A High-Efficiency Voltage Equalization Scheme for Supercapacitor Energy Storage System in Renewable Generation Applications

Due to its fast charge and discharge rate, a supercapacitor-based energy storage system is especially suitable for power smoothing in renewable energy generation applications. Voltage equalization is essential for series-connected supercapacitors in an energy storage system, because it supports the system’s sustainability and maximizes the available cell energy. In this paper, we present a high-efficiency voltage equalization scheme for supercapacitor energy storage systems in renewable generation applications. We propose an improved isolated converter topology that uses a multi-winding transformer. An improved push-pull forward circuit is applied on the primary side of the transformer. A coupling inductor is added on the primary side to allow the switches to operate under the zero-voltage switching (ZVS) condition, which reduces switching losses. The diodes in the rectifier are replaced with metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors (MOSFETs) to reduce the power dissipation of the secondary side. In order to simplify the control, we designed a controllable rectifying circuit to achieve synchronous rectifying on the secondary side of the transformer. The experimental results verified the effectiveness of the proposed design.