1 kW is used to verify the topology’s feasibility and practicability. The power at the low-voltage side was 24–58 V, and the maximum efficiency in step-up mode was 94.5%, 96.5%, and 94.8%, respectively; the maximum efficiency in step-down mode was 94.4%, 95.4%, and 93.7%, respectively.

A study on improving the efficiency of non-isolated buck-boost bidirectional DC–DC converter

ABSTRACT In battery-based systems such as hybrid electric propulsion system for ships that use electric propulsion and DC grid, bidirectional converters are often used as interfaces between high-voltage power sources and low-voltage batteries for the purpose of storing excess energy and the fields of application for bidirectional converters are steadily expanding. This study proposes a new bidirectional converter with a high voltage conversion rate and low switch voltage stress. The proposed converter allows current to flow between modules by adding only one capacitor compared to a conventional bidirectional converter. To check the effectiveness of the proposed method, PSIM software by Powersim co. Ltd. was used to perform simulation tests. It was confirmed that the high voltage conversion rate was 4 times that of a conventional bidirectional converter in step-up mode and 1/4 that of a conventional bidirectional converter in step-down mode. Therefore, low-voltage components, such as MOSFETs, GTOs, etc., can be applied in the DC–DC converters thanks to the 1/4 voltage that is required in each switching time.

Influence of voltage modes on microstructure and corrosion resistance of micro-arc oxidation coating on magnesium alloy

Micro-arc oxidation (MAO) technology, as an efficient and widely used technology, can fabricate a ceramic film on magnesium (Mg) alloys in situ to significantly improve corrosion resistance. The study aims to investigate the effect of voltage modes on the preparation and performance of MAO coating on Mg alloys. The scanning electron microscope, X-ray diffractometer, potential dynamic polarization, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy measurements were applied for characterizing the microstructure, composition, and corrosion resistance of the MAO film, respectively. The results revealed that employed 300/350 V step-up mode, the MAO film showed a more uniform distribution of surface micro-pores, fewer micro-cracks and denser inner layer, lower corrosion current density (1.871 × 10−3 mA·cm−2), and higher electrochemical impedance value, compared to other voltage treated parameters. Therefore, it could be concluded that the step-up voltage parameters are conducive to the optimization of microstructure, improvement of corrosion resistance of MAO coating, and reduction of the energy consumption during processing.

A Novel Nonisolated GaN-Based Bidirectional DC–DC Converter With High Voltage Gain

A nonisolated bidirectional dc–dc converter is proposed for energy storage systems in this article. The proposed converter is composed of three active switches, two synchronous rectifiers, two clamping capacitors, and two inductors. The proposed converter has advantages of being a simple structure, a fewer number of components, a common ground, lower voltage stress, and wide voltage gain range. Compared with the conventional buck converters, the novel converter triples the effective duty cycle and lowers voltage stresses across the active switches. A 300-W/500-kHz GaN-based experimental prototype is built and tested to verify the correctness and validity, demonstrating a peak efficiency of 94.54% in step-down mode and a peak efficiency of 94.88% in step-up mode.

Novel High-Step-Up/Step-Down Three-Port Bidirectional DC/DC Converter for Photovoltaic Systems

This paper presents a novel three-port high-step-up/step-down bidirectional DC/DC converter with a coupled inductor for photovoltaic (PV) systems. The proposed converter combines a high-step-up converter, which is used to step-up the PV module to DC bus 200 V, and a battery charge/discharge bidirectional converter to form a three-port bidirectional converter. When sufficient energy is supplied from the PV modules, the converter can step-up the output of the PV modules and provide energy to the DC bus while charging the battery simultaneously. However, when no energy is supplied from the PV modules, the DC bus voltage is provided by the battery. Moreover, the energy stored in the leakage inductor is recycled to the DC-blocking capacitor, and synchronous rectification is conducted in the switch during the step-up mode to reduce switch loss and thereby increase the system’s overall efficiency. Finally, a 500 W three-port bidirectional converter is implemented to verify the feasibility and practicability of the proposed converter. The maximum efficiency of the proposed converter is 95.4%, 94.3%, and 94.7% when operated in the high-step-up mode, battery step-up mode, and step-down mode for the PV modules, respectively.

Development of a Bidirectional DC–DC Converter with Rapid Energy Bidirectional Transition Technology

Bidirectional DC–DC converters are key devices in the DC distribution system and the energy storage system (ESS). It is important to consider the safety of the elements in the converter for rapid conversion of the power direction. Damages may occur to the power-related components in the circuit if the direction of the inductor current or the capacitor voltage changes instantaneously. To make the power flow change smoothly and quickly, this research proposed a bidirectional DC–DC converter with rapid energy transition technology implemented in the circuit architecture. The rapid energy bidirectional transition technology added a resonance path based on the LC resonant circuit, allowing rapid energy conversion through the resonance path. Therefore, the energy in the energy storage element could be quickly converted without causing circuit surges. Analyses of the converter operating in the step-up mode, the step-down mode, and the transition operation mode are presented. The proposed circuit architecture had a high voltage-conversion ratio and a simple architecture. A prototype bidirectional DC–DC converter with a full load of 500 W, a low side voltage of 24 V, and a high side voltage of 200 V was developed to prove the concept. The feasibility of the rapid energy bidirectional transition technology was verified by the simulation results and experimental results using the prototype converter. The maximum efficiencies in the step-up mode and the step-down mode were 95.3% and 93.8% respectively. Under full-load conditions, the transient time of the energy transition from the step-up mode to the step-down mode was 17.7 μs, and the transient time of the energy transition from the step-down mode to the step-up mode was 19.3 μs.

Backward Step-Up Control Strategy for Bidirectional LLC Resonant Converter

An LLC resonant converter has the advantages of simple structure and soft switching. It can enable bidirectional power transmission, but it is difficult to realize a normalized gain greater than one under backward mode (backward step-up mode). Cascaded dc/dc converters or topological changes can solve this problem, but additional switches and components are required and losses are added. Without changing the LLC resonant converter’s basic topology, this paper proposes a variable duty-cycle control strategy of primary side switches for backward step-up mode. Using variable duty-cycle control, the LC resonant tank can be charged, and then the backward step-up mode can be realized. Soft switching characteristics of some primary side switches and all secondary side switches are guaranteed. In this study, the working principle of an LLC resonant converter under bidirectional control strategy was analyzed, and the backward step-up control was analyzed in detail. The voltage gain and the boundary of continuous conduction mode (CCM) and discontinuous conduction mode (DCM) were derived. A synchronous rectification method related to the backward step-up control is proposed. The control strategy was verified by experiments.

Novel soft-switching integrated various converter of ZVT-ZCT grid connected PV system

Solar photovoltaic systems contribute to the development of the world's most environmentally sustainable and cost-effective electrical energy. High-power inverters commonly use a technique known as three-level design to increase their performance by soft-switching. On the other hand, the switching action is stressed in normal operation because the current or voltage will not be zero at the time of the transition. For CUK, SEPIC, ZETA and CASCODE converters operating in critical switch mode, it has been proposed that a new type of DC-DC converters primarily formed on capacitive coupling DC-DC converters be developed. The proposed converters are zero-current-voltage-switching half-square-quarter-wave converters with a zero-current auxiliary circuit. LC-circuit resonance causes power switches to turn on at zero voltage, getting rid of the switching losses during turn on. The hybrid Incremental Conductance & Integral Regulator technique is used to track MPP available from PV system. The proposed converter's results and efficiency are compared to those of traditional semi-square-quarter-wave zero-current-converter converters. The proposed converters achieved power efficiencies of 98.7% in the step-up mode and 98.8% in the step-down mode for the rated load state, respectively. The proposed CUK, SEPIC, ZETA and CASCODE Converters Simulation are implemented in the MATLAB Simulink programme to validate its efficiency.

A highly efficient isolated single‐phase variable frequency AC–AC converter with flexible buck‐boost factor, inherent safe commutation, and continuous current

This paper proposes an isolated single-phase flexible buck-boost ac–ac converter with an adjustable output frequency and optimized semiconductors count. One power switch only operates with a high switching frequency in each half-cycle of the input voltage, and others operate with a low switching frequency equal to the output frequency. Thanks to this feature, the converter provides high efficiency, 95.5% in step-down mode and 91.5% in step-up mode. The galvanic isolation between the input and output sides is also regarded for the proposed topology by employing two coupled inductors. The converter has an inherent safe commutation by utilizing a simple modulation strategy. Thus, additional snubber circuits and complex commutation strategies are no longer required. The proposed converter does not require any input filter as it operates with the continuous input current. This paper presents the operating principle of the proposed topology in detail. For this purpose, a 200-W experimental prototype has been designed to examine the performance of the suggested converter for different operating modes and output frequencies. Results confirm the theory and operation of the proposed topology.

A Wide-Range High-Voltage-Gain Bidirectional DC–DC Converter for V2G and G2V Hybrid EV Charger

This article proposes a new wide-range bidirectional dc–dc converter that has an improved voltage gain transfer ratio for use in electric vehicle (EV) applications. The converter preserves the common electrical ground between input and output terminals, and presents a low-voltage stress of switches, high utilization factor, and high efficiency. The proposed EV charger performance is evaluated for a bidirectional power flow in grid-connected vehicle-to-grid (V2G) and grid-to-vehicle (G2V) modes. The converter uses a dead-beat current controller in the dc–dc and dc–ac stages, which has a smooth, accurate, and fast response. Finally, experimental results for a 500 W, 40–200 V prototype are provided under a bidirectional power flow in a closed-loop system in the presence of the proposed dead-beat controllers. The obtained results substantiate the theoretical analysis and the applicability of this structure. The converter exhibits the capability for EV battery charging/discharging and demonstrates a peak efficiency of 97.2% and 96.8% in the step-down and step-up modes of operation, respectively.

A Four-Phase Hybrid Step-Up/Down Converter With RMS Inductor Current Reduction and Delay-Based Zero-Current Detection

In this letter, a four-phase hybrid step-up/step-down dc–dc converter with a delay-based zero-current detector (ZCD) is proposed. The proposed power stage operates in step-up or step-down mode depending on the target output voltage. It utilizes hybrid switched-inductor-capacitor and dual-path topologies with multiphase operation to reduce conduction loss due to the dc resistance of the inductor by reducing the rms inductor current ( <italic xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">I_L</i> ). The delay-based ZCD determines the zero-current point of <italic xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">I_L</i> with a five-bit binary signal to compensate for the propagation delay between the control and the output signals of the driver. The system is fabricated using 180-nm CMOS technology. The power density is 1.838 A/mm <sup xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">2</sup> , and the peak efficiency is measured at 89.49% and 86.83% in the step-down and step-up mode, respectively, with a load current range of up to 2 A.