A ZCS current-fed full-bridge PWM converter with self-adaptable soft-switching snubber energy

A new soft-switched, current-driven full-bridge converter is presented. The structure utilizes a simple snubber formed by two unidirectional switches and a capacitor to realize soft-switching operation over a wide line and load range. All primary-side switches are operated with zero-current switching (ZCS) and the snubber switches are operated with zero-voltage switching. The energy used for soft-switching is self-adaptable. For a given input current, the snubber capacitor is charged to the minimum required energy for ZCS of the switches. Thus, less resonant energy is used and the conduction loss can be kept minimal. The cyclical switching operation and control of the converter will be discussed. By compromising the voltage stress on the switches and loss of duty cycle (i.e., the regulation range), an optimized design procedure of the circuit elements is derived. The input voltage range and load variation that ensure both output voltage regulation and soft switching are determined. By studying the small-signal characteristics of the entire system, a current-controlled feedback control circuit has been implemented with a DSP. The experimental results measured on a 5-kW, 530-V/15-kV prototype confirms the advantages of the proposed converter. © 2009 IEEE.