ABSTRACT
Supercapacitors are new components that allow good power capability and energy capacity for many “short-term” applications in the range of tens of seconds to several minutes. They are different from classical batteries from the point of view of their high number of possible cycles in the order of millions due to their electrostatic phenomenology.
This chapter presents the component description and models, together with a design methodology. Larger supercapacitor banks involve a higher number of elements and need charge-balancing equipment.
Then, the chapter introduces several possible applications of supercapacitors, predominantly in the sector of transportation. Power electronic circuits that belong to the supercapacitor storage systems are also described.
The chapter includes a dedicated exercise, where the design of an application is given, including some simulation scheme (Simulink®). The simulation includes the thermal aspects related to the application.
