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Abstract :- The increasing growth in the use of electronic currents rich in third harmonic currents. Therefore, the
equipment in recent years has resulted in a greater need to reduction in input current harmonics and the improvement of
ensure that the line current harmonic content of any power factor operation of motor drives are necessary for
equipment connected to the ac mains is limited to meet energy saving. Many methods have been proposed to solve the
regulatory standards. This requirement is usually satisfied problem of a poor power factor, which can be classified as
by incorporating some form of Power Factor Correction active and passive methods.
(PFC) circuits to shape the input phase currents, so that The non-ideal character of these input currents creates a
they are sinusoidal in nature and are in phase with the number of problems for the power distribution network and
input phase voltages. There are multiple solutions in which for other electrical apparatuses in the neighborhood of the
line current is sinusoidal. This paper provides a concise rectifier systems. This approach has many disadvantages,
review of the most interesting passive and active circuits of including:
power factor correction, for single phase and low power 1) High-input harmonic current components.
applications.The major advantages and disadvantages are 2) Low rectifier efficiency due to large rms value of the input
highlighted. current.
3) Input ac mains voltage distortion because of the associated
Keywords: Converter, Power factor correction, Harmonic peak currents.
currents. 4)Maximum input power factor is approximately 0.6, while a
larger filter inductor is required for a high-input power
1. INTRODUCTION factor [4].
Unless some correction circuit is used, the input rectifier
Power factor correction (PFC) is necessary for ac-to-dc
with a capacitive filter circuit will draw pulsating currents
converters in order to comply with the requirements of
from the utility grid, resulting in poor power quality and high
international standards, such as IEC 61000–3–2 and IEEE-
harmonic contents that adversely affect other users. The
519. PFC can reduce the harmonics in the line current,
situation has drawn the attention of regulatory bodies around
increase the efficiency and capacity of power systems, and
the world. Governments are tightening regulation, setting new
reduce customer’s utility bill [1-2].
specifications for low harmonic currents, and restricting the
Single phase diode rectifiers are widely used for industrial
amount of harmonic currents that can be generated. As a
applications. Many conventional switching power supplies in
result, there is a need for a reduction in line harmonics current
data processing equipment and low power motor drive
necessitating the need for power factor correction (PFC) and
systems operate by rectifying the input ac line voltage and
harmonic reduction circuits [5].
filtering with large electrolytic capacitors. The capacitor draws
current in short pulses. This introduces several problems 2. DEFINITION OF POWER FACTOR
including reduction in the available power and increase losses.
This process involves both nonlinear and storage elements, Power factor (PF) is defined as the ratio of the real power
and results in the generation of harmonics in the line current (P) to apparent power (S), or cosine (for pure sine wave for
[3-5] .The non linear characteristics of loads such as both current and voltage) the phase angle between the current
televisions, computers, faxes and variable speed motor drives and voltage waveforms.
(used in air-conditioning) have made harmonic distortion in
electrical distribution systems. However, when operating in PF = Real Power / Apparent Power (1)
large numbers, the cumulative effect of these loads has the
capability of causing serious harmonic distortions. This results Real power (watts) produces real work; this is the energy
in a poor power quality, voltage distortion, poor power factor transfer component . Reactive power is the power required to
at input ac mains, slowly varying rippled dc output at load end produce the magnetic fields (lost power) to enable the real
and low efficiency [3]. work to be done, where apparent power is considered the total
The input current has narrow pulses which in turn increase power that the power company supplies. This total power is
its r.m.s value. Buildings with a large number of computers the power supplied through the power mains to produce the
and data processing equipments also experience large neutral required amount of real power.
217
If both current and voltage are sinusoidal and in phase,
the power factor is 1.0. If both are sinusoidal but not in phase,
the power factor is the cosine of the phase angle. In
elementary courses in electricity, this is sometimes taught as
the definition of the power factor, but it applies only in the
special case, where both the current and voltage are pure sine
waves. This occurs when the load is composed of resistive,
capacitive and inductive elements and all are linear (invariant
with current and voltage).
1 (7)
K d =
2
⎛ THD (%) ⎞
1+ ⎜ ⎟
⎝ 100 ⎠
Therefore, when the fundamental component of the input
current is in phase with the input voltage, Kθ = 1. Then we
have,
Fig. 2- Input Characteristics of a typical switched-mode power supply without PF = K d K θ = K d (8)
PFC
Then:
218
(9)
400
2
⎛ THD (%) ⎞ 200
1 + ⎜ ⎟
⎝ 100 ⎠
100
0
The purpose of the power factor correction circuit is to
-100
minimize the input current distortion and make the current in
-200
phase with the voltage. -300
When the power factor is not equal to 1, the current waveform -400
does not follow the voltage waveform. This result not only in 0.84 0.845 0.85 0.855
(b)
0.86 0.865 0.87 0.875 0.88
power losses, but may also cause harmonics that travel down Fig. 5- Rectifier with AC-side inductor: a) Schematic; b) Line voltage and line
the neutral line and disrupt other devices connected to the line. current with V1=220Vrms , resistive load R=500Ω , Cf=470μF , and
La=130mH.
3. POWER FACTOR CORRECTION CIRCUITS
Simulated results of the rectifier with AC-side inductor are
The classification of single-phase PFC topologies is presented in Fig. 5(b), where the inductance La has been
shown in Fig. 4. chosen to maximize the power factor. The line current has
The diode bridge rectifier (similar to Fig. 1) has no Kd=0.888, cos φ=0.855 and PF=0.759 [7].
sinusoidal line current. This is because most loads require a
supply voltage V2 with low ripple, which is obtained by using 3.1.2. Rectifier with DC-side inductor
a correspondingly large capacitance of the output capacitor Cf The inductor can be also placed at the DC-side, as shown
. Consequently, the conduction intervals of the rectifier diodes in Fig.6. (a) [8]. The inductor current is continuous for a large
are short and the line current consists of narrow pulses with an enough inductance Ld . In the theoretical case of near infinite
important harmonic contents [8]. inductance, the inductor current is constant, so the input
There are several methods to reduce the harmonic current of the rectifier has a square shape and the power factor
contents of the line current in single-phase systems. is 0.9 . However, operation close to this condition would
require a very large inductor, as illustrated by the simulated
line current waveform, for Ld 1H (without Ca), shown in
Fig. 6 (b). For lower inductance Ld, the inductor current
becomes discontinuous. The maximum power factor that can
be obtained in such a case is 0.76, the operating mode being
identical to the case of the AC-side inductor, which is
previously discussed. An improvement of the power factor can
be obtained by adding the capacitor Ca as shown in Fig. 6.
(a), which compensates the displacement factor, cos φ. A
design for Kd and unity displacement factor cos φis possible,
leading to a maximum obtainable power factor 0.905 [9]. This
is shown in Fig.6 (b) by the simulated line current for Ld
275mH and Ca 4.8µF.
(b)
Fig. 6- Rectifier with DC-side inductor: a) Schematic; b) Line voltage and line
current with V1=220Vrms , resistive load R=500Ω and Cf=470μF.
(a)
219
In Figure 6, With Ld=1H and without Ca , the line current 400
Line Voltage
300
has Kd=0.897, cos φ=0.935 and PF=0.839, and output voltage Line Current
200
is V2=200V. With Ld=275mH and with Ca =4.8 μF, the line
100
current has Kd=0.905 , cos φ=0.999 and PF=0.904, and output 0
voltage is V2=230V. -100
-200
3.1.3. Rectifier with series-resonant band-pass filter -300
100
-100
-200
-300
-400
0.84 0.845 0.85 0.855 0.86 0.865 0.87 0.875 0.88
(b) (a)
Fig. 7- Rectifier with series-resonant band-pass filter: a) Schematic; b) Line
voltage and line current with V1=220Vrms, resistive load R=500Ω , 400
Cf=470μF, Ls=1.5H and Cs=6.75 μF. 300 Line Voltage Line Current
200
The line current has Kd=0.993, cos φ=0.976 and PF=0.969, 100
-100
-300
220
input current, while only a limited reduction of the harmonic obtained. However, the overall power factor PF is always less
currents can be obtained [12]. than 0.7. In Ref. [14], the inductance Ld and firing angleαare
In Fig.10, with V1=220Vrms, resistive load R=500Ω , chosen to maximize Kd. This implies a lagging displacement
Cf=470μF, C1=40 μF and Ld=10mH ; The line current has factor, cosφ that is compensated by additional an input
Kd=0.794, cos φ=0.998 and PF=0.792, and output voltage is capacitance, Ca . This approach is similar to that used for the
V2=300V. diode bridge rectifier with a DC-side inductor. This solution
offers controllable output voltage, it is simple, reliable, and
uses low-cost thyristors. On the negative side, the output
voltage regulation is slow and a relatively large inductance Ld
is still required.
The low-frequency switching Boost converter is shown in
Fig.11. (c). The active switch S is turned on for the duration
Ton , as illustrated in Fig.11. (d), to enlarge the conduction
(a) interval of the rectifier diodes [2]. It is also possible to have
multiple switching per half line-cycle, at low switching
400
Line Voltage Line Current frequency, in order to improve the shape of the line current
[15]. Nevertheless, the line current has a considerable ripple
300
200
100
content.
0
The low-frequency switching Buck converter is shown in
-100 Fig.11.(e). Theoretically, the inductor current is constant for a
-200 near-infinite inductance Ld . The switch is turned on for the
-300 duration Ton and the on-time intervals are symmetrical with
-400
0.84 0.845 0.85 0.855 0.86 0.865 0.87 0.875 0.88 respect to the zero-crossings of the line voltage, as illustrated
(b) in Fig.11. (f). The line current shape is square, with adjustable
Fig. 10- Rectifier with an additional inductor, capacitor and diode (LCD): a) duty-cycle. For lower harmonic contents of the line current,
Schematic; b) Line voltage and line current. multiple switching per line-cycle can be used. However, the
required inductance Ld is large and impractical [16].
Passive methods of power factor correction have certain To conclude, low-frequency switching PFC offers the
advantages, such as simplicity, reliability and ruggedness, possibility to control the output voltage within certain limits.
insensitivity to noise and surges, no generation of high- In such circuits, switching losses and high-frequency EMI are
frequency electro magnetic interface (EMI) and no high negligible. However, the reactive elements are large and the
frequency switching losses. On the other hand, they also have regulation of the output voltage is slow.
several drawbacks. Solutions based on filters are heavy and
bulky, because the line-frequency reactive components are
used. They also have a poor dynamic response, lack voltage
regulation and the shape of their input current depends on the
load. Even though line current harmonics are reduced, the
fundamental component may show an excessive phase shift
that reduces the power factor. Moreover, circuits based on
resonant networks are sensitive to the line-frequency. In
harmonic trap filters, series-resonance is used to attenuate a (a)
specific harmonic. However, parallel-resonance at different
frequencies occurs too, which can amplify other harmonics
[11].
(e)
(c)
(f)
Fig. 11- Low frequency active circuits of PFC: a) Controlled rectifier with
DC-side inductor, with b) phase-control; c) Boost converter, with d) one
commutation per half line-cycle; e) Buck converter, with f) one commutation
per half line-cycle.
(d)
3.2.2. HIGH-FREQUENCY ACTIVE METHODS OF
PFC
(f)
(a) Fig. 12- high-frequency active circuits of PFC: a) Buck converter, with b)
waveforms; c) Boost converter, with d) waveforms; e) Buck-Boost converter,
with f) waveforms.
222
The converters are shown in Fig. 12 together with a similar manner of the Buck-Boost converter. Another
waveforms relevant for a PFC application, assuming operation positive aspect is that, due to its non-inverted output voltage,
in CICM. the voltage stress of the switches is lower than in a Buck-
Boost converter. However, this topology has an increased
Buck Converter: number of switches, which leads to higher cost and conduction
The Buck converter, shown in Fig. 12 (a), has a step- losses.
down conversion ratio. Therefore, it is possible to obtain an
output voltage V2 lower than the input voltage (V1 ). However,
the converter can operate only when the instantaneous input
voltage v1 is higher than the output voltage V2. Hence, the line
current of a power factor correction based on a Buck converter
has crossover distortions, as illustrated in Fig. 12 (b).
Moreover, the input current of the converter is discontinuous.
Consequently, even in CICM, the input current has a
significant high-frequency component that increases EMI and
filter is required. Some PFC applications based on this
topology are reported in Ref [17-18].
Fig. 13- Two- switches Buck- Boost converter
Boost Converter:
The boost converter, is the most common topology used PWM rectifier:
for power factor correction, and it can operate in two modes – Another non-isolated PFC topology is the PWM rectifier
continuous conduction mode (CCM) and discontinuous [24-25], shown in Fig. 14. The topology in Ref [24] can
conduction mode (DCM). The Boost converter is shown in supply the step-up or step-down outputs like the buck-boost
Fig. 12 (c). It has a step-up conversion ratio; hence the output circuit. A full-bridge PWM rectifier in Ref [25] provides the
voltage V2 is always higher than the input voltage V1. step-up output. The PWM rectifier circuit needs two [24] or
Operation is possible throughout the line-cycle, so the input four [25] power switches to achieve the unity power factor,
current does not have crossover distortions. As illustrated in because it employs a half- or full-bridge configuration. It also
Fig. 12 (d), the input current is continuous. Hence, an input needs more complicated control than the boost topology.
current with reduced high-frequency content can be obtained
when operating in CICM. For medium and higher power
applications, where the input filter requirements dominate the
size of the magnetic elements, the CCM boost converter is a
better choice, due to lower peak current (which reduces
conduction losses) and lower ripple current (which reduces
input filter requirements and inductor AC losses). For these
reasons, the Boost converter operating in CICM is widely used
for PFC [19-22]. Fig. 14- PWM rectifier
Buck-Boost Converter: The use of active techniques of PFC results in one or more
The Buck-Boost converter, shown in Fig. 12 (e), can of the following advantages:
operate either as a step-down or a step-up converter. This • Lower harmonic contents in the input current in
means that the output voltage V2 can be higher or lower than comparison to the passive techniques.
the amplitude V1 of the input voltage, which gives freedom in • Reduced r.m.s current rating of the output filter capacitor.
specifying the output voltage. Operation is possible • Unity power factor is possible to achieve.
throughout the line-cycle and a sinusoidal line current can be
• For higher power levels, active techniques of PFC will
obtained. However, the output voltage is inverted, which
result in size, weight and cost benefits over passive
translates into higher voltage stress for the switch. Moreover,
techniques of PFC.
similar to the Buck converter, the input current is
discontinuous with significant high-frequency contents, as
4. CONCLUSIONS
illustrated in Fig. 12 (f). Thus, the input current has a
significant high-frequency component that increases EMI and
As we have seen, conventional AC rectification is a very
filtering requirements [7].
inefficient process, resulting from a waveform distortion of the
current drawn from the power line. It produces a large
In addition to these basic converters, the two switches
spectrum of harmonic signals that may disturb other
Buck - Boost converter shown in Fig. 13 [23] is an interesting
equipments.
solution. It operates as a Buck converter when the input
It is concluded that the harmonics may be reduced and the
voltage is higher than the output voltage and as a Boost
supply can be mad more efficient by additional circuits at the
converter when the input voltage is lower than the output
input of the converter.
voltage. Therefore, operation is possible throughout the line-
Many solutions for ac-dc power factor correction have
cycle and the output voltage can be varied in a wide range, in
been discussed. Examples have been provided for passive
223
techniques. Passive power factor correction circuits have (Technical Acoustics), Sidi Bel Abbes University, Algeria, 2005.
Available at:http://ejta.org/en/benaissa1
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