Non-Isolated DC-DC Converters in Fuel Cell Applications: Thermal Analysis and Reliability Comparison

An alternative energy source that has appeared beyond expectations and has seen a lot of progress is the fuel cell. A proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell is chosen for analysis and requires a DC-DC boost converter as an interface between the fuel cell and the load to provide a high-gain regulat...

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Main Authors: Omid Alavi, Talieh Rajabloo, Ward De Ceuninck, Michaël Daenen
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2022-05-01
Series:Applied Sciences
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/12/10/5026
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author Omid Alavi
Talieh Rajabloo
Ward De Ceuninck
Michaël Daenen
author_facet Omid Alavi
Talieh Rajabloo
Ward De Ceuninck
Michaël Daenen
author_sort Omid Alavi
collection DOAJ
description An alternative energy source that has appeared beyond expectations and has seen a lot of progress is the fuel cell. A proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell is chosen for analysis and requires a DC-DC boost converter as an interface between the fuel cell and the load to provide a high-gain regulated voltage. Although great effort towards developing different converter topologies has been made during recent decades, less attention has been devoted to the reliability and thermal performance assessment of the present converters. In this paper, five non-isolated DC-DC converters are analyzed in terms of both thermal behavior and reliability. The temperature estimation of semiconductor devices as a critical part of the thermal analysis has been made via a detailed thermal model and the reliability is evaluated by means of a power cycling test. Finally, a performance score has been attributed using the TOPSIS ranking methodology and considering all the criteria (e.g., the number of components and cost) at the same time. The results indicated that the floating interleaved boost converter is always at the top of the list, even if the weight of the indicators is changed. When the weight of the cost criterion is higher than the reliability criterion, the multi-switch boost converter will be in second place. If the weight of the reliability criterion is greater than cost, the interleaved and multi-switch converter are ranked second and third, respectively. Additionally, the Cuk converter with a closeness coefficient of zero is always associated with the most unfavorable performance.
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spelling doaj.art-1333e5eb11324b2eb4560da57c2824002023-11-23T09:56:38ZengMDPI AGApplied Sciences2076-34172022-05-011210502610.3390/app12105026Non-Isolated DC-DC Converters in Fuel Cell Applications: Thermal Analysis and Reliability ComparisonOmid Alavi0Talieh Rajabloo1Ward De Ceuninck2Michaël Daenen3IMO-IMOMEC, Hasselt University, Wetenschapspark 1, 3590 Diepenbeek, BelgiumIMO-IMOMEC, Hasselt University, Wetenschapspark 1, 3590 Diepenbeek, BelgiumIMO-IMOMEC, Hasselt University, Wetenschapspark 1, 3590 Diepenbeek, BelgiumIMO-IMOMEC, Hasselt University, Wetenschapspark 1, 3590 Diepenbeek, BelgiumAn alternative energy source that has appeared beyond expectations and has seen a lot of progress is the fuel cell. A proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell is chosen for analysis and requires a DC-DC boost converter as an interface between the fuel cell and the load to provide a high-gain regulated voltage. Although great effort towards developing different converter topologies has been made during recent decades, less attention has been devoted to the reliability and thermal performance assessment of the present converters. In this paper, five non-isolated DC-DC converters are analyzed in terms of both thermal behavior and reliability. The temperature estimation of semiconductor devices as a critical part of the thermal analysis has been made via a detailed thermal model and the reliability is evaluated by means of a power cycling test. Finally, a performance score has been attributed using the TOPSIS ranking methodology and considering all the criteria (e.g., the number of components and cost) at the same time. The results indicated that the floating interleaved boost converter is always at the top of the list, even if the weight of the indicators is changed. When the weight of the cost criterion is higher than the reliability criterion, the multi-switch boost converter will be in second place. If the weight of the reliability criterion is greater than cost, the interleaved and multi-switch converter are ranked second and third, respectively. Additionally, the Cuk converter with a closeness coefficient of zero is always associated with the most unfavorable performance.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/12/10/5026fuel cellDC-DC converterNorris–Landzbergpower modulesproton exchange membranereliability
spellingShingle Omid Alavi
Talieh Rajabloo
Ward De Ceuninck
Michaël Daenen
Non-Isolated DC-DC Converters in Fuel Cell Applications: Thermal Analysis and Reliability Comparison
Applied Sciences
fuel cell
DC-DC converter
Norris–Landzberg
power modules
proton exchange membrane
reliability
title Non-Isolated DC-DC Converters in Fuel Cell Applications: Thermal Analysis and Reliability Comparison
title_full Non-Isolated DC-DC Converters in Fuel Cell Applications: Thermal Analysis and Reliability Comparison
title_fullStr Non-Isolated DC-DC Converters in Fuel Cell Applications: Thermal Analysis and Reliability Comparison
title_full_unstemmed Non-Isolated DC-DC Converters in Fuel Cell Applications: Thermal Analysis and Reliability Comparison
title_short Non-Isolated DC-DC Converters in Fuel Cell Applications: Thermal Analysis and Reliability Comparison
title_sort non isolated dc dc converters in fuel cell applications thermal analysis and reliability comparison
topic fuel cell
DC-DC converter
Norris–Landzberg
power modules
proton exchange membrane
reliability
url https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/12/10/5026
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AT taliehrajabloo nonisolateddcdcconvertersinfuelcellapplicationsthermalanalysisandreliabilitycomparison
AT warddeceuninck nonisolateddcdcconvertersinfuelcellapplicationsthermalanalysisandreliabilitycomparison
AT michaeldaenen nonisolateddcdcconvertersinfuelcellapplicationsthermalanalysisandreliabilitycomparison