Energy flow control in a modular DC-DC converter with energy recovery

This paper proposes an energy management controlscheme for controlling the energy flow in a modular and scalableDC/DC converter design with energy recovery, based on afundamental building block structure. The overall design in termsof control, number and configuration of the building blocks foroptimised electrical operation is presented. Series and parallelconnection of a low voltage and current building block are usedto achieve the required current and voltage. This flexibility allowsfor a converter design with different operating characteristics andenhanced degree of reconfigurability, while keeping the samedesign of the fundamental building blocks. This combinationresults in a more scalable and flexible converter for efficientmaintenance, with modularised storage for increased safety. Inaddition, a strategy of redundancy is implemented, which givesincreased up-time and enhances the possibility for hot-swapping.