SBIR Phase I: A compact, 3-level, high efficiency, 4-port, modular universal power conversion system with Internet of Things (IOT) using Wide Bandgap (WBG) devices

Award ID: 2153880

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) project focuses on developing a universal power conversion system that addresses the unmet needs of the fast-growing electrification and energy storage industries whether it is related to electric vehicles (EV), EV charging, EV charging infrastructure, grid storage, or electric boat applications. The proposed modular and scalable power conversion system is based on the latest generation of power semiconductor devices, silicon carbide (SiC), and can be used across many applications extending over wide power and voltage ranges. The project aims at making the system extremely compact and achieving extremely high efficiencies, which cannot be achieved by silicon-based systems. This modular system configuration can easily be adopted to develop medium voltage-based EV charging application which will be the future for the EV commercial semi trucking industry. Furthermore, due to modularity and scalability, system integration becomes easy and less time-consuming decreasing the cost and helping the adaptation of electrification. This SBIR Phase I project proposes to develop a multi-input, multi-output modular, scalable, and highly compact wide bandgap-based, four-port universal power conversion system which can be applied to electric propulsion and other power conversion applications. Variants of this system are suitable in electric vehicle charging, grid-connected energy storage, distributed energy, and electric boat propulsion. The intellectual merits of the proposed research and development work is the highly compact and efficient nature with multiple power ports supported by a high frequency transformer switching at hundreds of kilohertz resulting in an anticipated size reduction of 50 times, and a weight reduction of at least 5 times compared to existing technologies. The proposed highly integrated, four port system is based on the combination of next generation wide bandgap gallium nitride and silicon carbide devices. Three ports of the four port system will include, the battery port, propulsion motor port/AC grid connection port and 12V-48 volt auxiliary port, realized by using SiC based 3-level power electronics building block (PEBB). This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

NSF Program Director: Benaiah Schrag