EPE Association: EPE 2011 - LS5d: Topic 06: Converter Control, Current/Voltage Control (III)

EPE 2011 - LS5d: Topic 06: Converter Control, Current/Voltage Control (III)
You are here: EPE Documents > 01 - EPE & EPE ECCE Conference Proceedings > EPE 2011 ECCE Europe - Conference > EPE 2011 - Topic 06: Modulation Strategies and Specific Control Methods for Static Converters > EPE 2011 - LS5d: Topic 06: Converter Control, Current/Voltage Control (III)

   [return to parent folder]

   Decentralized Active Gate Control for Current Balancing of Parallel Connected IGBT Modules
By Yanick LOBSIGER, Dominik BORTIS, Johann KOLAR [View]
[Download]

Abstract: In modern power converters operating at currents of few kA and voltages of several kV, IGBT modules are typically used. The increased power demand of modern inverters and rectifiers results in higher currents and voltages. Currents up to tens of kA and voltages up to tens of kV are required, which exceed the ratings of IGBT semiconductors currently available. Multiple IGBT modules can be connected in parallel or in series to provide the requested current or voltage rating.Depending on the interconnection of the switches, parameter variations in the semiconductors and in the system, as well as tolerances and delay times in the gate driving circuits, an unbalanced current or voltage distribution may occur. Therefore, the IGBT modules are generally derated, which results in an increased number of devices and volume being required.In this paper, a modular concept of a decentralized active gate control for current balancing of parallel connected IGBT modules is presented. It operates distributed to the gate drive units, the hardware and software configurations are independent of the system design and no restrictions on the number of parallel connected IGBT modules exist.

   High-precision Current Control through Opposed Current Converters
By Jan SCHELLEKENS, Jorge DUARTE, Henk HUISMAN, Marcel HENDRIX [View]
[Download]

Abstract: Switch blanking time, also referred to as dead-time, is one of the dominant sources of output current and voltage distortion in pulse width modulated power amplifiers. Extensive studies are known on elimination, minimization, and compensation of the effect. Most techniques achieve a reduction of the distortion but are not capable of completely removing it. This paper demonstrates that it is possible to fully eliminate dead-time effects by applying the so-called opposed current converter topology in combination with decoupled output and bias current control. The bias current guarantees continuous conduction mode, resulting in almost linear behavior and no zero crossing distortion. The zero-crossing behavior of the opposed current converter is compared to a conventional full-bridge converter with equivalently filtered output. Simulations and measurements on a full-bridge and an opposed current converter of 1.5 kW are included to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed ideas for high-precision applications.

   New junction temperature balancing method for a Three-Level Active NPC Converter
By Erika HAUK, Daniel ANDLER, Rodrigo ALVAREZ, Steffen BERNET [View]
[Download]

Abstract: The Active NPC VSC (3L-ANPC-VSC) features a higher degree of controllability than standard NPCconverters, allowing a better temperature distribution among the semiconductors. With the aid of aPredictive Control strategy, a new temperature balancing method for the 3L-ANPC-VSC is introduced.The algorithm is implemented in Matlab and compared with the 3L-NPC-VSC using experimental dataof 4.5 kV Press-pack IGBT and Diode for the calculation of the losses. The comparison shows a potentialfor increasing the output power of the 3L-ANPC-VSC topology.

EPE 2011 - LS5d: Topic 06: Converter Control, Current/Voltage Control (III)
You are here: EPE Documents > 01 - EPE & EPE ECCE Conference Proceedings > EPE 2011 ECCE Europe - Conference > EPE 2011 - Topic 06: Modulation Strategies and Specific Control Methods for Static Converters > EPE 2011 - LS5d: Topic 06: Converter Control, Current/Voltage Control (III)
	[return to parent folder]

	Decentralized Active Gate Control for Current Balancing of Parallel Connected IGBT Modules By Yanick LOBSIGER, Dominik BORTIS, Johann KOLAR	[View] [Download]
Abstract: In modern power converters operating at currents of few kA and voltages of several kV, IGBT modules are typically used. The increased power demand of modern inverters and rectifiers results in higher currents and voltages. Currents up to tens of kA and voltages up to tens of kV are required, which exceed the ratings of IGBT semiconductors currently available. Multiple IGBT modules can be connected in parallel or in series to provide the requested current or voltage rating.Depending on the interconnection of the switches, parameter variations in the semiconductors and in the system, as well as tolerances and delay times in the gate driving circuits, an unbalanced current or voltage distribution may occur. Therefore, the IGBT modules are generally derated, which results in an increased number of devices and volume being required.In this paper, a modular concept of a decentralized active gate control for current balancing of parallel connected IGBT modules is presented. It operates distributed to the gate drive units, the hardware and software configurations are independent of the system design and no restrictions on the number of parallel connected IGBT modules exist.

	High-precision Current Control through Opposed Current Converters By Jan SCHELLEKENS, Jorge DUARTE, Henk HUISMAN, Marcel HENDRIX	[View] [Download]
Abstract: Switch blanking time, also referred to as dead-time, is one of the dominant sources of output current and voltage distortion in pulse width modulated power amplifiers. Extensive studies are known on elimination, minimization, and compensation of the effect. Most techniques achieve a reduction of the distortion but are not capable of completely removing it. This paper demonstrates that it is possible to fully eliminate dead-time effects by applying the so-called opposed current converter topology in combination with decoupled output and bias current control. The bias current guarantees continuous conduction mode, resulting in almost linear behavior and no zero crossing distortion. The zero-crossing behavior of the opposed current converter is compared to a conventional full-bridge converter with equivalently filtered output. Simulations and measurements on a full-bridge and an opposed current converter of 1.5 kW are included to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed ideas for high-precision applications.

	New junction temperature balancing method for a Three-Level Active NPC Converter By Erika HAUK, Daniel ANDLER, Rodrigo ALVAREZ, Steffen BERNET	[View] [Download]
Abstract: The Active NPC VSC (3L-ANPC-VSC) features a higher degree of controllability than standard NPCconverters, allowing a better temperature distribution among the semiconductors. With the aid of aPredictive Control strategy, a new temperature balancing method for the 3L-ANPC-VSC is introduced.The algorithm is implemented in Matlab and compared with the 3L-NPC-VSC using experimental dataof 4.5 kV Press-pack IGBT and Diode for the calculation of the losses. The comparison shows a potentialfor increasing the output power of the 3L-ANPC-VSC topology.