Improved Bootstrap Methods for Powering Floating Gate Drivers of Flying Capacitor Multilevel Converters and Hybrid Switched-Capacitor Converters

Ye, Zichao; Lei, Yutian; Liu, Wen-Chuen; Shenoy, Pradeep S.; Pilawa-Podgurski, Robert C. N.

doi:10.1109/tpel.2019.2951116

Cited by 58 publications

(42 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…Taking into account that the use of isolated DC-DC sources for each driver circuit makes the solution more expensive, bulky, and energy inefficient; the authors of [211] present five driver methods applied in FCMCs based on bootstrap in order to mitigate these problems. Among the implemented methods, the following can be enumerated: (i) bootstrap at deadtime, more suitable for the gallium nitride (GaN) power switch; (ii) cascaded bootstrap with the low-dropout regulator, despite its simplicity, needs a high-voltage power supply; (iii) double charge pump, presents a low-efficiency solution; (iv) synchronous bootstrap, can reduce the voltage drop across the bootstrap diode but can be critical in applications with extreme duty cycles; (v) gate driver charge pump, features high efficiency.…”

Section: Fault Tolerance Applied On Mlc and Gate-driver Circuitsmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Comprehensive Review on Modular Multilevel Converters, Submodule Topologies, and Modulation Techniques

2022

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The concept of the modular multilevel converter (MLC) has been raising interest in research in order to improve their performance and applicability. The potential of an MLC is enormous, with a great focus on medium- and high-voltage applications, such as solar photovoltaic and wind farms, electrified railway systems, or power distribution systems. This concept makes it possible to overcome the limitation of the semiconductors blocking voltages, presenting advantageous characteristics. However, the complexity of implementation and control presents added challenges. Thus, this paper aims to contribute with a critical and comparative analysis of the state‑of‑the‑art aspects of this concept in order to maximize its potential. In this paper, different power electronics converter topologies that can be integrated into the MLC concept are presented, highlighting the advantages and disadvantages of each topology. Nevertheless, different modulation techniques used in an MLC are also presented and analyzed. Computational simulations of all the modulation techniques under analysis were developed, based on four cascaded full-bridge topologies. Considering the simulation results, a comparative analysis was possible to make regarding the symmetry of the synthesized waveforms, the harmonic content, and the power distribution in each submodule constituting the MLC.

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Section: Fault Tolerance Applied On Mlc and Gate-driver Circuitsmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Comprehensive Review on Modular Multilevel Converters, Submodule Topologies, and Modulation Techniques

2022

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“…1) Bootstrap Circuits: So-called bootstrap circuits have been used in many applications to facilitate power supply in circuits where two or more ground levels are used. A typical application is power supply of high-side GDUs [31], [32], where an isolated power supply (for instance by means of a transformer) would have to be used otherwise. The bootstrap circuit has also been proposed to be used for power transfer to GDUs of diode-clamped multilevel converters [30].…”

Section: B External Aps Conceptsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Auxiliary Power Supplies for High-Power Converter Submodules: State of the Art and Future Prospects

Heinig

Jacobs

Ilves

et al. 2022

IEEE Trans. Power Electron.

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Recent developments in medium-voltage (MV) silicon and silicon carbide (SiC) power semiconductor devices are challenging state-of-the-art converter and auxiliary power supply (APS) designs. The APS is an important converter component, which energizes the gate-drive units and, therefore, has an influence on the overall reliability and efficiency of the converter system. There has, however, been comparably little research on how the APS of high-power converter submodules can be realized, in particular for high-voltage (HV) applications. New, or improved, solutions may build on state-of-the-art topologies in the near future, but utilize MV SiC technology in the APS circuit itself to enable improved efficiency, reliability, simplicity, and compactness. Externally-fed APS concepts could provide several further advantages. Their various benefits on converter and system level may enable them to be a competitive solution for future APS concepts. Especially light-based power supply systems are considered most useful since they offer extreme voltage isolation capability and immunity to electromagnetic interference.This article presents a review of the wide range of solutions for APSs, possible implementation options, and the most important design considerations. The different solutions are evaluated in a qualitative fashion, providing an overview of available APS concepts with regard to the requirements for high-power converter applications.

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“…A derivation of this configuration has been presented in [88], where cross-connecting capacitors have achieved a higher voltage level at the output through additional switches.Another of the biggest challenges in this topology is to provide the necessary energy to activate the large number of switches that the scheme has. Ye et al in [89] present the comparison of five methods that reduce space and increase the efficiency of gate drive power supply circuits. Also, the operation of a multilevel FC inverter where an additional circuit is provided to avoid the defective cell, if it exists, is presented in [90].…”

Section: Flying Capacitor Based Topologiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Transformerless Multilevel Voltage-Source Inverter Topology Comparative Study for PV Systems

2020

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At present, renewable energies represent 25% of the global power generation capacity. The increase in clean energy facilities is mainly due to the high levels of pollution generated by the burning of fossil fuels to satisfy the growing electricity demand. The global capacity of generating electricity from solar energy has experienced a significant increase, reaching 505 GW in 2018. Today, multilevel inverters are used in PV systems to convert direct current into alternating current. However, the use of multilevel inverters in renewable energies applications presents different challenges; for example, grid-connected systems use a transformer to avoid the presence of leakage currents. The grid-connected systems must meet at least two international standards analyzed in this work: VDE 0126-1-1 and VDE-AR-N 4105, which establish a maximum leakage current of 300 mA and harmonic distortion maximum of 5%. Previously, DC/AC converters have been studied in different industrial applications. The state-of-the-art presented in the work is due to the growing need for a greater use of clean energy and the use of inverters as an interface between these technologies and the grid. Also, the paper presents a comparative analysis of the main multilevel inverter voltage-source topologies used in transformerless PV systems. In each scheme, the advantages and disadvantages are presented, as well as the main challenges. In addition, current trends in grid-connected systems using these schemes are discussed. Finally, a comparative table based on input voltage, switching frequency, output levels, control strategy used, efficiency, and leakage current is shown.

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Improved Bootstrap Methods for Powering Floating Gate Drivers of Flying Capacitor Multilevel Converters and Hybrid Switched-Capacitor Converters

Cited by 58 publications

References 25 publications

A Comprehensive Review on Modular Multilevel Converters, Submodule Topologies, and Modulation Techniques

A Comprehensive Review on Modular Multilevel Converters, Submodule Topologies, and Modulation Techniques

Auxiliary Power Supplies for High-Power Converter Submodules: State of the Art and Future Prospects

Transformerless Multilevel Voltage-Source Inverter Topology Comparative Study for PV Systems

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