High-Efficiency Coupled-Inductor Switched-Capacitor Boost Converter With Improved Input Current Ripple

A novel single-switch coupled-inductor switched-capacitor (CISC) high step-up converter is proposed which has a boost-type input structure allowing an improved input current ripple compared to other leading CISC converters. This is important for sustainable energy applications, such as photovoltaic (PV) cells and fuel cells where high current ripple can degrade performance or lifetime. Though large input filters can be added between the energy source and the boost converter to smooth a pulsed converter input current, the proposed converter naturally has a more moderate current ripple, reducing the need for additional filtering. With regards to the coupled inductor, the leakage inductor energy is recycled without using an extra clamped circuit, and core utilization is high. The detailed theoretical operation is presented and an experimental prototype (200 W, 36 V to 48 input, 400 V output) achieves a maximum efficiency of 97.1%.

Automated summary

The article presents a novel single-switch coupled-inductor switched-capacitor (CISC) high step-up converter with a boost-type input structure, which improves the input current ripple compared to other leading CISC converters. This is significant for sustainable energy applications such as photovoltaic (PV) cells and fuel cells. The proposed converter has a moderate current ripple, reducing the need for additional filtering, and achieves a high core utilization.