Measurement and Analysis of Power Losses in Sintered Cores for Power Electronic Devices in Renewable Energy Systems

Measurement of power losses in inductive devices in highly efficient power electronic systems is crucial for choosing appropriate components. A calorimetric method for measuring power losses below 10 W is presented in the following paper to decompose the inductive devices’ power losses. A fully enclosed double-jacked calorimetric chamber is constructed to measure the temperature with digital temperature sensors TMP275, providing a resolution of 0.1 W/K. The finite element method is used with analytical calculation to estimate core and conduction losses to decompose power losses. Power losses are measured for an inductor with a 3C95 ferrite core and four types of windings, where three were made of wire with a different number of strands, whereas the fourth has been made using copper foil. All windings have similar cross-sectional areas for comparison.