Size comparison between a half bridge converter with an AICS and a two-stage boost converter operating in a narrow input voltage range

This paper deals with a comparison of the size and the cost of two different approaches to meet low frequency current harmonies IEC 1000-3-2 regulations in a power range between 100 W and 1000 W. The first approach is the use of a PFC boost converter with a 400 V output voltage as a front-end stage and a half bridge converter as a second stage. The other approach is the use of a single stage converter (in this case, a half bridge converter with an active input current shaper, AICS). The input voltage range is the European voltage range (190 V-265 V). In general, the size and the cost of the single stage solution is lower than the size and the cost of the two stage solution for the whole power range. However, the cost ratio becomes smaller as the power increases and, therefore, for the upper side of the power range the two stage solution may be the most interesting one. Two 100 W prototypes have been built in order to compare the overall performance of both topologies and check the theoretical results.