Experimental evaluation of a soft-switching DC/DC converter for fuel cell vehicle applications

Gui Jia Su, Fang Z. Peng, Donald J. Adams

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contributionpeer-review

40 Scopus citations

Abstract

A soft-switched, isolated bi-directional DC/DC converter has been developed for fuel cell powered electric vehicles (FCPEV), in which the 12 V battery for the vehicle accessory loads is also used to start up the fuel cells and to store the energy captured during regenerative braking. The DC/DC converter interfaces the low voltage battery to the fuel cell powered higher voltage DC bus system (255 V ∼ 425 V). Dual half-bridges interconnected through a transformer are employed to minimize the number of switching devices and their associated gate drive components. The transformer provides voltage level matching and galvanic isolation for safety requirements. Snubber capacitors and the transformer leakage inductance are utilized to achieve zero-voltage-switching (ZVS). Therefore, no extra resonant components are required for ZVS, further reducing component count. The inherent soft-switching capability and the low component count of the converter allows efficient power conversion and compact packaging. A prototype was built and successfully tested. This paper presents design considerations and testing data to evaluate the prototype's performance against the requirements for FCPEV applications.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationIEEE Power Electronics in Transportation, PET 2002
PublisherInstitute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc.
Pages39-44
Number of pages6
ISBN (Electronic)0780374924
DOIs
StatePublished - 2002
EventIEEE Workshop on Power Electronics in Transportation, PET 2002 - Auburn Hills, United States
Duration: Oct 24 2002Oct 25 2002

Publication series

NameIEEE Workshop on Power Electronics in Transportation
Volume2002-January

Conference

ConferenceIEEE Workshop on Power Electronics in Transportation, PET 2002
Country/TerritoryUnited States
CityAuburn Hills
Period10/24/0210/25/02

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