Power Electronics – 15EE51T 64

UNIT V POWER SUPPLIES AND STABILIZERS 8 Hours

Switched Mode Power Supply (SMPS):

The Switched Mode Power Supply is a DC to DC switching converter which converts

unregulated DC input voltage to regulated DC output voltage. It uses switching devices such
as BJT, MOSFET, IGBT, etc that are turned ON and OFF at high frequencies.

a) Fig shows the block diagram of the SMPS. The ac supply from the mains is applied to
a rectifier/filter circuit which converts ac voltage into an unregulated DC voltage.
b) This DC voltage is applied to a switching transistor circuit as shown in the figure. The
transistor is switched ON and OFF by using high frequency square wave pulses
generated by PWM circuit.
c) The transistor switching circuit produces high frequency DC square voltage which is
applied to the primary of the ferrite core transformer. The RMS value of the voltage
applied to the primary of the transformer depends on the ON-OFF time of the transistor
switching circuit.
d) The square DC voltage produced at the secondary of the transformer is then rectified
and filtered to get rectified output.
e) To regulate the output voltage, a part of this rectified output voltage is applied to the
error amplifier which compares with a reference voltage and generates an error voltage.
This error voltage is amplified and is used to control the ON-OFF time of the PWM
generator.
f) If the output voltage increases because of decrease in load, the error voltage increases.
This reduces the ON time of the switching transistor and the output voltage is reduced
to the desired value.
g) Similarly, if the output voltage decreases because of increase in load, the error voltage
decreases. This increases the ON time of the switching transistor and output voltage is
increased to the desired value.

Prepared By: Sharada H K, Selection Grade Lecturer, Govt CPC Polytechnic, Mysuru
Power Electronics – 15EE51T 65

Applications of SMPS: SMPS is used in

a) Machine tool industries

b) Security systems
c) Power supplies of PLCs
d) Power supplies of personal computers
e) Mobile phone chargers

Buck Converter:

A buck converter or step down converter has an output voltage always less than the input
voltage. This regulator can be used as a DC step down transformer. Fig shows the circuit of
buck converter. The buck Converter circuit consists of the switching transistor, together with
an inductor L, diode D and a capacitor C. The operation of the circuit is as follows:

a) When the transistor is switched on, the inductor current flows through the load and
through the capacitor. The charge on the capacitor gradually increases. During this
period, the diode will be reverse biased and therefore no current flows through it. Now
the output voltage Vout = Vin.

b) When the transistor is switched off, the current through the inductor cannot die down
instantaneously. Hence the polarity of the voltage induced in the inductor reverses. This
forward biases the diode and the energy stored in the inductor is released through the
load and diode D. Now the output voltage Vout = 0.

c) Thus the average output voltage of the buck converter is always less than the input
voltage and is given by

Prepared By: Sharada H K, Selection Grade Lecturer, Govt CPC Polytechnic, Mysuru
Power Electronics – 15EE51T 66

Where, tON is the time for which the transistor is ON and T is the total time period of
switching.

d) To regulate the output voltage at a desired value, a part of the output voltage is applied
to the error amplifier which compares with a reference voltage and generates an error
voltage. This error voltage is amplified and is used to control the ON-OFF time of the
PWM generator.

e) If the output voltage increases because of decrease in load, the error voltage increases.
This reduces the ON time of the switching transistor and the output voltage is reduced
to the desired value.
f) Similarly, if the output voltage decreases because of increase in load, the error voltage
decreases. This increases the ON time of the switching transistor and output voltage is
increased to the desired value.

Boost Converter:

A boost converter or step up converter has an output voltage always more than the input
voltage. This regulator can be used as a DC step up transformer. Fig shows the circuit of boost
converter. The operation of the circuit is as follows:

a) When the transistor is switched on, the current flows through the inductor and energy
is stored in its magnetic field. At this instant, the diode is reverse biased.

Prepared By: Sharada H K, Selection Grade Lecturer, Govt CPC Polytechnic, Mysuru
Power Electronics – 15EE51T 67

b) When the transistor is switched off, the current through the inductor cannot die down
instantaneously. Hence the polarity of the voltage induced in the inductor is reversed.

c) Now the input voltage and voltage across the inductor are in series. This voltage
forward biases the diode D.

𝒅𝒊
d) As a result, the output voltage across the load is 𝑽𝒐𝒖𝒕 = 𝑽𝐢𝐧 + 𝑳(𝒅𝒕). Thus the output
voltage in a boost converter is always higher than that of input voltage.

e) To regulate the output voltage at a desired value, a part of the output voltage is applied
to the error amplifier which compares with a reference voltage and generates an error
voltage. This error voltage is amplified and is used to control the ON-OFF time of the
PWM generator.

f) If the output voltage increases because of decrease in load, the error voltage increases.
This reduces the ON time of the switching transistor and the output voltage is reduced
to the desired value.
g) Similarly, if the output voltage decreases because of increase in load, the error voltage
decreases. This increases the ON time of the switching transistor and output voltage is
increased to the desired value.

Buck-Boost Converter:

This converter operates on the principle of both buck and boost. It has an output voltage which
is less than or more than the input voltage. But the output voltage polarity is opposite to that of
input voltage. Hence it is also known as inverting converter. Fig shows the circuit of buck-
boost converter. The operation of the circuit is as follows:

Prepared By: Sharada H K, Selection Grade Lecturer, Govt CPC Polytechnic, Mysuru
Power Electronics – 15EE51T 68

a) When the transistor is switched on, the current flows through the inductor and energy
is stored in its magnetic field. At this instant, the diode is reverse biased.

b) When the transistor is switched off, the current through the inductor cannot die down
instantaneously. Hence the polarity of the voltage induced in the inductor is reversed.
This voltage forward biases the diode D.

c) As a result, the inductor supplies current through the load and also charges the capacitor
through the diode D. This charge on the capacitor causes the output voltage to have
opposite polarity compared to that of input voltage.

d) To regulate the output voltage at a desired value, a part of the output voltage is applied
to the error amplifier which compares with a reference voltage and generates an error
voltage. This error voltage is amplified and is used to control the ON-OFF time of the
PWM generator.

e) If the output voltage increases because of decrease in load, the error voltage increases.
This reduces the ON time of the switching transistor and the output voltage is reduced
to the desired value.
f) Similarly, if the output voltage decreases because of increase in load, the error voltage
decreases. This increases the ON time of the switching transistor and output voltage is
increased to the desired value.

Fly back Converter:

The fly back converter is a power converter that uses mutually coupled inductor or a
transformer to store energy when current passes through it and releasing the energy when the
power is removed. Fig shows the circuit of fly back converter.

• When the transistor is switched ON, the primary of the transformer is directly connected
to the input voltage source. The primary current in the transformer increases, storing
energy in the transformer.

Prepared By: Sharada H K, Selection Grade Lecturer, Govt CPC Polytechnic, Mysuru
Power Electronics – 15EE51T 69

• Now the voltage induced in the secondary winding is negative. So the diode D is reverse
biased and load current is supplied by the capacitor C.

• When the transistor is switched OFF, the current through the transformer primary
cannot die down instantaneously. Hence the polarity of the voltage induced in the
transformer primary is reversed.

• This causes the transformer secondary voltage to be inverted, forward-biasing the

diode.

• As a result, the transformer secondary supplies current to the load and also recharges
the capacitor.

• Thus, in a fly back converter the energy is transferred to the secondary side of the power
supply only when the primary switch is off.

Power line disturbances:

Ideally the voltage supplied by the utility system should be perfect sine wave without any
harmonics at its normal frequency and normal magnitude. In case of a three phase system, the
voltages should be balanced with a phase difference of 1200. In practice, the voltages
significantly vary from ideal conditions due to the following power line disturbances.

i. Over Voltage: The voltage magnitude is significantly higher than the normal value
continuously for few cycles.
ii. Under Voltage: The voltage magnitude is significantly lower than the normal value
continuously for few cycles.
iii. Outage (blackout): The system voltage collapses for few cycles or more.
iv. Voltage Spikes: These are super imposed on the normal 50Hz waveform and occur
occasionally.
v. Chopped Voltage Waveform: This refers to the repetitive chopping of the voltage
waveform and the associated ringing.
vi. Harmonics: This refers to the distortion of voltage waveform because of the presence
of voltage harmonic components at harmonic frequency.
vii. Electromagnetic Interference: This refers to high-frequency noise, which may be
conducted on the power line or radiated from its source.

Sources of disturbances:

The following are the sources that produce power line disturbances.

i. Over Voltages: Over voltages may be caused by sudden decrease in the system load
resulting in voltage to go up.
ii. Under Voltages: Under voltages may be caused by overload conditions, by start of
induction motors, etc.
iii. Voltage Spikes: The Voltage spikes may be due to switching in and out of power factor
correction capacitors, power lines, pumps/compressor motors, etc.

Prepared By: Sharada H K, Selection Grade Lecturer, Govt CPC Polytechnic, Mysuru
Power Electronics – 15EE51T 70

iv. Chopped Voltage Waveform: Chopping of voltage waveform may be caused by AC

to DC line-frequency thyristor converters which are used to interface the power
electronic equipments with the supply system.
v. Harmonics: The voltage harmonics may be caused by the magnetic saturation of power
system transformers and due to injection of harmonic currents by power electronic
loads.
vi. Electromagnetic Interference: Electromagnetic interference is produced by power
electronic equipments due to rapid switching of voltages and currents.

Effects of power line disturbance on sensitive equipments:

The effect of power line disturbances on the sensitive equipment depends on the following
factors:

• Type and magnitude of the power line disturbance

• Type of equipment and how well it is designed
• If any power conditioning equipment is used.

➢ Continuous over voltages and under voltages may result in tripping of equipments which
is highly undesirable.
➢ Large voltage spikes may cause hardware failure in the equipment
➢ Chopped voltage waveforms and voltage harmonics interfere with the normal working of
the equipment.
➢ The effect of power outage depends on the duration of the outage and the equipment design.
For example a personal computer may be designed for an outage of less than 100 ms.
Beyond which the critical data in the computer may be lost due to shutdown. For such
equipments back up should be provided by means of UPS.

Power conditioners:

Power conditioners provide an effective way of suppressing all electrical disturbances except
power outages. The following are some of these power conditioners:

• Metal-oxide varistors provide protection against voltage spikes.

• Electromagnetic interference filters help to prevent the effect of the chopped voltage
wave-form on the equipment as well as to prevent the equipment from conducting high-
frequency noise into the power supply.
• Isolation transformers with electrostatic shields not only provide isolation but also
protect against voltage spikes.
• Ferro resonant transformers provide voltage regulation as well as filtering of voltage
spikes.
• Electronic tap changing transformers with triacs are used to provide voltage
regulation.

Prepared By: Sharada H K, Selection Grade Lecturer, Govt CPC Polytechnic, Mysuru
Power Electronics – 15EE51T 71

Relay type AC voltage stabilizer

Fig shows the AC voltage stabilizer with two relays and a transformer with tapped primary.
Depending on the voltage condition, the relay1 operates a SPDT switch and relay2 operates a
DPDT switch. This causes the supply terminal P to be switched between tapping A, B, C and
D of the transformer primary.

Operation: The operation of the circuit can be explained by considering the following four
cases.

Case-1: Line voltage is 270V to 300V

In this case, both the relays are in de-energised state. The supply terminal P is connected to
tapping A through NC contact of relays 1 and 2. Now the step down ratio of the transformer is
such that, the output voltage will be in range of 210V to 240V.

Case-2: Line voltage is 240V to 270V

In this case, relay2 gets energised and relay1 gets de-energised by the control circuit. Hence
the supply terminal P is connected to tapping B through NC of relay1 and NO of relay2. Now
the step down ratio is reduced so that the output voltage will be in range of 210V to 240V.

Case-3: Line voltage is 210V to 240V

In this case, relay1 gets energised relay2 gets de-energised by the control circuit. Hence the
supply terminal P is connected to tapping C through NO of relay1 and NC of relay2. Now the
transformation ratio is 1:1 and the output voltage remains at 210V to 240V.

Prepared By: Sharada H K, Selection Grade Lecturer, Govt CPC Polytechnic, Mysuru
Power Electronics – 15EE51T 72

Case-4: Line voltage is 180V to 210V

In this case, both the relays are in energised state by the control circuit. Hence the supply
terminal P is connected to tapping D through NO contacts of relay1 and 2. Now the step up
ratio is such that, the output voltage will be in range of 210V to 240V.

Input Relay1 Relay2 Tapping Transformation Output

Voltage used ratio Voltage
270V-300V Off Off A Step-down 210V-240V
240V-270V Off On B Step-down 210V-240V
210V-240V On Off C One-One 210V-240V
180V-210V On On D Step-up 210V-240V
Advantages:

1. Isolation between control and power circuits

2. No harmonic distortion
3. Low cost

Disadvantages:

1. Voltage correction is done in steps. Hence poor voltage regulation.

2. Delay in correction.
3. Multitap transformer is costly and bulky.
4. Relay operation creates noise.

Applications:

1. Domestic applications such as TV, audio systems, ovens, etc.

2. Small power motors, fans, lighting applications, etc.

AC servo voltage stabilizer:

Prepared By: Sharada H K, Selection Grade Lecturer, Govt CPC Polytechnic, Mysuru
Power Electronics – 15EE51T 73

Figure shows the block diagram of an AC servo controlled voltage stabilizer. It consists of a
buck-boost transformer whose primary is fed from a variac. A servo motor is used to move the
wiper arm of the variac which in turn controls the magnitude and phase of the voltage fed to
the primary of the buck-boost transformer. The output voltage Vout is regulated at a desired
value by using the electronic circuits.

Operation: The output voltage Vout is monitored by a sensor circuit and is compared with the
reference voltage. The error detector circuit detects the difference between the output voltage
and reference voltage. This difference, known as error voltage is amplified by an error amplifier
and is used to rotate the servo motor in the appropriate direction so as to correct the output
voltage and restore it back to the desired level.

If Vout increases, the polarity of the voltage produced by the error amplifier causes the motor
to be driven in such a direction so that the variac contacts move close to each other. This reduces
the voltage applied to the primary of buck-boost transformer and in turn the output voltage
Vout is reduced to the desired level.

If Vout decreases, the error amplifier applies a reverse voltage to the motor making it to rotate
in the opposite direction. This causes the variac contacts to move away from each other
increasing the voltage applied to the primary of buck-boost transformer. In turn, the output
voltage Vout is increased and is brought back to the desired level.

Advantages:

1. Output voltage is controlled smoothly and precisely.

2. Good voltage regulation.
3. Response time is very good.

Disadvantages:

1. Servo driving mechanism is complicated.

2. Bulky autotransformer is required.
3. Moving servo mechanism involves wear and tear.

Applications:

1. Used in computers
2. Audio and video appliances
3. Television, Refrigerators, etc.

Prepared By: Sharada H K, Selection Grade Lecturer, Govt CPC Polytechnic, Mysuru
Power Electronics – 15EE51T 74

Uninterruptible power supply - UPS

An uninterruptible power supply or an UPS is an electrical apparatus that provides

emergency power to a load when the input power source or mains power fails.

The primary role of an UPS is to provide short-term power when the input power source fails.
However, most UPS units also provide conditioning for the common power problems such as:
1. Over voltage
2. Under voltage
3. Noise injected into the line by nearby equipment
4. Instability of the mains frequency
5. Harmonic disturbances

An UPS generally consists of a rectifier, a battery charger, a battery bank and an inverter. Under
normal conditions, the rectifier converts the AC input voltage into DC voltage which is used
for charging the battery and for supplying power to the inverter. The inverter converts this DC
voltage into AC voltage and feeds it to the load. During mains power failure, the power to the
inverter comes from the battery bank.

There are two types of UPS namely,

• Online UPS
• Offline UPS

Online UPS:

• In online UPS, the inverter operates continuously and supplies the power to the load
through the static switch-2. Therefore there is no break in the supply even if the main
power fails.

Prepared By: Sharada H K, Selection Grade Lecturer, Govt CPC Polytechnic, Mysuru
Power Electronics – 15EE51T 75

• In this configuration, the rectifier/battery charger continuously charges the battery and
the battery in turn supplies power to the controlled frequency inverter.

• The inverter provides power conditioning by removing the transients in the input supply
and by maintaining the load frequency at the desired value.

• In case of inverter failure, the load is directly connected to the main supply without
interruption through the fast acting static switch-1. This transfer usually takes 4 to 5 ms
so that the operation of the critical load is not disturbed.

• In case of mains failure, the backup time provided by the battery depends on the
ampere-hour capacity of the battery.

• This type of UPS has more advantages as it provides power conditioning and full
isolation of critical load from the unhealthy AC supply. But it is costly and is available
at the ratings above 5KVA.

Offline UPS

• In offline UPS, the load is normally supplied from the ac supply through the static
switch-1 and the rectifier/battery charger maintains the full charge in the battery.

• In case of mains power failure, the load is switched on to the output of the inverter
through the static switch-2.

• In this configuration there is a momentary break in the circuit but the transfer by the
solid state switch usually takes 4 to 5 ms so that the operation of the critical load is not
disturbed.

Prepared By: Sharada H K, Selection Grade Lecturer, Govt CPC Polytechnic, Mysuru
Power Electronics – 15EE51T 76

• The backup time provided by the battery in the event of mains failure depends on the
ampere-hour capacity of the battery.

• After restoration of the ac supply, the load is transferred to the ac supply through the
static switch-1. Now the battery is again put on charge and remains on float when fully
charged.

Applications of UPS:

UPS are used in computers, data processors, data transmitters, microwave relay stations, digital
controllers, nuclear reactor control systems, etc.

Battery size and required voltage for UPS

UPS Input voltage

UPS with smaller power ratings require a single 12V battery while larger ones need 24V (2
batteries) or 36V (3 batteries).

Battery size:

Battery capacities are measured in Ah, which stands for Ampere-hour or the number of amperes
the battery can output in an hour. The Ah rating is usually mentioned on all lead-acid and dry
batteries in a bold and large font.

The Ah rating is not consistent and it varies depending on:

• The temperature
• Load on the battery
• Type of battery

The more we load on the UPS, its available runtime or backup time decreases.

For this reason, a run time factor is used to estimate a battery’s Ah rating for long or short time
periods. The runtime factor used for lead acid battery is as below:

• For a runtime of less than 2 hours, a factor of 1.5 is used.

• For a runtime of over 2 hours, a factor of 1.3 is used.

How to Calculate Battery Size

Battery size can be calculated by using the following formulae.

Let’s take an example here:

• Load = 1000W
• UPS input voltage = 24V (2 x 12V batteries)
• Required Runtime = 1.5 hours

Prepared By: Sharada H K, Selection Grade Lecturer, Govt CPC Polytechnic, Mysuru
Power Electronics – 15EE51T 77

• UPS Efficiency/Power factor = 70% or 0.7

• Battery type = Lead-Acid (So runtime factor is 1.5)

Runtime factorX load 1.5𝑋1000

Load Current for 1 hour = UPS EfficiencyX UPS input = = 89.29𝐴
0.7𝑋24

Load Current for 1.5 hours = 89.29 x 1.5 = 133.94 Ah

We need battery size of 133.94Ah. The nearest round number is 134Ah.

Since we need two number of 12V batteries, we can connect two 67Ah batteries in series to get
1.5 hours of runtime or backup time.

Question Bank:

1. Draw the Block diagram of SMPS and explain its operation

2. List the applications of SMPS
3. Draw the circuit diagram of Buck converter (regulator) and explain its operation.
4. Draw the circuit diagram of boost converter (regulator) and explain its operation.
5. Draw the circuit diagram of Buck -boost converter (regulator) and explain its
operation.
6. Draw the circuit diagram of flyback converter (regulator) and explain its operation.
7. Describe the different types of power line disturbances
8. List the sources and effects of power line disturbances
9. Describe how power conditioners provide effective suppressing of some or all
electrical
10. disturbances
11. Describe the operation of relay type AC voltage stabilizer with the help of diagram.
12. List the advantages and disadvantages of Relay type stabilizer
13. Draw the diagram of AC servo voltage stabilizer and explain its operation
14. List the advantages and disadvantages of servo stabilizer
15. Draw the block diagram of OFF line UPS and explain its operation
16. Draw the block diagram of ON line UPS and explain its operation
17. Determine Battery size and required voltage for UPS

Prepared By: Sharada H K, Selection Grade Lecturer, Govt CPC Polytechnic, Mysuru