DC CHOPPER

(DC TO DC CONVERSION)

1
 Learning Objectives

• To understand the operation and characteristics of

DC chopper.
• To examine the performance parameters of the DC
chopper.
• To describe the principles of the operation of DC
chopper topologies.
• To learn the techniques of simulating the DC
chopper circuits.

2
 Introduction
• DEFINITION: DC to DC converter is used to change the dc voltage from one
level to another.
• In this case, the dc input voltage is fixed and the level of the dc output voltage
depends upon the converter’s topology.
• DC to DC converters are important in portable electronic devices such as cellular
phones and laptop computers, which are supplied with power from batteries.
• The dc output voltage can be higher or lower than the input voltage.
• A very simple scheme that illustrates the principle is shown in Figure below.
• In this case, the dc voltage applied to the resistor is controlled via a switch, which
is usually a power semiconductor device such as an SCR, a BJT, a MOSFET, an
IGBT, etc.

3
 Introduction
• Let us assume that the time period of a switching frequency f is T such that
1
T
f
• The switch is closed for a fraction of the time period T and is kept open for the
remainder period. Let us say that the switch is turned on at t = 0 and remains on for t
= Ton, where Ton is called the ON time which is some fraction of T such as
and . D is usually referred to as the duty cycle.
T
D  ON 0 D 1
• T
The output voltage obtained by opening and closing of the switch.

• The time during which the switch remains closed is customarily referred to as the
OFF time (period). We can express the off time in terms of the duty cycle as

TOFF  T  TON  (1  D)T

4
 Introduction
• The output voltage with such a high ripple content may be satisfactory for electric
heaters, light-dimming circuits, etc., but it is certainly not suitable for the operation
of amplifiers and other circuits requiring almost constant dc voltage.
• The high voltage ripple can be controlled by placing a capacitor across the
load.
• The capacitor is large enough so that its voltage does not have any noticeable
change during the time when the switch is OFF.
• Better circuit can be developed by including an inductor, which is in series
with the switch when the switch is ON (closed) to limit the current in rush.
• However, this creates another problem. Since the current in the inductor cannot
change suddenly, we have to provide at least one more switch, such a freewheeling
diode, to provide a path for the inductor current when the switch is OFF (open).

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 DC chopper Topologies
• For a good DC-to-DC converter may have an inductor, a capacitor, and a
freewheeling diode, and an electronic switch.

• There are three types of basic DC choppers topologies:

(a) Buck Converter (lowering the output voltage, step- down
application),
(b) Boost Converter (raising the output voltage, step-up
application), and
(c) Buck-Boost Converter (lowering or raising the
output voltage, step-down or step up application).

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BUCK CONVERTER

Vi D C R

Mode 1: when switch is closed (ON-state)

S L

Vi D C R

Mode 2: when switch is open (OFF-state)

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BUCK CONVERTER

Waveform of voltages and currents in a buck converter

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 BUCK CONVERTER
Analysis of Buck Converter
Mode 1: When switch is closed (ON-state)

by using Kirchhoff’s Voltage Law (KVL),

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 BUCK CONVERTER
Mode 2: When switch is opened (OFF-state)
by using Kirchhoff’s Voltage Law (KVL),

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 BUCK CONVERTER
For steady-state operation

Change in inductor Change in inductor

current when switch + current when switch = 0
is closed is opened

 iL  ON   iL  OFF  0

 Vo  DVi

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 BUCK CONVERTER
Average, Maximum & Minimum Inductor Current

Average inductor current = Average current in R

Vo
IL  IR 
R

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 BUCK CONVERTER
Average, Maximum & Minimum Inductor Current

Maximum current;

Minimum current;

Inductor current ripple;

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 BUCK CONVERTER
Continuous Conduction Mode

The limit of continuous current operation is reached, when the minimum

inductor current never falls to zero.

This is the minimum inductor current to

ensure continuous mode of operation.
Normally L is chosen to be >> Lmin

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 BUCK CONVERTER
Output Voltage Ripple & Ripple Factor
The output voltage will raise and fall as a result of the output capacitor
charging and discharging.

ic

Output voltage ripple

Ripple factor

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 Example 1

A buck converter is supplied from a 50 V battery source.

Given L =400uH, C=100uF, R=20 Ω, fs=20 kHz and D=0.4
Calculate;
i. The output voltage
ii. The maximum and minimum inductor current
iii. The ripple of inductor current
iv. The output ripple
v. The ripple factor.

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Solution 1

17
 Exercise 1

Design a Buck converter to produce an output voltage of 18 V across a

10 ohm load resistor. The output voltage ripple must not be exceed
0.5%. The dc supply is 48 V.
Design for continuous inductor current.
Assuming switching frequency is 40 kHz, inductor 25% larger than the
minimum.

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BOOST CONVERTER

L
D

Vi C R

Mode 1: when switch is closed (ON-state)

Mode 2: when switch is opened (OFF-state)

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BOOST CONVERTER

Waveform of voltages and currents in a boost converter

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 BOOST CONVERTER
Analysis of Boost Converter
Mode 1: When switch is closed (ON-state)
by using Kirchhoff’s Voltage Law (KVL),
Vi

Vi-Vo

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 BOOST CONVERTER
Mode 2: When switch is opened (OFF-state)
by using Kirchhoff’s Voltage Law (KVL),

Vi

Vi-Vo

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 BOOST CONVERTER
For steady-state operation

Change in inductor Change in inductor

current when switch + current when switch = 0
is closed is opened

iL ON  iL OFF 0

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 BOOST CONVERTER
Average, Maximum & Minimum Inductor Current
The average current in the inductor is determined by recognizing that the
power supplied by the source must be same as the power absorbed by the
load resistor
Input power  Output power
Vo2
ViIi   But Ii  IL
R
2
 Vi 
 
  1  D   Vi2
ViIL  
R 1  D  2 R
Thus, the average inductor current,
Vd
IL 
1  D  2 R
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 BOOST CONVERTER
Average, Maximum & Minimum Inductor Current

Maximum current;

Minimum current;

Inductor current ripple;

25
 BOOST CONVERTER
Continuous Conduction Mode

The limit of continuous current operation is reached, when the minimum

inductor current never falls to zero.

This is the minimum inductor current to

ensure continuous mode of operation.
Normally L is chosen to be >> Lmin

26
 BOOST CONVERTER
Output Voltage Ripple & Ripple Factor
The output voltage will raise and fall as a result of the output capacitor
charging and discharging.

Output voltage ripple

Ripple factor

27
 Example 2

A boost converter is supplied by a 12 V DC source and the output voltage

is 30 V. The circuit is connected to a load with resistance of 50 Ω and the
operating switching frequency is 25 kHz. Determine;
i. The duty cycle of the converter
ii. The minimum value of inductance to ensure continuous conduction
mode of operation
iii. The minimum and maximum values of inductor current if the inductor
used have a value of 120 uH.

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Solution 2

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 Exercise 2

Design a boost converter that will have an output of 40

V from a 15 V source. Design for continuous inductor
current and an output ripple voltage less than 1.5%. The
load is a resistance of 80 Ohm. Assume ideal
components and switching frequency is 30 kHz

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BUCK-BOOST CONVERTER

Vi L C R

Mode 1: when switch is closed (ON-state)

S D
L
Vi C R

Mode 2: when switch is opened (OFF-state)

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BUCK-BOOST CONVERTER

Waveform of voltages and currents in a buck boost converter

32
 BUCK-BOOST CONVERTER
Analysis of Buck boost Converter
Mode 1: When switch is closed (ON-state)
VL
by using Kirchhoff’s Voltage Law (KVL),
Vi

Vo

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 BUCK-BOOST CONVERTER
Mode 2: When switch is opened (OFF-state)
by using Kirchhoff’s Voltage Law (KVL),
VL

Vi

Vo

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 BUCK-BOOST CONVERTER
For steady-state operation
Change in inductor Change in inductor
current when switch + current when switch = 0
is closed is opened

 i L ON   i L OFF  0

*Note: The Output of buck-boost converter can be either higher or

lower than input
- If D > 0.5, output is higher than input
- if D < 0.5, output is lower than input
*Output voltage is always negative

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 BUCK-BOOST CONVERTER
Average, Maximum & Minimum Inductor Current
Assuming no power loss in the converter, power absorbed by the load must
equal power supplied by the source, i.e.
Pout  Pin
Vo2
 ViIi
R
But average source current is related to average inductor current
1 TON Vo2
Ii   IL dt VidILD 
R
T 0
Vo2 P ViD
1  IL   o 
 ILDT ViRD ViD 1  D 2 R
T
 Ii  ILD
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 BUCK-BOOST CONVERTER
Average, Maximum & Minimum Inductor Current

Maximum current;

Minimum current;

Inductor current ripple;

37
 BUCK-BOOST CONVERTER
Continuous Conduction Mode

The limit of continuous current operation is reached, when the minimum

inductor current never falls to zero.

This is the minimum inductor current to

ensure continuous mode of operation.
Normally L is chosen to be >> Lmin

38
 BUCK-BOOST CONVERTER
Output Voltage Ripple & Ripple Factor
The output voltage will raise and fall as a result of the output capacitor
charging and discharging.

Output voltage ripple

Ripple factor

39
 Example 3

A buck-boost converter supplies power to a load having 1.5 Ω and 0.8

mH. The source voltage is 50 V DC and the load voltage is 75 V. If the
on time is 1.5 ms, find;
i. The converter switching frequency,
ii. The average value of the input current,
iii. The maximum and minimum inductor current,
iv. The peak-to-peak ripple in the inductor current

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Solution 3

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