High-Efficiency Multiphase DC-DC Converter for Fuel-Cell-Powered Truck Auxiliary Power Unit

This paper presents the design and control of a high-efficiency multiphase dc-dc converter for a truck auxiliary power unit (APU) fed by a fuel-cell stack. The power-stage design methodology and the operation of the designed power stage used to achieve high efficiency are described in detail. To operate the designed converter as a truck APU, the mode transfer control scheme, where smooth transitions of the voltage and current control modes are necessary, is proposed, and the current controller design procedure is described. A 5-kW four-phase dc-dc converter prototype is built with the proposed power-stage configuration, and the proposed control strategy is applied to control the dc-dc converter. The efficiency of the converter is more than 99.5% at near 10% load and above 98% from 10% to 100% load range. Simulations and experimental results are provided to verify the feasibilities of dc-dc converter operation and the proposed control strategy in the truck APU application.