Robust decentralized voltage control of DC-DC converters with applications to power sharing and ripple sharing

Mayank Baranwal, Srinivasa M. Salapaka, Murti V. Salapaka

Abstract: This paper addresses the problem of output voltage regulation for multiple DC-DC converters connected to a grid, and prescribes a robust scheme for sharing power among different sources. Also it develops a method for sharing 120 Hz ripple among DC power sources in a prescribed proportion, which accommodates the different capabilities of DC power sources to sustain the ripple. We present a decentralized control architecture, where a nested (inner-outer) control design is used at every converter. An interesting aspect of the proposed design is that the analysis and design of the entire multi-converter system can be done using an equivalent single converter system, where the multi-converter system inherits the performance and robustness achieved by a design for the single-converter system. Another key aspect of this work is that the voltage regulation problem is addressed as a disturbance-rejection problem, where unknown load current is viewed as an external signal, and thus, no prior information is required on the nominal loading conditions. The control design is obtained using robust optimal-control framework. Case studies presented show the enhanced performance of prescribed optimal controllers.