SiC-Based High-Density Composite Electric Drivetrain Converters

In electric drivetrain architectures, including xEV and electrified aircraft applications, a boost dc-dc converter is often utilized to interface a battery system to variable-speed ac drives, thus enabling the system operation at increased dc bus voltages. It has been shown how wide bandgap SiC devices lead to improvements in efficiency and reductions in the size of magnetic components in standard boost converter realizations. We then show how further improvements can be achieved using composite architectures where stresses and losses on SiC devices and passive components are substantially reduced. Optimization of composite converters involves complex design tradeoffs in terms of losses, size, and reliability. To address these challenges, a systematic design methodology is presented, which involves selection of the converter architecture, magnetics design, control techniques, and electro-thermal co-design. The approach is illustrated by modeling, simulations, and experimental results on a 125 kW SiC composite dc-dc converter prototype featuring 22 kW/L power density and 99% drive-cycle weighted efficiency.

About the Speaker:
Dragan Maksimovic received his B.S. and M.S. degrees from the University of Belgrade in Serbia in 1984 and 1986, respectively, and his Ph.D. degree from the California Institute of Technology in 1989. Since 1992, he has been with the University of Colorado at Boulder, where he is currently a Professor and Director of the Colorado Power Electronics Center (CoPEC). He has co-authored over 300 papers, and two textbooks, Fundamentals of Power Electronics, and Digital Control of High-Frequency Switched-Mode Power Converters. Prof. Maksimovic is a Fellow of the IEEE, and a recipient of the IEEE PELS Modeling and Control Technical Achievement Award. His current research interests include power electronics for renewable energy sources and energy efficiency, digital control of high-frequency switched-mode power converters, and high frequency power conversion using wide bandgap semiconductors.