# Power Factor Correction Application Based on Independent Double-Boost Interleaved Converter (IDBIC)
## 1 Introduction  
Modern applications such as smart houses, hybrid microgrids, renewable energy, electric vehicles and energy storage systems demand an increase in quality for their infrastructure, as different policies regarding energy efficiency have been internationally introduced [1, 2, 3]. Concerning energy conversion systems and external power supplies, the European Union (EU) Commission has also established efficiency criteria that aims to improve power quality [4]. Since AC/DC converters have become a component of almost all electronic devices used daily, the AC distribution grid may be subjected to poor performance due to the behavior and low power quality of such equipment. Often single-phase rectifiers are required to operate over a wide supply voltage range, with low input current ripple and near-unity power factor in order to meet the present-day standards and marketneeds [5; 6]. Usually, if bidirectional power flow is not required, a common solution is the boost PFC rectifier. In order to improve the performance of this type of converter, reducing the input current ripple and minimizing the volume of passive devices in the interleaved topology are considered to be among the best practice. Studies and analyses have been made in developing and improving the performance and efficiency of such converter topology. In [7], a method for analyzing the input and output currents in the converter is proposed and derives the specific time functions. A coupled inductor approach is presented in [8; 9; 10; 11] to improve the inductor current ripple and power density of the interleaved PFC bridge rectifier. In [12], a hybrid topology comprised of a conventional boost PFC rectifier and a semi-bridgeless PFC interleaved rectifier is presented, claiming better efficiency and performance than that of the traditional interleaved boost PFC. Bridgeless configurations, as mentioned in [13], can present an interleaved topology that offers better performance and reduces the size of the magnetic devices needed. Improved efficiency through the soft switching operation of all switching devices is analyzed in [14]. Here, a snubber circuit is integrated into an interleaved PFC converter. Lighting applications [15; 16], connected to the mains grid or industrial, can be provided with a voltage driver which in term has PFC features realized with an interleaved boost rectifier topology. Other applications such as electric vehicle chargers [17; 18; 19] are also being studied.  
The novelty of the proposed PFC rectifier is the capability of supplying three output voltage levels with interleaved operation at the input. The so-called \"three-level PWM rectifiers\" [20; 21] have been studied for their high efficiency power conversion (>98%) [22], large voltage gain and low stress on the semiconductor devices [23], but they lack the interleaved functionality. More, the concept of bipolar DC microgrids used in distributed generation systems [24; 25] presents an increasing interest because of its benefits in energy saving, power quality and power electronics control [26]. Hence, the proposed PFC rectifier can easily interconnect a single-phase AC grid with a multilevel DC microgrid, also assuring the interleaved behavior, and it can be successfully used as a solution in the development of distributed generation.