INTRODUCTION

To produce quality goods in any industry, the processes

necessarily require the use of variable speed drives.

Variable speed d.c. and a.c. drives are being increasingly
used in all industries. These drives and processes take
power from d.c. voltage sources.
In many cases, conversion of the d.c. source voltage to
different levels is required. For example, subway cars,
trolley buses, or battery operated vehicles require power
from a fixed voltage d.c. Source
However, their speed control requires conversion of fixed
voltage d.c. source to a variable voltage d.c. source for the
armature of the d.c. motor.

 Following techniques are available for obtaining the

variable d.c. voltage from a fixed d.c. Voltage

Line Commutated Converters (Conversion of AC supply
to variable DC supply using controlled rectifiers)
AC Link Chopper (inverter-rectifier) In this method the
d.c. is first converted to a.c, by an inverter (d.c. to a.c.
converter)
The obtained a.c. is then stepped up or down by a
transformer and then rectified back to d.c. by a rectifier
As the conversion is in two stages, d.c. to a.c. and a.c. to
d.c., this technique is therefore, costly, bulky and less
efficient
However, the transformer provides isolation between load
and source

 DC Chopper (d.c. to d.c. power converters) A d.c.

chopper is a static device (switch) used to obtain variable

d.c. voltage from a source of constant d.c. voltage
Chopper may be thought of as d.c. equivalent of an a.c.
transformer since they behave in an identical manner
Besides, the saving in power, the d.c. chopper offers greater
efficiency, faster response, lower maintenance, small size,
smooth control, and, for many applications, lower cost,
than motor-generator sets or gas tubes approaches.
Solid-state choppers due to various advantages are widely
used in trolley cars, battery-operated vehicles, tractionmotor control, control of a large number of d.c. motors
from a common d.c. bus with a considerable improvement
of power factor, control of induction motors, marine hoists,
forklift trucks and mine haulers.

 DC choppers can be classified as:

According to the Input/Output Voltage Levels:
Step-down chopper: The output voltage is less than the

input voltage
Step-up chopper: The output voltage is greater than
the input voltage
According to the Directions of Output Voltage and
Current
Class A (type A) chopper
Class B (type B) chopper
Class C (type C) chopper
Class D (type D) chopper
Class E (type E) chopper

According to Circuit Operation

First-quadrant chopper: The output voltage and both must

be positive(Type A)
Two-quadrant chopper: The output voltage is positive and
current can be positive or negative (class-C) or the output
current is positive and the voltage can be positive or negative
(class-D)
Four-quadrant chopper: The output voltage and current
both can be positive or negative (class-E)

According to Commutation Method

voltage-commutated choppers
Current-commutated choppers
Load-commutated choppers
Impulse-commutated choppers

BASIC CHOPPER OPERATION

Principle of Step-Down Chopper (Buck-Converter)
In general, d.c. chopper consists of power semiconductor devices (SCR,
BJT, Power MOSFET, IGBT, GTO, MCT, etc., which works as a switch),
input d.c. power supply, elements (R, L, C, etc.) and output load
The average output voltage across the load is controlled by varying onperiod and off-period (or duty cycle) of the switch
A commutation circuitry is required for SCR based chopper circuit.
In general, gate-commutation devices based choppers have replaced the
SCR based choppers.
However, for high voltage and high-current applications, SCR based
choppers are used.
The variations in on- and off periods of the switch provides an output
voltage with an adjustable average value.
The power-diode (DF) operates in freewheeling mode to provide a path
to load-current when switch is OFF.
The smoothing inductor filters out the ripples in the load current
Switch S is kept conducting for period Ton and is blocked for period Toff

 During the period Ton, when the chopper is on, the

supply terminals are connected to the load, terminals

During the interval Toff, when the chopper is off, load
current flows through the freewheeling diode DF
As a result, load terminals are short circuited by DF and
load voltage is therefore, zero during Toff
In this manner, a chopped d.c. voltage is produced at the
load terminals
The average load-voltage Eo is given by
=

 where Ton = on-time of the chopper, Toff = off-time of

the chopper
T = Ton + Toff = chopping period
If = Ton/T be the duty cycle, then above equation
becomes,

Thus, the load voltage can be controlled by varying the

duty cycle of the chopper

=

f= chopping frequency

 The output voltage varies linearly with the duty cycle

It is therefore possible to control the output voltage in the

range zero to Edc

If the switch S is a transistor, the base-current will control
the ON and OFF period of the transistor switch
If the switch is GTO thyristor, a positive gate pulse will
turn-it ON and a negative gate pulse will turn it OFF
If the switch is an SCR, a commutation circuit is required to
turn it OFF
The average value of the load current is given by
=

.
=

The effective (RMS) value of the output voltage is given by

() =

2 .

=
=

Principle of Step-up Choppers

The chopper can also be used to produce higher voltages
at the load than the input voltage(i.e., Eo Edc). This is
called as step-up chopper

 When the chopper is ON, the inductor L is connected

to the supply Edc, and inductor stores energy during

on-period, Ton.
When the chopper is OFF, the inductor current is
forced to flow through the diode and load for a period
Toff
As the current tends to decrease, polarity of the emf
induced in inductor L is reversed and as a result
voltage across the load Eo becomes
= +

 The inductor voltage adds to the source voltage to force

the inductor current into the load

In this manner, the energy stored in the inductor is
released to the load
Here, higher value of inductance L is preferred for
getting lesser ripple in the output
During the time Ton, when the chopper is on, the energy
input to the inductor is
=

This is based on the assumption that the source current

is free from ripples

 When the chopper is off, energy released by the

inductor to load is given by

= ( )

Considering the system to be lossless, and, in the

steady-state, these two energies will be equal

= ( )

+
=

=

1
=

For =0, Eo =Edc and for =1, Eo =

 For variation of from 0 to 1, Eo varies from Edc to

This principle of operation of step up choppers can be

employed for regenerative braking of d.c. motors even

at very low speeds
Let Edc represents d.c. motor generated voltage and Eo
represents source voltage
Regenerative braking takes place when
+

>Eo

Even at very low speeds can be so adjusted such that

above condition holds

Principle of Step-Up/Down Choppers

A chopper can also be used both in step-up and step-down
modes by continuously varying its duty cycle
As shown, the output, voltage polarity is opposite to that of
input voltage Edc
Fig 8.7

 When the chopper is on the supply current flows

through the path Edc+ CH L Edc- . Hence the

inductor stores the energy during the Ton period
When the chopper Ch is OFF, the inductor current
tends to decrease and as a result the polarity of emf
induced in L is reversed
Thus the inductor energy discharges to the load
through the path L+ load D L During Ton the energy stored in the inductor is given
by
=

 During Toff the energy fed to load is

=

For a lossless system in steady state Wi = Wo

=

=
=

1
1

For 0< <0.5 , step down chopper

For 0.5< < 1, step up chopper

CONTROL STRATEGIES
From above equations it is clear that average output

voltage Eo can be controlled by periodic opening and

closing of switches
Two types of control strategies for operating the
switches are employed in dc choppers
Time-ratio control (TRC)
Current limit control

TIME RATIO CONTROL

In the time-ratio control, the value of Ton is varied
This is effected in two ways (i)variable frequency

operation (ii) constant frequency operation

Constant frequency system in this type of control
strategy the ontime Ton is varied but the chopping
frequency f is kept constant.
This control strategy is also called as the pulse width
modulation control. The output voltage Eo can be
varied by varying the on-time Ton

 Variable Frequency System In this type frequency f is

varied and either- (a) ON-time Ton is kept constant or (b)

OFF time Toff is kept constant
This type of control strategy is also called frequency
modulation control

 Frequency modulation control strategy has the following

major disadvantages compared to pulse-width modulation

control
The chopping frequency has to be varied over a wide range
for the control of output voltage in frequency modulation.
Filter design for such wide frequency variation is, therefore,
quite difficult
For the control of duty cycle, frequency variation would be
wide
As such, there is a possibility of interference with signaling
and telephone lines in frequency modulation technique.
The large OFF-time in frequency modulation technique
may make the load current discontinuous, which is
undesirable.
Thus, the constant frequency system (PWM) is the
preferred scheme for chopper drives.

 Current Limit Control

In current limit control strategy, the chopper is switched ON and OFF so

that the current in the load is maintained between two limits

When the current exceeds upper limit, the chopper is switched OFF
During OFF period, the load current freewheels and decreases
exponential. When it reaches the lower limit the chopper is switched on
Current limit control is Possible either with constant frequency or with
constant T on
Current limit control is used only when the load has energy storage
elements. The reference values are the load current or load-voltage
Since the chopper operates between prescribed current limits,
discontinuity cannot occur
The difference between Io max and Io min decides switching frequency
The ripple in the load current can be reduced to minimum if the
difference between the Io max and Io min is minimum
This in turn increases the chopper frequency there by increasing
switching losses

CHOPPER CONFIGURATION
Choppers may be classified according to the number of

quadrants of the Eo - I0 diagram in which they are capable of

operating.

By various combination of connections it is possible to

realize any combination of output voltage and current

polarity
With reference to the combination shown in Fig. 8.11, if the
load is a separately excited motor of constant field, then the
positive voltage and positive current in the first quadrant
give rise to a "forward drive
Changing the polarity of both the armature voltage and the
armature current results in a "reverse" drive(quadrant III)
In II and IV quadrants, the direction of energy flow is
reversed and the motor operates as a generator braking
rather than driving

 In regenerative breaking, most of the breaking energy is

returned to the supply

The condition for regeneration is that the rotational emf
must be more than the applied voltage so that the current
is reversed and the mode of operation changes from
motoring to generating
It was observed that about 35% of the energy put into an
automotive vehicle during typical urban traction is
theoretically recoverable by regenerative breaking
However, the exact value of the recoverable energy is a
function of the type of driving, the efficiency of the drive
train, gear ratios in the drive/train etc
Therefore, the Choppers which gives this regenerative
breaking facility are widely used compared to systems
without regenerative breaking

 D.C. chopper circuits are combined in accordance with

the quadrants, in which a d.c. motor assumed as a load

is required to operate
In the first and third quadrants, for instance, a
resistance may also serve as a load, but a generating
mode can be maintained over any significant span of
time only, if the load is capable of delivering sustained
power

Example 1
A Chopper circuit is operating on TRC at a frequency of

2 kHz on a 460 V supply. If the load voltage is 350 volts,

calculate the conduction period of the thyristor in each
cycle.

V 460 V, Vdc = 350 V,

Chopping period

Output voltage

f = 2 kHz
1
f

1
T
0.5 m sec
3
2 10
t
Vdc ON V
T

Conduction period of thyristor

T Vdc
tON
V
0.5 103 350
tON
460
tON 0.38 msec

Example 2
Input to the step up chopper is 200 V. The output

required is 600 V. If the conducting time of

thyristor is 200 sec. Compute

Chopping

frequency. If the pulse width is halved for constant

frequency of operation, find the new output
voltage.

V 200 V , tON 200 s, Vdc 600V

T
Vdc V

t
ON

600 200
6
T

200

10

Solving for T
T 300 s
Chopping frequency
1
f
T
1
f
3.33KHz
6
300 10
Pulse width is halved

tON

200 10 6

100 s
2

Frequency is constant

f 3.33KHz
1
T 300 s
f

T
Output voltage = V

t
ON

300 106
200
300 Volts
6

300 100 10

Classification Of Choppers
Based on Quadrents of operation, choppers are

classified as:
Class A Chopper
Class B Chopper
Class C Chopper
Class D Chopper

Class E Chopper

Class A Chopper
i0

v0

Chopper
V
FWD

L
O
A
D

v0 V

i0

 When chopper is ON, supply voltage V is connected

across the load.

When chopper is OFF, vO = 0 and the load current

continues to flow in the same direction through the

FWD.
The average values of output voltage and current are

always positive.
Class A Chopper is a first quadrant chopper

 Class A Chopper is a step-down chopper in which

power always flows form source to load.

It is used to control the speed of dc motor.
The output current equations obtained in step down

chopper with R-L load can be used to study the

performance of Class A Chopper.

ig

Thyristor
gate pulse
t

i0

Output current
CH ON
t
FWD Conducts

v0

Output voltage

tON

t
T

Class B Chopper
D

i0

v0

+
R
L v0

V
Chopper

i0

 When chopper is ON, E drives a current through L

and R in a direction opposite to that shown in figure.

During the ON period of the chopper, the inductance

L stores energy.
When Chopper is OFF, diode D conducts, and part of

the energy stored in inductor L is returned to the

supply.

 Average output voltage is positive.

Average output current is negative.

Therefore Class B Chopper operates in second

quadrant.
In this chopper, power flows from load to source.
Class B Chopper is used for regenerative braking of

dc motor.
Class B Chopper is a step-up chopper.

ig

Thyristor
gate pulse
t

i0

tOFF

tON
T
Output current

Imax
Imin
v0

D
conducts Chopper
conducts

Output voltage

Expression for Output Current

During the interval diode 'D' conducts voltage equation is given by :
LdiO
V
RiO E
dt
Using the initial condition,
iO t I min at t 0
The solution of the above equation is obtained along similar
lines as in 'step - down chopper with R - L load'.

R
R
t
t
V E
L
L
iO t
0 t tOFF
1 e I min e
R

At t tOFF

I max

iO t I max

R
tOFF
V E
L

1 e
R

R
tOFF

L
I min e

During the interval chopper is ON voltage equation is given by

0

LdiO
RiO E
dt

Redefining the time origin, at t 0, iO t I max

The solution for the stated initial condition is
iO t I max e

R
t
L

R
t
E
1 e L
R

iO t I min

At t tON

I min I max e

R
tON
L

R
tON
E
1 e L
R

0 t tON

Class C Chopper
CH1

D1
i0

v0

V
CH2

D2

L v0

Chopper
E

i0

 Class C Chopper is a combination of Class A and Class B

Choppers.

For first quadrant operation, CH1 is ON or D2 conducts.

For second quadrant operation,

conducts.

CH2

is ON or D1

When CH1 is ON, the load current is positive.

The output voltage is equal to V & the load receives

power from the source.

When CH1 is turned OFF, energy stored in inductance L

forces current to flow through the diode D2 and the

output voltage is zero.

 Current continues to flow in positive direction.

When CH2 is triggered, the voltage E forces current to

flow in opposite direction through L and CH2 .

The output voltage is zero.

On turning OFF CH2 , the energy stored in the

inductance drives current through diode D1 and the

supply

Output voltage is V, the input current becomes

negative and power flows from load to source

 Average output voltage is positive

Average output current can take both positive and

negative values.

Choppers CH1 & CH2

should not be turned ON

simultaneously as it would result in short circuiting the
supply.

Class C Chopper can be used both for dc motor control

and regenerative braking of dc motor.

Class C Chopper can be used as a step-up or step-down

chopper.

ig1

Gate pulse
of CH1
t

ig2

Gate pulse
of CH2
t

i0
Output current
t
D1

V0

CH1
ON

D2

CH2
ON

D1

CH1
ON

D2

CH2
ON

Output voltage

Class D Chopper
v0
CH1

D2
R i0

V
+
D1

v0

CH2

i0

 Class D is a two quadrant chopper.

When both CH1

and CH2 are triggered simultaneously, the

output voltage vO = V and output current flows through the load.

When CH1 and CH2 are turned OFF, the load current continues

to flow in the same direction through load, D1 and D2 , due to the

energy stored in the inductor L.
Output voltage vO = - V .
Average load voltage is positive if chopper ON time is more than

the OFF time

Average output voltage becomes negative if tON < tOFF
Hence the direction of load current is always positive but load

voltage can be positive or negative.

ig1

Gate pulse
of CH1
t

ig2

Gate pulse
of CH2
t

i0
Output current

v0

CH1,CH2
ON

t
D1,D2 Conducting
Output voltage

V
Average v0

ig1

Gate pulse
of CH1
t

ig2

Gate pulse
of CH2
t

i0
Output current
CH1
CH2

t
D1, D2

v0

Output voltage

V
Average v0

Class E Chopper

CH1

i0

+
CH2

CH3

D1
R

v0
D2

D3

CH4

D4

Four Quadrant Operation

v0
CH2 - D4 Conducts
D1 - D4 Conducts

CH1 - CH4 ON
CH4 - D2 Conducts
i0

CH3 - CH2 ON
CH2 - D4 Conducts

D2 - D3 Conducts
CH4 - D2 Conducts

 Class E is a four quadrant chopper

When CH1 and CH4 are triggered, output current iO flows

in positive direction through CH1 and CH4, and with output

voltage vO = V.
This gives the first quadrant operation.
When both CH1 and CH4 are OFF, the energy stored in the

inductor L drives iO through D2 and D3

direction, but output voltage vO = -V.

in the same

Therefore the chopper operates in the fourth quadrant.

 When CH2 and CH3 are triggered, the load current iO

flows in opposite direction & output voltage vO = -V.

Since both iO and vO are negative, the chopper

operates in third quadrant
When both CH2 and CH3 are OFF, the load current iO
continues to flow in the same direction D1 and D4 and
the output voltage vO = V.

Therefore the chopper operates in second quadrant as

vO is positive but iO is negative.

Voltage Commutated Chopper

Voltage Commutated choppers are widely used in high

power circuits where load fluctuation is not large.

This chopper is also known as

Parallel capacitor turn-off chopper

Impulse Commutated chopper
Classical chopper.

T1

LS
+

iT1
IL

a +
C
_
b

T2

FWD

iC
VS

D1

+
L
O
A
D

vO

 To start the circuit, capacitor C is initially charged

with polarity (with plate a positive) by triggering the

thyristor T2.
Capacitor C gets charged through VS, C, T2 and load.
As the charging current decays to zero thyristor T2 will
be turned-off.
With capacitor charged with plate a positive the
circuit is ready for operation.
Assume that the load current remains constant during
the commutation process

 For convenience the chopper operation

is divided into five modes: Mode-1

Mode-2
Mode-3

Mode-4
Mode-5

Mode-1 Operation
LS

T1
IL

+
VC

_C

iC

VS
L

D1

L
O
A
D

Thyristor T1 is fired at t = 0.

The supply voltage comes across the load.

Load current IL flows through T1 and load.
At the same time capacitor discharges through T1, D1, L1, & C

and the capacitor reverses its voltage.

This reverse voltage on capacitor is held constant by diode D1

Capacitor Discharge Current

C
iC t V
sin t
L
1
Where

LC
& Capacitor Voltage
VC t V cos t

Mode-2 Operation
IL
+

LS
VC

VS

IL
C

T2

L
O
A
D

Thyristor T2 is now fired to commutate thyristor T1.

When T2 is ON capacitor voltage reverse biases T1 and

turns if off.
The capacitor discharges through the load from V to 0.
Discharge time is known as circuit turn-off time.

Circuit turn-off time is given by

VC C
tC
IL
Where I L is load current.
t C depends on load current, it must be designed
for the worst case condition which occur at the
maximum value of load current and minimum
value of capacitor voltage.
Capacitor recharges back to the supply voltage (with

plate a positive).
This time is called the recharging time and is given
by:VS C
td
IL

 The total time required for the capacitor to discharge

and recharge is called the commutation time and it is

given by:-

t r tC t d

At the end of Mode-2 capacitor has recharged to VS

and the free wheeling diode starts conducting

Mode-3 Operation
IL
+

LS
VS

IL

_C

T2

VS
FWD

L
O
A
D

FWD starts conducting and the load current decays.

The energy stored in source inductance LS is transferred to capacitor.

Hence capacitor charges to a voltage higher than supply voltage, T2

naturally turns off.

The instantaneous capacitor voltage is

VC t VS I L
Where

1
LS C

LS
sin S t
C

Mode-4 Operation
LS
+

IL

+
VC

_C

VS
L

L
O
A
D

D1
FWD

Capacitor has been overcharged i.e. its voltage is above

supply voltage.
Capacitor starts discharging in reverse direction.
Hence capacitor current becomes negative.
The capacitor discharges through LS, VS, FWD, D1 and L.
When this current reduces to zero D1 will stop conducting
and the capacitor voltage will be same as the supply
voltage

Mode-5 Operation

IL
FWD

L
O
A
D

Both thyristors are off and the load current flows through the FWD.
This mode will end once thyristor T1 is fired

ic

Capacitor Current
IL

0
Ip
iT1
IL
0

t
Ip

Current through T1
t

v T1
Voltage across T1

Vc

0
vo
Vs+Vc

Output Voltage

Vs

vc
Vc

t
Capacitor Voltage

-Vc

tc

td

Disadvantages
A starting circuit is required and the starting circuit

should be such that it triggers thyristor T2 first.

Load voltage jumps to almost twice the supply voltage
when the commutation is initiated.
The discharging and charging time of commutation
capacitor are dependent on the load current and this
limits high frequency operation, especially at low load
current
Chopper cannot be tested without connecting load.
Thyristor T1 has to carry load current as well as resonant

current resulting in increasing its peak current rating.

Switching Regulators

FLYBACK CONVERTERS
D.C.-D.C. converters are widely used in regulated switch-

mode d.c. power supplies and in d.c. motor drive

applications.
Often, the input to these converters is an unregulated d.c.

voltage, which is obtained by rectifying the line voltage

and
therefore, it will fluctuate due to changes in the line
voltage magnitude.
Switchmode, d.c.-to-d.c. converters are used to convert

the unregulated d.c. input into a controlled d.c. output at

a desired voltage level.

TYPES OF SWITCHING REGULATORS

1. Buck (step-down) converter.
2. Boost (step-up) converter.
3. Buck-Boost (step-down/up) converter.
4. Cuk converter.
Of these four converters, only the step-down and step-up are

the basic converter topologies.

Both the buck-boost and the cuk converters are combinations
of the two basic topologies.
The name "flyback converter" is descriptive of the inductive
energy flyback action typically encountered in this type of
converter operation

Buck (Step-down)Converter
As the name implies, a step-down (buck) converter produces a

lower average output voltage Eo than the d.c. input voltage

Edc.
By varying the duty ratio Ton/T of the switch, the average
output voltage can be controlled.
Device T1 is switched ON at time t = O. The supply current,
which rises, flows through the path filter inductor L, filter
capacitor C, and load.
Therefore, the inductor stores the energy during the Ton period.
During the interval when the device is ON, the diode becomes

reverse biased and the input provides energy to the load as well
as to the inductor.

Circuit diagram of a buck converter using a power

MOSFET.

VD is the Drain
Source voltage of
MOSFET.

 In time Ton' assuming that the inductor current rises

linearly from I1 to I2' we can write

=

2 1

(8.133)

Let us define, the change in current as

.
(8.134)

.
(8.135)

(8.136)

.
(8..137)

Equating the values of 6. I in Eqs (8.134) and (8.137) gives

.

=
=

=
+ =
+ =
=

.
=

Let us define, duty ratio

=

 = =

= +

.
.
=
+

1

=
( )

 From Eq. (8.141), we can write the equation for peak-to-peak

ripple current as

(8.142)

( )
=
.

( )

(8.143)

( )

. .

From Eqs. (8.138), we have

=

(1 )
=

(8.144)

 We can write the inductor current iL by applying

Kirchhoff's current law as,

= +

By assuming that the load ripple current io is very

small and therefore, neglected, we can wnte the above

equation as
=

The average capacitor current, which flows into for

Ton /2 + Toff/2 = T/2, is

=

Now, the capacitor voltage is expressed as

=

+ ( = 0)

. ( )
8 2

The peak-to-peak ripple voltage of the capacitor is

1
= = 0 =

.
=
=
4
8
8

(8.145)

Substituting the value of I from Eq. (8.143) or (8.144) in Eq.

(8.145) yields

. ( )
8 2

(8.146)

(1 )
8 2

(8.147)
Since the buck chopper circuit requires only one transistor, it
is a simple one and has high efficiency, greater than 90%.
The inductor L limits the di/dt of the load current.
This type of chopper circuit provides one polarity of output

voltage and unidirectional output current.

In case of possible short circuit across the diode

path, it requires a protection circuitry.

Its main application is in regulated d.c. power supplies and

d.c. motor speed control.

 Exmple. 8.23 The buck-converter in Fig. 8.43 has an input

voltage of Edc = 14V the required average output voltage is

Eo = 6 V and the peak-to-peak output ripple voltage is
15mv. The switching frequency is 30 kHz. If the peak-topeak ripple curent of inductor is limited to 0.6 A.
Determine: (a) the duty cycle a, (b) the filter inductance
and (c) the filter capacitor C.

 Example 8.24 A buck converter operating at 50 kHz is fed

from a 12 v battery and supplies 5 Y to load. Neglecting

switch and device-losses, determine:
(a) The maximum on-period of MOSFET switch given that
battery voltage varies from 13.5 V in fully charged state to 10
V at the end of discharge.
(b) Battery drain current under nominal condition with 10
Amp. load.
(c) The value of choke required to maintain continuous
current operation for a ripple current of 500 mA and worst
case battery voltage conditions

Boost (Step-up) Converter

As the name implies, the output voltage is always greater

than the input voltage.

When the power device is ON, the inductor L is connected

to the supply Edc, and inductor stores energy during onperiod, Ton
Hence, diode DF is reverse biased and isolates the output

stage.
When the power device is OFF, the output stage receives

energy from the inductor as well as from the input.

The- current which was flowing through the MOSFET

would now flow through L, DF, C and load.

 Circuit diagram of a boost chopper using a power

MOSFET.

 During Ton' by assuming that the inductor current rises

linearly from I1 to I2, we can write,

2 1

=
=

(8.148)

(8.149)

During time TOff' the inductor current falls linearly from I1

and I2 to therefore, we can write,

(8.150)

or (8.151)

 From Eqs (8.148) and (8.150), the peak-to-peak ripple

current of inductor L can be written as,

( )
.
=

(8.152(a))

Substituting Ton = T and Toff = (1 - )T, yields the average

output voltage,

Assuming a lossless circuit, Pi = Po.

. = =

Therefore, the average input current becomes

(8.152(b))


=
1

(8.153)

Now, the switching period T can be obtained as

1
.
.
.
= = =
+
=

( )

( 8.154)

From above equation, the peak-to-peak ripple current

becomes
( )
=

.
=

(8.155)
(8.156)

 When the device is ON, the capacitor supplies the load

current for t = Ton period.

During time Ton, the average capacitor current is Ic = I0 and

peak-to-peak ripple voltage of the capacitor is

1
= = 0 =

1
=

(8.157)

From Eq. (8. 152(a)) we have

From Eq. (8.152(b), we have

(8.158)

= .f

Substituting the value of Ede in Eq. (8.158), we get

Now, substituting the value of Ton in Eq. (8.158), we get

. ( )

=

(8.159)
(8.160)

 From Eq. (8.152), it becomes clear that, for variation of a

duty-cycle a in the range 0 < a< 1, the output voltage Eo will

vary in the range Edc <Eo <00. Hence, the boost converter can
step-up the output voltage without a transformer.
Again, it has a high efficiency due to single power device
In this type of chopper, the input current is continuous.
However, a high peakcurrent has to flow through the power
device. Since, the output voltage is very sensitive to changes
in duty-cycle a, therefore, it might be difficult to stabilize the
regulator.
From Eq. (8.153), it is noted that the average output current is
less than the average inductor current by a factor of (1 - a),
and a much higher RMS current would flow through the filter
capacitor, resulting in the use of a larger filter capacitor and a
larger inductor than those of a buck converter.

 Example 8.25

Consider the boost converter of Fig. 8.44. The input

voltage to this converter is 6 V. The average output

voltage Eo = 18 V and the average load current I0= 0.4 A.
The switching frequency is 20 kHz of L = 250 flh and C
=420 microF. Determine:
(a) the duty-cycle a, (b) the ripple current of inductor, M,
(c) the peak current of inductor, 12' and (d) the ripple
voltage of filter capacitor, Vc

Buck-boost Converter (Choppers)

As shown, a buck-boost converter is nothing but cascade

connection of the two basic converters: the step-down

converter and the step-up converter.
The main application of such a converter is in regulated
d.c. power supplies, where a negative polarity output may
be desired with respect to the common terminal of the
input voltage, and the output voltage can be either higher
or lower than the input voltage.

Circuit diagram of a buck-boost converter.

When the power MOSFET is switched ON, the supply

current flows through thepath Edc+ - T1 - L - Edc . Hence,
inductor L stores the energy during the Ton period.

 When the power MOSFET is switched OFF, the inductor

current tends to decrease and as a result, the polarity of

the emf induced in L is reversed as shown in Fig. 8.45(a).
Thus, the inductance energy discharges in the load
through the path L+ - Load - D - L_.
During time Ton' by assuming that the inductor current

rises linearly from I1 is 12' we can wnte

2 1

=
=

(8.161)

(8.162)

 Now, during time Toff' the inductor current falls linearly from

I2 to I1, therefore, we can write

(8.163)

(8.164)

where the peak-to-peak ripple current of inductor L is given

by
= 2 1

From Eqs (8.161) and (8.163), we can write,

.
.
=
=

=
=
=

( )

(8.165)

For a lossless system, in a steady-state,

. = . =

 Therefore, the average input current is given by

(8.166)

Now, the switching period, T, can be calculated as

1
= = +

Substituting the values of Ton and Toff from Eqs (8.162) and

(8164), we get
=

. . . ( )

(8.167)

From Eq. (8.167), the peak -to-peak ripple current can be

written as

.
( )

(8.168)

(8.169)

During the period Ton' when the device is ON, the filter-

capacitor supplies the load current.

Therefore, the average discharging current of the
capacitor is Ic = I0
Also, the peak-to-peak ripple voltage of the capacitor is
given by
1
1
.
=
=
=

(8.170)

 From Eq. (8.165), we can write,

Eo(1- ) = - Edc .
Eo = (Eo - Edc)
Substituting the above value of Ton in Eq. (8.170), we get

.
=
( )

.
=

(8.171)

(8.172)

 From Eq. (8.165), it becomes clear that the buck-boost

converter provides output voltage polarity reversal

without a transformer.
This type of chopper has a high efficiency. The inductor L

limits the di/dt of the fault current when the device is

under the fault condition.
In this type of converter circuit, the output short circuit

protection would be easy to implement.

 Example 8.26 Consider the buck-boost converter of Fig.

8.45. The input voltage to this converter is Edc = 14 V The

duty cycle a= 0.6 and the switching frequency is 25 kHz.
The inductance L = 180 mH and filter capacitance C = 220
microF. The average load current I0 = 1.5 A. Compute:
(a) the average output voltage, Eo;
(b) the peak-to-peak output voltage ripple, Vc;
(c) the peak-to-peak current of inductor, I ; and
(d) the peak current of the device Ip

 Example 8.27 A buck-boost converter is operated from a

24 V battery and supplies an average load current of 2

Amp. Its switching frequency is 50 kHz. Neglecting
diode and switch drop, determine
(a) Range of duty-cycle variation required to maintain
the output voltage at 15 V, given that the battery voltage
ranges from 26 V in the fully charged state to 21 V in the
discharged state.
(b) The peak to peak choke ripple current for the
nominal supply voltage, given that the choke value is 500
.uH.
(c) Average supply current drawn from the battery under
nominal condition

Cuk Converter
Figure 8.46(a) shows.a Cuk converter, after the name of

the inventor.
The key difference between this converter and the
previously discussed converters from the operation
point of view, is that a capacitor, rather than an
inductor, is used for energy storage and transfer to
accomplish power transformation. From this point of
view, the Cuk converter is a capacitive energy flyback
converter.
In fact, the Cuk converter and the buck-boost
converter are electrically duals of each other.

 The point connected MOSFET-inductor-diode

combination is replaced by the dual, serially connected

diode-capacitor-MOSFET combination.
Similar to the buck-boost converter, the Cuk converter
provides an output voltage which is less than or greater
than the input voltage but the output voltage polarity is
opposite to that of the input voltage.
When the input voltage is applied to the circuit and the
MOSFET T, is switchedoff, the inductor currents iL and iL
flow through the diode Dp The equivalent circuit is shown
in Fig. 8.46(b). Therefore, capacitor CI is charged through
LI, DF and the input supply Edc. Current iLl decreases,
because VCI is larger that Edc

 Energy stored in inductor ~ feeds the output. Therefore,

current i2 also decreases.

Now, when the power MOSFET is ON, capacitor voltage

Vc reverse biases the diode DF and turns it OFF. The

inductor currents iL1 and iL2 flow through the device. Since
VC1 > Edc, C, discharges through the device, transferring
energy to the output and L2' therefore iL1 increases.
The input feeds energy to L1 causing iL1 to increase.

 During time Ton, by assuming that the current of

inductor L1 rises linearly from IL1 to IL2 we can write as

(8.173)

= 1

12

11

= 1

1 1

(8.174)

During time TOff' the current of inductor L, falls linearly

from IL2 toIL1 due to the charged capacitor C

1 =

(8.175)

1 1
1

(8.176)

where VC is the average value of capacitor C,' and

1 = 12 11

From Eqs (8.173) and (8.175), we can write

( 1 )
.
1 =
=

1
1
. = + 1

. ( + ) = 1

(8.177)

 Also, during time Ton' by assuming that the current of

filter inductor L2 rises linearly from IL21 to IL22, we get

(8.178)

1 + = 2

12

11

= 2

2 2
1 +

(8.179)

Also, during time TOff' current of inductor L2 falls

linearly from IL22 to IL2I, therefore

2
= 2

2 2
=

(8.180)

(8.181)

2 = 22 21

Now, from Eqs (8.178) and (8.180), we can write

2 =

(1 + ). 0

2
2

1 . =
( + )
0

1 =
=
1 =

(8.182)

We can calculate the average output voltage by equating Eqs

(8.176) to Eq. (8.182) as,

0
1 =
=
1

(8.183)

 For a lossless system, in a steady-state,

. = 0 = 0 =

Average input current

=

Now, the switching period T can be calculated as

1
= = +

(8.184)

 Substituting the value of Ton and Toff from Eqs (8.174)

and (8.176), we get

1 . 1 1
1 . 1 1 . 1
=

1 ( 1 )

(8.185)

From Eq. (8.185), the peak-to-peak ripple current of

inductor L1 becomes
. ( 1 )
1 =
. 1 . 1

1 =

. 1

(8.186)

(8.187)

Also, the switching period T can be obtained from Eqs

(8.179) and (8.181) as,

=

2 . 2 1
1
2 . 2
2 . 2
= + =

1 +
0
(1 + )

 Fig 8.46(c)

(1 + 0 )
2 =
. 2 . 1

(8.188)

From Eq. (8.188), the peak-to-peak ripple current of

inductor L2 becomes

(1 + 0 )
2 =
. 2 . 1
2 =

(1 ) .
=
. 2
. 2

(8.189)

(8.190)

As discussed .previously, when the power-device is OFF,

the energy transfer capacitor CI IS charged by the input

current for time t = T . Therefore the , average c arging
current for C1 becomes

 Also, the peak-to-peak ripple voltage of the capacitor C1

is given by

1
1 =
1

1
1 =
1

.
1

= ( )
=

( )

( )

=
,

( )

=
1,

( )

( )

( )

(8.191)

 substituting the value of Toff in Eq. (8.191), we get

1 =

.
( 0 ) 1

(8.192)

. (1 )
1

(8.193)

1 =

If we assume that the load current ripple L1 io is

negligible, then we have

2 = 2

 Therefore, the average charging current of capacitor C2,

which flows for time T/2, becomes

2 =

2
4

and peak-to-peak ripple voltage of capacitor C2 is given by

1
2 =
2

2 =

1
2 =
2

2 2

2
=
4
82

0 (1 )

=
82 2 2
82 2 2

( 8.194)

(8.195)

 A unique feature of the Cuk converter is that both the

input and the output current are non-pulsating.

In this circuit it is also possible to simultaneously

eliminate the ripple in iL and iL completely, leading to

lower external filtering 1 2 requirements.

The significant disadvantages is the requirement of a

capacitor C1 with a large ripple current carrying

capability