Bidirectional DC-DC Converter to Interlink Bipolar DC Microgrids based on the Ćuk DC-DC Converter

The emergence of the environmental crisis and the need to use alternative power sources to reverse this global problem has led to the wide utilization of solar PV system as one of the main renewable power sources. Due to the nature of this power sources, and the requirements of high integration levels of different energy storage systems such as supercapacitors, batteries, and connected DC loads, DC microgrids have been gaining more and more importance over the last years. In this sense, this paper presents a new bidirectional DC-DC power converter designed to interlink two different bipolar DC microgrids. The proposed converter allows bidirectional power flow with support of voltage balance between bipolar DC microgrids, working as ancillary system. The DC-DC converter was also designed to provide an input-output high-voltage gain ratio in buck or boost mode, allowing to connect DC microgrids with different voltages. Some simulation and experimental results of the proposed bidirectional DC-DC converter and control strategy adopted are presented and discussed.