Multistage and Multilevel Power Electronic Converter-Based Power Supply for Plasma DBD Devices

This paper presents the development and performance evaluation of a compact-converter-based power supply for plasma dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) devices. The developed power supply is designed to meet weight and size requirements for applications in aeronautical systems. Multistage and multilevel switch-mode converters are employed to construct the power supply. The multistage part of the power supply is constructed from multiple dc–dc boost converters that have their inputs fed by rechargeable batteries. The outputs of the dc–dc converters are used to feed different levels of a single phase cascaded $H$ -bridge (CHB) multilevel dc–ac converter. The switching signals for the CHB dc–ac converter are generated to facilitate the adjustments of the magnitude and/or frequency of the output voltage. Such adjustments are set to allow manipulating the generated plasma body force. A prototype for the multistage multilevel power supply is constructed for performance evaluation using a fiberglass DBD device. Performance results show an effective generation and control of plasma body force, which can be achieved by a modular, lightweight, and compact size power supply.