Responsable: Joaquín Bernal Méndez / María de los Ángeles Martín Prats
Tipo de Proyecto/Ayuda: Proyectos de Transición Ecológica y Transición Digital
Referencia: TED2021-131954B-I00
Fecha de Inicio: 01-12-2022
Fecha de Finalización: 30-11-2024

Empresa/Organismo financiador/es:

• Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación

Equipo:

• Equipo de Investigación:
  • Gabriel Cano Gómez
  • Manuel José Freire Rosales
• Equipo de Trabajo:
  • Álvaro de Jesús Ojeda Rodríguez
  • Pablo Ruiz Morales (alta: 02/05/2023)

Contratados:

• Técnicos/Personal Administrativo:
  • Álvaro de Jesús Ojeda Rodríguez

Resumen del proyecto:

A new generation of DC-DC converters with high voltage steps, very high power density, and high efficiency must be developed to advance the electrification process of vehicles and aircrafts, which seeks to reduce the environmental impact of these means of transport. The general objective of this proposal is the generation of scientific knowledge to make it possible to face the enormous challenges posed by the design of this new generation of DC-DC power converters, with a special focus on aspects related to the generation, propagation, and mitigation of electromagnetic emissions.

The trend in power distribution systems in electrified vehicles and aircrafts is toward the use of a high voltage (in the order of hundredths of volts) DC bus connected to a low voltage (12 to 28V) DC bus which includes storage elements and electronic non-propulsive loads. Isolated bidirectional DC-DC converters are required to allow for a bidirectional flow of energy between these buses. These new power converters must be very reliable, efficient, and compact. In pursuit of this objective, all solutions point towards the use of converter topologies and new components and materials that allow increasingly high switching frequencies. However, as the switching frequency increases, parasitic effects associated with the varying electric and magnetic fields created by the currents and voltages that appear inside the converter become more important. This is due to the fact that all these effects are ultimately caused by electric, magnetic, or electromagnetic couplings, which are greatly enhanced by an increase in the frequency content of the involved signals. These parasitic effects may render the operation of the equipment unfeasible or may increase the (conducted and/or radiated) electromagnetic emissions of the converter, thus preventing it from complying with the strict EMC regulations of the automotive or aeronautical sectors. Moreover, power density requirements, which are very strict in those sectors, are largely antagonist with common noise reduction techniques (for example, filtering, shielding, or increase of distance between components), which makes a challenge the design of a compact, efficient and EMC-compliant power converter for automotive or aeronautical applications. This project aims to contribute to overcoming those difficulties from a multidisciplinary perspective that combines the wide experience and knowledge on power electronics, EMC and high frequency electromagnetism of researchers from two different research groups.

The specific objective of this project is to contribute to the design and development of a bidirectional DC-DC converters with high voltage steps (e.g., 270-28V), high-efficiency (above 96%), and high power density such as those required in the automotive and aeronautical industries. The efforts of the research team will be concentrated on investigating key aspects of generation, propagation, and mitigation of electromagnetic emissions. The vision of this proposal is that a compact, efficient and EMC-compliant design of a DC-DC converter can only be achieved by a careful selection of the topology, modulation strategy, and components and by incorporating EMC-aware design techniques from the beginning of the design process.