Three-level neutral point-clamped (NPC) traction inverter drive for electric vehicles

The motivation of this project was to develop a three level neutral point clamped (NPC) traction inverter for a permanent magnet synchronous machine drive. The three-level inverter helps to reduce the total inverter losses at higher switching frequencies, compared to a two-level inverter for electric vehicle applications. The three-level inverter has also more power switches compared to the two-level inverter. This helps to reduce the voltage stress across the switches and the machine winding. In addition, it also allows an increase in the DC-link voltage, which in turn helps to reduce the DC-link current, phase conductor size and the associated losses. Moreover, at higher DC-bus voltages the power switches will have lower thermal stress when compared to the 2-level. However, the NPC inverter topologies have an inherent problem of DC-link voltage balancing. In the initial part of this thesis, a novel space vector based DC-link voltage balancing strategy is proposed. This strategy can keep the two DC-link capacitor voltages balanced during transient changes in both speed and torque. The performance of the three-level inverter system is then compared with a two-level inverter based drive to validate its performance improvement. The results showed a significant reduction in total voltage and current harmonic distortions, reduced total inverter losses (by 2/3rd) and was even was able to keep the neutral point fluctuation low at all operating load power factor conditions. The second motivation of this thesis was to reduce the computational time in the real-time implementation of the control logic. For this purpose, a modified carrier and hybrid-carrier based PWM strategy was proposed, which also kept the DC-link capacitor voltages balanced. The modified carrier based strategy was able to reduce the switching losses compared to the conventional strategies, while the hybrid-carrier based strategy kept the advantages of both carrier and the space vector techniques. Finally, a performance comparison study was carried out to compare the total harmonic distortion, switching loss distribution, and total inverter loss of all the four proposed strategies

Model Predictive Controlled Active NPC Inverter for Voltage Stress Balancing among the Semiconductor Power Switches

© Published under licence by IOP Publishing Ltd. This paper presents a model predictive controlled three-level three-phase active neutral-point-clamped (ANPC) inverter for distributing the voltage stress among the semiconductor power switches as well as balancing the neutral-point voltage. The model predictive control (MPC) concept uses the discrete variables and effectively operates the ANPC inverter by avoiding any linear controller or modulation techniques. A 4.0 kW three-level three-phase ANPC inverter is developed in the MATLAB/Simulink environment to verify the effectiveness of the proposed MPC scheme. The results confirm that the proposed model predictive controlled ANPC inverter equally distributes the voltage across all the semiconductor power switches and provides lowest THD (0.99%) compared with the traditional NPC inverter. Moreover, the neutral-point voltage balancing is accurately maintained by the proposed MPC algorithm. Furthermore, this MPC concept shows the robustness capability against the parameter uncertainties of the system which is also analyzed by MATLAB/Simulink

Multi-objective Predictive Control of 3L-NPC Inverter Fed Sensorless PMSM Drives for Electrical Car Applications

This paper proposes a multi-objective FS-MPC approach based on three-step optimization for a surface-mounted PMSM fed by a 3L-NPC inverter. It helps to significantly reduce torque ripples, current harmonics while controlling the inverter's neutral point voltage. To overcome the drawbacks of using mechanical sensors, a sliding mode observer is used to estimate the machine speed and rotor angular position. Compared to existing works, the proposed control method is implemented using the proportionality between the electromagnetic torque and the current component on the q-axis to eliminate the computational redundancy related to the current and torque control. To further reduce torque ripples and current harmonics, a 3L-NPC inverter is used. Compared to other types of three-level inverters, it uses less power semiconductors and attenuates the problem of voltage fluctuation at the neutral point and current harmonics. Matlab/Simulink simulations of the proposed approach yield a current THD of 1.69 %

Analysis of power losses and Lifetime for the inverter in electric Vehicles using variable voltage Control and variable switching Frequency modified pwm

With the increasing demand for reduced emissions and improved fuel economy, the automakers are focusing on the development of electric vehicles (EVs). The performance requirements for EVs includes high driving range and long life of its components. The power converters are among the most stressed and less reliable EV drivetrain components. Hence, improving the lifetime of the power converters is essential for the success of EV adoption. The lifetime of the power converters can be improved by reducing thermal stress of the power devices, which represents the main cause of failure. Since the temperature and power losses of the power device are proportional, thermal stress can be reduced by minimizing the power losses. In addition to the lifetime improvement, minimizing the power losses of the power converters can extend the EV range since the power demand under a given loading conditions is reduced. In this regard, this thesis aims to study the impact of an existing power loss reduction technique known as variable dc-bus voltage control (VVC) on the inverter lifetime. In addition, it proposes a new pulse width modulation (PWM) strategy called variable switching frequency modified PWM (VSF-MPWM) for three-phase two level voltage source inverter. The VSF-MPWM aims to minimize the inverter power losses, but without sacrificing the output current quality. In order to study the impact of the VVC on the inverter lifetime, a lifetime estimation method is first presented. This method uses the Artemis urban and US06 driving cycles in order to obtain the thermal loading, and consequently the lifetime consumption of the inverter power devices. Then, the VSF-MPWM is proposed, which minimizes the switching loss by clamping any of the three-phase legs at the phase current peak and by reducing the number of commutations through variable switching frequency. However, in order to achieve an acceptable current quality, the proposed VSF-MPWM controls both the clamping period and the switching frequency according to the current quality constraints of the conventional PWM strategy. The impact of the VVC on the inverter lifetime and the performance of the proposed VSF-MPWM on the inverter power losses and current quality are investigated through MATLAB Simulink. The lifetime analysis reveals that the VVC has the ability to improve the lifetime of the inverter by a factor of 5.06 and 3.43 under Artemis urban and US06 driving cycles, respectively, compared to the conventional constant dc-bus voltage control (CVC). On the other hand, the simulation result shows that the proposed VSF-MPWM can save up to 35.4 % and 23.8 % of switching and power losses, respectively, compared to the conventional PWM. Meanwhile, the VSF-MPWM can obtain the same output current quality as that of the conventional PWM

A MODIFIED VIRTUAL SPACE VECTOR MODULATION TECHNIQUE FOR Z-SOURCE NPC INVERTERS

A modified virtual space vector modulation approach for the control of a Z-source neutral point clamped inverter is presented in this paper. This approach works perfectly for the traditional neutral point clamped inverter. In this paper, the effectiveness of the virtual space vector modulation technique in balancing the input capacitor voltages of the Z-source NPC inverter with no low-frequency oscillations superimposed in addition to voltage buck-boost capability is demonstrated through simulations in SABER®. A prototype converter is used to capture experimental results for validation

Power quality improvement utilizing photovoltaic generation connected to a weak grid

Microgrid research and development in the past decades have been one of the most popular topics. Similarly, the photovoltaic generation has been surging among renewable generation in the past few years, thanks to the availability, affordability, technology maturity of the PV panels and the PV inverter in the general market. Unfortunately, quite often, the PV installations are connected to weak grids and may have been considered as the culprit of poor power quality affecting other loads in particular sensitive loads connected to the same point of common coupling (PCC). This paper is intended to demystify the renewable generation, and turns the negative perception into positive revelation of the superiority of PV generation to the power quality improvement in a microgrid system. The main objective of this work is to develop a control method for the PV inverter so that the power quality at the PCC will be improved under various disturbances. The method is to control the reactive current based on utilizing the grid current to counteract the negative impact of the disturbances. The proposed control method is verified in PSIM platform. Promising results have been obtaine

Multiport Bidirectional SRM Drives for Solar-Assisted Hybrid Electric Bus Powertrain With Flexible Driving and Self-Charging Functions

The hybrid electric bus (HEB) presents an emerging solution to exhaust gas emissions in urban transport. This paper proposes a multiport bidirectional switched reluctance motor (SRM) drive for solar-assisted HEB (SHEB) powertrain, which not only improves the motoring performance, but also achieves flexible charging functions. To extend the driving miles and achieve self-charging ability, photovoltaic (PV) panels are installed on the bus to decrease the reliance on fuelsbatteries and charging stations. A bidirectional front-end circuit with a PV-fed circuit is designed to integrate electrical components into one converter. Six driving and five charging modes are achieved. The dc voltage is boosted by the battery in generator control unit (GCU) driving mode and by the charge capacitor in battery driving mode, where the torque capability is improved. Usually, an extra converter is needed to achieve battery charging. In this paper, the battery can be directly charged by the demagnetization current in GCU or PV driving mode, and can be quickly charged by the PV panels and GCUAC grids at SHEB standstill conditions, by utilizing the traction motor windings and integrated converter circuit, without external charging converters. Experiments on a three-phase 128 SRM confirm the effectiveness of the proposed drive and control scheme

Inverter Design for SiC-based Electric Drive Systems with Optimal Redundant States Control of Space Vector Modulation

The need for inverters with ever increasing power density and efficiency has recently become the driving factor for research in various fields. Increasing the operating voltage of the whole drive system and utilizing newly developed SiC power switches can contribute towards this goal. Higher operating voltage allows the design of drives with lower current, which leads to lower copper losses in cables and machine, while SiC switches can drastically increase the inverter efficiency. Offshore renewable power generation, such as tidal power, is a typical application where the increase of operating voltage can be highly beneficial. The ongoing electrification of transportation calls also for high power electric powertrains with high power density,where SiC technology has key advantages.In the first part of the thesis, suitable control schemes for inverters in synchronous machine drive systems are derived. A properly designed Maximum Power Point Tracking algorithm for kite-based tidal power systems is presented. The speed and torque of this new tidal power generation system varies periodically and the inverter control needs to be able to handle this variable power profile. Experimental verification of the developed control is conducted on a 35 kVA laboratory emulator of the tidal power generation unit.Electric drives using multilevel inverters are studied afterwards. Multilevel inverters use multiple low-voltage-rated switches and can operate at higher voltage than standard two-level inverters. The Neutral Point Clamped (NPC) converter is a commonly used multilevel inverter topology for medium voltage machine drives. However, the voltage balancing of its dc-side capacitors and the complexity of its control are still issues that have not been effectively solved. A new method for the optimal utilization of the redundant states in Space Vector pulse-width-Modulation (SVM) is proposed in this thesis in order to control its dc-link voltages. Experimental verification on a 4-kV-rated prototype medium-voltage PMSM drive with 5-level NPC converters is conducted in order to validate the effectiveness of the proposed control technique.Low switching and conduction losses are typical characteristics of SiC switches that can be utilized to build inverters with high power density, due to the increased efficiency and smaller form-factor. Due to the above, SiC power modules have been particularly attractive for the automotive industry. The design approach of 2-level automotive inverters has been studied in this project. Moreover, a new design approach for the cooling system of automotive inverters has been developed in this thesis, which fine-tunes the inverter heatsink utilizing standard legislated test routines for electric vehicles. Multiple conjugate-heat-transfer (CHT) computation results showcase the iterative optimization procedure on a test-case 250 kW (450 A) automotive SiC inverter.Finally, the experimental testing of high power machine drives in order to verify the control and the hardware design is an important step of the development process. Thus, the performance of the prototype 450 A SiC 2-level inverter has been been experimentally validated in a power hardware-in-the-loop (P-HIL) set-up that emulates an automotive drive system. Several challenges have been addressed with respect to the accurate modelling of the motor and the control of the circulating power in the system. A new control technique utilizing the redundant states of the SVM has been developed for this set-up to effectively suppress the zero-sequence current to 3.3 % of the line current at rated power

Advances in Rotating Electric Machines

It is difficult to imagine a modern society without rotating electric machines. Their use has been increasing not only in the traditional fields of application but also in more contemporary fields, including renewable energy conversion systems, electric aircraft, aerospace, electric vehicles, unmanned propulsion systems, robotics, etc. This has contributed to advances in the materials, design methodologies, modeling tools, and manufacturing processes of current electric machines, which are characterized by high compactness, low weight, high power density, high torque density, and high reliability. On the other hand, the growing use of electric machines and drives in more critical applications has pushed forward the research in the area of condition monitoring and fault tolerance, leading to the development of more reliable diagnostic techniques and more fault-tolerant machines. This book presents and disseminates the most recent advances related to the theory, design, modeling, application, control, and condition monitoring of all types of rotating electric machines