Enhance Grid Power Quality of Bidirectional Transformer Less Electric Vehicle Charging
Keywords:
Electric Vehicles (EVs), Grid-to-Vehicle, Power QualityAbstract
The rapid proliferation of electric vehicles (EVs) demands high-performance charging systems that not only ensure efficient energy transfer but also maintain superior grid power quality. Conventional EV chargers, particularly those employing transformer-based or unidirectional rectifiers, suffer from increased size, cost, and significant power quality issues such as high Total Harmonic Distortion (THD), poor power factor, and switching losses. To address these challenges, this paper proposes a transformer-less bidirectional EV charging system based on a 4-switch 3-level H-bridge rectifier topology aimed at enhancing grid power quality and system efficiency.
The proposed configuration reduces the number of power switches compared to traditional 6-switch converters, thereby minimizing switching losses, conduction losses, and overall system complexity. The 3-level operation enables better voltage waveform approximation, resulting in reduced harmonic distortion and improved power factor. Additionally, the transformer-less structure significantly decreases system size, weight, and cost, while improving overall efficiency. The bidirectional capability supports both Grid-to-Vehicle (G2V) and Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) operations, enabling effective energy exchange and grid support functionalities.
To further enhance performance, advanced control strategies such as sinusoidal pulse width modulation (SPWM) and power factor correction (PFC) are incorporated to ensure near-unity power factor and low THD in grid current. The system also maintains stable DC-link voltage and ensures safe operation under varying load and grid conditions. Comparative analysis demonstrates that the proposed 4-switch 3-level H-bridge rectifier achieves superior performance in terms of harmonic reduction, efficiency improvement, and power quality enhancement when compared with conventional topologies.
Overall, the proposed transformer-less bidirectional EV charging system presents a compact, cost-effective, and energy-efficient solution for next-generation smart grid applications, contributing to improved power quality, reduced losses, and sustainable EV integration.
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