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Energy Conversion and Management 86 (2014) 453475

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Energy Conversion and Management


journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/enconman

Power converter interfaces for electrochemical energy storage


systems A review
V. Ferno Pires a,b, Enrique Romero-Cadaval c, D. Vinnikov d, I. Roasto d, J.F. Martins e,
a

ESTSetbal-Instituto Politcnico Setbal, Setbal, Portugal


INESC-ID, Lisbon, Portugal
c
University of Extremadura, Badajoz, Spain
d
Tallinn University of Technology, Tallinn, Estonia
e
CTS/UNINOVA and FCT/UNL, Lisbon, Portugal
b

a r t i c l e

i n f o

Article history:
Received 4 October 2013
Accepted 1 May 2014
Available online 6 June 2014
Keywords:
Electrochemical energy storage
Power converter interfaces
Smart storage
Topologies

a b s t r a c t
Energy storage concept that supports important technologies for electrical systems is well established
and widely recognized. Several energy storage techniques are available, including an electrochemical
energy storage system used to support electrical systems. These storage systems require interfaces based
on power electronic converters for interconnection with an electrical system. This paper reviews the
literature covering the various types of interfaces developed for electrochemical energy storage systems.
Different electrochemical energy storage devices and their specicities regarding to integration with the
electrical systems are described. . The various power converter interfaces that can be used for electrochemical energy storage systems are presented. These interfaces have been divided into standard,
multilevel and multiport technology. The main characteristics and specicity of each topology considering its application to electrochemical energy storage systems are presented. The review also covers the
smart storage concept and the requirements of the interface to integrate the electrochemical energy
storage devices upon this concept.
2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction
Energy storage has become a critical factor with high demand of
electrical energy consumption. In fact, this technology is fundamental for many stand-alone applications. On other hand, in the
context of distributed systems of renewable energy, energy storage
is fundamental not only for stand-alone systems, but also for the
integration of these renewable sources into the electricity system.
In this way, energy storage has a fundamental role in the effort to
combine a future sustainable energy supply with the standard of
technical services and products.
The integration of an energy storage system enables higher efciency and cost-effectiveness of the power grid. It is clear now that
grid energy storage allows the electrical energy system to be optimized, resulting from the solution of problems associated with
peak demand and the intermittent nature of renewable energies
[1,2]. Stand-alone power supply systems are used in many places
around the world where there is no access to the power grid. For
Corresponding author. Tel.: +351 212948545; fax: +351 212948532, skype:
joaofamartins.
E-mail address: jf.martins@fct.unl.pt (J.F. Martins).
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.enconman.2014.05.003
0196-8904/ 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

those types of systems penetration of renewable sources is growing as a result of rising fuel prices and environmental concerns.
However, to integrate the renewable sources into these systems,
energy storage is generally required [3,4]. Energy storage is also
required for many independent types of equipment, such as portable consumer electronics or electric vehicles.
Several energy storage technologies are available: electrochemical energy storage [5,6], uid storage [7,8], mechanical systems
[9,10], and electromagnetic systems [11,12]. The different energy
storage technologies coexist because their characteristics make
them attractive to different applications. Among these technologies, electrochemical energy storage systems, in spite of being
one of the oldest, is still today a widely used storage technology.
This energy storage technology includes devices, such as batteries,
supercapacitors and fuel cells. Electrochemical storage uses this
equipment as a support for stand-alone power supply systems
and even for several power grid applications.
Appropriate energy storage devices (ESDs) and energy storage
systems (ESSs) are core elements of highly demanded resource efcient, environmentally-friendly and reliable solutions for mobile
and stationary applications, which are topics of highest priority
in the EU policy targeted to a low carbon sustainable economy.

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They are indispensable elements in response to the high energy


demand associated with modern human life and the resulting
strong energy source dependency as well as the corresponding
CO2 emission levels limited by the EU 2020 targets.
A major challenge in the energy storage solutions results from
the very wide range of requirements in mobile and stationary
applications, even within one specic application. Multiple interrelated factors have to be satised and considered simultaneously:
high specic energy in combination with high specic power, temperature operation range, acceptable level of investment and operational costs at the entire life cycle.
Even though the different types of ESDs are denitely at various
stages of technical capability and commercial availability, hybridization may enable their improved deployment to realize an intelligent combination of the advantages while their disadvantages are
cleverly masked in hybrid ESS (smart storage).
Several reviews regarding power converter topologies have
been presented. Some of the reviews have been dedicated to electrochemical energy storage systems, but limited to part of the
topologies. Thus, besides a review of the most important electrochemical energy storage systems, this paper also presents a
description of the different types of power converter topologies,
such as, the standard, multilevel and multiport based structures.
Due to the importance smart storage concept, this review also presents the requirements of the interface to integrate the electrochemical energy storage devices upon this concept.
2. Electrochemical energy storage devices
Appropriate energy storage devices and energy storage systems
are core elements of highly demanded resource efcient, environmentally-friendly and reliable solutions for mobile and stationary
applications. The choice of each ESS is intrinsically connected with
the considered application and the desired operational characteristics, such as power and energy ratings, weight and volume,
response time and operating temperature.
ESSs applications include mobile (transport) and stationary
(utility) applications [13,14]. For mobile applications one can consider autonomous vehicles (such as HEVs or PHEVs), where the
ESSs must be placed on the vehicle, or non-autonomous vehicles
(such as trains or trams), where the ESSs can placed either on
the vehicle or on the supplying substation. In the last case, the ESSs
can be considered as a stationary application. Stationary applications can be divided into stand-alone or grid connected, where
such issues as power quality (short time usage few seconds
to ensure continuity of quality based supplied power), bridging
power (short time usage minutes to ensure continuity while
switching), and energy management (decoupling generation and
consumption) are of major importance.
ESDs can also be roughly divided according to two major categories: application and technology. Regarding application, one
can divide the storage devices into power applications or energy
applications, as shown in Fig. 1. The rst is related to high power
ratings and small energy requirements, making those devices more

Fig. 1. Power and energy requirements.

suitable to power quality applications. The other is related to longduration storage devices, more suitable for energy management
and stand-alone or mobile applications. Fig. 2 reviews power ratings and discharge times of storage devices.
In terms of ESSs technology, the following categories can be
considered: electrical, chemical, mechanical and thermal. This
paper will cover the rst two categories, which include supercapacitors and super magnetic energy storage devices (electrical)
along with mature and emerging batteries, fuel cells and thermochemical storage (chemical).
2.1. Supercapacitors
The most straightforward way of storing electrical energy is by
using a capacitor, which is basically a set of two conducting plates
separated by a nonconducting dielectric. In a standard capacitor, its
capacitance is given by Eq. (1), where e denotes the permittivity of
the dielectric, d the distance between the plates, and A the area
of each plate. Although they provide high specic power
(1,00,000 W/kg) and life cycle (50,000 cycles), they have low values
of specic energy (0.055 Wh/kg) [15].

Ae
d

Supercapacitors [16,17], also known as electrochemical double


layer capacitors (EDLC), achieve a very high capacitance through
the use of an electrochemical double layer and high surface area
carbon electrodes, which implies the reduction of the plate separation (into the order of a few angstroms) and the increase of the
plate specic surface area (into the order of 1000 m2/g). Since there
are no chemical changes, EDLCs present a very long life cycle
(10,0001,00,000 cycles). They also provide very high efciency
(9098%) due to the fact that they only present ohmic resistance
in the electrical connections. EDLCs have very high specic power
(5005000 W/kg), but low specic energy (2.515 Wh/kg) along
with some self-discharging effects (2040%Energy/day).
2.2. Batteries
Rechargeable or storage batteries, also known as secondary batteries [18], are the oldest form of electricity storage [19]. The electricity is stored in the form of chemical energy and the energy
conversion process is based on reversible electrochemical oxidation/reduction (REDOX) reactions [20]. A battery is basically constituted by an electrolyte, an anode (positive electrode) and a
cathode (negative electrode) [21]. Internal chemical reactions initiate an electron ux through the external circuit, being this ux
reversible (charge and discharge). Different chemical types of batteries are being used, each one having its own advantages and disadvantages. Typical efciency ranges from 70% to 90%. In this paper
the Electricity Storage Associations denition of efciency was
used: the amount of energy that a storage system can deliver relative to the amount of energy injected into the system during
the immediately preceding charge (also known as round trip
efciency).
Flow batteries appeared in the 1970s and are still not as
advanced as typical secondary batteries [22]. Flow batteries have
two different electrolytes, usually aqueous, that are stored in different tanks. These electrolytes are pumped through an electrochemical cell (which holds the ion exchange membrane) in
which the chemical energy is converted into electricity (this process being somehow similar to the fuel cell energy conversion).
The major characteristic of ow batteries is their potential to separate energy from power specications. The energy capacity is
established by the size of the electrolyte tanks, and the power
dened by the size of the electrochemical cell. There are several

V. Ferno Pires et al. / Energy Conversion and Management 86 (2014) 453475

455

Fig. 2. Power ratings and discharge times.

potential electrochemical reactions (reductionoxidation or


REDOX reactions) but only all-vanadium and polysuldebromine
have reached commercialization on a large scale. Additional advantages of ow batteries include their ability to fully charge and discharge without damaging the cell, moderate costs and interesting
lifetime (eight years that could be extended by replacing the
exchange membrane) [23]. As with most systems that involve
plumbing, these devices are prone to leakage, and because of the
dangerous nature of the electrolytes, pose an environmental
concern.
Several technologies, regarding secondary batteries and ow
batteries, have been used long enough to be considered mature
technologies (Lead-acid, Nickelcadmium, Nickel metal-hydride,
Sodiumsulfur, Vanadium REDOX ow, Polysuldebromine ow).
Others are well developed but only recently began to penetrate the
market, thus considered emerging technologies with less experimental data available (Lithium-ion, Sodium metal chloride, Zinc
bromine ow).
2.2.1. Mature batteries
2.2.1.1. Lead-acid batteries. Lead-acid battery was invented by Gaston Plant in 1859, and is the oldest rechargeable electrochemical
energy storage device. Each battery cell has a negative electrode
composed of a lead alloy grid and pure lead active material. The
positive electrode is made of a lead alloy grid with lead oxide
active material [15]. Lead-acid batteries could be Flooded or Ventilated (VLA), which may require periodic watering because the electrodes are immersed in reservoirs of excess electrolyte, or Sealed
(SLA) and Valve-Regulated (VRLA), which contains the minimum
amount of required electrolyte dismissing the need to replace the
electrolyte [24]. In spite of low specic energy (3050 Wh/kg),
low specic power (75300 W/kg) and limited life cycle (1000
2000 cycles), they are one of the most widely used mature batteries. They are characterized by low cost, high reliability, low self
discharge (0.0330.3%Energy/day) and an attractive efciency
(7080%). Typical applications comprise lighting, automotive starting, ignition and uninterruptible power supplies.
2.2.1.2. Nickelcadmium batteries. Nickelcadmium batteries are
almost as old as lead-acid batteries and they are well developed
either for consumer applications or for large-scale applications.
Recently they have been replaced by lithium-ion batteries and
nickel metal-hydride batteries. Each battery cell has a nickel
hydroxide positive electrode and a metallic cadmium negative
electrode. The electrolyte is typically potassium hydroxide [21].
Although they present a higher specic energy (5075 Wh/kg)
than lead-acid batteries, robust reliability and low maintenance

costs, they have inferior characteristics as compared to lithiumion or nickel metal-hydride batteries, including higher memory
effect. They present good specic power (150300 W/kg) and life
cycle (20002500 cycles) but rather poor overall efciency
(6070%) and self discharge (0.0670.6%Energy/day) characteristics. Also, environmental concerns, regarding the extreme toxicity
of cadmium, have been a key factor for the replacement [25].

2.2.1.3. Nickel metal-hydride batteries. Nickel metal-hydride batteries have been on the market for over 20 years as portable and then
traction batteries [26]. They use nickel oxyhydroxide for the positive electrode and metallic cadmium for the negative electrode.
The electrolyte is usually aqueous based on potassium hydroxide
and they are maintenance free. As compared to nickelcadmium
batteries, they provide higher specic energy, life cycle and specic
power but lower efciency and life cycle [27]. They lack the
memory effect.

2.2.1.4. Sodiumsulfur batteries. Sodiumsulfur batteries have a


liquid (molten) sulfur positive electrode and a liquid (molten)
sodium negative electrode, separated by a solid beta alumina ceramic electrolyte [28]. The electrolyte allows only the positive
sodium ions to go through it and combine with the sulfur to form
sodium polysuldes. They have been widely used over a decade
and present high specic energy (150240 Wh/kg) and life cycle
(2500 cycles), good specic power (150230 W/kg), efciency
(7590%), and safety [29,30]. They also have the benets of good
price and pulse power capabilities, over six times their continuous
rating, which makes them a good candidate for peak shaving and
power quality stationary applications [3133]. Being a molten salt
battery, they present higher self-discharge (0.0520%Energy/day)
than conventional batteries. However, the major drawback is the
requirement of a heat source for operation (300-360 C), which
could reduce the overall efciency.

2.2.1.5. Vanadium REDOX ow battery. Vanadium REDOX ow batteries started in 1984 and store energy by employing vanadium
REDOX couples (V2+/V3+ in the negative and V4+/V5+ in the positive
half-cells), stored in mild sulphuric acid solutions (electrolytes).
They present interesting specic energy (1030 Wh/kg) and efciency (7085%) and a very high life cycle (12,00014,000 cycles)
[34]. Self discharge is within the range of ow batteries
(0.2%Energy/day). This battery type is particularly suited for
large-scale stationary applications [35,36]. The environmental
impact is lower than that for the lead-acid battery [37].

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2.2.1.6. Polysuldebromine ow battery. Polysuldebromine ow


batteries have two salt solution electrolytes (sodium bromide and
sodium polysulde) and the exchange membrane is of the polymer
type. They present higher specic energy (1050 Wh/kg) than
other ow batteries (the solubility of their electroactive species
is very high), interesting life cycle (2000 cycles), and good efciency (6077%) [38].
2.2.2. Emerging batteries
2.2.2.1. Lithium-ion batteries. Lithium-ion batteries date from 1960
and are being commissioned in several consumer and mobile
applications (particularly for plug-in and electric cars) [3941].
Transport and mobile applications have so far been the main drivers for its development. The cathode is a lithiated metal oxide and
the anode is made of graphitic carbon. The electrolyte is made up
of lithium salts dissolved in organic carbonates [42]. Although they
present average specic power (150315 W/kg), as compared to
other conventional batteries, they present higher specic energy
(75200 Wh/kg) and life cycle (100010,000 cycles). They have
very good efciency (8598%) and small self-discharge (0.1
0.3%Energy/day) but the limited aluminum resources determine
their high cost [43]. The reduced batterys energy losses [44], and
consequent good efciency results are directly related with the
good characteristics of their materials, particularly the cathode
materials that provide high energy density [45]. Lithium is caustic
(can combust) and some of the used electrolytes are toxic, so care
should be taken in recycling these units.
2.2.2.2. Sodium metal chloride batteries. The sodium metal chloride
battery dated from 1983 was developed within the ZEolite Battery
Research Africa (ZEBRA) project [46]. Sodiumsulfur batteries have
a solid nickel chloride positive electrode and a liquid sodium negative electrode separated by a solid beta alumina electrolyte. To
achieve fast transport of sodium ions, it needs a second liquid
electrolyte of sodium chloroaluminate [47]. As compared to
sodiumsulfur batteries, they are less sensitive to overcharging
and deep discharging, which makes them a potentially safer
device. On the other hand, they have smaller specic energy
(100120 Wh/kg) and slightly smaller specic power (150
200 W/kg). The overall efciency is similar (8590%) but selfdischarge is higher (15%Energy/day). Some mobile applications
reported present very good recycling characteristics [46].
2.2.2.3. Zincbromine ow batteries. Zincbromine ow batteries,
started in 1885, are made of a zinc anode and a bromine cathode
separated by a microporous separator [48]. They have good specic
energy (3050 Wh/kg), very good life cycle (2000 cycles), interesting efciency (6575%), and small self-discharge (0.24%Energy/
day). Their attractive specic energy and low cost make them
appropriate for load levelling applications [50].
2.3. Fuel cells
A fuel cell is an electrochemical energy conversion device that
converts the chemical energy from some fuel into electricity
through a chemical reaction. This chemical reaction involves external supplies of fuel (anode side) and oxidant (cathode side), usually
oxygen, and occurs in the presence of an electrolyte, being hydrogen, the most common fuel [51]. The rst fuel cell was developed
in 1839 and they are now widely used in mobile and stationary
applications. There are several types of fuel cells: proton exchange
membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) (3545% efciency), alkaline fuel cell
(AFC) (40% efciency), phosphoric acid fuel cell (PAFC) (40% efciency), molten carbonate fuel cell (MCFC) (over 50% efciency),
and solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) (over 50% efciency) [52]. The theoretical specic energy for hydrogen/oxygen (16,470 Wh/kg)

makes fuel cells one of the most promising devices for energy storage. Specic characteristics of different fuel cell applications can be
improved with nanotechnology. In fact, using this technology it is
possible to decrease the weight of electrodes and to increase the
conductivity and electrochemically active surface of catalysts
[53]. A technology using microbial fuel cells (MFC) has been considered very interesting among academic researchers in the last
years [54,55]. This technology converts the energy stored in chemical bonds in organic compounds to electrical energy achieved
through the catalytic reactions by microorganisms.
2.3.1. Regenerative fuel cells
Regenerative fuel cells can operate both as a regular fuel cell
and as an electrolyzer. They consume some reactant to produce
electricity and an output chemical (discharging mode), and reversely, they consume electricity and the output chemical to produce
the rst reactant (charging mode). Only hydrogen proton exchange
membrane (PEMFC) fuel cells can work as regenerative fuel cells
[56]. Recent state-of-the-art developments report high specic
energy values (4001000 Wh/kg) for regenerative fuel cells [57].
2.4. Thermochemical storage
Thermochemical storage is based on the acquisition of solar
energy and consequent energy storage (or transport) in synthetic
oil or molten salt. These solar fuels will be used for electricity generation [58]. Solar fuels are still at an earlier stage of development.
They can also be obtained from electricity, but the competitiveness
of these systems comes from the ability to produce them from
solar energy. These solar fuels include, for instance, solar hydrogen
[59], solar metal [60] or solar chemical heat pipes [61].
3. Power converter technologies
This section focuses on the interfaces for the interconnection of
the electrochemical energy storage systems with the electrical system. These interfaces are based on power electronic converters.
They can be divided into three different categories: standard topologies, multilevel topologies and multiport topologies. Standard
topologies are usually known as two-port converters due to the
input port that connects to the energy source and the output port
that connects to the load. The structure of the power converter can
be divided into single stage or double stage. In the single stage,
only a unique power converter is used to control the charge and
discharge of the storage system and at the same time to connect
to the AC grid. In the double stage, two power converters are used:
a DC/DC converter to control the charge and discharge of the storage systems and a DC/AC converter to interface with the AC grid.
The multilevel topologies are normally used for high voltage applications. These topologies allow synthesis of a desired AC voltage
from several levels of DC voltages and reduce the voltage blocking
of the power switches. Finally, the multiport topologies allow the
processing of the energy from multiple energy sources or to a
multiple load.
3.1. Standard topologies
3.1.1. Single stage
In the energy storage systems, a bidirectional AC/DC converter
with a proper charging/discharging prole is typically required to
transfer energy between the energy storage and the AC grid. The
non-isolated single stage topologies are the simplest and most efcient for the interfacing of energy storages with AC systems. The
most commonly used topology for the single-phase AC systems is
the single-phase converter shown in Fig. 3a [62]. By replacing

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grid
grid

storage

storage

(a)

(b)
Fig. 3. Single-phase (a) and three-phase (b) bidirectional AC/DC converters.

one transistor leg with split capacitors, the full-bridge inverter


could be modied to a half bridge [63]. The DC-link ripple reduction could be achieved by the adding a third active leg to the
full-bridge inverter in combination with AC midpoint capacitors
[64] or an inductor [65]. In addition, the single-phase topology
can be easily extended to include multiple interleaving switching
cells [62]. For the three-phase systems, the three-phase bidirectional AC/DC converter is the most convenient choice (Fig. 3b)
[6668]. In several applications the neutral wire is required and
in that case the single capacitor in the DC side of the converter
must be replaced with the split capacitors. Under unbalanced AC
load conditions these capacitors will absorb the current from the
neutral wire to maintain better balanced AC output. The split
capacitors will face an excessive current stress at a highly unbalanced AC load or supply grid, which is the major drawback of this
topology. The problem could be solved by adding one transistor leg
(neutral leg) instead of split capacitors [69,70]. By proper control of
the neutral leg, the three-phase outputs could be more easily
equalized, which will nally result in size and weight reduction
of the passive components.
In both of these topologies, the IGBTs could be recommended as
power switches since in the case of MOSFETs the conduction of the
intrinsic body diode could cause the failure of the switching device.
Moreover, during the energy transfer from storage to the AC grid,
the voltage source inverter can normally perform only the voltage
buck function. The AC output voltage cannot exceed the DC-link
voltage or the DC-link voltage has to be higher than the AC output
voltage. The shoot-through problem, which could be caused by
misgating due to EMI, is a major killer to the converters reliability.
Thus, the deadtime to block the cross conduction of the upper and
lower switches has to be provided in the VSI, which causes the
waveform distortion. The Z-source inverter (ZSI, Fig. 4a) has been
proposed in [71] to overcome the limitations and problems of
the traditional VSI. Such topology provides boost function with

grid

shoot-through immunity that is not forbidden [72,73]. The quasiZ-source inverters (qZSI, Fig. 4b) proposed in [74,75] enable further
improvement of the traditional ZSIs. Besides the advantages inherited from the ZSI, the qZSIs also have several merits, such as
reduced passive component ratings, continuous input current,
and a common DC rail between the DC source and the inverter.
Utilizing shoot-through states for the voltage boost function, the
ZSI and qZSI have substantially wider regulation freedom, thus
providing better utilization of the energy storage.
Originally, because of the presence of the diode in the impedance networks, the power ow in the ZSI and qZSI is limited to
one direction, i.e. from the DC source to the AC side. To ensure
the bidirectional power, an additional power switch is connected
across the diode so that it can handle the current during rectier
mode operation [76,77].
Another approach to the highly efcient single-stage AC/DC
conversion is presented in Fig. 5a. This topology that consists of
two buck converters has the features of the conventional halfbridge inverter. It is called a dual-buck half-bridge inverter
[8284]. The converter exhibits two distinct merits: rst, there is
no shoot-through problem because no active power switches are
connected in series in each phase leg. Second, the reverse recovery
dissipation of the power switch is substantially reduced because of
no freewheeling current owing through the diode of the power
switches. To improve the utilization of the DC bus voltage and to
eliminate the two DC bus capacitors, the topology could be modied by replacing the two-capacitor leg with a two-switch leg.
The bidirectional matrix converter (Fig. 6a) is another alternative approach to the single-stage AC/DC power conversion. The
topology was derived from the well-known three-to-three AC/AC
matrix converter. It has a low-pass LC lter between the DC terminals and the DC source/load terminals, with no intervening impedance except for snubbers and wiring [85]. Both polarities of
voltages and currents may be controlled during the bidirectional

grid
storage

(a)

storage

(b)

Fig. 4. Three-phase impedance source bidirectional AC/DC converters: ZSI (a) and qZSI (b).

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V. Ferno Pires et al. / Energy Conversion and Management 86 (2014) 453475

grid

grid

storage

storage

(a)

(b)
Fig. 5. Dual-buck half-bridge AC/DC converter: single-phase (a) and three-phase (b) congurations.

sw

2
storage
grid

storage
grid

(a)

(b)
Fig. 6. Three-phase impedance source bidirectional AC/DC converters: ZSI (a) and qZSI (b).

operation of the converter. Its power switch network consists of six


four-quadrant devices, each of which may be realized by two turnoff controlled devices, or two turn-off controlled devices with
blocking diodes or one turn-off controlled device with four
bridge-diodes [86].
The bidirectional AC/DC matrix converter presented in Fig. 6a
could be further modied by adding the high frequency transformer. Its conguration is simply derived from the AC/DC matrix
converter by replacing the LC lter with a HF transformer and then
inserting a four-quadrant-switch H-bridge between the HF transformer and the DC side. By adding the Z-source network to the
DC side of the bidirectional AC/DC matrix converter, the new topology of the matrix-Z-source bidirectional AC/DC converter could be
derived [87]. As seen from Fig. 6b, the converter consists of the
switch network comprising six four-quadrant switches, a symmetric impedance source network, a low-pass lter for three-phase AC
terminals, and a low-pass lter for DC terminals. The bidirectional
AC/DC matrix-Z-source converter can achieve the voltage boost
DC/AC inversion capable of variable-voltage-variable-frequency
AC output (switch sw set to position 1). In the rectication mode
(switch sw set to position 2), the converter can achieve the regulated output DC voltage with variable-voltage-variable-frequency
AC source without extra close-loop control or large energy-storage
devices. Fig. 4b shows the bidirectional AC/DC matrix-Z-source
converter with separate LC components for Z-source network and
a low-pass lter. In several designs, the shared LC components
for a Z-source network and a low-pass lter could be also utilized
[88].
The single stage conguration presents several advantages,
such as, low device count, low cost and reduced losses. However,
there is a limitation regarding the connection with low voltage
storage systems. On other hand, in several storage systems it is
required that several storage modules must be connected in series.
In this case there is the major disadvantage of global system failure, if one storage module fails. This presents reliability concerns
since the failing unit must be replaced or bypassed externally.

The control algorithms of single stage AC/DC converters can be


divided into three main groups [78]: voltage source current controlled (VSCC), voltage source voltage controlled (VSVC) and space
vector controlled (SVC) PWM rectiers. The VSCC algorithm consists of two control loops: the outer DC-link voltage and inner
input current loop. The outer loop programs the current reference
such that the required DC-link voltage could be achieved. The inner
loop tracks the input voltage and provides sinusoidal input current
in phase with the voltage. As a drawback, all three phases need to
be controlled separately i.e. three regulators are needed. Also one
must consider the instability issues caused by the outer DC-link
voltage control loop [79]. However, by the proper selection of
regulator parameters the instabilities can be avoided. Following
modulation schemes are available: periodical sampling, hysteresis
band, and triangular carrier.
In the case of VSVC PWM rectiers the AC current is not measured. The control is achieved by creating a sinusoidal voltage template, which is modied in amplitude and angle to interact with
the mains voltage. The input current is controlled sensor less.
However, the system has to calculate the real parameters of the
input lter, which again are not constant and can lead to instabilities of the system [78].
The most popular control algorithm SVC has similarities with
the VSCC principle. It has two control loops: outer for voltage
and inner for AC current. The main difference is that the threephase input current is converted into complex dq vector space.
Compared to VSCC only two current regulators (Id controller and
Iq controller) are needed. However, the transformations into dq
and back to abc-frame require good calculation power from the
control unit [78].
In the case of ZSI and qZSI one special state (shoot-through) is
added to the output voltage. The shoot-through is only used to
control the DC-link voltage. If the shoot-through is generated
within zero states then the active state intervals remain constant
and will not alter the volt-sec average per switching cycle. Thus,
all traditional control methods of voltage source inverters are also

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V. Ferno Pires et al. / Energy Conversion and Management 86 (2014) 453475

DC

the traditional buck-boost scheme by introducing a dual switch


diode, as shown in Fig. 9a. It can buck or boost the voltage in
both directions, which makes it a good solution for applications
where voltages can vary in a wide range. The main advantages of
the bidirectional buck-boost converter are low component count
and simplicity. However, similarly to the classical buck-boost
converter, the bidirectional buck-boost has reversed output
voltage [92,93].
Step-up and step-down functionality in both directions can also
be achieved with the bidirectional buck-boost cascade converter.
This topology is accomplished by means of the cascade of a buck
converter with a boost one, as shown in Fig. 9b. In step-down mode
only one switch T1 or T3 is switching. In step-up mode topside
switch T1 or T3 is continuously conducting, while T4 or T2 correspondingly is switching. The cascaded version has a larger component count than the bidirectional buck-boost converter. On the
other hand, the components have lower electric and thermal stress.
Also, the output voltage is not reversed. In the step-down operation the differences between the two topologies are not very large,
while in step-up operation the current rms value of the inductor,
power switches and the output capacitor is about 33% greater in
the bidirectional buck-boost converter. Thus, even if in the buckboost cascade topology both switches and power diodes are
duplicated, a reduced size inductor and capacitors can be used,
thus gaining back the cost increment [93,94].
Another symmetrical topology is the bidirectional Ck converter (Fig. 10), which provides step-up and step-down voltage in
both directions. The Ck converter is originally derived from a
boost converter. The main advantages of the Ck converter are
its reduced input and output current ripples and continuous mode
input and output current. The main drawback is its large inductors
and the high voltage rating transfer capacitor (C1) [91,92,95]. Also,
the output voltage is reversed, which may limit its implementation
possibilities.

Grid

DC

Storage
DC

AC

Fig. 7. The structure of a two-stage interface converter for energy storage.

suitable for ZSI and qZSI with only minor modications needed to
add the shoot-through states [80,81].
3.1.2. Double stage
A two-stage interface converter (Fig. 7) consists of a DC/DC conversion stage and a DC/AC or inverter stage. The DC/DC stage
boosts the DC voltage to the suitable level so that the inverter stage
can be directly interfaced to the low voltage grid [89]. In general,
the DC/DC stage topologies can be divided into two main groups:
non-isolated and isolated. In the literature many non-isolated bidirectional topologies have been studied and proposed for the DC/DC
stage, e.g. half-bridge, Ck, SEPIC, etc. [90,91]. However, the
research over one decade has shown that the most practical
topology for the DC/DC stage is the conventional bidirectional
buck-boost topology.
The bidirectional half-bridge topology is the most widely used
solution due to its simplicity and relatively high efciency of over
90% [91]. The bidirectional half-bridge topology consists of two
transistors and one inductor, as shown in Fig. 8a. It operates in
buck mode when charging the energy storage and in boost mode
when drawing energy from the storage device. Low component
count and simplicity result in reliable and low cost solution, which
guarantees its popularity in many applications. However, there are
some limitations which should be taken into account. The boost
capability is quite limited and usually many energy storages
should be connected in series to achieve the needed DC-link voltage level. The current through the freewheeling diode (D1) of the
topside transistor, which reduces the ride-through capability, is
not fully controllable. In the case of a short circuit in the DC-link,
the energy storage is shorted as well. This problem can be solved
with a double bidirectional half-bridge converter, as shown in
Fig. 8b. The current can be fully controlled in both directions. Faults
can be isolated from both sides: energy storage side and inverter
side.
Quite similar to the bidirectional half-bridge converter is the
bidirectional buck-boost converter. It is derived directly from

T1

Storage

C Udc
T2

D2

T1

L1

Grid

AC

Grid

DC

Storage

D1

DC

L2

C1

T2 Udc

C2

AC

Fig. 10. Bidirectional Ck converter.

Storage

L1

T1

T2

D3 T3

D1

D4 T4

D2

(a)

L2
Udc

Grid

DC
AC

(b)

Fig. 8. Step up DC/DC converters for energy storage: bidirectional half-bridge (a), double bidirectional half-bridge converter.

(a)

Grid

DC

T2
Udc

AC

T3

Storage

Storage

T1

T1

Grid

C
T2

Udc

T4

(b)

Fig. 9. Step-up/step-down DC/DC converters for energy storage: bidirectional buck-boost converter (a), bidirectional buck-boost cascade converter (b).

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Storage

L1

C1

T2
Grid

DC
T1

L2

Udc

C2

AC

Fig. 11. Bidirectional SEPIC/Luo converter.

By changing the places of the inductor L1 and the switch T1, one
derives a new converter topology called SEPIC/Luo (Fig. 11). It is a
bidirectional step-up/step-down converter, which is originally
derived from the SEPIC and Luo converters. In the charging mode
of energy storage, the converter works as the SEPIC converter
and in the discharging mode as the Luo converter. The SEPIC/Luo
converter does not reverse the voltage and needs a transfer capacitor with lower voltage rating than that of the Ck converter. The
main drawbacks are: it requires two large inductors, the output
current is discontinuous and the output capacitor is large [91,92].
In some applications the isolation of the energy storage is
required. In this case a medium frequency transformer together
with appropriate power electronics should be implemented. In
general, four topologies and their variations can be considered in
this case: a half-bridge, a full-bridge and a push-pull topology
[96,97]. Push-pull half-bridge topology has quite low efciency
and suits best for low power applications. Therefore, it was
excluded from further investigation.
The most widely used solution is the bidirectional buck-boost
converter combined with a dual active bridge (DAB), as indicated
in Fig. 12 [98,99]. The bidirectional buck-boost regulates the input
voltage of DAB and keeps it constant. This allows DAB to work in
one operating point and with a maximum efciency. The transformer of the DAB provides additional boost and isolation. Thus,

Buck-boost
Storage

T11

this solution is useful in the cases where higher boost ratio or


isolation is required. The main drawback is the relatively high
component count, which increases losses.
A good alternative to the DAB is a dual half bridge (DHB). This
converter group can be divided into: voltage-fed (Fig. 13a) and current-fed (Fig. 13b) DHB [100,101]. In general, the DHB uses twice
fewer switches than DAB and allows soft switching for all switches
without additional components. Its main drawbacks are bulky DC
capacitors and twice higher current in the switches as compared
to the DAB [102]. Current-fed DHBs have several advantages over
voltage-fed DHBs: they can achieve smaller current ripple for
energy storage, they provide current mode control allowing the
state of charge (SOC) estimation in a dynamic environment, thus
energy storage performance and life cycle can be improved.
Moreover, it can boost DC capacitor voltage on the transformer
primary side to reduce current requirement for the isolated transformer, resulting in improved transformer efciency [10,13].
Table 1 presents a comparison of the three considered isolated
DC/DC converters, regarding efciency and applications. The double stage technology presents several advantages when compared
with the single stage conguration. One of the most important
advantage relays on the fact that the double-stage technology
allows for a DC distribution conguration, since a step-up DC/DC
converter can be connected to each storage elements and connected in parallel. Thus, different storage elements can be connected to a DC bus, allowing for the use of a DC/AC converter
module. However, if the instantaneous voltages at the outputs of
the DC/DC converters are different circulating currents will appear,
and this interferes with the operation of the overall system. Thus,
the control system must be designed in order to prevent this drawback. This technology also allows avoiding the series connection of
storage elements, since several DC/DC converter modules can be
used in parallel to control independently each element. This

Dual Active Bridge

D11

T1

D1

T3

D3

TR

T5

D5

D7
T7

Grid

DC
C2 Udc

C1
T12

D12

T2

D2

T4

D4

T6

D6

T8

AC
D8

Fig. 12. Bidirectional buck-boost with DAB.

Grid

DC

Grid

DC

AC

AC

(a)

(b)
Fig. 13. Dual half-bridge converters: voltage-fed (a) and current-fed (b).

Table 1
Comparison of isolated DC/DC converters.
Primary side

Secondary side

Efciency

Application

Push-pull
Half-bridge
Full-bridge

Half-bridge
Half-bridge
Full-bridge

Charge 90% discharge 87%


Charge/discharge 92-94%
Charge/discharge 95%

Low power
High/medium power
High/medium power

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procedure is more reliable than the series connection and allows


for fault tolerant operation using redundant storage elements
and DC/DC converter modules. These double stage topologies allow
a better measure of the state of charge (SOC) of the different
storage elements, being this an important advantage. This conguration has the disadvantage of requiring a high number of devices,
although these devices have lower power rating.
Main control algorithms used for the DC/DC convertion stage
are voltage mode control (VMC) and current mode control (CMC).
VMC is a single loop control algorithm, mostly based on the
xed-frequency PWM control method although it is also used with
phase shift modulation. Usually the output voltage is measured
and the error is compensated by the PI regulator. VMC is simple
and can be easily implemented in any DC/DC converter. However,
it suffers from poor line regulation and parallel operation
[103,104]. In the feed-forward VMC, poor line regulation is somewhat improved. The enhancement comes from the additional line
voltage control loop. The ramp (or period) of the PWM generator
will be changed proportional with the input voltage. The result is
an instantaneous response to line voltage and load changes. The
feed-forward voltage mode control is inherently stable. The drawback is variable switching frequency [105].
The main CMC sub-variations are: peak, average, and hysteretic
CMC. The peak CMC controls the output voltage and the inductor
peak current. Power switches of the DC/DC converter are switched
with xed-frequency. The peak current mode has a good input
voltage response but suffers from pure noise immunity and volt
second unbalance problem in the case of isolated DC/DC converters
[106,107].
The average current mode control (AVCMC) overcomes most of
the problems of the peak CMC. Instead of peak current, average
inductor or transformer current is measured. The average CMC
has good noise immunity and high current loop gain [108].
Hysteretic CMC suits best for DC/DC converters with one
switching element and continuous mode current. The inductor current waveform is used to control both the on state and off state
time of the switch. The hysteretic CMC reacts fast to load and line
transient, it is simple and it does not require loop compensation.
The drawbacks are a wide operating frequency range and the
requirement of high speed current measurements, which can cause
difculties especially in digital control systems [109].
In the isolated DC/DC converters most of the described algorithms can be implemented. Exceptions are peak and hysteretic
CMC. The peak CMC has volt second unbalance problem and the
hysteretic CMC requires continues mode current of the transformer.
3.2. Multilevel topologies
The general function of a multilevel voltage source converter is
to synthesize a desired AC voltage from several levels of DC voltages. Initially, industrial use of this kind of power converters
includes mainly AC drives [110112]. However, due to their characteristics, such as absence of shortcomings in solid state switching
device ratings, output voltages with very low distortions and operation at reduced switching frequency, their use rapidly spread for
other kind of applications [113]. Multilevel power converters can
be an important interface for the electrochemical energy storage
systems, since capacitors, batteries, fuel cells or other storage
equipments can be used as the multiple DC voltage sources. In
[114] some of the advantages of multilevel converter use for storage systems, such as Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Modules, are described.
During the last years many multilevel converter structures have
been proposed. However, the most widely used and common
topologies are the cascaded H-bridge multilevel inverter, the neutral point clamped multilevel inverter, and the ying capacitor
multilevel inverter.

461

The cascaded H-bridge converter (CHB) structure was introduced by Baker and Banister through a patent in 1975 [115].
Subsequently, this structure has been extended for three-phase
systems [116118]. This structure is based on the series connection of H-bridges with separate DC sources. Due to this conguration and the characteristics of the multilevel inverters, this
structure was used for electrochemical energy storage systems.
Fig. 14 shows a three-phase cascaded H-bridge multilevel inverter
proposed for this kind of storage systems [119127]. This structure
consists of a series connection of several storage elements connected to a power converter module. This overcomes the disadvantage of series storage systems like fuel cells: if one of the fuel cells
fails, the system will not work (replacement or an external bypass
is required). As shown in Fig. 14, another advantage of this system
is that it allows for a transformer less energy storage system.
Fig. 15 shows four of the possible converter cell structures.
Fig. 15a shows the rst structure where the energy storage unit
is connected directly to the H-bridge. In this structure, the converter cell generates an AC voltage and at the same time controls
the charge and discharge of the corresponding energy storage unit.
The second structure (Fig. 15b) uses a double-stage scheme. The
half bridge that is connected to the storage unit controls the energy
that charges or discharges the corresponding storage unit. The DC
DC also allows to decouple the DC-link of the inverter to the energy
storage unit allowing the grid side power converter to operate over
a wide modulation index. The third structure (Fig. 15c) uses an
interleaved boost converter that allows reduction of the inductor
current ripple (reducing its core size). Fig. 15d shows the fourth
structure that is based on the dual active bridge. This structure
allows one to obtain galvanic isolation and usage of signicant
lower voltage energy storage units compared with the total DC
AC output voltages. In [128] a fault tolerant control for a battery
energy storage system based on a cascade H-bridge multilevel
inverter is presented. This shows another important feature of
the multilevel converters, since even with a single converter cell
or a battery unit fault, a fault tolerant control allows continuous
operation with the remaining healthy storage units.
The neutral point clamped (NPC) multilevel inverter proposed
by Nabae, Takahashi and Akagi in 1981 [110] was essentially a
three-level diode clamped inverter. However, structures with
extended voltage levels have also been studied and implemented.
This structure uses a series string of capacitors to divide the DC
side voltage into several levels. One of the disadvantages of this
topology is that a charge-balancing control system for the capacitors is required. Fig. 16 shows a single-stage grid connected structure of the NPC and Active Neutral Point Clamped (ANPC) converter
[124,125,129]. Due to the active neutral-point clamped switches,
the ANPC has more than one switching state to generate the zero
output voltage. Thus, using an optimum sequence of switching
states and commutations, better loss distribution among the
devices will be obtained allowing for an higher semiconductor
switch utilization [131]. Storage systems based on the diode
clamped multilevel inverter with a two-stage converter structure
were also proposed by [127] and [132] (Fig. 17a)). In [125] a structure based on the ANPC used to provide a galvanic isolation is
presented (Fig. 17b).
As an alternative topology to the NPC, Meynard and Foch
introduced the ying capacitor multilevel inverter (FC) in 1992
[133]. This structure is similar to the NPC. However, instead of
using clamping diodes, the inverter uses capacitors to divide the
input DC voltage. Fig. 18 shows a three-phase ying capacitor
multilevel inverter used by Trintis [124] to compare the structure
with other multilevel structures in battery energy storage
systems.
Based on the previous multilevel structures, a hybrid converter
was proposed. This structure is called modular multilevel

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Converter
and
Energy
Storage
Building
Block

Power
Converter
and
Energy
Storage
Building
Block

Power
Converter
and
Energy
Storage
Building
Block

Power
Converter
and
Energy
Storage
Building
Block

Power
Converter
and
Energy
Storage
Building
Block

Power
Converter
and
Energy
Storage
Building
Block

Power
Converter
and
Energy
Storage
Building
Block

Power
Converter
and
Energy
Storage
Building
Block

Power
Converter
and
Energy
Storage
Building
Block

Fig. 14. Energy storage system based on the cascade H-bridge multilevel inverter.

(a)

(c)

(b)

(d)

Fig. 15. Converter cell structure: (a) single-stage converter cell; (b) basic double-stage converter cell; (c) interleaved converter cell; and (d) cell using a converter with
isolation.

converter (MMC) based on the combination of the cascade Hbridge converter and the ying capacitor converter. This multilevel
structure was introduced by Marquardt through a patent in 2002
[134]. The structure consists of a series connection of identical
modules based on half-bridge cells and an inductor (Fig. 19). Thus,
this kind of a converter is suitable for medium and high voltage
[135,136]. Due to the modularity of this multilevel structure, the
topology has been examined as an application in medium voltage
battery energy storage systems [126]. Three different possible con-

verter cell structures have been presented [137]. Fig. 20a shows the
structure with the reduced number of active components. The second structure is an extension of the rst one. In this structure
(Fig. 20b) an interleaved boost converter is used, allowing reduction of the inductor current ripple. The third structure (Fig. 20c)
is based on the dual active bridge converter. This solution allows
high efciency and high boost ratios to be achieved.
Multilevel topologies present several advantages. Particularly
the cascaded H-bridge converter structure and the modular

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V. Ferno Pires et al. / Energy Conversion and Management 86 (2014) 453475

w
(a)

(b)

Fig. 16. Energy storage system based on a single stage: (a) NPC; and (b) ANPC.

(a)

(b)

Fig. 17. Energy storage system based on two stages: (a) without galvanic isolation; and (b) with galvanic isolation.

multilevel converter, whose modular structures allows a reduced


manufacturing cost. Other advantages are: the redundant levels
which can be used to increase reliability, a better state of charge
(SOC) of the different storage elements, AC voltages reduced harmonic level and low electromagnetic interference outputs. The
increased cost, due to the increased number of switches, is usually
considered as a disadvantage. Although the voltage rating of these
devices is lower which reduces the cost of the switches. Another
disadvantage is the high ripple present in the storage elements.
Analysing the advantages and disadvantages between the
several multilevel topologies, the CHB and MMC topologies are
characterized by their modular solution and small output lter.
They are also characterized by a good failure management in systems with a high number of cells since allows cell bypass. However
they present some disadvantages like the second harmonic current
ripple on storage cells and high number of devices. The MMC also
presents the disadvantage of circulating current in each phase. The
NPC presents as advantage the high efciency and low cost solution. As disadvantage the unequal loss distribution in devices and
not suitable for high number of levels than three. The ANPC allows
to overcome the problem of the unequal loss distribution in

devices but there is an increased number of components. The FC


presents as advantages the modularity of active devices, requirement of a smaller output lter and a substantial gain in equal loss
distribution. However as drawbacks it presents the size of ying
capacitors and the DC-link capacitor charge controller adds complexity to the control of the all circuit.
The main goals of the control algorithms used in multilevel
power converters are similar than the ones used in the standard
topologies. One the goals is to modulate the multilevel AC voltages
and provides sinusoidal input currents in phase with the grid voltages. The other goal is to control the charge and discharge of the
storage systems and the balance of the DC voltages. The multilevel
operation can be achieved through pulse with modulation (PWM)
strategies. The most used and discussed multilevel PWM methods
have been the selective harmonic elimination (SHE-PWM), the
multilevel carrier-based sinusoidal PWM (SPWM) and the multilevel space-vector PWM (SVM).
Selective harmonic modulation is an off-line (pre-calculated)
non carrier based technique. This method proposed by Patel and
Hoft [130,131], allows to eliminate specic harmonics through the
denition of the switching angles of harmonic orders, but presents

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3.3. Multiport topologies

Fig. 18. Three-level ying capacitor multilevel inverter.

some limitations to quickly react to transients. This technique it is


considered very appropriate for the NPC topology, appropriate for
the ying capacitor topology and undesirable regarding the harmonic reducing or affectivity issues for the cascaded H-bridge converter structure and modular multilevel converter [113].
The SPWM that is the most used and easiest technique to implement, uses several triangle carrier signals and one reference (or
modulation) signal per phase. There are several arrangements for
the triangle carrier signals. In some of the methods it is used carrier
disposition, while other uses the phase shifting of multiple carrier
signals. The main advantage of this technique is the easiness of
implementation. It is also characterized by the reduction of the
switching losses and lter requirements when compared with
some of the other techniques. This technique is very appropriate
for the cascaded H-bridge converter structure. It is also appropriate
for the modular multilevel converter, however there are some
issues that can be considered [137]. Regarding the use of this technique to the NPC topology and the ying capacitor topology, there
are also some issues that must be addressed, especially due to the
balance of the DC capacitors.
The multilevel SVM technique is based the vectorial description
of the switching states of power converters switches. In this technique a sampled reference vector is synthesized by the time average of a number of appropriate switching state vectors. One of the
advantages of the SVM is the instantaneous control of switching
states and the freedom to select vectors in order to balance the
DC link voltage. Another of the features of this technique is the
low current ripple, and relatively easy hardware implementation
by a digital signal processor. The disadvantage of the modulation
technique is that, with the increase number of levels the number
of redundant switching states and the complexity in the selection
of the switching states increase dramatically. Regarding the application of this technique to the various topologies, it is considered
appropriate for the cascaded H-bridge converter structure, NPC
topology and modular multilevel converter. However, it is considered undesirable for the ying capacitor topology. From the point
of view of the electrochemical storage systems charge-balancing,
the CHB and MMC topologies allows for the use of simpler
approaches. The NPC topology provides a higher operating range
and the ability to use fewer batteries with a balancing circuit.
The disadvantage of the NPC topology is the complexity of the control that is required to balance the voltages [127].

Classical power electronic systems usually consist of a switching power converter with the corresponding control system, an
energy source and a load. The power converter allows efcient processing of the electric power from the available energy source to
the load. This power converter is usually known as a two-port converter due to the input port that connects to the energy source and
the output port that connects to the load. However, there are systems that require the energy to be processed from multiple energy
sources or to a multiple load [138141]. Such systems can use two
power electronic structures. The rst structure usually comprises
an intermediate power bus where the multiple sources and/or
loads are connected by two-port converters that are controlled
independently (Fig. 21). The second one consists of a single power
processing stage that has multiple interfacing ports (Fig. 22). The
main advantage of the second structure over the rst one is its
reduced number of stages. Thus, several advantages, such as high
power efciency and power density, lower cost and control simplicity can be achieved. The multiport converter is extremely interesting in systems where energy is harvested from a variety energy
sources in combination with energy storage.
Several multiport topologies have been proposed. Topologies
with and without galvanic isolation have been developed. Fig. 23
shows a topology without a galvanic isolation [138,139]. In this
topology, two of the ports connect the fuel cell and the storage,
and the third port connects the load by a DC-link. This simplest
topology was proposed for hybrid vehicles where high-voltage fuel
cells and a storage are used [138]. A magnetically coupled threeport converter (triple-active bridge converter) is presented in
Fig. 24 [142,143]. In addition to galvanic isolation, this converter
has the advantage of easily matching different port voltage levels
in the overall system. This can be done just by choosing the appropriate numbers of turns for the windings [144]. Leakage inductance
of the transformer is used as the energy transfer element between
ports and the power ow between ports is typically controlled by
the phase shift. Since the leakage inductance of the transformer
could limit the power transfer the additional inductors could be
placed in series with the corresponding windings of the transformer. In [139] a set of three port converters with galvanic isolation are presented. In this work, a set of basic cells used for
constructing multiport bidirectional converters is also proposed.
The full bridges of the topology in Fig. 24 can also be replaced by
half bridges [139]. A multiport topology suitable for applications
using a main source and a storage with low operating voltages
and a need to be boosted were proposed and tested [145]. This
topology integrates a DC-link and a magnetic coupling (Fig. 14).
A simplied scheme of the topology in Fig. 25 was also proposed
[139,146]. In this topology the storage connects directly to the
DC bus (Fig. 26). However, its performance is reduced since the
DC-bus voltage should not vary over a wide range. A topology
where the half bridges of the topology in Fig. 25 were replaced
by full bridges was also proposed [144]. This last topology
(Fig. 27) allows the reduction of the current stress of the switching
devices. A topology where a boost half bridge is used to realize a
current-fed port for the storage device or main source is illustrated
in Fig. 28 (designated as triple-half-bridge bidirectional DC/DC
converter). One of the main advantages of this topology is that it
allows minimization of the ports current ripple [139,147]. A multiport topology for hydrogen-based energy storage with a reduced
number of energy conversion stages was proposed in [148,149].
Multiport converters that use interleaved topologies have also
been proposed. These topologies allow the use of multiport converters in high power applications. Fig. 29 shows a three-port
three-phase interleaved topology proposed in [150]. This circuit
is an extension of the three-port triple-active-bridge converter

V. Ferno Pires et al. / Energy Conversion and Management 86 (2014) 453475

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Energy
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Building Block

Power
Converter and
Energy
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Building Block

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Converter and
Energy
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Building Block

Power
Converter and
Energy
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Power
Converter and
Energy
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Building Block

Power
Converter and
Energy
Storage
Building Block

Power
Converter and
Energy
Storage
Building Block

Power
Converter and
Energy
Storage
Building Block

Power
Converter and
Energy
Storage
Building Block

465

Fig. 19. Energy storage system based on a modular multilevel inverter.

(Fig. 24). Another interleaved topology that is an extension of the


three-port converter with full-bridges combining DC-link and
magnetic coupling (Fig. 27) was also proposed and tested [151].
It consists of a three-phase boost converter connected with the fuel
cell and two three-phase dual active bridge current source ZVS
bidirectional DC/DC converter. The same topology, but comprising
a bidirectional three-phase boost converter (Fig. 30) was presented
in [144].
Multiport topologies present several advantages when compared with the conventional structures: they do not need a DC
bus, the conversion steps are minimized (allowing for a compact
packaging), they present low cost and use a centralized control
approach. The main disadvantages are the control system complexity and high power applications limitation.
The control system of a multiport converter is characterized by
a typical multi-input multi-output (MIMO) structure, where normally the output voltages and source currents are controlled. The
system control variables are the phase shifts and duty cycles. In
this control system there is a power ow management that generates the references for the charge/discharge of the storages. These

references and the system control variables. The control variables


phase shifts and duty cycles are generated by a PI/PID controller
or by a computing unit with the references obtained from the
power ow management. The outputs of these controllers will
set the phase-shifted square waves and PWM control signals that
control the transformer coupled switching cell and the DC-linked
switching cells respectively, through a phase shift and/or PWM
generator [139].
4. Smart storage
Energy storage is not an objective by itself. When and how the
Energy Storage System, ESS, is to charge or to discharge has to be
determined and the strategy or control algorithm to control the
ESS has to be designed for optimizing some target objectives. This
control algorithm operates in a higher level obtaining the reference
variables that will be used latter in the low-level topology-dependant control algorithms used in the power electronic converter
used as interfaces to exchange energy with the grid (this low-level
algorithms have been discussed in previous section).

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(a)

(b)

(c)
Fig. 20. Converter cell structure (a) basic double stage converter cell, (b) interleaved converter cell, and (c) cell using a converter with isolation.

Source 1

Source n

Two-port
converter
Two-port
converter

Load 1

Two-port
converter

Load n

Two-port
converter

Fig. 21. Block diagram of a system structure with multiple two-port converters.

DC-link
Source 1
Load 1
Multi-port
Source n

load

converter
Load n

fuel
cell

storage

Fig. 23. Three-port converter with a DC-link.


Fig. 22. Block diagram of the multiport system structure.

ESS has been widely used in Distributed Energy Generation Systems, DEGS, mainly as batteries in photovoltaic installations, to
guarantee the power during the off-generation intervals [49]. Nowadays, most of these photovoltaic installations are connected to the
grid (Fig. 31 [152]) and the algorithms to control the ESS are
becoming more sophisticated, resulting in systems that are no
longer named battery management systems but Energy Management Systems (EMS) that can be called Smart Storage if they are
coordinated with the electric grid status. Some of these systems

are no longer associated with renewable energies, and are connected to specic parts of the grid or consumer installations.
There are commercial solutions already in the market to manage the energy on a house, coordinating generation and storage
as, for example, the Home Energy Management System, HEMS,
shown in Fig. 32. This type of EMS could be used without any DEGS
to smooth the consuming curve or even control the energy consumption depending on its price-by-hour, or even they could not
have any ESS to work as an Energy Gateway. In a near future,
EMS can integrate easily the electrical vehicle home chargers into
the distribution grid.

V. Ferno Pires et al. / Energy Conversion and Management 86 (2014) 453475

467

fuel
cell

load

fuel
cell

storage

storage

Fig. 24. Three-port triple-active-bridge converter.


Fig. 28. Triple-half-bridge bidirectional DC/DC converter.

load
fuel
cell

storage

Fig. 25. Three-port converter combining DC-link and magnetic coupling.

storage
load
fuel
cell

Fig. 26. Three-port converter where the storage connects directly to the DC bus.

load
storage
fuel
cell
Fig. 27. Three-port converter with full bridges combining DC-link and magnetic
coupling.

In [154] the benets of an ESS for domestic users, Fig. 33a, are
analyzed from the point of view of its aggregate effect in a grid,
Fig. 33b. The two main objectives of an energy-balanced management for User-Mode Networks (UMNs) introduced in this work

are energy reliability and efciency. The energy reliability of a network refers to the assurance of an uninterrupted energy distribution to all consumer elements. The energy demand and
generation of a practical network are supposed to uctuate instantaneously and spatially, and this makes the energy reliability issue
the rst priority of network management. A UMN has to ensure
uninterrupted energy delivery to all end users over a specic time
period. This is called the energy assurance period (EAP). The second
priority of the UMN is energy efciency, which is achieved by generation from renewable sources and the self-supporting operation
of the grid (the islanded operation of micro-grids). The self-supporting approach is based on the local generation and consumption
of energy, where the cost of energy is reduced by decreasing losses
in energy transport and the costs of maintenance and management
operations for the sake of the localized service.
When planning to use ESS in sustainable communities, the following key issues have to be taken into account [155]: the degree
and scale of energy autonomy; matching demand with supply; the
importance of socio-economic and political factors; and the energy
autonomy in island and remote communities. It is usually needed
to manipulate the energy demand, known as Demand Side Management (DSM), and it involves the use of a range of techniques
(illustrated in Fig. 34) to improve the match between supply and
demand, and to reduce overall energy demand.
Fostering of DSM and demand response programs is a crucial
application area for Information and Communication Technologies,
ICT, in distribution grids [156, 157]. It is of vital interest for Distribution System Operators, DSO, to know about the actual grid load
and to reshape it if it imperils grid stability. Various price- and
incentive-based demand response programmes have been developed (Fig. 35).
To improve the performance of the ESS when it is associated
with a renewable generation system, some kind of prediction of
the generated power is needed [158].
The benets of ESS for a future smart grid at the distribution
level described in [159] (or for a micro-grid [142]) can be applied
in the following areas:
 Voltage control: support a heavily loaded feeder, provide power
factor correction, reduce the need to constrain DGES, minimize
on-load tap changer (OLTC) operations, and mitigate icker,
sags and swells.
 Power ow management: redirect power ows, delay network
reinforcement, reduce reverse power ows, minimize losses.

468

V. Ferno Pires et al. / Energy Conversion and Management 86 (2014) 453475

fuel
cell

load

storage

Fig. 29. Three-port three-phase interleaved topology as an extension of Fig. 23 topology.

load
storage

fuel
cell

Fig. 30. Three-port three-phase interleaved topology as an extension of Fig. 26 topology.

Fig. 31. Scheme of a grid connected photovoltaic installation with a lithium-ion battery system for homes and small stores [137].

 Restoration: assist voltage control and power ow management


in a post-fault recongured network.
 Energy market: arbitrage, balancing market, reduce DGES variability, increase DGES yield from non-rm connections, replace
spinning reserve.
 Commercial/regulatory: assist in compliance with energy security standard (ERP2/6), reduce customer minutes lost (a GB regulatory incentive designed to improve the quality of service),
reduce generator curtailment.
 Network management: assist islanded networks, support black
starts, switch ESS between alternative feeders at a normally
open point.
In [159] ESS is located at a normally open point between two
feeders (Fig. 36) because it allows multiple events to be tackled

on multiple networks. Events are dened by type, threshold, location and action. Four event types are considered: over-voltage,
under-voltage, over-power and reverse-power-ow. The authors
found that benets greater than the sum of the parts have been
accrued across the dened control objectives. In conclusion, a single device operating to improve conditions on two networks was
developed that is more effective than two devices working in isolated networks.
The use of decentralized energy storage presents several benets when included in the actual grid [161]. Stakeholders in the
market for decentralized electricity storage have several costs
and benets, as indicated in Fig. 37 taken from [160].
There are different strategies for optimizing the operation of
ESS. Some of them are: design for minimizing the cost of the
energy consumed, considering that as in [162], the price of the

V. Ferno Pires et al. / Energy Conversion and Management 86 (2014) 453475

469

Fig. 32. Home Energy Management System (HEMS) proposed by Panasonic [153].

Fig. 33. (a) Appliance scheme of a fully functional end-user model that can consume, generate, and store energy domestically. (b) A representation of a tree-like node
hierarchy of a User-Mode Network in the three node levels. Generated energy ows upward and energy ow for consumption is downward [154].

Fig. 34. The various DSM techniques and their impact on demand proles.

energy depends on the time interval of the day and the objective
function is the payment function (PC) calculated as

PC

X
Trh  Eh

h2H

where H is the total interval of the time considered (composed by


N h-intervals), Trh is the price of energy (/kW h) in the interval of
time h, and Eh is the energy consumed during this period. Usually,
the energy consumed in any period h depends on the consumption
of non-schedule appliances, on the consumption of schedulable
appliances, and on the ESS energy charge or discharge. This work
solved the cost function optimization to show the benets of having
ESS in a house where two groups of appliances exist (depending on
whether they are able or unable to schedule). This optimization
problem could be solved using conventional algorithms or a new
approach as, for example, fuzzy control and particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithms [163,164].
Also, ESS could prevent power consumption overpass an active
power limit (that could be established depending on the price of

the energy) as the case proposed in Fig. 38. Reports in [165] solve
this problem by using a system to re-schedule some selected appliances not to overpass this limit, but that could be solved also by
employing an ESS. By combining the ESS with a re-scheduling appliance system, a lower ESS energy storage capacity is needed. It could
also be applied for other control goals, for instance, to maximize the
comfort index using minimum power consumption [166].
The presence of ESS allows establishing multi-objective optimization algorithms that optimize the energy ux. This energy ux
optimization is illustrated in Fig. 39 for a Green house that has
renewable energy resources, and achieves a reduction of the overall daily cost greater than 50% [167].
In [168,169] a similar analysis is described, but in this case it is
done at the distribution grid level and using Electrical Vehicles (EV)
as ESS in the grid (Vehicle to Grid, V2G). The objective is to minimize the energy production cost, assuming that prices of generated
energy depend on the interval of time, as well as on the price of the
energy charged or discharged in the EV, considering also that the
energy could be transferred from an ESS to other ESS (Fig. 40).

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V. Ferno Pires et al. / Energy Conversion and Management 86 (2014) 453475

Fig. 35. Role of demand response in electrical system planning and operations ordered by the time frame of their application [142,143].

Fig. 36. Field trial network diagram described in [159], showing two feeders and location of ESS at the normally open point. The position of a wind farm on Feeder 1A is
indicated by the letter G.

The grid resources are managed by a Virtual Power Player (VPP)


that establishes contracts with resource owners, including V2G
users. The problem formulation considers several V2G discharge
price steps, according to the actual battery level, in order to guarantee fair discharge remuneration preventing unnecessary battery
deterioration. Full AC power ow calculation is included in the
scheduling model allowing considering network constraints,
namely line thermal limits and voltage magnitude and angle limits.
The investment costs associated with different ESS technologies
[170] can also be taken into account.

When using EV as ESS, new constraints have to be included in


the optimization algorithm [142,171]:
 Charging and discharging processes must meet the vehicles
energy needs for daily trips.
 battery state-of-charge (SOC) in each hour: this constraint
keeps track of the SOC of each EV in each hour by subtracting
from the SOC of the previous hour the energy discharged into
the grid or the energy used in transport (the battery SOC cannot
be under 10% or over 90% of the battery energy capacity).

V. Ferno Pires et al. / Energy Conversion and Management 86 (2014) 453475

471

Fig. 37. Key stakeholders in the market for decentralized electricity storage and their private costs and benets [160].

Fig. 38. Typical residential load prole where an active power threshold is applied.

 The maximum power that an EV type of use can charge and discharge for a certain state is limited by the maximum charge and
discharge of the individual battery times the number of EVs in
that state. It is also taken into account by the model that an
EV cannot charge and discharge at the same hour.
 The maximum power that each EV can charge/discharge during
one hour is constrained by the amount of energy stored in the
battery.
 Bound on hourly charging and discharging ramps.
5. Discussion
ESS for application in Electric Systems is a key issue to be solved
for achieving the Electric Systems of the Future. The available
Energy Storage technology do not allow to achieve all the desirable
characteristic of a system for being applying in the Electric Grid, so
nowadays it is require to hybridize two or more technologies.
Usually, two are the main points of view applied when designing an ESS. In one hand the Energy characteristics should be full,

dening mainly the energy storage capacity (in kW h), selecting a


technology with high energy density and low cost per kW h. Batteries are the most commonly used and an important effort is
doing for improving their characteristics, mainly through the
development of new materials (Li-ion batteries and REDOX systems). On the other hand, the ESS should also have a good power
characteristics, being able to accept or supply power peaks, for this
purpose supercapacitors seems to be a good option (compared
with other possibilities, as ywheels for example) but the technology is still incipient and should be improved by developing new
materials and by decreasing the cost in order to made them economically viable.
In a second step, for optimizing the ESS size and operation, the
power converter that charges and discharges the system should be
designed properly. It must have the right topology for achieving
the required performance. If batteries are used, equalization problems must be taken into account, even more if they are based on
Li-ion technologies that could cause explosion if they are badly
managed. Multiport topologies could be an option being to manage

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V. Ferno Pires et al. / Energy Conversion and Management 86 (2014) 453475

Fig. 39. (a) Electrical energy management (absence of energy storage), and (b) optimal electrical energy control (presence of energy storage) [167].

Fig. 40. Structure of the PowerACE model presented in [169].

different Energy Storage technologies and even various battery


cells. The selected topology should also allow to use all the Energy
Storage Capacity, for example, most of the power converter topologies used for controlling supercapacitors do not work properly if
the supercapacitor voltage is bellow the half of its nominal value,
so 25% of the energy stored in the supercapacitor cannot be used.
Finally, when the ESS and the power converter are selected, it is
necessary to establish the operation strategy of the whole system,
when integrated in the application, as well as it is stationary or
mobile as it is isolated or connected to the grid.
Several are the criteria that could condition the operation strategies of ESS. A criterion at the present could be related with the
grid capacity for integrating renewable energies is limited because
of its unmanageable operation that depends highly of weather conditions. To increase the percentage of renewable energies that
could be integrated in the grid an ESS should be associated with
the generation installation in order to guarantee that power
uctuations are avoided.

Nowadays, researchers are studying the possibilities that ESS


(even if they are not commercially available at big scale) for optimizing the electrical consume and generation and for improving
energy efciency. The idea is that a world of new opportunities
for managing the grid will be possible if ESS are placed into the
grid. New opportunities are related with the denition of new optimization criteria related with the decreasing of cost, consumption
and losses mainly by coordinating the distributed generation and
the electric consumption thought the use of the new possibilities
granted by Information and Telecommunications technologies.
6. Conclusions
Energy storage for the support of electrical systems has become
a highly researched area. Among the storage systems, the electrochemical energy storage system is one of the important technologies. To interconnect these systems to the electrical network, it is
required to use power electronic interfaces. Various power

V. Ferno Pires et al. / Energy Conversion and Management 86 (2014) 453475

electronic converters for the interface between the electrochemical


energy storage system and the electrical network have been
described. These power converters are divided into standard, multilevel and multiport technology. They are also subdivided into a
single and a double stage. The standard technology is the simplest
structure. In this technology the topologies based on the VSI, the
AC output voltage cannot exceed the DC-link voltage. To overcome
the limitations and problems of the traditional VSI, Z-source inverter and quasi-Z-source inverters have been proposed. These topologies provide boost function with shoot-through immunity that is
not forbidden. Single stage topologies require low device count,
low cost and reduced losses. In the two-stage interface converter,
the DC/DC stage boosts the DC voltage to the suitable level so that
the inverter stage can be directly interfaced to the low voltage grid.
In this conguration several DC/DC stages can also be used to controlling different energy sources. Due to this, the two-stage conguration also presents the advantage of control independently each
energy source and exhibits an increased reliability. However, multilevel technology allows the synthesis of a desired AC voltage from
a multiple electrochemical energy storage systems (DC sources). It
is also the best solution for medium voltage applications. The most
widely used and common topologies are the cascaded H-bridge
multilevel inverter, the neutral point clamped multilevel inverter,
the ying capacitor multilevel inverter and the modular multilevel
converter. This multilevel technology presents advantages such as
their modularity, lowering manufacturing costs and high reliability. The multiport technology is used for multiple sources and/or
loads. It consists of a single power processing stage that has multiple interfacing ports. This allows removing redundant power
stages that exists in the other topologies that uses multiple converters. Thus, the multiport technology presents the advantage of
centralized control and compact packaging. One of the important
areas that storage system plays an important role is in the context
of the distributed energy generation systems and in the smart storage concept. The smart storage concept and the interface requirements to integrate the electrochemical energy storage devices
upon this concept were also reviewed.
Acknowledgements
This work was partial technical supported by the Estonian Ministry of Education and Research under Project SF0140016s11 and
by the Estonian Science Foundation under Grants ETF8538 and
ETF8687.
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