High gain and high efficiency soft switching quadratic boost converter for renewable energy applications

Quadratic boost converter (QBC) is crucial in immediate technologies, including renewable energy, electric vehicles (EV), DC microgrids and EV charging stations, where efficient and dependable power conversion is essential. This article introduces a high-gain, high-efficiency QBC operating with soft-switching capabilities explicitly tailored for renewable energy sources that can be used in charging stations for EVs. The design achieves high voltage gain (VGN) by incorporating a coupled inductor (CIN) with a restricted duty cycle, which minimizes the need for extreme duty cycle adjustments that often impact efficiency and cause component stress. The leakage inductances of the CIN's enable zero voltage switching (ZVS) for the power switches at turn-on and ZVS turn-on and zero current switching (ZCS) turn-off for the diodes. This approach mitigates the switches' losses and enhances the efficiency. Furthermore, an active clamp circuit is employed, allowing the converter to operate with reduced voltage stress across semiconductor components, thus improving their durability and reliability. The converter operated in continuous conduction mode (CCM) is extensively analysed to assess its performance across various operating conditions. This converter compares VGN, efficiency, and stress on components with several recent QBCs for a comprehensive performance assessment. The converter's 250 W hardware prototype has also been built and tested, demonstrating its practical suitability and effectiveness for high-demand renewable energy applications. Experimental findings affirm the converter's high efficiency and reliable performance in real-world situation.