No description available.

Power converters are electronic circuits for conversion, control and regulation of electric power for various applications, such as from tablet computers in milliwatts to electric power systems at megawatts range. There are three basic types of power converters: buck (output voltage less than the input voltage), boost (output voltage higher than the input voltage) and buck-boost converters. The reliability of the power converters has become an essential focus of industrial applications. This research presents modeling and control of DC/DC boost converter using several control methods, such as Proportional-Integral (PI), Linear Quadratic Regulator (LQR) control, and nonlinear control concepts. Based on standard circuit laws, a mathematical model of the boost converter is derived which is expressed as a bilinear system. First a small signal model of the converter is derived to analyze the small deviations around the steady-state operating point which is used to develop closed loop control using the PI and the LQR methods. Simulation results show that the performance of the converter is good for operation around the operating state, however is unacceptable if there are large variations in the load or the reference input. To improve the performance of the closed loop system, the nonlinear control concept is used which shows excellent closed loop performance under large variations of load or setpoint. Comparative simulation results are presented for closed loop performance under various types of disturbances including random variations in load. / Electrical and Computer Engineering

As wearable technology and wireless sensor nodes become more and more ubiquitous, the batteries required to power them have become more and more unappealing as they limit lifetime and scalability. Energy harvesting from body heat provides a solution to these limitations. Energy can be harvested from body heat using thermoelectric generators, or TEGs. TEGs provide a continuous, scalable, solid-state energy source ideal for wearable and wireless electronics and sensors. Unfortunately, current TEG technology produces low power (< 1 mW) at a very low voltage (20-90 mV) and require the load to be matched to the TEG internal resistance for maximum power transfer to occur. This thesis research proposes a power management integrated circuit (PMIC) that steps up ultralow voltages generated by TEGs to a regulated 3 V, while matching the internal resistance. The proposed boost converter aims to harvest energy from body heat as efficiently and flexibly as possible by providing a regulated 3 V output that can be used by a variable load. A comparator-based burst mode operation affords the converter a high conversion ratio at high efficiency, while fractional open circuit voltage maximum power point tracking ensures that the controller can be used with a variety of TEGs and TEG setups. This control allows the converter to boost input voltages as low as 50 mV, while matching a range of TEG internal source resistances in one stage. The controller was implemented in 0.25 µm CMOS and taped out in February 2016. Since these fabricated chips will not be completed and delivered until May 2016, functionality has only been verified through simulation. Simulation results are promising and indicate that the peak overall efficiency is 81% and peak low voltage, low power efficiency is 73%. These results demonstrate the the proposed converter can achieve overall efficiencies comparable to current literature and low power efficiencies better than similar wide range converters in literature. / Master of Science

Although the locomotive of a train is energized, in general, other railcars are not. This prevents commercial rail companies from installing sensor equipment on the railcars. Thus, several different solutions have been proposed to provide energy for commercial railcars. One such solution is a vibration-based energy harvester which can be mounted in the suspension coils of the railcar. The harvester translates the linear motion of the suspension vibration into rotational motion to turn a 3-phase AC generator. When subjected to real-world suspension displacements, the harvester is capable of generating peak energy levels in excess of 70 W, although the average energy harvested is much lower, around 1 W. A battery pack can be used to store the useful energy harvested. However, a power conditioning circuit is required to convert the 3-phase AC energy from the harvester into DC for the battery pack. The power converter should be capable of extracting maximum power from the energy harvester as well as acting as a battery manager. Experimental results with the energy harvester conclude that maximum power can be extracted if the harvester is loaded with 2 . In order to maintain a constant input impedance, the duty cycle of the power converter must be fixed. Conversely, output regulation requires the duty cycle to change dynamically. Consequently, there is a tradeoff between extracting maximum power and prolonging the battery life cycle. The proposed converter design aims to achieve both maximum power transfer and battery protection by automatically switching between control modes. The proposed converter design uses an inverting buck-boost converter operating in discontinuous conduction mode to maintain a constant input impedance through a fixed duty cycle. This constant input impedance mode is used to extract maximum power from the harvester when the battery is not close to fully charged. When the battery is near fully charged, extracting maximum power is not as important and the duty cycle can be controlled to regulate the output. Specifically, one-cycle control is used to regulate the output by monitoring the input voltage and adjusting the duty cycle accordingly. Finally, the converter is designed to shut down once the battery has been fully charged to prevent overcharging. The result is a power converter that extracts maximum power from the energy harvester for as long as possible before battery protection techniques are implemented. Previous related studies are discussed, tradeoffs in converter design are explained in detail, and an experimental prototype is used to confirm operation of the proposed control scheme. / Master of Science

Denna rapport beskriver prototypframtagningen av syrgasflaskan LIFT som utfördes på KTH med Hybrid Design som uppdragsgivare. Den fullt funktionella prototypen som presenteras i detta arbete är resultatet av en grundlig research som ämnade att undersöka hur en syrgasflaska bör se ut och fungera för att framgångsrikt penetrera den svenska marknaden. Syrgasflaskor för konsumentmarknaden finns sedan flera år tillbaka på bland annat den amerikanska marknaden och används flitigt av idrottare och träningsentusiaster för att effektivisera sin träning. Att tillföra extra syre till kroppen är ej dopningsklassat men enligt många kontroversiellt, speciellt i Sverige som arbetet visar. För att tillverka en syrgasflaska för den svenska marknaden krävdes ett gediget förarbete inför designarbetet. Arbetet inkluderade såväl kvalitet som kvanititetundersökningar men även fokusgrupper och testpersoner. De befintliga produkterna på marknaden analyserades och utvecklingspotentialen ansågs vara enorm vilket också resultatet visar, LIFT-syrgasflaska är något helt annat, för en helt ny typ av marknad här i Sverige. Fem olika koncept av syrgasflaskor presenteras i arbetet som resulterar i två finalister som ställs inför noggrann granskning innan en av dom framställs som prototyp och anses därmed vara den syrgasflaska som är mest lämpad för den svenska marknaden. / This report describes the prototype development of an oxygen boost bottle named LIFT that was carried out at KTH with Hybrid Design as the client. The fully functional prototype presented in this work is the result of a thorough research that aimed to investigate how an oxygen boost should look and function in order to successfully penetrate the Swedish market. Oxygen boost for the consumer market have been available for several years on the US market and are widely used by athletes and fitness enthusiasts to make their training more efficient. Adding extra oxygen to the body is not classified as doping but are according to many controversial, especially in Sweden as the work shows. In order to manufacture an oxygen boost bottle for the Swedish market, thorough preparatory work was required for the design work. The work included quality as well as quantity surveys but also focus groups and test subjects.The existing products on the market were analyzed and the potential of the development was considered to be enormous, which also the result shows - LIFT oxygen boost bottle is something completely different, for a completely new type of market here in Sweden. Five different concepts of oxygen boost canisters are presented in the work which results in two finalists who are subjected to careful scrutiny before one of them is produced as a prototype and is thus considered to be the oxygen boost bottle that is most suitable for the Swedish market.

The thesis describes theoretical and experimental studies on the chaotic behaviour of a peak current-mode controlled boost converter, a parallel two-module peak current-mode controlled DC-DC boost converter, and a peak current-mode controlled power factor correction (PFC) boost converter. The research concentrates on converters which do not have voltage control loops, since the main interest is in the intrinsic mechanism of chaotic behaviour. These converters produce sub-harmonics of the clock frequency at certain values of the reference current I[ref] and input voltage V[in], and may behave in a chaotic manner, whereby the frequency spectrum of the inductor becomes continuous. Non-linear maps for each of the converters are derived using discrete time modelling and numerical iteration of the maps produce bifurcation diagrams which indicate the presence of subharmonics and chaotic operation. In order to check the validity of the analysis, MATLAB/SIMULINK models for the converters are developed. A comparison is made between waveforms obtained from experimental converters, with those produced by the MATLAB/SIMULINK models of the converters. The experimental and theoretical results are also compared with the bifurcation points predicted by the bifurcation diagrams. The simulated waveforms show excellent agreement, with both the experimental waveforms and the transitions predicted by the bifurcation diagrams. The thesis presents the first application of a delayed feedback control scheme for eliminating chaotic behaviour in both the DC-DC boost converter and the PFC boost converter. Experimental results and FORTRAN simulations show the effectiveness and robustness of the scheme. FORTRAN simulations are found to be in close agreement with experimental results and the bifurcation diagrams. A theoretical comparison is made between the above converters controlled using delayed feedback control and the popular slope compensation method. It is shown that delayed feedback control is a simpler scheme and has a better performance than that for slope compensation.

As vacinas antimeningocócicas têm se demonstrado efetivas contra os sorogrupos A e C, no entanto ainda não existe vacina contra o sorogrupo B devido à similaridade entre a estrutura capsular do polissacáride B e o ácido polisiálico que faz parte do tecido cerebral humano, podendo levar à autoimunidade. O objetivo deste estudo foi investigar as propriedades adjuvantes dos toxóides Stx1 e Stx2 (STEC) de Escherichia coli, administrados em preparações antigênicas com vesículas de membrana externa nativa (NOMV) de Neisseria meningitidis B, comparando duas vias de imunização prime-boost ou intramuscular, em camundongos BALB/c com idade entre 6-8 semanas. A determinação dos níveis de anticorpos empregando a técnica de ELISA, mostrou elevadas concentrações de anticorpos IgG em soros de animais imunizados pela via intramuscular com Stx1+NOMV, mas não com NOMV, o que sugere que por esta via (intramuscular apenas) Stx1 possa ter atuado como adjuvante. No ensaio de Immunoblotting, soros de animais imunizados com Stx1+NOMV reconheceram maior número de antígenos de NOMV quando comparado ao grupo que recebeu Stx2+NOMV. O sistema prime-boost mostrou-se efetivo quando comparamos os níveis de anticorpos presentes no soro após a dose intramuscular (reforço), entretanto, não melhor do que quando utilizamos duas doses apenas pela via intramuscular. Este estudo poderá contribuir no desenvolvimento de tecnologias associadas a novas preparações antigênicas utilizando antígenos de membrana externa de N. meningitidis B , empregando toxóides como adjuvantes. / The meningococcal vaccines have been shown to be effective against serogroups A and C, however there is still no vaccine against serogroup B. The capsular polysaccharide from serogroup B meningococci polysialic acid moiety mimetic of many human glycoproteins including the neural cell adhesion molecules and may lead to autoimmunity. This study aimed to investigate the adjuvant properties of toxoids Stx1 and Stx2 (STEC) from Escherichia coli and native outer membrane vesicles (NOMV) of Neisseria meningitidis B, comparing two ways of immunization prime-boost or only intramuscular in BALB/c mice. The results showed high concentrations of IgG antibodies in sera of animals immunized intramuscularly with Stx1+NOMV, suggesting that in this way may have Stx1 acted as an adjuvant. In the Immunoblotting assay, sera from animals immunized with Stx1+NOMV recognized more antigens of NOMV when compared to the group that received Stx2+NOMV. The prime-boost was effective however, no better than only two doses intramuscularly. This study may contribute to the development of new technologies and strategies against N. meningitidis B employing toxoids as adjuvants.

In low power, battery-operated, portable applications, like cell phones, PDAs, digital cameras, etc., miniaturization at a low cost is a prominent driving factor behind product development and marketing efforts. As such, power supplies in portable applications must not only conform and adapt to their highly integrated on-chip and in-package environments but also, more intrinsically, respond quickly to fast load dumps to achieve and maintain high accuracy. The frequency-compensation network, however, limits speed and regulation performance because, in catering to all combinations of the output capacitor, its equivalent series resistance Resr, and the power inductor resulting from tolerance and modal design targets, it must compensate the worst-case condition and therefore restrain the performance of all other possible scenarios. Sigma-delta control, which addresses this issue in buck converters by easing its compensation requirements and offering one-cycle transient response, has not been able to simultaneously achieve high bandwidth, high accuracy, and wide LC-Resr compliance in boost (step-up) converters. This thesis investigates and presents techniques to achieve sigma-delta control in boost converters by essentially using explicit current and voltage control loops. The proposed techniques are developed conceptually and analytical expressions for stability range and transient response are derived. The proposed concepts are validated and quantified through PCB and IC prototypes to yield 1.41 to 6 times faster transient response than the state of the art in current-mode boost supplies, and this without any compromise in LC-Resr compliance range.

The research presents two novel high power factor ac-to-dc resonant converters with symmetrical topologies and zero-voltage-switching (ZVS) operation. The derived circuits are obtained from the integration of a dual-switch boost-type or buck-boost-type power factor corrector (PFC) into a half-bridge resonant converter. With symmetrical topology, the circuit is simple and the voltage and current stresses on the two active power switches are identical to each other. The PFC is operated at discontinuous conduction mode (DCM) to achieve unity power factor. The resonant energy tank of half-bridge resonant converter is designed to be inductive to retain ZVS operation. The design equations are derived based on fundamental approximation. Prototypes of the two proposed converters designed for 100 W and 50 W, respectively, were built and tested to verify the computer simulations and analytical predictions. Satisfactory results are obtained experimentally.

The translational self-diffusion, the librations, and the reorientational motions of guest water molecules in the zeolite chabazite are examined by Molecular Dynamics (MD) computer simulations at different temperatures and loadings, including at room temperature, at which the experiments are carried out. Satisfactory agreement is found between the computed and measured translational self-diffusion coefficients. It is, however, furthermore found that the way in which the long-range electrostatic interactions are computed has an effect on the self-diffusion at high loadings and temperatures. The spectral densities of the librational motions of water are found to be similar to those in aqueous salt solutions. The reorientations of the water molecules, on the other hand, are much slower than in the liquids, and very anisotropic. The vector in direction of the molecular dipole moment reorients only very slowly, at the time scale of the simulations, due to the attraction to the almost immobile Ca++-ions and the walls of the zeolite. The other two vectors seem to undergo jump-reorientations rather than reorientations by a diffusion process. Hyper dynamics boost potential method has been applied to the MD simulations to estimate the self-diffusion coefficients of Ca++ ions in dehydrated chabazite. Because of our system is very complicated, the self-diffusion of Ca++ ions can only be roughly estimated. The Ca++ ions diffusion is small enough to confirm that the cation motion can be neglected in the normal MD simulation.