Balance Techniques and PCB Winding Magnetics for Common-Mode EMI Noise Reduction in Three-Phase AC-DC Converters

In this article, balance technique is applied into two-channel interleaved three-phase ac-dc converters with critical conduction mode based soft switching modulation. By adding additional inductors and coupling them with the original ones, the realization of the balance becomes possible with proper design; thus reducing the common-mode (CM) EMI noise. The balance condition is derived, and the impact of balance technique on the circuit operation especially on the switching frequency variation is quantified in order to provide the design guideline. Based on the application of balance technique, instead of the commonly used litz-wire-based inductors, PCB winding coupled inductors are adopted and designed to effectively achieve the reduction of CM EMI noise. The design methodology and process are presented, and the design tradeoff is made between the inductor loss and the inductor footprint. Finally, the effect of CM EMI noise reduction and the system efficiency with balance techniques and PCB winding magnetics are tested on a 25-kW silicon-carbide-based soft-switching three-phase ac-dc converter prototype.