IEEE Power Electronics Magazine 

About: IEEE Power Electronics Magazine is an academic journal published by Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. The journal publishes majorly in the area(s): Computer science & Power electronics. It has an ISSN identifier of 2329-9207. Over the lifetime, 358 publications have been published receiving 3942 citations. The journal is also known as: Power electronics magazine, IEEE.

Virtual Synchronous Machines: A unified interface for grid integration

Abstract: Power systems are going through a paradigm change from centralized generation to distributed generation and further on to smart grids. More and more renewable-energy sources, electric vehicles, energy storage systems, and so forth are being connected to power systems through power electronic converters. Moreover, the majority of loads are expected to connect to the grid through power electronic converters as well. This article shows that these converters, either on the supply side or on the load side, can all be controlled to behave like virtual synchronous machines (VSMs) and possess the dynamics of synchronous machines, providing a unified interface for smart grid integration. Synchroconverter technology and its developments are the focus of this article because the mathematical model of synchronous machines is embedded in the controller of synchronverters to provide close imitation.

Demonstrating Dynamic Wireless Charging of an Electric Vehicle: The Benefit of Electrochemical Capacitor Smoothing

Abstract: The wireless charging of an electric vehicle (EV) while it is in motion presents challenges in terms of low-latency communications for roadway coil excitation sequencing and maintenance of lateral alignment, plus the need for power-flow smoothing. This article summarizes the experimental results on power smoothing of in-motion wireless EV charging performed at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) using various combinations of electrochemical capacitors at the grid side and in the vehicle. Electrochemical capacitors of the symmetric carbon-carbon type from Maxwell Technologies comprised the in-vehicle smoothing of wireless charging current to the EV battery pack. Electro Standards Laboratories (ESL) fabricated the passive and active parallel lithium-capacitor (LiC) unit used to smooth the grid-side power. The power pulsation reduction was 81% on the grid by the LiC, and 84% on the vehicle for both the LiC and the carbon ultracapacitors (UCs).

The Smart Transformer: A solid-state transformer tailored to provide ancillary services to the distribution grid

Abstract: The solid-state transformer (SST) was conceived as a replacement for the conventional power transformer, with both lower volume and weight. The smart transformer (ST) is an SST that provides ancillary services to the distribution and transmission grids to optimize their performance. Hence, the focus shifts from hardware advantages to functionalities. One of the most desired functionalities is the dc connectivity to enable a hybrid distribution system. For this reason, the ST architecture shall be composed of at least two power stages. The standard design procedure for this kind of system is to design each power stage for the maximum load. However, this design approach might limit additional services, like the reactive power compensation on the medium voltage (MV) side, and it does not consider the load regulation capability of the ST on the low voltage (LV) side. If the SST is tailored to the services that it shall provide, different stages will have different designs, so that the ST is no longer a mere application of the SST but an entirely new subject.

Inductive Power Transfer for Electric Vehicle Charging: Technical challenges and tradeoffs

Abstract: Increasing public awareness of the environmental impact of greenhouse gas emissions, together with the development of modern lithium-ion batteries, has triggered worldwide interest in electric mobility [1]. Together with environmentally sustainable energy production using renewable energy sources, electric vehicles (EVs) and plug-in hybrid EVs have a smaller CO2 footprint compared to traditional vehicles that rely exclusively on internal combustion engines. As an additional advantage, the total cost of ownership over the lifetime of an EV is lower than that of a traditional vehicle, despite the higher initial purchase price [2]. Hence, vehicle markets in the developed world have seen EV sales rapidly increasing over the past years.

New Approaches to Reliability Assessment: Using physics-of-failure for prediction and design in power electronics systems

Abstract: Power electronics are facing continuous pressure to be cheaper and smaller, have a higher power density, and, in some cases, also operate at higher temperatures. At the same time, power electronics products are expected to have reduced failures because it is essential for reducing the cost of energy. New approaches for reliability assessment are being taken in the design phase of power electronics systems based on the physics-of-failure in components. In this approach, many new methods, such as multidisciplinary simulation tools, strength testing of components, translation of mission profiles, and statistical analysis, are involved to enable better prediction and design of reliability for products. This article gives an overview of the new design flow in the reliability engineering of power electronics from the system-level point of view and discusses some of the emerging needs for the technology in this field.