Start-up procedure for three-phase six-switch boost PFC rectifier

In three-phase applications, the six-switch boost PFC rectifier is the most widely employed topology because of its good performance and cost effectiveness. A vast amount of literature that deals with this circuit is exclusively focused on various control schemes aimed at optimizing different aspects of its steady-state and/or transient performance. However, no literature is available on its start-up procedure which is an indispensable part of control design of any practical circuit. To fill this gap, in this paper, a detailed start-up procedure is described. This three-step start-up procedure ensures that the inrush currents stay below a specified level and that the output voltage increases monotonically to its reference value, i.e., it does not exhibit any overshoot. The proposed start-up procedure is illustrated with Matlab/Simulink simulation waveforms and also experimentally verified.