PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS OF THREE

LEVEL BOOST CONVERTER

submitted in partial fulfillment of the

requirements for the award of the degree of

BACHELOR OF TECHNOLOGY in
SPECIALIZATION
by

ROHAN RAO H J
(191EE238)

EE348 : Design and Development Task in Power

Electronics and Drives

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering

National Institute of Technology Karnataka, Surathkal
2021-2022
 DECLARATION

I hereby declare that the Thesis entitled PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS OF

THREE LEVEL BOOST CONVERTER which is being submitted to the National
Institute of Technology Karnataka, Surathkal for the award of the degree of
in the Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering is a bonafide report
of the work carried out by me. The material contained in this Thesis has not been
submitted to any University or Institution for the award of any degree.

Place: Surathkal

Date: Signature of the Candidate

 CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that the Thesis entitled PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS OF

THREE LEVEL BOOST CONVERTER submitted by ROHAN RAO H J 191EE238as
a record of the work carried out by him is accepted as the U. G. Project Work Report
submission in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the award of the degree of

External Guide (if Any)

(Name and Signature with Date and Seal)
Internal Guide
(Name and Signature with Date and Seal)

Chairman - DUGC/DPGC (DUGC for UG and DPGC for PG, select)

Dept. of Electrical and Electronics Engineering
National Institute of Technology Karnataka
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I would like to thank our guide, Dr. B. Venkatesaperumal, for the opportunity to
work under his guidance, and for imparting to us his knowledge in the field of electrical
engineering. I would also like to thank Mr. P. Subrahmanya Adiga and Mr.Raghavendra
Rao, for their indispensable and timely aid in this project. Lastly, we would like to thank
the department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering for giving us the opportunity
to partake in this project, and for providing us with the facilities to do so.

i
 ABSTRACT

Solar energy is a promising source of Renewable alternatives which is clean, sus-

tainable, and emission-free. Maximum Power Point Tracking has been an essential part
of the grid-connected photovoltaic cells, so as to increase efficiency. The PV system
is bound to a DC Three Level Boost converter and is analyzed and simulated in MAT-
LAB / SIMULINK for results. Various aspects regarding Grid-tied inverter, feedback
loop for maintaining Unity power factor to push the PV Power into the Grid are also
discussed.

Keywords: Three level Boost converter, Maximum Power Point Tracking, Grid-tied
Inverter, Pulse Width Modulation, Closed Loop Feedback.

ii
 TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . i
ABSTRACT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ii
LIST OF FIGURES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . v
LIST OF TABLES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vi

1 Introduction 1
1.1 Renewable Energy and MPPT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
1.2 Importance of DC - DC Converter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

2 Literature Review 2
2.1 Photovoltaic Cell Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
2.2 Maximum Power Point Tracking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
2.2.1 Perturb and Observe Algorithm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
2.3 Photo Voltaic Conditioning System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
2.3.1 DC Voltage control with PI Controller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
2.3.2 Current Control with PR Controller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

3 Three Level Boost Converter 6

3.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
3.2 Three Level Single-Ended Boost Converter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
3.3 Operating Principle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

4 Simulation Results and Discussion 9

4.1 Simulink Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
4.1.1 PV Array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
4.1.2 Maximum Power Point Tracking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
4.1.3 DC-DC Converter and Grid Tied Inverter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

iii
5 Conclusion 13
5.1 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
REFERENCES AND PUBLICATIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

iv
 LIST OF FIGURES

2.1 Photovoltaic cell model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

2.2 Flowchart of Perturb and Observe Algorithm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
2.3 Proportional - Integral Controller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
2.4 Frequency Response of an Ideal PR Controller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
2.5 Frequency response of a non-ideal PR controller with Kp = 1, Ki =
100, ωcut = 10 (rad/s). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
3.1 Three Level Boost Converter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
3.2 Working States of TLBC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
3.3 Operating Waveform of TLBC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
4.1 Simulink MPPT Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
4.2 MATLAB Code for P and O Algorithm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
4.3 PV Panel Output Waveform . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
4.4 Simulink Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
4.5 TLBC Output Waveform . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
4.6 Grid Waveform . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
5.1 Varying Irradiance Patterns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
5.2 PV output Waveform for varying Irradiance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
5.3 Grid Waveform for varying Irradiance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

v
 LIST OF TABLES

4.1 Electrical Data of the Solar Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

vi
 1 Introduction

1.1 Renewable Energy and MPPT

Renewable energy has been the necessity of the hour as the conventional sources of
energy are being exhausted. Photovoltaic cells have been effective in harnessing solar
energy into electrical energy. However, the power delivered by PV cells depends on the
load, atmospheric factors like Irradiance, and Temperature. Under uniform irradiance
and a given temperature, the PV cell has unique power-voltage current-voltage char-
acteristics, thus having a unique point called Maximum Power Point where the PV cell
delivers maximum output power. Thus, we require a control strategy called Maximum
Power Point Tracking which optimally aims to provide maximum power at different
operating conditions.

1.2 Importance of DC - DC Converter

DC-DC conversion is a vital component of every new system, and one must select the
appropriate regulator topology for use in your future design. The most basic method
of DC-DC conversion is linear regulation with a voltage divider, although this is an
inefficient and straightforward approach to regulate voltage in your system.
Switched-mode DC-to-DC converters convert one DC voltage level to another, which
may be higher or lower, by storing the input energy temporarily and then releasing that
energy to the output at a different voltage. The storage may be in either magnetic field
storage components (inductors, transformers) or electric field storage components (ca-
pacitors). This conversion method can increase or decrease voltage. Switching conver-
sion is often more power-efficient (typical efficiency is 75% to 98%) than linear voltage
regulation, which dissipates unwanted power as heat.

1
 2 Literature Review

2.1 Photovoltaic Cell Model

The performance of any algorithm for maximum power extraction is based on the math-
ematical modeling of the photovoltaic cell/array. In general, a photovoltaic cell is gen-
erally modeled as a Controlled current source based on Irradiance and Temperature with
an antiparallel diode and a shunt resistance, all connected to series resistance.

Fig. 2.1 Photovoltaic cell model

I = IL − ID − Ish (2.1)

For higher power applications, PV cells are connected in series to form modules,
and modules are connected in series/parallel to form PV arrays.

q(V +IRs ) (V + IRs )

Iarray = I = Np ∗ IL − (Ns ∗ Is )e( N s∗n∗k∗T −1) − (2.2)
Rsh

Where IL is the photocurrent, also known as irradiance current, created when cells
are exposed to sunlight.ID is the current through the anti-parallel diode which brings
the non-linearity into the picture, Ish is the shunt current through the resistance Rs h.
q is the electron charge, n is the Ideality factor of the diode, Is is the reverse satura-
tion current through the diode, k is the Boltzmann constant defined to be 1.38064852 ∗
10−23 m2 kgs−2 K −1 . Rsh and Rs are shunt and series resistance of the cell and, Np and
Ns are the number of cells in parallel and series respectively.

2
It is very important to understand the characterization of sunlight and the basic elec-
tric parameters of the solar cell. The power provided by the sun is defined in terms of
the Solar Constant, the power spectrum, and power loss in the atmosphere in terms of
the air mass. All datasheets of a PV cell will include Open circuit Voltage(Voc ), short
circuit current (Isc ), Maximum current (Imp ), Maximum voltage(Vmp ), Current temper-
ature coefficient (Ki ), voltage temperature coefficient(Kv ) provided with a reference
condition or nominal test condition of standard temperature and irradiance. For a given
temperature and solar irradiation, the photocurrent from the PV cell is given by the
equation,
G
Ipv = Ipv ref ∗ (1 + Ki (T − Tref )) ∗ (2.3)
Gref
Where, Ipv ref , Tref , Gref are nominal current, temperature, and solar irradiance.(Gref =
1000W/m2 , Tref = 25o C). This relation occurs to be an important one while finding
the maximum operating point

2.2 Maximum Power Point Tracking

An MPP tracker is a high frequency DC-to-DC converter. It takes the DC input, from
the solar panels in our case, and changes it to high-frequency AC, and then rectifies
it back down to a different DC voltage and current to exactly match the panels to the
batteries. An MPPT controller “looks” for the point where the sharp peak occurs (be-
low) and then performs a voltage/current conversion to change it to exact values that
the battery requires. In reality, the peak will always vary due to changes in light condi-
tions and weather. The application of an MPPT, in the real world, is dependent on the
array, climate, and seasonal load pattern. If we are looking for a current boost, we need
a condition in which the Vpp is more than about 1 V higher than the battery voltage.
Ideally, this is most effective when there is cold weather in the winter; because of the
high energy use in residential areas, there will be a substantial energy boost. In warmer
weather, we might not be able to fulfill the Vpp condition unless the batteries are low
in charge. The advantage of high-frequency circuits can also contribute to its disadvan-
tage. These circuits can be designed with very high efficiency transformers and small
components. MPPT technology is used as a benefit in varying environmental conditions
because of the different angles and exposure to the sun.

2.2.1 Perturb and Observe Algorithm

The Pand O algorithm, also known as the “hill climbing” method, is very popular and
most commonly used in practice because of its simplicity in algorithm and the ease of
implementation. The most basic form of the P and O algorithm operates as follows.
PV module’s output power curve is a function of voltage (P–V curve), at the constant

3
irradiance and the constant module temperature, assuming the PV module is operating
at a point which is away from the MPP. In this algorithm, the operating voltage of the
PV module is perturbed by a small increment, and the resulting change of power, P, is
observed. If the P is positive, then it is supposed that it has moved the operating point
closer to the MPP. Thus, further voltage perturbations in the same direction should move
the operating point toward the MPP. If the P is negative, the operating point has moved
away from the MPP, and the direction of perturbation should be reversed to move back
toward the MPP. Fig. 2.2 shows the flowchart of this algorithm.

Fig. 2.2 Flowchart of Perturb and Observe Algorithm

2.3 Photo Voltaic Conditioning System

2.3.1 DC Voltage control with PI Controller

The proportional-integral controller employs the control action of both the proportional
and the integral controllers. This combination of two separate controllers results in a
more efficient controller that eliminates the drawbacks of each of them. In this sce-
nario, the control signal is proportional to both the error signal and the error signal’s
integral. The transfer function of proportional plus integral controller is mathematically
represented as follows:
Ki
Gs (s) = Kp + (2.4)
s
The block diagram of the system using the PI controller is shown below:

4
 Fig. 2.3 Proportional - Integral Controller

2.3.2 Current Control with PR Controller

The perfect resonant controller may be theoretically generated by changing an ideal

synchronous frame PI controller to the stationary frame and achieving infinite gain at
AC frequency 0 to drive the steady-state voltage error to zero, as well as no phase shift
and gain at other frequencies. It is adjusted in the same way for Kp as it is for a PI
controller.

Fig. 2.5 Frequency response of a non-

Fig. 2.4 Frequency Response of an ideal PR controller with Kp = 1, Ki =
Ideal PR Controller 100, ωcut = 10 (rad/s).

Secondly, at other frequencies, the gain of the PR controller is significantly reduced,

and it is insufficient to prevent harmonic impact generated by grid voltage. As a result,
an approximate ideal (non-ideal) PR controller is provided by (2.6)

2 ∗ Ki ∗ s
Gs (s) = Kp + (2.5)
s2 + ωo2

2 ∗ Ki ∗ ωcut ∗ s
Gs (s) = Kp + (2.6)
s2 + 2sωcut + ωo2

5
 3 Three Level Boost Converter

3.1 Introduction

Because of the demand for power factor correction (PFC), the single-ended boost con-
verter has been extensively employed as the front-end single-phase PFC converter in
recent years because to its step-up voltage conversion ratio, continuous input current,
simple architecture, and high efficiency. However, a handful of issues remain concern-
ing.
For high-power applications, the boost inductor will be one of the most important vari-
ables influencing system cost, volume, and weight. High voltage devices must be em-
ployed for substantial voltage applications, resulting in high conduction and switching
losses. When the voltage exceeds a specific threshold, some devices become inoperable.
As a result, using smaller inductors and lower voltage devices is very desirable.

3.2 Three Level Single-Ended Boost Converter

Figure 3.1 depicts a three-level boost converter. A capacitor voltage divider is used on
the output. The centre point voltage is Vo /2, which is achieved by selecting C1 = C2
and the symmetrical functioning of the two boost switches, as shown below.

Fig. 3.1 Three Level Boost Converter

6
3.3 Operating Principle

There are two regions where this converter can operate, depending on whether the input
voltage is lower or higher than half of the output voltage.

Fig. 3.2 Working States of TLBC

Region I (Vin < Vo /2):

In this region, the boost inductor charging voltage must be Vin, since it is the min-
imum available charging voltage.However, the discharging voltage, which used to be
Vo − Vin in a conventional boost converter, can be chosen as Vo /2 − Vin . The operation
waveforms are given in Fig. 3.3.
The switch S1 is turned on at time to, which is the start of a switching cycle, and both
switches are conducting. In a traditional boost converter, the inductor is charged with
the input voltage. S2 is shut off at time t1 , which is set by the input current compensator,
causing the inductor current to pass via the bottom output capacitor C2 and the bottom
diode D2 . As a result, the inductor’s discharge voltage is Vo /2 − Vin .
S2 is turned on at time t2 , which is fixed at to + Ts /2, charging the inductor with
the input voltage once more. At time t3 , S1 is switched off, and the inductor current is
discharged by Vo /2 − Vin again through D1 , C1 , and S2 .Because the higher and lower
capacitors alternately discharge the inductor, their voltages are theoretically equal.

7
 Fig. 3.3 Operating Waveform of TLBC

Region II (Vin > Vo /2):

The boost inductor charging voltage is Vin − Vo /2, and the discharging voltage is
Vo − Vin in this region. Figure 3.2 depicts the operating waveforms.
At time to , which is the start of a switching cycle, S1 is switched on while S2 is
left open, and the inductor current travels via S1 , C2 , and D2 , and accumulates beneath
Vin − Vo /2. S1 is turned off at time t1 , which is set by the input current compensator,
causing the inductor current to flow via D1 , C1 , C2 , and D2 , and to drop under Vo − Vin .
S2 repeats the preceding action in the next half cycle.
Since two active switches are used, this three-level boost converter is more favor-
able for high power applications. The low device voltage rating benefit is especially
important in high voltage applications.

8
 4 Simulation Results and
Discussion

4.1 Simulink Model

4.1.1 PV Array

300W PV array is modelled using five sun power 60W panels.The datasheet values
for this panel are shown in Table 4.1.The parameter values from datasheet and those
determined using the procedure described in parameter extraction section has been used
in the PV array model

Panel Parameters Values

Short Circuit Current 8.04 A
Open Circuit Voltage 10 V
Maximum Current 7.51 A
Maximum Voltage 8V
Voltage-Temperature Coefficient -0.011
Current-Temperature Co-efficient 1.48 ∗ 10−3
Number of Series Cells 16
Series Resistance 0.1 Ω
Shunt Resistance 400 Ω

Table 4.1 Electrical Data of the Solar Panel

The current through the panel is model based on Equation (2.2) and it is solved
using Newton Raphson Method.

4.1.2 Maximum Power Point Tracking

The solar PV array has a nonlinear behaviour, and its output fluctuates often as weather
conditions change. The MPP tracker assists the PV array in delivering maximum power
at its output, increasing system efficiency. It establishes a proper duty cycle value at the
gate of the MOSFET switch utilised in the boost converter to extract the greatest power.

9
 Fig. 4.1 Simulink MPPT Block

The flow chart (2.2) is refered for P and O algorithm and it is implemented as MAT-
LAB Code as shown below:

Fig. 4.2 MATLAB Code for P and O Algorithm

The Output from the PV Panel after the MPP Tracking is applied is as follows:

10
 Fig. 4.3 PV Panel Output Waveform

4.1.3 DC-DC Converter and Grid Tied Inverter

The Simulink Model of the Grid tied inverter is as follows:

Fig. 4.4 Simulink Model

The model consists of PV panel connected to Three Level Boost COnverter con-
nected through a DC link Capacitor Bus of Voltage 40V. This voltage is then boosted
to around 400V by the Three Level Boost Converter and then fed to H-Bridge Inverter.
Reference for the PWM comes from the DC voltage control by PI Controller cascaded
by Current control by PR controller. The output from the inverter is then filtered using
LCL filter and is then fed to the Grid as shown above.
The voltage, current and power output of TLBC and Grid-connected Inverter are as
shown below:

11
Fig. 4.5 TLBC Output Waveform

Fig. 4.6 Grid Waveform

12
 5 Conclusion

5.1 Conclusion

For the three-level boost converter discussed in this paper, the inductance of the boost
inductor can be significantly reduced compared with the conventional boost converter.
The device voltage rating is only half of the output voltage, which is desirable for high
voltage applications, and reduces both conduction and switching losses.
The generated PV array power, the power available at the inverter output and that
flowing to and from the grid was observed with varying solar irradiance and tempera-
ture values. PV array power, Three level Boost converter output, Inverter and the grid
powers under different temperatures and solar irradiance are observed. Following is the
waveform for PV panel and Grid Output for changing Irradiance values:

Fig. 5.1 Varying Irradiance Patterns

13
 Fig. 5.2 PV output Waveform for varying Irradiance

Fig. 5.3 Grid Waveform for varying Irradiance

Thus, the theoretical analysis has been performed to enable single-phase grid-connected
DC/AC inverter system to achieve the high performance.

14
 REFERENCES AND PUBLICATIONS

1. H. Cha, T. -K. Vu and J. -E. Kim, ”Design and control of Proportional-Resonant

controller based Photovoltaic power conditioning system,” 2009 IEEE Energy
Conversion Congress and Exposition, 2009, pp. 2198-2205, doi: 10.1109/ECCE.2009.5316374.

2. P. Q. Dzung, Le Dinh Khoa, Hong Hee Lee, Le Minh Phuong and Nguyen Truong
Dan Vu, ”The new MPPT algorithm using ANN-based PV,” International Forum
on Strategic Technology 2010, 2010, pp. 402-407, doi: 10.1109/IFOST.2010.5668004.

3. M. T. Zhang, Yimin Jiang, F. C. Lee and M. M. Jovanovic, ”Single-phase three-

level boost power factor correction converter,” Proceedings of 1995 IEEE Applied
Power Electronics Conference and Exposition - APEC’95, 1995, pp. 434-439
vol.1, doi: 10.1109/APEC.1995.468984.

4. Said-Romdhane, Marwa B., Mohamed W. Naouar, Ilhem S. Belkhodja, and Eric

Monmasson. 2017. ”An Improved LCL Filter Design in Order to Ensure Stability
without Damping and Despite Large Grid Impedance Variations” Energies 10, no.
3: 336. https://doi.org/10.3390/en10030336

5. E. K. Anto, J. A. Asumadu and P. Y. Okyere, ”PID control for improving PO-

MPPT performance of a grid-connected solar PV system with Ziegler-Nichols
tuning method,” 2016 IEEE 11th Conference on Industrial Electronics and Ap-
plications (ICIEA), 2016, pp. 1847-1852, doi: 10.1109/ICIEA.2016.7603888.

6. V. I. Meleshin, D. V. Zhiklenkov and A. A. Ganshin, ”Efficient three-level boost

converter for various applications,” 2012 15th International Power Electronics
and Motion Control Conference (EPE/PEMC), 2012, pp. DS1e.9-1-DS1e.9-8,
doi: 10.1109/EPEPEMC.2012.6397249.

15
7. M. Nahid Hossain, Tushar Kanti Routh, Abdul Hamid Bin Yousuf, M. M. Asas-
duzzaman, M. Iqbal Hossain and U. Husnaeen, ”Design and development of a
grid tied solar inverter,” 2012 International Conference on Informatics, Electron-
ics Vision (ICIEV), 2012, pp. 1054-1058, doi: 10.1109/ICIEV.2012.6317344.

8. Farzad E. Koutroulis, K. Kalaitzakis, and N. C. Voulgaris, “Development of a

microcontroller-based, photovoltaic maximum power point tracking control sys-
tem,” IEEE Transactions on Power Electronics, vol. 16, no. 1, pp. 46–54, 2001.

16