Generalization and Operation of Switched-Capacitor Based Multi-Input Extendable Boosting Multilevel Inverter

Multisource switched-capacitor multilevel inverters are often considered as ideal topologies for renewable energy systems with multiple DC sources. However, they come with some significant drawbacks, including the need for a large number of power semiconductors and capacitors, as well as a low boosting factor for a higher number of voltage levels. These factors can complicate control, reduce overall system performance, and increase cost. This article proposes a generalized multi-source multilevel inverter with fewer components, low voltage stress, and high gain. The input DC sources are dispersed in binary pattern and the capacitors are charged for several instances of a fundamental cycle, thus ensuring sensor-less operation. The proposed inverter offers flexibility in terms of the number of required voltage sources, capacitors and their combination to generate higher voltage levels. Detailed comparison are shown to highlight the advantages of the proposed topology such as reduced number of capacitors, semiconductor devices, low voltage stress, and high boosting gain over reported multilevel inverters. Finally, the theoretical verification is carried out through MATLAB and PLECS based simulation for grid-connected operation and the experimental results obtained using laboratory prototype are presented to validate the practicability of the proposed topologies.