The ever lasting quest for high power density solutions to power conversion systems, has recently yielded intriguing new engineering ideas and conversion topologies. Most if not all of these, hinge on the theoretical prediction that the size of magnetic components and capacitors should decrease as the conversion frequency is increased. Unfortunately, as many designers have learned the hard way,...

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In this proceeding, we use optical modeling and detailed balance analysis to predict the limiting efficiency of nanostructured silicon solar cells based on vertically-aligned nanowire and nanohole arrays. We first use the scattering matrix method to study broadband optical absorption. By incorporating the calculated optical absorption into a detailed balance analysis, we obtain the limiting sho...

In addition to greenhouse gas emissions, coastal thermal power plants would gain further opposition due to their heat rejection distressing the local ecosystem. Therefore, these plants need to enhance their thermal efficiency while reducing their environmental offense. In this study, a hybrid plant based on the principle of Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion was coupled to a 740 MW coal-fired powe...

The resonant power conversion having many advantages over conventionally adopted pulse width modulation that includes a high efficiency, low electromagnetic interference, small volume, low switching losses, and light weight of components due to a high switching frequency, and low reverse recovery losses in diodes owing to a low di/dt at switching instant. This paper presents the doubly loaded r...

As demands for energy savings have increased in recent years, inverters are being used in a wider range of applications. Demands for lower cost, smaller size and higher efficiency will continue to further expand the range of inverter applications. However, as a trend toward eco-friendly products increases, some sort of measure is necessary to suppress the harmonics contained in the inverter inp...

In this work, the dry reforming of methane was studied using a corona and gliding discharge plasma microreactors. A chemical kinetic model was developed to describe the experimental behavior observed. The kinetic model is proposed based on the assumption that the reactant molecules CH4 or CO2 are attacked by active species produced b...

We report on the observation of high-efficiency frequency doubling of 1550 nm continuous-wave laser light in a nonlinear cavity containing a periodically poled potassium titanyl phosphate crystal (PPKTP). The fundamental field had a power of 1.10 W and was converted into 1.05 W at 775 nm, yielding a total external conversion efficiency of 95±1%. The latter value is based on the measured depleti...

In wind turbine control, maximum power point tracking (MPPT) control is the main control mode for partial-load regimes. Efficiency potentiation of energy conversion and power smoothing are both two important control objectives in partial-load regime. However, on the one hand, low power fluctuation signifies inefficiency of energy conversion. On the other hand, enhancing efficiency may increase ...

A novel high step-up dc–dc converter for fuel cell energy conversion is presented in this paper. The proposed converter utilizes a multiwinding coupled inductor and a voltage doubler to achieve high step-up voltage gain. The voltage on the active switch is clamped, and the energy stored in the leakage inductor is recycled. Therefore, the voltage stress on the active switch is reduced, and the c...