A Project Report on

BUCK-BOOST CONVERTER FOR AN ULTRA-CAPACITOR

BASED AUXILIARY ENERGY SYSTEM FOR
ZERO-EMISSION VEHICLES

ELECTRIC/HYBRID ELECTRIC VEHICLE POWER SYSTEM DESIGN

AND CONTROL

ELEC691E

INSTRUCTOR: DR. SHELDON S. WILLIAMSON

Submitted by

Chirag Desai Ling Ran

6148832 9064699

Pranil R. Kadaru Chirag B. Gandhi

5591929 6025773

Pradip K. Sarker Benjamin Garcia

9211799 9185291

K.M.Mahbub-Ul Alam

9221468
 INDEX

ABSTRACT 3

1. INTRODUCTION 4
1.1 Electrical / Hybrid Electric Vehicle 4

1.2 Permanent Magnet Brushless DC Motor 9

1.3 Lead Acid Battery 10

1.4 Ultra Capacitor 12

2. STATIC CONVERTER DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION 16

3. MODELLING AND ASSUMPTIONS 23

3.1 Battery 23

3.2 Ultra Capacitor 23

3.3 Load 23

3.4 Buck Boost Converter 24

4. CONTROL SYSTEM 25

4.1 PI Controller for Buck 26

4.2 PI Controller for Boost 27

5. SIMULATION AND RESULTS 30

6. FUTURE WORK 33

7. CONCLUSION 37

REFERENCES 38

Appendix – I 39

Appendix – II 40

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 Abstract

This project addresses key issues that prevent electric vehicles from being broadly adopted by
private and public transportation markets. In particular, the limitations of energy storage devices to
deliver energy at high power rates during acceleration and accept high power regeneration during
braking are analyzed. To solve available energy storage problems, the combination of a high specific-
power storage device with a high specific-energy storage device is proposed. Accordingly, an Auxiliary
Energy System (AES), based on ultra capacitors and a buck-boost converter, has been modeled,
implemented and evaluated in an electric vehicle. The system’s design and implementation are
described.

The lack of a single energy storage element that presents, simultaneously, high specific power
and high specific energy for electric vehicles, and the high cost of these devices, are identified as the
main obstacles to successfully introduce zero-emission vehicles to public and private transport markets.

The proposed AES, based on ultra capacitors and a buck-boost static converter, has been
designed and implemented in an electric vehicle in combination with lead acid batteries energy storage.
The design and implementation processes of the proposed system are described in detail. Evaluation
results demonstrated that, with the AES installed in the vehicle, available power was increased.

For better autonomy and to perform developments in the future on the integrated system, a
Na/Ni-Cl2 battery (commercially known as ZEBRA battery) has been installed in exchange for the lead-
acid battery.

Finally a micro controller based control approach is proposed in the future work.

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 1. INTRODUCTION

1.1 Electric and Hybrid Electric Vehicles [6]

In the early days of the automotive era, around the end of the 19th century and beginning of the 20th century,
electric-powered and internal-combustion-engine powered vehicles not only offered comparable
performance characteristics, but also, electric vehicles where more reliable and safe. Accordingly, the first
known automotive-hire service in the US (the Electric Carriage & Wagon Company, established on 1897)
was served by electric vehicles (Kirsch, 1996). However, because of the low power and low autonomy
(inability to run long distances without recharging) presented by electric vehicles (EV), this early advantage
ended quickly when design improvements performed on internal combustion engines (ICE) made them
reliable enough to be competitive. While a series of unfortunate events and final bankruptcy buried the
EC&WC’s future, the scarce autonomy EVs presented plus governing technical and economical conditions
in the early 20th century resulted in the general adoption of ICE-powered vehicles in the US and worldwide.
During the fourth quarter of the 20th century and due to several circumstances, such as the oil crisis,
environmental issues and technological breakthroughs, the effort to develop viable EVs regained strength.
Power electronics technology advances during the ‘70s, and subsequent improvements in the ‘80s, gave birth
to new efficient and powerful inverters, which made viable the use of AC motors, which are simpler, more
efficient and with more specific power than the classic DC motor. In addition, around the late ’80s the
brushless DC motor, invented in 1962 by T.G Wilson and P.H Trickey (Wilson and Trickey, 1962), was
improved and made competitive. This machine, a version of the synchronous motor in which permanent
magnets in the rotor establish the excitation field, behaves as a DC motor when adequate electronic control is
applied. Hence, it incorporates the DC motor’s advantage of high torque at low speeds, but also incorporates
the advantage of AC-motor’s simplicity and high specific power, while achieving an excellent dynamic
behavior.
The aforementioned issue plus the problem of high initial cost and low specific power of most batteries
conform the main obstacles to successfully introduce competitive EVs to the public and private transport
industry.
A comprehensive solution would require the development of more advanced batteries, achievable only
through major research breakthroughs and investment in new technologies, or the integration of fossil-fuel
energy-storage and electric power conversion and management (higher efficiency, lower noise, lower
maintenance costs and lower environmental impact).

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The second scheme may achieve higher autonomy than pure EVs and higher efficiency than regular ICE-
powered vehicles but, in order to reach maximum efficiency and minimum emissions, the main energy
transformer (Diesel or gas engine, gas turbine, fuel cell, etc.) must work at its optimum power output which
will contrast with the variable power requirements of the vehicle. Also, to reach its potential, the system
should be able to recover energy from braking, which fossil based energy-storage systems cannot do.
Therefore, the integration of these dissimilar energy conversion mechanisms require a temporary auxiliary-
energy storage device; in such a way the vehicle is able to recover, and reuse, energy from braking, and the
main energy transformer (ICE, gas turbine, FC, etc.) is dimensioned to satisfy mean (not peak) power
demand, reducing the acquisition cost. These auxiliary energy storage devices should have high power
density, high specific power and high efficiency. Vehicles that use such a combination of different energy
storage devices are commonly known as hybrid systems.

Hybrid electric vehicle [7]:

A hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) is a vehicle that uses two or more distinct power sources to propel the
vehicle. Common power sources include:

• On-board rechargeable energy storage system (RESS) and a fueled power source (internal
combustion engine or fuel cell).

• Air and internal combustion engines.

• Human powered bicycle with electric motor or gas engine assist.

• Human-powered or sail boat with electric power.

We here concentrate on the on the onboard rechargeable energy storage with an IC engine. The RESS
here is consists of Battery and an Ultra Capacitor pack.

The motivation of Hybrid vehicle is based on two facts:

1) Oil Crisis.
2) Environmental issues.

Oil Crisis: Over the past 100 years there has been a high consumption of oil by all the developed
countries. This consumption was due to the development of internal combustion engine for vehicles
causing millions of ICE cars to run. Regardless of development of electric vehicles prior to IC engines.

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ICE gained more attention and usage, because this ICE provided vehicles high torque and which gave
more thrill and satisfaction to the driver and the riders. In the recent years many of the developing
countries have had a boom in automobile sector due to the development of cheap and affordable vehicles
for a common man. The development of IC on the whole has aroused high demand of oil around the
world, but as oil being a natural resource is on the verge of depletion. So, countries like Japan, China
and Taiwan have already thought of a better alternative that is Electric and Hybrid vehicles, already
these countries have started researching these kinds of vehicles rather than researching on IC engines,
these countries have also invested a lot of time and money to develop a successful vehicle independent
of oil.

Environmental issues: The internal-combustion engine is widely believed to have been an environmental
disaster. It has been accused of harming our health by reducing air quality and contributing to what is
currently claimed to be the most threatening of all environmental problems, global warming. It is all
because of it emission of pollution into the atmosphere.
The hybrid vehicle typically achieves greater fuel economy and lower emissions than conventional
internal combustion engine vehicles, resulting in fewer emissions being generated. These savings are
primarily achieved by four elements of a typical hybrid design:

1. recapturing energy normally wasted during braking etc.;

2. having significant battery storage capacity to store and reuse recaptured energy;

3. shutting down the gasoline or diesel engine during traffic stops or while coasting or other idle
periods;

4. relying on both the gasoline (or diesel engine) and the electric motors for peak power needs
resulting in a smaller gasoline or diesel engine sized more for average usage rather than peak
power usage.

These features make a hybrid vehicle particularly efficient for city traffic where there are frequent stops,
coasting and idling periods. In addition noise emissions are reduced, particularly at idling and low
operating speeds, in comparison to conventional gasoline or diesel powered engine vehicles. For
continuous high speed highway use these features are much less useful in reducing emissions.

Recent commercial debut of hybrid vehicles is a proof of their improved efficiency and performance.

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The word of “hybrid” stands for the use of two or more energy storage devices that combine three main
characteristics: specific energy (Wh/kg) for driving range, specific power (W/kg) for acceleration, and
power reversal capability for regenerative braking.
Most hybrid configurations use two energy storage devices: one with high energy storage capability,
called “Main Energy System” (MES), and the other with high power capability and reversibility, called
“Auxiliary Energy System” (AES). The MES provides extended driving range and the AES good
acceleration and regenerative braking. Even though a vehicle could eventually run with the MES only,
the power and efficiency characteristics will be poor. The MES consists of 26 lead acid batteries each of
12V connected in series. Providing a nominal voltage of 312V.The AES is intended to prevent batteries
from delivering or accepting high currents by sensing the load current and delivering or accepting the
difference. Batteries are also not capable of properly accepting regenerative braking energy when
recently charged, generally resulting in battery damage; this would also be fixed with the auxiliary
energy system by preventing batteries from overcharging. The MES-AES combination gives to hybrids
extended range, good power, high regenerative braking capability and better efficiency.

These two energy storage devices can be connected in different ways, and cars that use them are
classified in two main categories: Parallel Hybrids and Serial Hybrids.
Parallel hybrids are vehicles powered from two independent mechanical outputs working in parallel.
These power units may move the rear and front wheels independently, or may be combined in a special
gearbox to move the same wheels. The last case is shown in Fig. 1(a) and most commercial models, like
the Toyota Prius, use this configuration. Serial hybrids are vehicles with only one mechanical output
(usually an electric motor), as shown in Fig. 1(b), which receives power through static converters from
two electrical sources. In this case, any two sources that deliver electric power could be used, as long as
they are compatible in terms of electrical variables. This topology is the only possible when energy
sources are batteries or fuel cells, because they do not produce mechanical power.

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The Electric propulsion system of an electric and hybrid vehicles consists of three main parts: Electric
motor, power electronic convertor and its controller.

There are basically two main requirements of electric motors when used for traction in electric and
hybrid vehicles [4].

1) High torque at low speeds for fast acceleration – Climbing a hill.

2) Low torque at high speeds – Driving normally of a straight road.
To have minimum power rating of the motor drive, the electric motor is required to have a long constant
power range to meet torque seed characteristics.

Figure 1.2: Typical characteristics of traction motor [4]

The vehicle performance is completely determined by the profile of tractive effort versus vehicle speed.
This is determined from the characteristics of the power source (engine, motor drive) and the
transmission. Basically for a power source with a given power rating, the profile of tractive effort versus
vehicle speed should be constant power in the speed range, which is the tractive effort drops
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hyperbolically with increase if the vehicle speed. The speed versus torque characteristics are shown for
an electric motor and IC engine. Electric motor on the other hand has speed torque characteristics that
are closer to the ideal speed tractive effort. Therefore an electric motor powered vehicle may allow a
single gear transmission to meet the requirement of vehicle performance. Thus structure is simplified
[4].

Figure 1.3: Speed- Tractive effort profile of an internal combustion engine power vehicle [4].

An internal combustion engine vehicle with a multi-gear transmission has the following speed torque
profile to obtain an approximate constant power profile. This is possible because of hydrodynamic
torque converters and a multi-gear box. In electric, fuel cell, series hybrid only the traction motor
delivers torque to drive the wheels. Thus the performance of the vehicle is determined by speed torque
characteristics of the traction motor. But in parallel hybrid performance is determined by both the motor
and engine, because it the torque is given by both simultaneously [4].

There are three kind of motors used traction motor drive [4]:

1) Switched Reluctance motor (SR).

2) Induction motor (IM).

3) Permanent magnet brushless DC motor (PM).

1.2 Permanent Magnet Brushless DC Motor

PM BLDC motors are significantly small due to usage of high energy permanent magnets (PMs) for
field excitation. Its efficiency is higher due to absence of the rotor windings and rotor copper losses. It
has short constant power due to its limited field weakening capability. The speed range of theses motors
can be extended by using an additional field winding (PM hybrid motor). The objective was to control
the field current at high speed constant operation by weakening the field in air gap provided by PMs.

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These vehicles have complex structure and it speed ratio is not in range to meet required performance
for off road vehicles [4]. Some of its specifications are given below:

Table 1: Specifications of BLDC [9]

1.3 Lead Acid Batteries

These are the oldest batteries available for vehicles. They doesn’t have good energy to weight and
volume ration but still due to their ability to supply high surge currents means that the cells maintain a
relatively large power-to-weight ratio made them compatible for electric and hybrid vehicles. It is cost is
low compared to the other batteries. These batteries contain lead and lead oxide as electrode and sulfuric
acid as the electrolyte. The supply from lead acid batteries is through chemical reaction in which both
the electrodes in the battery turn into lead sulfate and the electrolyte gets diluted. The charging is done
through reversible chemical reaction to store energy. With the combination of plates and the diluted
sulfuric acid it converts the electrical energy into potential chemical energy. While charging care must
be taken such that the battery shouldn’t get over charged which may lead to emission of hydrogen and
oxygen mix that forms an explosive mix. Care should be taken while handling the electrolyte due to its
corrosive nature [8] [3].

y The battery pack in this project is composed of 26 series-connected lead-acid batteries.

y Recently charged battery voltage is 356V, with actual 312V nominal voltage.

y Minimum Voltage in the battery (low SOC condition) could reach 288.6V when heavily loaded.

y It can reach more than 374.4 V (max SOC) when it has been recently charged and regenerative
braking is applied.

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Above two conditions are extreme conditions which not only deteriorate batteries and shorten their life,
but may also damage power inverter. In our circuit, maximum battery charging and discharging value is
between 70Amp.

Some common EVs and their watt hours per mile rating [12]

N.B: This conversion factor depends on manufacturing process & active material composition. All
manufacturer tests their battery for different rate of discharge and as such it is provided in the data sheet.

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1.4 Ultra capacitors [6]

Electronic double layer capacitors, DLC, or Ultra capacitors, were first developed and patented in 1961 by
SOHIO. The construction of an Ultra capacitor consists of a pair of metal foil electrodes, each of which has
an activated carbon (AC) fiber mat deposited on metal foil. The activated carbon side of each electrode is
separated by an electronic barrier such as glass paper then sandwiched or rolled into a package. An aqueous
or organic electrolyte salt impregnates the activated carbon as shown in Figure 1-2. The electronic properties
of an Ultra capacitor are strongly dependent on the porosity of the activated carbon and on the molecular size
of the electrolyte ions. Activated carbon electrodes used in Ultra capacitors have specific surface areas of
1000 to 2300 m2/g and charge separation distances, d in Figure 1-2, on the order of 10 Angstrom or less
(Miller and Smith, 2004).

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Ultra capacitors are a new technology that allows storing 20 times more energy than conventional
electrolytic capacitors. They present a lot better performance in specific power than any battery, and can
be charged and discharged thousands of times without performance deterioration. These very good
characteristics can be used in combination with normal electrochemical batteries, to improve the
transient performance of an electric vehicle, and to increase the useful life of the batteries. Fast and
sudden battery discharge during acceleration, or fast charge during regenerative braking can be avoided
with the help of ultra capacitors. Besides, ultra capacitors allow regenerative braking even with the
batteries fully charged.

The ultra capacitor has a capacity of 20 Farads, a nominal voltage of 300 Vdc, and a maximum voltage
of 360 Vdc. It comprises 144 units in series, each one with 2,700 Farads, and 2.5 volts dc nominal (2,7
volts maximum). The maximum current is 400 amp, and the weight of the capacitor bank is 65 kg.

Working Scheme:

An ultra capacitor bank control system for an Electric Vehicle has been simulated. The purpose of this
device is to allow higher accelerations and decelerations of the vehicle with minimal loss of energy, and
minimal degradation of the main battery pack. The system uses an IGBT Buck-Boost converter, which
is connected to the ultra capacitor bank at the Boost side, and to the main battery at the Buck side. The
control of the system measures the battery voltage, the battery state-of-charge, the car speed, the
instantaneous currents in both the terminals (load and ultra capacitor), and the actual voltage of the ultra
capacitor. This last indication allows knowing the amount of energy stored in the ultra capacitor. A
controller manipulates all the variables and generates the PWM switching pattern of the IGBTs. When
the car runs at high speeds, the control keeps the capacitor discharged. If the car is not running, the

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capacitor bank remains charged at full voltage. Medium speeds keep the ultra capacitors at medium
voltages, to allow future accelerations or decelerations. The battery voltage is an indication of the car
instantaneous situation. When the vehicle is accelerating, the battery voltage goes down, which is an
indication for the control to take energy from the ultra capacitor. In the opposite situation (regenerative
braking), the battery voltage goes up, and then the control needs to activate the Buck converter to store
the kinetic energy of the vehicle inside the ultra capacitor. The measurement of the currents in both sides
allows to keep the current levels inside maximum ratings. The battery state-of charge is used to change
the voltage level of the ultra capacitor at particular values. If the battery is fully charged, the voltage
level of the capacitors is kept at lower levels than when the battery is partially discharged. The converter
also has an IGBT controlled power resistor, which allows dropping energy during some extreme
situations energy cannot be accepted either by the ultra capacitors or by the battery pack.

Energy calculation of ultra capacitor bank

Calculation of the Energy storage in the Capacitors

1
E = CV 2
2
For an individual capacitor module

1
(2700)2.32 = 7141.5 J
EModule =
2
For the Total Bank capacitor (Considering 132 modules linked in series)

1
E BankCapacitor = (20.45)303.6 2 = 942468.516 J
2
If 1 Joules = 2.7778 ×10−7 Kwh, thus

E BankCapacitor = 0.2617989kWh

The minimum energy that should be keep in the Capacitor is

1
Vmin = Vmax Vmin = 75.9V
4
Furthermore, the minimum energy storage in the Back in that moment is

1 2
Emin = CVmin = 58904.28 J = 0.01636kwh
2

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 Capacitance Energy
Voltage Specific Energy Weight
Quantity Description (V) (F) (J) Density(Kwh/kg) (Kg)

1 Capacitor Module 2.5 2700 7141.5 0.5

Total Capacitor
132 Bank 303.6 20.45 942468.516 4 approx 65

Benefits of using huge Ultra capacitor bank

1) It increases the life of the MES, because high ampere Charge and Discharge both reduces the
cycle life of Battery(MES)

2) It minimizes the total capacity of main energy sources(Battery in our case)

3) Research shows that, It increases the using of regenerative braking energy up to 10.47% [13].
compared to the vehicle using only batteries. Research also shows that due to using ultra
capacitor, overall efficiency increased up to 15% [14].

4) It is more interesting that now energy density of commercial ultra capacitor is only 4wh/kg, But
in laboratory it is 10wh/kg. It is expected that in next 10 years if it achieve 20wh/kg, then we can
even think of Ultra capacitor as main energy source.

Dissipative Voltage Limiters

In the research, it is found that for using numbers of Ultra capacitor in series, there are possibilities
to have unequal voltage in the individual ultra capacitor, to equalize that uneven voltage in the total
bank dissipative voltage limiters are used. That is analogous to the equalization charge of the battery.

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 2. STATIC CONVERTER DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION [6]

The battery pack, composed of 26 series-connected lead-acid batteries, has a no-load voltage that ranges
from 356V, when recently charged, to 312V when discharged. This voltage is also load-dependant, reaching
under 288.6V when heavily loaded and in low SOC condition. On the other hand, it can reach more than
400V when it has been recently charged and regenerative braking is applied. These are extreme conditions
which not only deteriorate batteries and shorten their life, but may also damage power inverter (traction
equipment has minimum and maximum voltage limits of 288.6V and 374.4 V respectively). This situation
cannot be avoided unless the vehicle’s drive train power is restricted according to battery voltage. This
strategy would avoid inverter damage and could help preserve batteries longer, but would severely affect
vehicle performance and efficiency (by restricting power and regeneration); it would limit available power
when batteries are partially discharged and, over time, batteries aging would also noticeably affect
performance. In other words, batteries would go through a long agony and this would be reflected in vehicle
performance. This is where the Auxiliary Energy System fills the gap. As previously defined, the most
adequate hybrid configuration to be implemented in a battery-powered EV is a series-hybrid topology,
shown in Figure 1-1B. Even though it is called ‘serial’ hybrid (because of the serial mechanical output), the
Main and Auxiliary Energy Systems are connected in parallel. Therefore, if the Main Energy System
(batteries) remains the same, the AES must be designed in such a way that it adapts to the pre-established
power-circuit voltage-rating, and there is an adequate supporting-power-flow during peak power demand.
Even though there have been some experiences connecting ultra capacitors directly to the Main Energy
System (Jeon et al, 2005; Massé and Freeman 2005), a static converter should interface power connection
between batteries and ultra capacitors for several reasons, but three are fundamental. First, batteries work at
relatively constant voltage levels while capacitor’s voltage is directly related to their SOC, therefore to use
all or most energy storage capacity of ultra capacitors a voltage interface is required. Second, the only way to
implement different energy management strategies is by controlling power flow and SOC of at least one of
the energy source units, and this can only be done by placing a static converter between the two sources.
Third, directly connected capacitors will only support power demand during transients, being useless for
more prolonged high power episodes. Thus, EV’s power circuit will be configured as shown in Figure 2-1.

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 Figure 2.1: Block Diagram [6]
Given the vehicle’s drive train power rating of 53kW and mean power consumption under 10kW in urban
drive conditions, it would be desirable to install an Auxiliary Energy System with a power rating over 40kW.
Even though the battery can deliver power above mean demand value (which, by the way, is a very relative
value) a static converter with power rating in the order of 40kW will ensure power support under any
condition, as long as there is energy left in the ultra capacitor bank. The topology and design of this power
converter will be addressed later.
Intuition would suggest that the Main Energy System, batteries in this case, should deliver mean power
consumed by the vehicle and the AES would complement it to satisfy instantaneous vehicle power demand.
Accordingly, the ultra capacitor-bank’s energy storage capability should be large enough to store as much
energy as that integrated between the mean power and real power consumption lines in a typical EV power
profile such as the one shown in Figure 2-2, which was obtained from an experimental EV in urban driving
conditions.

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 Figure 2.2 EV Power Profile [6].
The problem with this reasoning is that power consumed by a vehicle is a stochastic process whose mean
value is not the same all the time (Mazaika and Schulte, 2005). That is, a vehicle running in suburban mid-
speed traffic one day and in congested downtown traffic the next day will have different mean power
consumed values. Which one is the ‘real’ mean power? Both actually, because there is no single mean power
for a vehicle and this value depends on the situation to which it is inserted. Therefore, the MES cannot be
dimensioned for ‘one’ mean power value and the AES for the remaining energy. It follows that the design of
a vehicle’s power system cannot aim to have the AES available in every condition, because in particular
situations, such as long hill climbing, it would have to contain great amounts of energy not to be depleted
after prolonged high power demands. Similarly, the MES cannot be dimensioned to deliver a reduced-
average-like power, because, if left to power the whole system alone, it has to perform acceptably. Hence,
the AES cannot be considered an always-available system, and it is a matter of trade-offs to install a small,
cheap, seldom-available system, or a big, expensive, always-available power source. The idea is to have the
system available ‘most’ of the time at a ‘reasonable’ cost. Both of which are relative concepts but that is the
nature of consumer products. These concepts were incorporated when dimensioning the system, but because
of the experimental nature of this system, costs were not the priority constraint.
To have an idea of the amount of energy the vehicle will use in a single power demanding operation,
acceleration and hill climbing (the most demanding tasks in terms of power) energy requirements are the best
examples. The vehicle in question plus its Auxiliary Energy System weighs around 2000 kg. Therefore its
kinetic energy at 60 kph is about 77 Wh. This amount of energy plus losses will be spent to accelerate from 0
kph to 60 kph. If a constant speed over a hill climb of 30 m height difference is desired, an approximate
amount of 163 Wh (potential energy difference) plus air drag and mechanical losses will be spent.

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Considering these figures, the AES was designed to store enough energy to consecutively support power
during both tasks. Thus the ultra capacitor bank has a 255 Wh energy-storage-capacity, of which only 90 %
would be used because of efficiency concerns. This allows sustained power support during most demanding
regular tasks in city driving conditions.

Power design
Terminal voltage in a capacitor bank, by definition depends directly on its state of charge (SOC). More
precisely, the ultra capacitor-bank’s SOC is proportional to its square voltage; hence, as energy is transferred
to and from the bank its voltage will change accordingly. For this reason, the static converter topology,
shown in Figure 2- 1, must be able to transfer energy between a relatively constant voltage source (battery)
and a variable voltage source (ultra capacitor).

Buck-boost topology
The above mentioned characteristics of the static converter call for a power topology that adapts to the
variable nature of capacitor voltage and the relatively constant battery voltage. For this reason a buck-boost
topology was chosen. Figure 2-3 shows an equivalent circuit of the power circuit in which the battery is
represented by a voltage source and an internal resistance. The ultra capacitor bank is also represented by a
voltage source (which, for short periods of time, it is) and its equivalent series resistance (ESR).
This topology is conceived to establish controlled bidirectional power transfer between both sources as long
as ultra capacitor voltage VU is small than battery voltage VB. If this condition does not hold, a current will
flow through diode D2.

Figure 2.3: Topology Diagram [7]

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Static converter components design and selection
The converter was designed and tested to deliver up to 60 kW, but current was limited to 150A on the ultra
capacitors side to avoid high losses. Hence, the converter can deliver a peak power of 45 kW, which
decreases with ultra capacitor voltage, reaching 30 kW at ultra capacitor voltage of 200 V (which is seldom
lower).
According to this power rate and interconnected systems, buck-boost converter components were selected or
designed to work properly at currents up to 200A and voltages up to 374.4V.
a) Ultra capacitor bank
Battery voltage can decrease to levels below 250V on heavy loads (when working in battery-only mode), but
usually stays over 300V when a regular load is applied. With AES power-support this voltage decreases, at
the most, to 300V on full load. Therefore, to avoid voltage crossing, the ultra capacitor bank maximum
voltage rating was set to 295 V.
The AES was implemented with 132 series-connected ultra capacitors. These units have 2700 Farads each,
an ESR of 1 mOhm and a voltage rating of 2.3 V. The bank totals 20.45 Farads, an equivalent series
resistance of 132 mOhm, and a total maximum voltage of 303.6 V (limited by software to 295 V). Figure 2-6
illustrates one ultra capacitor and its physical characteristics.

Current Ripple Analysis

y In order to produce a controlled DC current thorough the Ultra Capacitors, small ripple content is
desirable. High ripple amplitude also produces other undesired effects, such as losses due to currents
induced in other elements; and electromagnetic noise.
y Steady state current waveform for a Buck operation.
y Max ripple of 5 Amps calculated i.e. 2.5% of nominal current (200A)

Figure 2.4: Current Ripple [7].

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Smoothing inductance LS

For the smoothing inductance design, maximum current ripple amplitude of 5A was the aim. Therefore,
according to expression 2.5 and considering a 12 kHz commutation frequency and a battery voltage of 360
V, the inductance LS should have at least 1.5 mH. It also should be able to conduct currents up to 200A
without saturating and/or generating excessive resistive losses. After pondering the electromagnetic relations
between material saturation, core section area and core-length, number of turns and final achieved
inductance, an air core design was implemented, because it would not saturate and the high reluctance
could be compensated with more turns, of lower volume and weight ‘cost’ than the other core alternatives
required (Ortúzar, 2002).

Converter capacitor C
The inclusion of capacitor C as a low-impedance voltage-source near the converter semiconductor has two
main purposes: first, prevent dangerous voltage surges in semiconductor terminals due to parasitic
inductance and high di/dt; and second, filter currents between the battery and buck-boost converter.
Surge voltage levels depend on parasitic inductance value, 7.5 uH in this case, current level and battery
voltage level. In this case, energy contained in this parasitic inductance at maximum rated current calls for
low capacitor values below 20 uF.

Current filtering between battery and converter called for larger capacitance values than those required for
voltage surge prevention. Nevertheless capacitor value cannot be excessively large because of dynamic
response delays introduced by LC circuit formed by this capacitor and smoothing inductance LS. Finally,
because of its good simulated behavior, a 3300 uF electrolytic capacitor, shown in figure 2-9, was installed to
perform current filtration and voltage surge control, both of which were properly achieved.

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Semiconductor
Given the converter’s commutation-frequency, power and voltage requirements, an IGBT technology
semiconductor was selected to operate the static converter. An Intellimod (IGBT with integrated gating
circuits), model PM400DSA060 from Powerex, with maximum voltage rating of 600V and 400A current
capability was chosen. The electronic device, shown in Figure 2-10, also has integrated over-current and
over-voltage protections.

Thermal management of IGBT [7]

y Power losses in the IGBT and diode, due to internal resistance and characteristic voltage drop,
presents a semiconductor-destruction hazard .
y The IGBT used is an Intellimod, model PM400DSA060 from Powerex. It’s collector maximum
current is of 400A, the Collector-Emitter maximum voltage is of 600V.
y In order to preserve temperatures from rising over the recommended limits while operating under the
normal conditions, heat-sinks need to be attached.

Figure 2.5: Heat Sink [7]

22 

 
 3. MODELING AND ASSUMPTIONS

3.1 Battery
An ideal battery modeling which is paralleled with the main circuit is used in our project. The nominal
voltage is 312V. Two paralleled internal resistors are 0.1Ω and 0.2 Ω. During regenerative mode, we
assume that the ultra capacitor gets the first response to absorb the power from the load. One switch is
employed to separate battery circuit from the main power circuit at this moment. The next step is that
battery gets charge from ultra capacitor. Our project does not cover the second stage.

Figure 3.1: Modeled battery

3.2 Ultra capacitor
Considering the cost, the capacitance is chosen around 20F. Equivalent Series Resistor (ESR) is 1 Ω. In
accelerating operation, the initial voltage of ultra capacitor is 300V, while in the regenerative operation
we assume that it gets fully discharged as 0V.

3.3 Load
A Voltage Control Current Source (VCCS) is used to simulate the variation of load current. From the
lookup table, the increasing and decreasing of load current represent the acceleration mode and
regenerative mode respectively.

23 

 
 (a) (b)
Figure 3.2 (a) Load Model (b) Ultra Capacitor Model

3.4 Buck-Boost Converter

Bidirectional converter, buck-boost converter, is required for our project. The buck and boost operation
modes correspond to regenerative mode and acceleration mode.

24 

 
 3. CONTROL DESIGN

Flow diagram for control strategy is implemented is presented below

Regenerative Breaking Acceleration

Sign of the load Current

CONTROL

Buck Mode Boost Mode

Acceleration/Vehicle is going to move/Acceleration

Vehicule is running/ Brake is Activated
from low speeds

Some amount of energy is transferred to the UC. If the battery is not fully charged, UC should be at light levels of stored
Load Current (negative direction) increases. energy
Load current Increase
Battery voltage goes down
A Max.Battery current Limit must be set up
If the load currents exceed the Maximum Battery Current Limit, Then UC
will provide the extra current

Figure4.1: Flow diagram for control strategy

.

25 

 
 4.1 PI Controller Design for Buck
Small signal model is used to get the transfer function of the plant which includes the load and buck
converter:
Vc Rload Vin
=
d
~
LCRload S 2 + LS + Rload

Where L=1.4mH, Rload =50Ω, Output Capacitance: C=20F, Input voltage of Buck Converter:

Vin = 312V, Peak value of Carrier: Vst = 1. Block diagram of PI controller design is shown as Figure 4.2:

Figure 4.2: Control Diagram for Buck Operation Mode

Thus, from above diagram the Loop Transfer Function is shown as
1 Rload Vin
LTF=
Vst LCRload S 2 + LS + Rload
In order to get desired Phase Margin (PM), 45°, and -20dB gain slope at crossover frequency, PI type 1
controller is designed. Since the switching frequency, fsw=20kHz, the crossover frequency is chosen as
20% of fsw, which is 4kHz . The MATLAB codes are attached in Appendix – 2. From MATLAB, the
Bode Plot of plant, the controller and Compensated Loop Transfer Function is shown in Figure 4.3:

26 

 
 Bode Diagram
40
CLTF
30
Gc

Magnitude (dB)
20 System: CLTF G_p
Frequency (Hz): 4e+003
10 System: G_p
Magnitude (dB): 3.04
Frequency (Hz): 4e+003
0 Magnitude (dB): 17.8

-10

-20
0

-45
Phase (deg)

-90
System: G_p
-135 Frequency (Hz): 4e+003
Phase (deg): -90
System: CLTF
-180 Frequency (Hz): 4e+003
3 Phase (deg): -135
10
Frequency (Hz)

Figure 4.3: Bode Plot of plant (Buck), the controller and Compensated Loop Transfer Function.
Figure 4.3 proves that the PM=45° and Gain≈0dB is achieved in CLTF. The PI type 1 controller transfer
function is:
Sτ
G ( S ) = Kpi
1 + Sτ
From MATLAB we get Kpi=56885 and τ=-3.9789e-005, which are the parameters of controller.

4.2 PI Controller Design for Boost

In boost mode, the transfer function of the plant is also obtained from small signal model as:
~
i Vc CS + 2(1 − D )I l
=
~
L
LCS 2 + S + (1 − D )
2
d
R
Where L=1.4mH, Equivalent resistance of load and battery, R=0.1Ω, C=3300µF, output voltage of
capacitor, Vc =400V, Peak value of Carrier, Vst = 1, Nominal value of inductor current I l =200A,
Average Duty ratio=0.5. Block diagram of PI controller design is shown as Figure 4.4:

27 

 
 Figure 4.4: Control Diagram for Boost Operation Mode.
Thus, from above diagram the Loop Transfer Function is shown as
1 Vc CS + 2(1 − D )I l
LTF =
Vst L
LCS 2 + S + (1 − D )
2

R
In order to get desired Phase Margin (PM), 45°, and -20dB gain slope at crossover frequency, PI type 1
controller is designed. Since the switching frequency, fsw=20KHz, the crossover frequency is chosen as
20% of fsw, which is 4KHz . The MATLAB codes are attached in Appendix – 1. From MATLAB, the
Bode Plot of plant, the controller and Compensated Loop Transfer Function is shown in Figure 4.5:

Bode Diagram
150
CLTF
G_p
100
Gc
Magnitude (dB)

System: G_p
System: CLTF Frequency (Hz): 4e+003
50 Magnitude (dB): 27.1
Frequency (Hz): 4.01e+003
Magnitude (dB): 4.11
0

System: Gc
-50
0 Frequency
System: Gc(Hz): 4.04e+003
Magnitude (dB):
Frequency (Hz):-23
4.02e+003
Phase (deg): -51.5
-45
Phase (deg)

-90
System: G_p
Frequency (Hz): 4.02e+003
-135 Phase (deg): -83.3
System: CLTF
-180 Frequency (Hz): 4e+003
-1 0 1 Phase
2 (deg): -135 3 4 5
10 10 10 10 10 10 10
Frequency (Hz)

Figure 4.5: Bode Plot of plant (Boost), the controller and Compensated Loop Transfer Function.

28 

 
Figure 4.5 proves that the PM=45° and Gain≈0dB is achieved in CLTF. The PI type 1 controller transfer
function is:
Sτ
G ( S ) = Kpi
1 + Sτ
From MATLAB we get Kpi=0.0442 and τ=3.142e-005, which are the parameters of controller.

29 

 
 5. SIMULATION AND RESULTS

Figure 5.1: Simulation of final circuit.

The circuit shown above is simulated and the results are presented below.

30 

 
BOOST MODE NORMAL DRIVE CONDITION & ACCELERATION:
In the acceleration mode, the load current, I_load, is increasing. Since the battery current limitation is
applied in the control scheme, one can see from Fig.5.2 I_batt_1 is not beyond 70A during the
acceleration operation. It is worth to note that the current of ultra capacitor, I_ultra, is increasing, while
the voltage of ultra capacitor, Vultra_c, is decreasing. This shows the discharging of ultra capacitor.
Also, in the third waveform in Fig.5.2 the actual current through ultra capacitor is exactly following the
reference ultra capacitor current, I_ultra_boost_ref. This definitely proves that the PI controller works
very well in our circuit.

Figure 5.2: Simulation results for normal drive condition and acceleration mode.

31 

 
BUCK MODE: DECELERATION & REGENERATIVE BRAKING:
In the deceleration and regenerative braking, the load current is negative. In our project, we assume that
at this moment the ultra capacitor absorbs all the power from the load. Thus, in Fig.5.3 the current of
battery, i_batt_1, is 0A. The negative ultra capacitor current is obtain, I_ultra. The voltage of ultra
capacitor, Vultra_c, is increasing. In the other words, the ultra capacitor is getting charged from the load.

Figure 5.3: Simulation results for deceleration and regenerative braking mode.

32 

 
 6. FUTURE WORK

6.1 Scope for Simulation using Micro Controller

In this project there is a scope for centralised control of the HEV using a Micro Controller or DSP. The
controller used can be for other control functionalities. But the emphasis is more made on propulsion
and power related control. The diagram for this control with modules is presented below.

Controls the Power Converter

Optimize Motor performance for Efficient Power Utilisation
by Electronic Control

Micro Controller in HEV Electric Steering and Breaks

Power Management System Traction Control

Figure 6.1: Block Diagram for proposed Micro Controller based simulation.

In the proposed future work which we were working the control strategy that we tried to build was for
controlling the power converter for efficient power utilization.

For this strategy there are four modes of operation

1. Regular Operating Mode

2. Ultra Capacitor Charging Mode

3. High Acceleration or Heavy load mode

4. Regenerative Breaking and Deceleration Mode

For the first mode that is the regular operating mode the vehicle will be operating with the supply
provided by the battery. This could be at starting of the vehicle (assumed low acceleration) or the

33 

 
highway drive conditions. For these conditions there wouldn’t be any need for the ultra capacitor to
supply power for the load. And it’s assumed that the ultra capacitor is 70 % charged. For this mode the
power converter will be in off position that is neither of the thyristor will be on.

In the second mode that is the ultra capacitor charging mode the battery will be providing supply to the
ultra capacitor to get charged. In this case say if the ultra capacitor charge is below 50 % then the battery
will provide supply to the ultra capacitor to get charged. For this mode the power converter will operate
as a buck converter. The controller will sense the state of charge by using a voltmeter across the ultra
capacitor and use the voltage to calculate the state of charge of the ultra capacitor if the state of charge is
below a specified value then the Gate 1 will be triggered in order to provide supply to the ultra capacitor
using primary source that is battery. When the ultra capacitor voltage reached a certain limit that is 70 %
in our case the thyristor 1 will be turned off.

The third mode of operation is heavy acceleration or heavy load mode for which both the battery and the
ultra capacitor should supply to the motor. The sensor present at the battery will be sensing the current
taken from the battery. When the supply taken from the battery exceed a given specification then the
second thyristor will turned on in order to provide the additional supply to the load from the ultra
capacitor. The supply provided by the ultra capacitor will be controlled by turning on and off of the
thyristor 2. The turn on and off of the thyristor will be done according to the duty cycle that corresponds
to the supply required. The calculation of the duty cycle can be done from armature current and the
speed or torque of the motor. During the boost operations the diode of IGBT 1 will be forward biased
and provide supply to the load.

During the last mode that is regenerative breaking and deceleration mode the thyristor 1 will be forward
biased and the converter will be working as a buck converter. In this mode energy is used to charge both
the sources which would be help in increasing efficiency of the vehicle. In this mode the negative
current is sensed near the battery is used by the controller to turn on the thyristor 1 for buck operation.

These operations are controlled by the micro controller. The signal from the sensors present at battery,
ultra capacitor and the load are used as the inputs to micro controller. And the output of the micro
controller is the triggering pulses for both the thyristor. The inputs in this case are load current, ultra
capacitor current, ultra capacitor voltage, armature current of the motor, speed and the torque. The
outputs are Pulse1 and Pulse 2 to the thyristor. The control algorithm present in this will be placed in a
time loop which senses the signals every 0.1 milli second and do the corresponding calculation to decide

34 

 
the mode of action. In the figure 6.3 the block named Embedded MATLAB function can be replaced by
a micro controller.

Figure 6.2: Diagram for Micro Controller based simulation.

35 

 
 Battery (ZEBRA) [10] [11]

Currently, a new, state-of-the-art, Sodium/Nickel-Chloride (ZEBRA) battery is being researched.

Nominal operation cell voltage of 2.58 Volts . Total 312Volts. The ZEBRA battery has an attractive
specific energy and power (90 Wh/kg and 150 W/kg). This battery was invented in 1985 by a group led
by Dr. Johan Coetzer at the CSIR in Pretoria, South Africa, hence the name zebra battery (for the Zeolite
Battery Research Africa Project), and has been under development for almost 20 years. The technical
name for the battery is Na-NiCl2 battery. Modec Electric Van uses ZEBRA batteries for the 2007 model.
This battery weights less than half the weight of previous lead-acid battery pack, a better efficiency
(km/kWh) can be expected.
Advantages
• High energy density (5 times higher than Lead acid)
• Cycle life better than 1600 cycles - 12 years approx.
• Typical cell failure is short circuit which does not cause complete failure of the battery.
Disadvantages
• Keeps under charge when not in use. Battery temperature might drop an may requires hour to get
it working.
• It’s total cost of around US$ 12,000 , which is very expensive.
Lead acid battery and zebra are compared in the figure shown below

Figure 6.3: ZEBRA and Lead Acid Battery Comparison.

36 

 
 CONCLUSIONS

An auxiliary energy system based on Ultra Capacitors and a Buck-Boost converter was designed
and constructed. The system was installed in an electric vehicle to support the batteries during peak
power demand. The converter is capable of transferring up to 200A in either direction at 330V.

Ultra capacitor currents showed a maximum ripple of less than 5A, as expected. Current step-
reference-change test showed an adequate time constant of less than 0.1sec, which is considered low
enough for the slow-changing current references.

37 

 
 REFERENCES

[1] Thank You, Internal-Combustion Engine, for Cleaning up the Environment, THE FREEMAN: Ideas
on Liberty 12, Dwight Lee (dlee@terry.uga.edu) is the Ramsey Professor of Economics at Terry
College, University of Georgia. commons.wikimimedia.org

[2] IEEE 1999: “The Past, Present and Future of Electric Vehicle Development “, C. Chang.

[3] www.wikipedia.com

[4] Mehrdad. Ehsani, Yimini Gao and Sebastien Gay, “Characterization of Electric Motor Drives for
Traction Applications”, 2003 IEEE.

[5] Sung-Geun Yoon, Jae-Moon Lee, Jong-Hu Park, In-Kyu Lee and B.H.Cho, “A Frequency
Controlled Bi-directional Synchronous Rectifier Converter for HEV Using Super-Capacitor”, 2004
35th Annual IEEE Power Electronics Specialists Conference, Aachen, Germany.

[6] Micah E. Ortuzar, “Design, Implementation And Evaluation of an Auxiliary Energy System for
Electric Vehicles, Based on Ultra Capacitors and Buck-Boost Convertor” Santiago de Chile, July,
2005.

[7] Micah Ortúzar, Jorge Moreno and Juan Dixon (SM IEEE), “Implementation and Evaluation of an
Ultracapacitor-Based Auxiliary Energy System for Electric Vehicles”.

[8] http://www.vonwentzel.net/Battery/00.Glossary/

[9] www.uqm.com

[10] www.rollsroyce.com/marine/products/submarine/zebra_batteries/

[11] www.mpoweruk.com/zebra.htm

[12] David Coale, A consolidation of notes from the presentation at the SF Peninsula Chapter of the
Electric Auto Association. - http://www.geocities.com/brucedp/evbatt.html

[13] Juan W. Dixon, Micah Ortúzar and Jorge Moreno, “DSP Based Ultracapacitor System for Hybrid-
Electric Vehicles”, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile

[14] Micah Ortúzar, Juan Dixon (SM IEEE) and Jorge Moreno, “Design, Construction and Performance
of a Buck-Boost Converter for an Ultracapacitor-Based Auxiliary Energy System for Electric
Vehicles” 2003 IEEE. 

38 

 
 Appendix – I

Matlab code for boost operation mode:

%=================Parameters of Plant=============%  
L=0.0014;%value of inductor% 
R=0.1; %equivalent resistance of load and battery% 
C=3300*10^‐6; %the output capacitance of boost mode% 
V0=300;%the output voltage of capacitor% 
IL=200;%nominal value of inductor current 
D=0.5;%average value of duty cycle% 
%==================Transfer Function of Plant======% 
num=([V0*C/(1‐D) 2*(1‐D)*IL]); 
den=([L*C L/R (1‐D)^2]); 
G_p=tf(num,den); 
G_p; 
%===================Bode Plot of Plant==============% 
%bode(G_p); 
%===================Controller Design of Boost Operation Mode==============% 
fsw=20000;%switching frequency of boost converter% 
fx=4000;  %crossover frequency% 
Gain_p=27.1;%gain of plant% 
Phase_p=‐83.3;%phase angle of plant% 
Phase_Gc=45‐180‐Phase_p;%phase angle of controller% 
X=tan((Phase_Gc+90)*pi/180); 
tou=X/(2*pi*fx); 
Kpi=10^(‐27.1/20); 
num=[tou 1];   
den=[tou 0]; 
Gc_1=tf(num,den); 
Gc=Kpi*Gc_1;%transfer function of controller% 
CLTF=Gc*G_p;%compensated loop transfer function% 

39 

 
Appendix – II
Matlab codes for buck operation mode:

C=20; %the output capacitance 
Vin=312; %the input voltage of buck converter 
Vst=1; %the peak value of carrier  
num1=[0 0 R*Vin]; 
den1=[L*C*R L R]; 
TF1=tf(num1,den1); 
X=1/Vst; 
G_p=X*TF1; %transfer function of plant% 
%==================Bode Plot of Plant=====================% 
bode(G_p); 
%==================Controller Design======================% 
fsw=20000; %switching frequency% 
fx=4000; %crossover frequency% 
Gain_p=‐95; %gain of plant% 
Phase_p=‐180; %phase angle of plant% 
Phase_Gc=45‐180‐Phase_p; %phase angle of controller% 
X=tan((Phase_Gc+90)*pi/180);  
tou=X/(2*pi*fx); 
Kpi=10^(‐Gain_p/20); 
num=[tou 1]; 
den=[tou 0]; 
Gc_1=tf(num,den);  
Gc=Kpi*Gc_1; %transfer function of controller% 
CLTF=Gc*G_p; %compensated loop transfer function% 
%===================Bode Plot of Compensated LTF,Controller and Plant=======% 
Bode(CLTF,Gc,G_p);

40