Multilevel converters have been under research and development for more than three decades and have found successful industrial application. However, this is still a technology under development, and many new contributions and new commercial topologies have been reported in the last few years. The aim of this paper is to group and review these recent contributions, in order to establish the current state of the art and trends of the technology, to provide readers with a comprehensive and insightful review of where multilevel converter technology stands and is heading. This paper first presents a brief overview of well-established multilevel converters strongly oriented to their current state in industrial applications to then center the discussion on the new converters that have made their way into the industry. In addition, new promising topologies are discussed. Recent advances made in modulation and control of multilevel converters are also addressed. A great part of this paper is devoted to show nontraditional applications powered by multilevel converters and how multilevel converters are becoming an enabling technology in many industrial sectors. Finally, some future trends and challenges in the further development of this technology are discussed to motivate future contributions that address open problems and explore new possibilities.

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Recent Advances and Industrial Applications of Multilevel Converters

The increasing interest in integrating intermittent renewable energy sources into microgrids presents major challenges from the viewpoints of reliable operation and control. In this paper, the major issues and challenges in microgrid control are discussed, and a review of state-of-the-art control strategies and trends is presented; a general overview of the main control principles (e.g., droop control, model predictive control, multi-agent systems) is also included. The paper classifies microgrid control strategies into three levels: primary, secondary, and tertiary, where primary and secondary levels are associated with the operation of the microgrid itself, and tertiary level pertains to the coordinated operation of the microgrid and the host grid. Each control level is discussed in detail in view of the relevant existing technical literature.

Trends in Microgrid Control

http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/iel5/5610941/5624686/05624745.pdf

Power electronics

The ever increasing progress of high-voltage high-power fully controlled semiconductor technology continues to have a significant impact on the development of advanced power electronic apparatus used to support optimized operations and efficient management of electrical grids, which, in many cases, are fully or partially deregulated networks. Developments advance both the HVDC power transmission and the flexible ac transmission system technologies. In this paper, an overview of the recent advances in the area of voltage-source converter (VSC) HVdc technology is provided. Selected key multilevel converter topologies are presented. Control and modeling methods are discussed. A list of VSC-based HVdc installations worldwide is included. It is confirmed that the continuous development of power electronics presents cost-effective opportunities for the utilities to exploit, and HVdc remains a key technology. In particular, VSC-HVdc can address not only conventional network issues such as bulk power transmission, asynchronous network interconnections, back-to-back ac system linking, and voltage/stability support to mention a few, but also niche markets such as the integration of large-scale renewable energy sources with the grid and most recently large onshore/offshore wind farms.

VSC-Based HVDC Power Transmission Systems: An Overview

The modular multilevel converter (MMC) has been a subject of increasing importance for medium/high-power energy conversion systems. Over the past few years, significant research has been done to address the technical challenges associated with the operation and control of the MMC. In this paper, a general overview of the basics of operation of the MMC along with its control challenges are discussed, and a review of state-of-the-art control strategies and trends is presented. Finally, the applications of the MMC and their challenges are highlighted.

Operation, Control, and Applications of the Modular Multilevel Converter: A Review

The modular multilevel converter (MMC) is a newly introduced switch-mode converter topology with the potential for high-voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission applications. This paper focuses on the dynamic performance of an MMC-based, back-to-back HVDC system. A phase-disposition (PD) sinusoidal pulsewidth modulation (SPWM) strategy, including a voltage balancing method, for the operation of an MMC is presented in this paper. Based on the proposed PD-SPWM switching strategy, a mathematical model for the MMC-HVDC system, under both balanced and unbalanced grid operation modes, is developed. Dynamic performance of the MMC-based back-to-back HVDC converter system, based on time-domain simulation studies in the PSCAD/EMTDC environment, is then evaluated. The reported time-domain simulation results show that based on the adopted PD-SPWM switching strategy, the MMC-HVDC station can respond satisfactorily to the system dynamics and control commands under balanced and unbalanced conditions while maintaining voltage balance of the dc capacitors.

Dynamic Performance of a Modular Multilevel Back-to-Back HVDC System

Performance of a carrier-based pulsewidth modulation (CB-PWM) strategy can be improved by the inclusion of a zero-sequence voltage in the modulation-reference signal. This paper proposes a new CB-PWM strategy for a three-level neutral-point-clamped (NPC) converter, which is based on a zero-sequence voltage injection. By inclusion of the zero-sequence voltage, the sinusoidal-modulation reference is modified to 1) carry out the voltage-balancing task of the dc-link capacitors, with no additional control effort, 2) reduce the switching losses, and 3) reduce the low-frequency voltage oscillations of the neutral point. The proposed strategy is an alternative approach to the nearest three-vector (NTV) space-vector modulation (SVM) strategy and is obtained by the analysis of the NTV-SVM strategy and establishing a correlation between the NTV-SVM and the CB-PWM strategies. The salient features of the proposed scheme, as compared with the NTV-SVM strategy, are: 1) its reduced computational processing time which is attractive for digital implementation and 2) its reduced switching losses. Compared with the existing CB-PWM strategies, the proposed strategy offers 1) capability to balance the capacitor voltages and reduce the NP voltage oscillations and 2) reduced switching losses. Performance of the proposed CB-PWM strategy for a three-level NPC converter based on time-domain simulation studies in the MATLAB/SIMULINK environment is evaluated and also experimentally verified.

A Carrier-Based PWM Strategy With Zero-Sequence Voltage Injection for a Three-Level Neutral-Point-Clamped Converter

The modular multilevel converter (MMC) is one of the most potential converter topologies for high-power/voltage systems, specifically for high-voltage direct current (HVDC). One of the main technical challenges of an MMC is to eliminate/minimize the circulating currents of converter arms while the capacitor voltages are maintained balanced. This paper proposes a model predictive control (MPC) strategy that takes the advantage of a cost function minimization technique to eliminate the circulating currents and carry out the voltage balancing task of an MMC-based back-to-back HVDC system. A discrete-time mathematical model of the system is derived and a predictive model corresponding to the discrete-time model is developed. The predictive model is used to select the best switching states of each MMC unit based on evaluation and minimization a defined cost function associated with the control objectives of MMC units and the overall HVDC system. The proposed predictive control strategy: 1) enables control of real and reactive power of the HVDC system; 2) achieves capacitor voltage balancing of the MMC units; and 3) mitigates the circulating currents of the MMC units. Performance of the proposed MPC-based strategy for a five-level back-to-back MMC-HVDC is evaluated based on time-domain simulation studies in the PSCAD/EMTDC software environment. The reported study results demonstrate a satisfactory response of the MMC-HVDC station operating based on the proposed MPC strategy, under various conditions.

Maryam Saeedifard

Papers

Trends in Microgrid Control

Operation, Control, and Applications of the Modular Multilevel Converter: A Review

Dynamic Performance of a Modular Multilevel Back-to-Back HVDC System

A Carrier-Based PWM Strategy With Zero-Sequence Voltage Injection for a Three-Level Neutral-Point-Clamped Converter

Predictive Control of a Modular Multilevel Converter for a Back-to-Back HVDC System