I'm in the process of assembling a 1000w total LED light bar, which consists of 10x100w chips, which at full power, consume 3A at around 35V. For this, I'm using 3 dc-dc boost converters, each which converts 12V+ from a car battery, to anything from 12V all the way up to 75V. Each boost converter can handle 20A output, so either works fine.
My question is, should I wire half the LEDs in parallel, and then in series, and have the boost converters pump the voltage all the way up to 70V, or should I keep them in parallel and lower the output voltage to 35V?
I know that normally, boost converters lose efficiency when boosting more, but I'm not sure which will put less stress on the boost converters themselves, as I want to have the setup be as stable as possible.
Thanks in advance.
Best Answer
Boost converter losses are lower when boosting less .This is still true when switching loss reduction schemes are employed .Your proposed parallel circuit is safer due to its 35V output .This should make product approvals easier .The expected PWM duty cycle of your boost converter is still less than 50% at your proposed 35VDC out so stable operation is to be expected .Unless you have really long cabling requirements go for the low voltage .