This paper has presented a modular single-phase trans-Z-source inverter and one of its applications for multi-input
renewable energy system. Evolved from the original three-phase Z-source inverter, the proposed single-phase trans-Z-source inverter utilizes coupled inductors and center-tapped capacitors to couple the inverter bridge and DC source. By introducing the shoot-through states, the proposed circuit can boost the input DC voltage to a desired level and simultaneously output sinusoidal voltage or current. The permissible shoot-through operation indicates an in trinsic immunity to EMI noises. Moreover, the single-stage
structure achieves the DC-DC conversion and DC-AC inversion by
using only two active switches such that the reduced cost and enhanced reliability are achieved.The proposed modular single-phase trans-Z-source inverter can be applied to multi-input renewable energy system by flexibly interconnecting different inverter
modules. Unlike the conventional multi-input renewable energy system which requires a dedicated DC-DC conversion stage for each source,the modular single-phase trans-Z-source inverter based application eliminates all the extra DC-DC converters.Furthermore, a shared DC bus among modules decouples the inverter AC outputs from the DC inputs. Hence, inde pendent power control is achievable for each source, and balanced power can be supplied to each phase of the grid.A design example of a split single phase power gene
ration system incorporating both a PV panel and fuel cell is provided and examined. Simulation results are obtained, showing a good agreement with the theoretical analysis.