The conventional single-phase quasi-Z-source (QZS) inverter has a high leakage current as it is connected to the grid. To address this problem, this paper proposes a transformerless QZS inverter, which can reduce the leakage current for single-phase grid-tied applications. The proposed inverter effectively alleviates the leakage current problem by removing high-frequency components for the common-mode voltage. The operation principle of the proposed inverter is described together with its control strategy. A control scheme is presented for regulating the DC-link voltage and the grid current. A 1.0 kW prototype inverter was designed and tested to verify the performance of the proposed inverter. Silicon carbide (SiC) power devices were applied to the proposed inverter to increase the power efficiency. The experimental results showed that the proposed inverter achieved high performance for leakage current reduction and power efficiency improvement.

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The conventional zeta inverter has been used for single-phase grid-connected applications. However, it has high switching losses to operate at high switching frequency in the continuous conduction mode (CCM). To address this drawback, this paper suggests a high-efficiency zeta inverter using active clamp and synchronous rectification techniques. The proposed inverter utilizes the active clamp circuit for reducing switching losses. The non-complementary switching scheme is adopted for not only clamping the switch voltage stresses, but also alleviating the circulating energy. In addition, the synchronous rectification is implemented for reducing the body diode conduction of power switches. By using the silicon carbide (SiC) metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistors (MOSFETs), the switching performance of the proposed inverter is improved. Its operation principle and control strategy are presented. A 220-W prototype has been designed and tested to evaluate the performance of the proposed inverter.

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This paper proposes a high-efficiency supercapacitor charger. Conventional two-switch forward converter can be used for charging supercapacitors. However, the efficiency of conventional converters is low because of their switching losses. This study presents a high-efficiency two-switch forward converter for supercapacitor chargers. The proposed converter improves power efficiency by 4 %, from 89 % to 93 %. The proposed converter has the advantages of reduced switch voltage stresses and minimized circulating current when compared to other converter topologies. The performance of the proposed converter is evaluated by experimental results using a 300 W prototype circuit for a 54-V, 35-F supercapacitor bank.