Advanced Optimization Strategies for Integrated Buck-Forward Converters: A Novel Approach to Minimizing Ripple Factor for Enhanced Power Efficiency

The purpose of this paper is to optimize an integrated buck-forward converter that combines the advantages of two converters which are buck and forward topologies to effectively step down the DC voltage while still maintaining the efficiency and providing the isolation. There are two techniques used which are the Brute Force Method and Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO). The Brute force is a manual method offered to get a solution by varying the parameters of inductors and capacitors to determine the better ripple factor. Then, the PSO algorithm offered faster convergence to optimize component values. MATLAB Simulink simulations were performed with a fixed duty cycle of 0.4, input voltage of 240V, and operating frequency of 50kHz.