Performance Evaluation of Step-Up/Down Current-Source Partial Power Converters for PV Applications

PV systems are widely used and accepted worldwide. Conversion stage efficiency is a critical criterion in selecting PV converters. In order to process PV power efficiently with less cost, the partial power processing (PPP) concept was proposed. This work analyzes and benchmarks two PPP configurations based on the step-up current source dual active bridge (DAB) converter for PV applications. The proposed configurations are implemented in the input parallel output series (IPOS) structure, which helps in reducing input current ripple, component size and cost. IPOS structure is convenient for PV application, due to its step-up ability, a common requirement for different PV applications. Power loss breakdown and performance comparison are presented in this paper.