Showing papers in "IEEE Transactions on Power Electronics in 1998"

The unified power quality conditioner: the integration of series- and shunt-active filters

Abstract: This paper deals with unified power quality conditioners (UPQCs), which aim at the integration of series-active and shunt-active power filters. The main purpose of a UPQC is to compensate for voltage flicker/imbalance, reactive power, negative-sequence current and harmonics. In other words, the UPQC has the capability of improving power quality at the point of installation on power distribution systems or industrial power systems. This paper discusses the control strategy of the UPQC, with a focus on the how of instantaneous active and reactive powers inside the UPQC. Experimental results obtained from a laboratory model of 20 kVA, along with a theoretical analysis, are shown to verify the viability and effectiveness of the UPQC.

Harmonic and reactive power compensation based on the generalized instantaneous reactive power theory for three-phase four-wire systems

Abstract: This paper presents harmonic and reactive power compensation based on a generalized theory of instantaneous reactive power for three-phase power systems. This new theory gives a generalized definition of instantaneous reactive power, which is valid for sinusoidal or nonsinusoidal and balanced or unbalanced three-phase power systems with or without zero-sequence currents and/or voltages. The properties and physical meanings of the newly defined instantaneous reactive power are discussed in detail. A harmonic and reactive power compensator based on the new theory for a three-phase harmonic-distorted power system with zero-sequence components in the load current and/or source voltage is then used as an example to show harmonic and reactive power measurement and compensation using the new theory. Simulation and experimental results are presented.

Carrier-based PWM-VSI overmodulation strategies: analysis, comparison, and design

Abstract: In this paper, the overmodulation region voltage-gain characteristics and waveform quality of carrier-based pulsewidth-modulated (PWM) methods are investigated. Through detailed analytical study, voltage-gain characteristics are extracted independent of carrier frequency. The influence of blanking time and minimum pulsewidth (MPW) control on the inverter gain characteristics are studied and shown to be significant. A comparative evaluation of the modulator characteristics reveals the advantageous high-modulation-range characteristics of discontinuous PWM methods and, in particular, the superior overmodulation performance of a discontinuous PWM method. The modulation methods under consideration are tested on a PWM voltage-source inverter (VSI)-fed induction motor drive in the laboratory, and the theoretical results are verified by experiments. Also, a gain linearization technique is presented and experimentally verified. The results of this study are useful in the design, performance prediction and development of high-performance overmodulation strategies for PWM-VSI drives.

Failure prediction of electrolytic capacitors during operation of a switchmode power supply

Abstract: Electrolytic filter capacitors are frequently responsible for static converter breakdowns. To predict these faults, a new method to set a predictive maintenance is presented and tested on two types of converters. The best indicator of fault of the output filter capacitors is the increase of ESR (equivalent series resistance). The output-voltage ripple /spl Delta/V/sub o/ of the converter increases with respect to ESR. In order to avoid errors due to load variations, /spl Delta/V/sub o/ is filtered at the switching frequency of the converter. The problem is that this filtered component is not only dependent on the aging of the capacitors, but also on the ambient temperature, output current, and input voltage of the converter. Thus, to predict the failure of the capacitors, this component is processed with these parameters and the remaining time before failure is deduced. Software was developed to establish predictive maintenance of the converter. The method developed is as follows. First, a reference system including all the converter parameters was built for the converter at its sound state, i.e., using sound electrolytic filter capacitors. Then, all these parameters were processed and compared on line to the reference system, thereby, the lifetime of these capacitors was computed.

Optimized transformer design: inclusive of high-frequency effects

Abstract: Switching circuits, operating at high frequencies, have led to considerable reductions in the size of magnetic components and power supplies. Nonsinusoidal voltage and current waveforms and high-frequency skin and proximity effects contribute to power transformer losses. Traditionally, power transformer design has been based on sinusoidal voltage and current waveforms operating at low frequencies. The physical and electrical properties of the transformer form the basis of a new design methodology while taking full account of the current and voltage waveforms and high-frequency effects. Core selection is based on the optimum throughput of energy with minimum losses. The optimum core is found directly from the following transformer specifications: frequency; power output; and temperature rise. The design methodology is illustrated with a detailed design of a push-pull power converter.

Conducted electromagnetic emissions in induction motor drive systems. I. Time domain analysis and identification of dominant modes

Abstract: Stray components distributed in a pulsewidth modulation (PWM) drive system form parts of resonant circuits which can be excited to produce radio frequency (RF) noise driven by the pulsed switching action of the power devices. The dynamic response of such circuits is complex. It is essential to identify the dominant oscillation modes in the system so that electromagnetic interference (EMI) reduction techniques can be effectively implemented. This paper (Part I) investigates the mechanisms of conducted EMI emissions associated with a typical PWM inverter induction motor drive system. A numerical model, which includes the high-frequency effects within the machine, is established to evaluate the emissions in the time domain. The dominant high-frequency current paths are identified, and this allows the oscillation frequencies to be predicted from knowledge of the component values. The analysis is confirmed using laboratory measurements. Simplified frequency domain methods for direct calculation of the emission spectra based on the dominant high-frequency current paths are discussed in Part II.

An improved inverter output filter configuration reduces common and differential modes dv/dt at the motor terminals in PWM drive systems

Abstract: In this paper, an improved inverter output filter is proposed for pulsewidth-modulated (PWM) drive systems. The proposed filter is shown to effectively reduce both the differential and common modes dv/dt at the motor terminals, even in the presence of long motor leads. Reducing differential mode dv/dt reduces overvoltages at the motor terminals and lowers the stress on the motor insulation. Lowering common mode dv/dt is shown to significantly reduce high-frequency leakage currents to ground and induced shaft voltage in the motor. An important advantage of the approach is that the filter can be installed within the inverter enclosure to achieve both the differential and common modes dv/dt reductions at the motor terminals. Thus, the use of the filter can contribute to enhanced bearing life and improve reliability of PWM drive systems. Analysis, design equations, and experimental results on a 480-V 20-hp PWM drive system are presented. The filter configuration is an excellent candidate for many new and retrofit PWM 480-V/575-V drive systems.

Conducted electromagnetic emissions in induction motor drive systems. II. Frequency domain models

Abstract: For pt.I see ibid., vol.13, no.4, p.757-67 (1998). Predicting conducted emissions in pulsewidth modulation (PWM) inverter induction motor drive systems requires various frequency-dependent effects to be considered. A frequency domain method has advantages in such cases compared to a time domain approach. Based on the modal analysis presented in Part I, this paper develops frequency domain models to evaluate the spectra of the conducted emissions directly. The common and differential mode excitation sources are modeled in the frequency domain and related to the switching functions of the PWM inverter. Network models are established where the induction motor is represented using its frequency-dependent impedance characteristics, which can be obtained from measurements. The influences of system unbalances and of transmission-line effects due to long cables are investigated. Predicted emission spectra are compared with laboratory measurements and those derived from the time domain simulation. It is found that the agreement is good. The proposed method allows emission spectra to be predicted without recourse to specialist circuit simulators.

Analysis and simulation of five-phase variable-speed induction motor drives under asymmetrical connections

Abstract: In this paper, a dq model based on transformation theory for five-phase induction machines is presented. A detailed implementation of an indirect-type five-phase field-orientation control including the hysteresis-type pulsewidth modulation (PWM) current regulator is described. A method for continuous and disturbance-free operation of a five-phase field-oriented-controlled induction motor drive with complete loss of one, two, or even three legs of the inverter or motor phases is described. A complete analysis and computer simulation of this control technique is included.

Thermal resistance analysis by induced transient (TRAIT) method for power electronic devices thermal characterization. I. Fundamentals and theory

Abstract: In this paper, a careful theoretical analysis of the thermal dynamics of an electronic device and its package was carried out in order to study the problem of the equivalent thermal circuit implementation. It was found that the device temperature evolution in time is ruled by an infinite and convergent series of time constants. The knowledge of the first n terms of the time-constant spectrum obtained from the temperature transient measurements allows the complete characterization of a suitable and reliable equivalent thermal circuit structured as a Cauer low-pass network with n cells. The total thermal resistance is therefore evaluated as a sum of several contributions due to given parts of the whole system. The techniques allowing the physical identifications of these contributions are also discussed. Furthermore, the influence of plastic coverage on the device thermal behavior is taken into account. The proposed characterization method is also applied to one-dimensional (1-D) multilayered simulated structures in order to study the influence of the number of time constants used for the analysis and effects of local defects or modifications of the material thermal properties.

A family of continuous-conduction-mode power-factor-correction controllers based on the general pulse-width modulator

Abstract: This paper presents a family of constant-switching-frequency pulse-width-modulated controllers for single-phase power-factor-correction (PFC) circuits that operate at continuous-conduction mode (CCM). Both trailing- and leading-edge pulse-width modulation (PWM) are used. These controllers do not require the multiplier and rectified-line-voltage sensor, which are needed by traditional control methods, and they can be implemented with a unified control circuit. Controller examples are analyzed and verified experimentally.

Analysis and control design of paralleled DC/DC converters with current sharing

Abstract: This paper presents a general small-signal stability analysis of paralleled power converter systems. The framework specializes to include both the "democratic" and "master-slave" current-sharing schemes. Design examples illustrate how to obtain stable current sharing. The authors show how paralleled power converters can become unstable (even when active current sharing is absent) and discuss the influence of the number of converters paralleled.

Nonlinear modeling and bifurcations in the boost converter

Abstract: The occurrence of nonlinear phenomena like subharmonics and chaos in power electronic circuits has been reported recently. In this paper, the authors investigate these phenomena in the current-mode-controlled boost power converter. A nonlinear model in the form of a mapping from one point of observation to the next has been derived. The map has a closed form even when the parasitic elements are included. The bifurcation behavior of the boost power converter has been investigated with the help of this discrete model.

Lyapunov-based control for three-phase PWM AC/DC voltage-source converters

Abstract: The three-phase pulsewidth modulation (PWM) AC/DC voltage-source converter with the control laws proposed so far is not only unstable against large-signal disturbances, but also has the problem that its stability depends on the circuit parameters such as the DC-output capacitance. This paper describes a new control law based on Lyapunov's stability theory. It is shown that the converter can be stabilized globally for handling large-signal disturbances. The resulting closed-loop system not only guarantees a sufficient stability region (independent of the circuit parameters) in the state space, but also exhibits good transient response both in the rectifying and regenerating modes. Also, a new simulation technique is introduced which increases the speed of the simulation process considerably. Computer simulations are presented to confirm the effectiveness of the proposed control strategy and the validity of the simulation technique. Experimental results are also presented to verify the theoretical and simulation studies.

Analysis and evaluation of interleaving techniques in forward converters

Abstract: Analysis, design and evaluation of different interleaving techniques for the forward power converter are presented. Specifically, the performance of the one-choke interleaving approach is compared with the two-choke interleaving approach. The results of the analysis are verified experimentally on two 5 V/20 A interleaved DC/DC power converters. The analysis, design and evaluation results can be extended to any number of interleaved power converters.

A unity power factor converter using half-bridge boost topology

Abstract: A single-phase high-efficiency near-unity power-factor (PF) half-bridge boost converter circuit, which has been proposed earlier by other researchers, is presented with detailed analysis. This converter is capable of operating under variable PF. However, the focus of this paper is in achieving unity PF operation only. The efficiency of this circuit is high because there is only one series semiconductor on-state voltage drop at any instant. The existence of an imbalance in the voltages of the two DC-link capacitors, which was noted before, is confirmed here. The cause for the imbalance is analyzed using appropriate models, and a control method to eliminate it is discussed in detail. Analysis and design considerations for the power circuit using the fixed-band hysteresis current control (HCC) technique are provided. The analytical results are verified through simulation using switched and averaged circuit models of the scheme and also through experimental work. At 90-V AC input and 300-W 300-V output, the experimental prototype demonstrates an efficiency of 96.23% and a PF of 0.998. This converter, with its relatively high DC-output voltage, is well suited for the 110-V utility supply system. A circuit modification for universal input voltage range operation is also suggested.

Novel ZVT-PWM converters with active snubbers

Abstract: An active snubber cell is proposed to contrive zero-voltage-transition (ZVT) pulsewidth-modulated (ZVT-PWM) converters. Except for the auxiliary switch, all active and passive semiconductor devices in a ZVT-PWM converter operate at zero-voltage-switching (ZVS) turn on and turn off. The auxiliary switch operates at ZVS turn off and near zero current-switching (ZCS) turn on. An analytical study on a boost ZVT-PWM converter with the proposed active snubber cell is presented in detail. A 750 W 80 kHz prototype of the boost ZVT-PWM converter has been built in the laboratory to experimentally verify the analysis. Six basic ZVT-PWM converters can be easily created by attaching the proposed active snubber cells to conventional PWM converters. A detailed design procedure of the proposed active snubber cell is also presented in this paper.

Single-stage single-switch power-factor-correction AC/DC converters with DC-bus voltage feedback for universal line applications

Abstract: Single-stage single-switch power-factor-correction (S/sup 4/-PFC) AC/DC converters with DC-bus voltage feedback are proposed. The DC-bus voltage stress at light load for the S/sup 4/-PFC converter is first analyzed. The DC-bus voltage negative feedback concept in the power stage to suppress the DC-bus voltage stress is then proposed. Design considerations of total harmonic distortion (THD), power factor (PF), DC-bus voltage stress, and the boost inductor are discussed. A S/sup 4/-PFC converter is analyzed and implemented with 5 V 12 A output as an example. It is shown that the DC-bus voltage is limited within 405 V from no load to full load, and the measured line input-current harmonics satisfy the IEC 1000-3-2 Class D requirements with universal line input. The measured efficiency and PF are about 71% and 0.93, respectively. The experimental results show that using the DC-bus voltage feedback to reduce the DC-bus voltage is effective.

Power electronic converters for switched reluctance drives

Abstract: A number of power electronic converter circuits exist for switched reluctance motor (SRM) drives which are generally applicable to most loads. A larger number of circuits exist which are suitable for particular niche applications, but which have the potential to be the most cost-effective within that niche. Due to the variable methods of operation of these circuits and the rapid progress in this field, comparisons of these circuits have so far been limited. This paper attempts to bring together the sum total of power converter topologies so far published for SRM drives. A novel classification methodology is presented. The power converters are compared using a straightforward total semiconductor VA per phase sum, and the relative cost of the drive system elements is considered.

A novel SVM-based hysteresis current controller

Abstract: In this paper, a novel space vector modulation (SVM)-based hysteresis current controller (HCC) for squirrel cage induction motors is proposed. This technique utilizes all advantages of the HCC and SVM technique. The controller determines a set of space vectors from a region detector and applies a space vector selected according to the main HCC. A set of space vectors including the zero vector to reduce the number of switchings is determined from the sign of the output frequency and output signals of three comparators with a little larger hysteresis band than that of the main HCC. A simple hardware implementation is proposed and experimental results of the SVM-based HCC are also shown.

A three-phase multilevel converter for high-power induction motors

Abstract: A new converter topology for drives is presented in this paper: a three-phase multilevel converter with separately regulated DC power supplies. The DC voltages are provided by medium-frequency DC-DC converters. The applications for the converter are especially high-power traction systems, where the voltage applied to the induction motor is bigger than 1 kV. The motor current is of a very high quality, compared to a classical three-phase converter. This allows keeping the switching frequency low by using phase-shifted pulsewidth modulation (PWM) carriers. Different modulation methods have been developed and simulated. Experimental tests have been made on a 12 kW prototype.

Nonlinear-carrier control for high-power-factor rectifiers based on up-down switching converters

Abstract: In this paper, nonlinear-carrier (NLC) control is proposed for high-power-factor rectifiers based on flyback, Cuk, Sepic, and other up-down power converters operated in the continuous conduction mode (CCM). In the NLC controller, the switch duty ratio is determined by comparing a signal proportional to the integral of the switch current with a periodic nonlinear-carrier waveform. The shape of the NLC waveform is determined so that the resulting input-line current follows the input-line voltage, as required for unity power factor rectification. A simple exponential carrier waveform generator is described. Using the NLC controller, input-line voltage sensing, error amplifier in the current-shaping loop, and multiplier/divider circuitry in the voltage feedback loop are eliminated. The simple high-performance controller is well suited for integrated-circuit implementation, Results of experimental verification on a 150 W flyback rectifier are presented.

Design considerations and performance evaluations of synchronous rectification in flyback converters

Abstract: Design tradeoffs and performance comparisons of various implementations of the flyback converter with a synchronous rectifier (SR) are presented. Specifically, the merits and limitations of the constant-frequency (CF) continuous-conduction mode (CCM), CF discontinuous-conduction mode (DCM), variable-frequency (VF) DCM, and zero-voltage-switched (ZVS) DCM flyback converters with SRs are discussed. The theoretical efficiency improvements of the discussed synchronous rectification approaches relative to Schottky diode implementations are derived. Finally, theoretical results are verified on an experimental universal-input off-line 15 V/36 W flyback prototype.

Status and trends of power semiconductor device models for circuit simulation

Abstract: The current status of research in the field of power semiconductor device models is reviewed. For this purpose, the basic modeling problems and research issues, which have to be overcome in this field, are discussed. Some new and quite promising modeling concepts have been proposed, which are compared with more traditional ways of achieving an efficient tradeoff between the necessary accuracy, required simulation speed, and feasibility of parameter determination. From this comparison, a prediction of the future evolution of circuit simulation models for power semiconductor devices naturally emerges. Many of the different concepts are expected to survive only in an application niche, where their specific points of strength are important. However, three modeling concepts have already been proven to be successfully applicable to the complete spectrum of power semiconductor devices and have their strength for different grades of complexity of the power circuit. A revolutionary development from anticipated or long-due breakthroughs is on the other hand not expected in the foreseeable future.

Modeling PWM DC/DC converters out of basic converter units

Abstract: An alternative approach to modeling pulsewidth-modulated (PWM) DC/DC converters out of basic converter units (BCUs) is presented in this paper. Typical PWM DC/DC converters include the well-known buck, boost, buck-boost, Cuk, Zeta, and Sepic. With proper reconfiguration, these converters can be represented in terms of either buck or boost converter and linear devices, thus, the buck and boost converters are named BCUs. The PWM converters are, consequently, categorized into buck and boost families. With this categorization, the small-signal models of these converters are readily derived in terms of h parameter (for buck family) and g parameter (for boost family). Using the proposed approach, not only can one find a general configuration for converters in a family, but one can yield the same small-signal models as those derived from the direct state-space averaging method. Additionally, modeling of quasi-resonant converters and multiresonant converters can be simplified when adopting the proposed approach.

Thermal resistance analysis by induced transient (TRAIT) method for power electronic devices thermal characterization. II. Practice and experiments

Abstract: For pt.I see ibid., vol.13, no.6, p.1208-19 (1998). The TRAIT method for thermal characterization of electronic devices, whose theory was exposed in part I for one-dimensional (1-D) structures, was here applied to systems having heat fluxes with three-dimensional (3-D) dependence in order to demonstrate that the spatial resolution of the thermal resistance analysis is still qualitatively maintained in this type of structure too. The analytical procedure was first applied to simulated structures whose temperature transients and steady-state fields were obtained by means of a finite-element thermal simulation program. In these cases, the knowledge of the steady-state temperature distribution allowed identifying the thermal physical domains which correspond to the cells of the calculated equivalent thermal circuit composed by resistances and capacitances. Furthermore, some experiments on real electronic devices with purposely designed assembling structures were exposed and discussed. The samples were power-integrated circuits with plastic packages mounted on various substrates and Schottky diodes in TO-3 packages. The experiments on both simulated and real devices demonstrated that TRAIT analysis, being able to recognize the localization of some induced defects, maintains its spatial resolution character, despite the large distortion of the thermal domains occurring when the defects are close to the heat source.

Transient temperature measurements and modeling of IGBT's under short circuit

Abstract: This paper discusses the estimation of possible device destruction inside power converters in order to predict failures by means of simulation. The study of insulated gate bipolar transistor (IGBT) thermal destruction under short circuits is investigated. An easy experimental method is presented to estimate the temperature decay in the device from the saturation current response at low gate-to-source voltage during the cooling phase. A comparison with other classical experimental methods is given. Three one-dimensional thermal models are also studied: the first is a thermal equivalent circuit represented by series of resistance-capacitance cells; the second treats the discretized heat-diffusion equation; and the third is an analytical model developed by building an internal approximation of the heat-diffusion problem. It is shown that the critical temperature of the device just before destruction is larger than the intrinsic temperature, which is the temperature at which the semiconductor becomes intrinsic. The estimated critical temperature is above 1050 K, so it is much higher than the intrinsic temperature (/spl sim/550 K). The latter value is underestimated when multidimensional phenomena are not taken into account. The study is completed by results showing the threshold voltage and the saturation current degradation when the IGBT is submitted to a stress (repetitive short circuit).

Single-stage electronic ballast with dimming feature and unity power factor

Abstract: Analysis, design, and practical consideration of a single-stage electronic ballast with dimming feature and unity power factor are presented in this paper. The proposed single-stage ballast is the combination of a boost converter and a half-bridge series-resonant parallel-loaded inverter. The boost semistage working in the discontinuous conduction mode functions as a power factor corrector and the inverter semistage operated above resonance are employed to ballast the lamp. Replacing the lamp with the plasma model, analysis of the ballast is fulfilled. The dimming feature is carried out by pulse-width modulation (PWM) and variable-frequency controls simultaneously. The proposed single-stage ballast is suitable for applications with moderate power level and low-line voltage while requiring a high-output voltage. It can save a controller, an active switch and its driver, reduce size, and possibly increase system reliability while requiring two additional diodes over a conventional two-stage system. A prototype was implemented to verify the theoretical discussion. The hardware measurements have shown that the desired performance can be achieved feasibly.

Conduction power loss in MOSFET synchronous rectifier with parallel-connected Schottky barrier diode

Abstract: The conduction power loss in an MOSFET synchronous rectifier with a parallel-connected Schottky barrier diode (SBD) was investigated. It was found that the parasitic inductance between the MOSFET and SBD has a large effect on the conduction power loss. This parasitic inductance creates a current that is shared by the two devices for a certain period and increases the conduction power loss. If conventional devices are used for under 1 MHz switching, the advantage of the low on-resistance MOSFET will almost be lost. To reduce the conduction loss for 10 MHz switching, the parasitic inductance must be a subnanohenley.

High-efficiency and wide-bandwidth performance obtainable from a two-input buck converter

Abstract: A study of the two-input post-regulators is carried out in this paper. In these post-regulators, only a part of the total power undergoes a switching conversion process, whereas the remainder of the power comes up to the load directly, with no power conversion process. Due to this fact, very high efficiency is achieved. Moreover, the stress in the semiconductors and the filter size are both much lower than in standard post-regulators. Two-input post-regulators require two-output main converters. However, many converter topologies can be easily adapted to supply two-output voltages with no efficiency penalty. Two-input postregulators can be used in many power converters. Multiple-output DC-to-DC converters and AC-to-DC power factor correctors are two good examples.