High Efficiency Multiphase Cascaded DC-DC

Boost Converters With Inductance Optimization

M. F. Muzakki J. Furqani A. Rizqiawan
School of Electrical Engineering and School of Electrical Engineering and School of Electrical Engineering and
Informatics Informatics Informatics
Bandung Institute of Technology Bandung Institute of Technology Bandung Institute of Technology
Bandung, Indonesia Bandung, Indonesia Bandung, Indonesia
[email protected] [email protected] [email protected]
2022 5th International Conference on Power Engineering and Renewable Energy (ICPERE) | 978-1-6654-5548-0/22/$31.00 ©2022 IEEE | DOI: 10.1109/ICPERE56870.2022.10037557

Abstract—This paper presents the design of a multiphase for high voltage gain. However, this option can reduce
cascaded DC-DC boost converter with high efficiency and efficiency and make the price even more expensive.
optimization of inductance value. The multiphase cascaded DC-
DC boost converter is a converter that has a very high gain level The DC-DC boost cascade converter cannot minimize the
and low input current ripple. The study begins with the input current ripple value. Meanwhile, the fuel cell and PV are
derivation of the loss equation in the converter, and the results sensitive to the input current ripple. The multiphase DC-DC
are used for the optimization process. Previous research with boost converter configuration can eliminate the current ripple
the same converter has achieved an efficiency of 85.8%. The by adjusting the duty cycle value with the number of phases
selection of inductance value will affect the resistance value of of the converter [5]. However, this converter has the same gain
the inductor so that efficiency will increase. However, the as a conventional DC-DC boost converter, so it cannot cope
winding manufacturing technique and the selection of the with the need for high voltage gain. From the advantages and
inductor core are also determined. By applying the proposed disadvantages described above, a cascade multiphase DC-DC
multiphase cascaded DC-DC boost converter with a proper boost converter was developed as the right solution because
inductor and switching conduction mode, the inverter efficiency this converter topology has high voltage gain with low input
can be improved up to 5% which reached 89.19% in laboratory current ripple. However, the cascade multiphase DC-DC
tests. While in critical conduction mode (CRM), at 0.15 mH
boost converter has not been maximized in terms of
inductance, efficiency is 86.23%. Experimental work verifies the
efficiency. In [3], this multiphase cascade DC-DC boost
proposed design and analysis.
converter has been tested, and the efficiency is 85.8%. The
Keywords—boost converter, multiphase, cascaded, cascade boost converter designed for the PV interface has an
inductance, optimization, critical conduction mode (CRM), efficiency up to 96% at 48 V input voltage levels [6]. A
continous conduction mode (CCM), efficiency multiphase cascade boost DC-DC converter, which has high
efficiency while maintaining high voltage gain with low input
I. INTRODUCTION current ripple, is desirable.
Electrical energy has become a primary need for humans This paper presents the design of a multiphase cascaded
[1]. Currently, Indonesia relies on fossil energy to generate DC-DC boost converter with high efficiency. The losses in the
most of its electrical energy. However, the emissions converter are calculated in the design process. The most
generated from this plant are polluted the environment. One significant losses are found in the inductor component.
of the steps to reduce carbon emission levels is to increase the Optimizing the inductor by choosing the correct inductance
mix of energy. One of the alternatives and renewable energy value is proposed to get higher efficiency. For smaller
sources that have great potential to be developed is inductance values, less inductor winding is required. The
photovoltaic (PV) and fuel cells [1]. The use of PV is winding length will be less, which means the losses in the
generally connected to the grid, while fuel cells have been inductor will be reduced, and the converter's efficiency will
introduced to electric vehicles and DC microgrid systems. increase. Inductance optimization is carried out in CCM by
There is a problem with PV and fuel cells penetrating the selecting the inductance value that provides the highest
microgrid, namely the very low DC output voltage. The output efficiency. The inductance value will be lowered to the lower
voltage of the single PV module is 18-36 V, while the bus limit of the CCM or CRM to see its effect on the converter's
voltage from the DC microgrid is about 325 V [2]. On the efficiency. In addition, the technique of making windings is
other hand, PV and fuel cells are susceptible to ripple input determined, and inductor cores with the most negligible losses
from the converter. This ripple current can reduce the life of are selected.
the stack. In the application of PV and fuel cells, a device is
needed that increases the output voltage of the PV and fuel II. MULTIPHASE CASCADED DC-DC BOOST CONVERTER
cells to match the bus voltage on the DC microgrid with low There are two parts of the proposed converter: the first-
input current ripple. stage and the second-stage of the boost converter with an
One of the devices that can amplify the DC output voltage
is a DC-DC boost converter. However, DC-DC boost
converters generally cannot increase the output voltage to the
required value for the microgrid. The needed voltage gain
reaches 8-10 times [3]. In comparison, the conventional DC-
DC boost converter can only achieve a voltage gain of up to 5
times [4]. The DC-DC converter configuration can be
cascaded to overcome this problem. The cascade boost DC-
DC converter can increase the voltage twice as much as the
conventional boost DC-DC converter to overcome the need Fig. 1. Multiphase cascaded DC-DC boost converter.

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intermediary capacitor in the middle the first-stage and the is obtained. Power losses RDC in the first-stage converter
second-stage of the boost converter with an intermediary inductor PL1 and second-stage converter PL2 are obtained
capacitor in the middle (C1) and an output capacitor (C2). It
has been concluded in the literature that a multiphase DC-DC 𝑃 = 𝑖 ()
boost power converter results in zero input current ripple if ( ) ( )
operated at certain duty cycles [3]. Fig. 1 shows the proposed
multiphase cascaded DC-DC boost converter. 𝑃 = ( )
𝑖 ()
To review the efficiency, it is necessary to derive the
equation for losses in the converter. The losses in the converter Power losses during conduction on the diode, namely Pd1
are derived from the voltage gain equation, and the value and Pd2 are obtained
containing the resistance or R is seen. This paper will show
the derivation of the complete efficiency formula. The 𝑃 = 𝑖 + 𝑖 (7)
( ) ( )( )
derivation of the voltage gain formula in a multiphase DC-DC
boost converter has been discussed in [3], and the output
power of the converter can be formulated by 𝑃 = 𝑉 𝑖 + ( )
𝑖 (8)

( ) ( )
𝑃 = 𝑃 − 𝑖 − 𝑖 − Power losses during conduction on the switch, namely Ps1
( )( ) ( ) ( )
( ) ( ) and Ps2 are obtained
( )
𝑖 − ( )
𝑖 ()
𝑃 = ( )( )
𝑖 + ( ) ( )
𝑖 (9)
Where Po is output power, Pin is input power, io is output
current, i in is input current, D is duty cycle, Vs is switch
voltage, Vd is diode voltage, Rs is switch resistance, Rd is 𝑃 = ( )
𝑖 +( )
𝑖 (10)
diode resistance, and RL is DC resistance in inductor winding.
Conduction losses in the inductor are not only contributed In addition to conduction losses, there are switching
by parasitic elements, which represent DC losses. There are losses. Switching losses are not affected by the operating
also AC resistance and core losses. These AC losses arise from voltage and the number of phases. The variable that can reduce
the skin effect that occurs with the inductor winding. The AC the value of switching losses is the switching frequency. The
inductor losses have been derived in [7]. These losses have a switching losses have been derived in [10]. The value of the
characteristic that is influenced by the ripple current that switching losses formulated by the equation below
occurs in the inductor. The AC inductor conduction loss
,
formula is as follows 𝑃 = 𝐶 , (11)

∆
𝑃 = 𝑅 () 𝑃 =
,
𝐶 , (12)

Where Pac is AC inductor conduction loss, ∆iL is inductor Where Pp1 and Pp2 are switching losses for first and
current ripple, and Rac is AC resistance in inductor winding. second-stage converter and Cp is switch coefficient. The
Furthermore, there are losses in the inductor core due to efficiency of the converter is obtained by knowing the losses
the leakage flux and current ripples. To determine the value of in the converter. The total loss of the multiphase cascaded DC-
the inductor core loss, it is necessary to know the value of the DC boost converter is the sum of all the losses that have been
AC flux that passes through the inductor core, which the described previously into
following formula can calculate [8]. ( ) ( )
𝑃 , = ( )( )
𝑖 + ( ) ( )
𝑖 +

𝐵= () ∆ ∆
𝑅 + 𝑅 +𝑛 𝑣 + (𝑑𝑓 𝐵 ) +
. .
Where Epk is voltage (V), Ae is cross-section area of inductor ( ) ( )
(cm2), and N is inductor winding. From the calculation of B, ( )
𝑖 + ( )
𝑖 +
the core inductor losses can be calculated according to the ,
𝐶 +
,
𝐶 ()
, ,
inductor core conduction loss formula as follows [9].
From the total power loss, the output power value is
obtained which is the reduction of the input power with the
𝑃 =𝑛 𝑣 + (𝑑𝑓 𝐵 ) () total power loss so that efficiency can be calculated. The
. .
formulation also shows the losses in each component in the
converter. From the calculation assuming that the switching
Where f is switching frequency, B is AC flux density, v is frequency and duty cycle are fixed, the inductor's most
core volume, a,b,c,d are material constant, and nL is number of significant losses are contributed. Switches and diodes also
inductor cores used. This formula follows the type of core to contribute to considerable losses. The use of these two
be used. components is made of ordinary silicon. These two
components can be replaced with parts made from silicon
From the Po formulas, if it elaborated one by one, the
carbide (SiC) and gallium nitride (GaN), but this solution
equation for conduction losses that occur in each component

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makes the converter expensive. The losses in the inductor are
divided into AC, DC, and core losses.
The selection of the inductance value of the inductor is
proposed as a solution. By choosing the correct inductance
value, AC and DC losses can be minimized. In addition, the
inductor cores can be selected according to the inductance
used. The inductor will be made manually in the laboratory.
Copper wire is selected with a small cross-section and twisted
to reduce AC and DC resistance. The inductor core is chosen
according to the value of the applied inductance. For a small
inductance value, a small inductor size core is selected, and
vice versa.
III. INDUCTANCE OPTIMIZATION
Inductance optimization starts by calculating the critical
mode limit of the converter. Calculations are carried out on Fig. 2. Simulation of inductance variation to DC losses.
the L1 component so that the first-stage converter works in
CCM conditions. The considerations in calculating the
inductance limit are the input and output currents of the
converter. The input current rating is kept below 12 A to avoid
overheating in the converter. The inductance limit of the first-
stage converter is obtained from the calculation at 0.15 mH.
Simulations and experiments will be carried out in the L1
range above 0.15 mH with a value of L1 = 0.15 mH as a
critical value. Then two other inductance values will be
selected on the CCM to be compared with the critical mode,
which will be seen in the simulation section. For the second-
stage converter, the inductance is fixed.
Simulations were carried out on PSIM software, and the
inductance value at 0.2-2 mH gave the minimum loss, as
shown in Fig 2. Inductance values above 2 mH provide a trend Fig. 3. Efficiency calculation for several inductance value.
of increasing loss quadratic. This value corresponds to the
length of wire needed to make more turns for higher IV. EXPERIMENTAL VERIFICATION
inductance values. The resistance value in the wire also
increases, which makes the losses even higher. Based on the Experiments were carried out to see the real phenomenon
simulation, the inductance value of 0.2-2 mH can be tested in of the multiphase cascaded DC-DC boost converter circuit and
experiments to validate and see the actual test data. to verify the calculations and simulations performed. The
circuit in Fig. 1 is realized by adding a control circuit and
Furthermore, calculations are carried out using the formula connecting it to measuring devices such as oscilloscopes and
in section II of several inductance values as shown in Fig 3. power meters. The DC input voltage can be adjusted from the
From the calculation results, the 0.3 mH inductance gives the rectifier circuit connected to a 3-phase transformer and LC
best efficiency reaching 90.12%. This efficiency trend filter. The output of the converter is connected to a variable
decreases as the inductance increases. For the following proof, resistor. The duty cycle is regulated by comparing the DC
two values were taken in this area to be tested experimentally, voltage value with a triangular voltage whose frequency is set
0.3 mH and 2 mH. In addition, the 0.15 mH inductance was the same as the switch, which is 20 kHz. For the first-stage
also tested to see the efficiency of the CRM conditions in the converter, the control circuit is set with a phase delay of 120°
experiment. An inductance value of 0.3 mH will give the to accommodate a 3-phase circuit [11].
lowest loss compared to the other two values, followed by an
inductance of 2 mH and an inductance of 0.15 mH providing Experiment setup in the laboratory is shown by Fig 4. The
the lowest efficiency. converter's input is supplied from 3-phase ac electricity
through a transformer which is then rectified with the rectifier.
In the experiment carried out in the laboratory, two types The transformer is used to adjust the input voltage. The DC
of inductor cores made of powder-coated iron were used. The voltage obtained from the rectifier is filtered with an LC filter,
difference between the two cores is in size, which includes the which becomes the input voltage converter. The converter's
volume and cross-sectional area, which calculates winding output is connected to the load by a resistor, measuring
and conduction losses of the core differences—the use of two devices such as power meters to see the converter's voltage,
types of inductor cores to support a more comprehensive current, and input and output power of the converter.
testing range of inductance values. The first type of core is of Oscilloscopes and current probes are used to see current
Micrometals T157-2 type, and the second is of Micrometals ripples at the converter's input and inductor.
T250-26 type. In addition to selecting cores, the inductor
winding is specially made by twisting the winding to make The converter specifications and parameters are as follows
them parallel to reduce AC and DC losses. in Table 1 and Table 2. The converter input voltage follows a
typical PV output of 18-36 V. For higher input voltage, we can
adjust the duty cycle of the second-stage converter. However,
we use a specific duty cycle for the second-stage converter for

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 Fig. 5. Inductor current.

Fig. 4. Laboratory setup of the converter.

TABLE I. SPECIFICATION OF THE CONVERTER

No Variable Value

1 Input Voltage 18-36 V

2 Output Voltage 130-320 V

3 Maximum Power 400 W Fig. 6. Efficiency of the experimental result.

4 Maximum Input Current 12 A

TABLE II. PARAMETER VALUE

First-Stage Converter Second-Stage Converter

Parameter Value Parameter Value
𝐕𝒊𝒏 18-36 V 𝐕𝐨 130-320 V
𝐃𝟏 0.66 𝐃𝟐 0.66
𝐅𝐒 20 kHz 𝐅𝐒 20 kHz
𝐋𝟏 , 𝐋𝟐 , 𝐋𝟑 0.15/0.3/2 mH 𝐋𝟒 2 mH
𝐑𝐨 289.26 Ω

the stated input voltage requirements. The output voltage is Fig. 7. Comparison of calculation and experimental efficiency.
expected to be 130-320 V, meaning the voltage gain is 7-8
times, according to the calculation. The converter input The multiphase cascaded DC-DC boost converter has been
current is limited to 12 A by adjusting the load on the output successfully designed and tested. The first-stage converter
side. This current is limited, so the converter does not heat up inductance value of 0.3 mH provides the highest efficiency
and lasts longer. In [3], the frequency and duty cycle values reaching 89.19% at an input voltage level of 36 V. When
for the highest efficiency have been given. The switching compared between inductance values, the inductance value of
frequency is 20 kHz with a duty cycle of 0.66 for the entire 0.3 mH provides higher efficiency at each level voltage. The
switch. The switch used is MOSFET. The output resistance 0.15 mH inductance gives the lowest efficiency compared to
value (Ro), which represents the load, follows the calculation other values, or it can be interpreted that the converter that
of the input current limit. works on CRM provides lower efficiency than CCM. This is
The current wave shows the results obtained in the due to the larger inductor current ripple in the CRM. This
experiment by the oscilloscope and the value of the voltage, makes the conduction losses in the inductor bigger. AC and
current, and input-output power on the power meter. The DC inductor losses are a function of the current, so the high
value of the inductor current ripple also makes the value of
output of the converter seen from the oscilloscope is the
inductor current wave. The inductor current waveform was these losses high. In addition, the core loss of the inductor also
checked to confirm that at 0.15 mH inductance the first-stage increases due to this ripple. The DC and AC resistance values
between 0.15 and 0.3 mH are not significantly different. The
converter was operating on CRM.
difference between the two inductor windings also tends to be

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Fig. 8. Losses fraction for various inductance (a) 0.15 mH, (b) 0.3 mH, (c) 2 mH, at input voltage 36 V.

small. These factors affect the AC and DC losses but are not theory, the AC and DC inductor losses will increase as the
more significant than the ripple effect of the inductor current. inductance value increases due to the need for a small number
of wires turns. However, the results obtained are the opposite.
The inductance value of 2 mH provides higher efficiency This is due to the ripple current in the inductor, which is quite
than the 0.15 mH inductance but is below 0.3 mH. The large when the converter operates in CRM.
inductor's ripple current at the inductance value of 2 mH is the
smallest compared to the other two inductance values. In general, there are 3 most considerable losses in the
However, the AC inductor resistance value is quite significant converter. These losses are the switch, diode, and inductor
at this inductance, so the total efficiency is lower than the 0.3 core conduction. The inductor is the most significant
mH inductance. In addition, the inductor core losses are high component contributing to the total losses in the converter
due to larger inductor cores. The trend of efficiency will because the inductor core contributes to the enormous losses.
continue to decrease with increasing inductance values. The The input voltage, duty cycle, and inductor current ripple
input voltage of 36 V gives the best efficiency results. affect the inductor core losses. If the duty cycle is fixed, the
However, it can also be seen that at a voltage of 24 V, the difference in core loss will be significantly influenced by the
efficiency is only slightly lower than 36 V. At the input input voltage and inductor current ripple. Increasing the value
voltage of 18 V, the lowest efficiency is obtained among the of the input voltage makes the losses in the inductor core also
voltage levels tested. This is because the components' increase. The same is valid with the ripple current of the
specifications in the converter are more in line with the input inductor. It is seen that the core loss increases significantly at
voltage above 24 V. the input voltage of 36 V.
The component ratings take the highest point of voltage V. CONCLUSION
and current that may pass through these components.
Component work is more optimal as it approaches the rating The experiment's highest efficiency of the multiphase
so that the efficiency will be higher. A comparison of the cascaded DC-DC boost converter was 89.19%, and the lowest
results of calculations with experiments is shown in Fig 7. It was 86.06% in critical mode. This efficiency value has been
can be seen that the trends shown are similar. An inductance improved almost 5% higher than previous studies by
of 0.3 mH gives the best efficiency, followed by 2 mH, and a optimizing inductance and inductor manufacturing
value of 0.15 mH or CRM gives the lowest efficiency. The techniques. The 0.3 mH inductance gives the highest
difference in efficiency between the two is also below 1% due efficiency, which is obtained at the input voltage of 36 V. The
to the parameter approach in the calculation. component that contributes the most considerable losses is the
inductor, with the core losses of the inductor being the most
The distribution of losses presented is divided into 6 significant contributor to losses. Power losses in the inductor
losses. There are conduction losses, namely losses that occur can reach 62% of the total power loss of the converter. Other
when there is current conduction through the components that losses that also contribute to significant power losses are the
occur in inductors, diodes, and switches. The conduction conduction of switches and diodes.
losses in the inductor are divided into AC, DC, and core
losses. Finally, there are switching losses on the switch. These For future development, the converter can be
losses are expressed in power (watts). Fig 8 shows the operated in discontinuous mode (DCM) by lowering the
converter loss fraction at 3 different inductance values with inductance value of the converter. The efficiency and
the same input voltage of 36 V. The enormous core loss occurs distribution of losses obtained in this mode are compared with
in 0.15 mH inductance. Although the value of the inductance critical (CRM) and continuous (CCM) conditions. However,
is small, this core loss is significant because the current ripple switch components and diodes with lower internal resistance
in the inductor is large for critical working modes. At 2 mH can be selected to increase efficiencies, such as those made
inductance, core losses are quite substantial due to the use of from silicon carbide (SiC) and gallium nitride (GaN).
larger cores for more extensive inductance requirements. In

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 ACKNOWLEDGMENT [5] B. Yuan, X. Yang, X. Zeng, J. Duan, J. Zhai and D. Li, "Analysis and
Design of a High Step-up Current-Fed Multiresonant DC-DC
This work was done under the guidance Alm. Prof. Pekik Converter with Low Switching for All Active Switches," IEEE
Argo Dahono. Also I would like to thanks my mentor, Mrs. Transactions on Industrial Electronics, 2012.
Novia Sari for helping me in preparation until the research is [6] N. Boujelben, F. Masmoudi, M. Djemel and N. Derbel, "Design and
complete. Comparison of Quadratic Boost and Double Cascade Boost Converters
with Boost Converter," in 14th International Multi-Conference on
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