Reducing electrical losses in buildings: a study of load-side dc/dc converter topologies for low-power appliances

Paper in proceeding, 2023

Electrical losses in buildings occur from power transfers in the cabling and voltage conversions. The latter is either from stepping up and down in voltage or switching between ac and dc. This work targets the load–side dc/dc converter for low–power residential appliances. Two dc/dc converter topologies are presented and compared with conventional products. The efficiency characteristics of the converters are measured in the laboratory and modelled for two applied cases: a single–family residential building and an office building. The annual losses per appliance and converter type are modelled for the two case studies based on measured power profiles from typical building appliances and the efficiency characteristics. The results highlight the necessity to account for the efficiency at partial converter loading and the increased performance from the suggested topologies designed in this work. Compared to the market reference, annual loss reductions of 24–76% are achieved from the converter designs in this work.