A large air-gap capacitive power transfer system with a 4-plate capacitive coupler structure for electric vehicle charging applications

Hua Zhang, Fei Lu, Heath Hofmann, Weiguo Liu, Chris Mi

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contributionpeer-review

27 Scopus citations

Abstract

This paper proposes a compact 4-plate capacitive coupler structure for large-air-gap capacitive power transfer (CPT). An LCL-compensated circuit topology is applied at both the primary and secondary sides to resonate with the power transmitting plates. The resonance boosts the voltage on the plates to kV levels to increase the power capacity of the CPT system. On each side, the two plates are aligned vertically with a small distance between them to provide a large coupling capacitance, which can eliminate the need for an external capacitor. An equivalent circuit model of the 4-plate coupler is presented to simplify the design process of the system parameters. Finite Element Analysis (FEA) is used to determine the coupler capacitance. The leakage electric field is also simulated at high power to demonstrate the potential safety issues. A 2.2kW input power CPT system is designed and implemented, which can achieve a dc-dc efficiency of 85.87% at a 150 mm air-gap distance. This study demonstrates that the CPT system is also a solution to electric vehicle charging applications.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publication2016 IEEE Applied Power Electronics Conference and Exposition, APEC 2016
PublisherInstitute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc.
Pages1726-1730
Number of pages5
ISBN (Electronic)9781467383936
DOIs
StatePublished - 10 May 2016
Event31st Annual IEEE Applied Power Electronics Conference and Exposition, APEC 2016 - Long Beach, United States
Duration: 20 Mar 201624 Mar 2016

Publication series

NameConference Proceedings - IEEE Applied Power Electronics Conference and Exposition - APEC
Volume2016-May

Conference

Conference31st Annual IEEE Applied Power Electronics Conference and Exposition, APEC 2016
Country/TerritoryUnited States
CityLong Beach
Period20/03/1624/03/16

Keywords

  • 4-Plate structure
  • capacitive power transfer (CPT)
  • coupler structure
  • electric vehicle (EV) charging
  • large air-gap
  • wireless power transfer (WPT)

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