A novel Passivity-Based Stability Criterion (PBSC) for switching converter DC distribution systems

A novel Passivity-Based Stability Criterion (PBSC) is proposed for the stability analysis and design of DC power distribution systems. The proposed criterion is based on imposing passivity of the overall bus impedance. If passivity of the overall DC bus impedance is ensured, stability is guaranteed as well. The PBSC reduces artificial design conservativeness and sensitivity to component grouping typical of existing stability criteria, such as the Middlebrook criterion and its extensions. Moreover, the criterion is easily applicable to multi-converter systems and to systems in which the power flow direction changes, for example as a result of system reconfiguration. Moreover, the criterion can be used for the design of active damping networks for DC power distribution systems. The approach results in greatly improved stability and damping of transients on the DC bus voltage. Experimental validation is performed using a hardware test-bed that emulates a DC power distribution system.