• Journal of Power Electronics
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• v.18 no.6
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• pp.1659-1669
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• 2018

An improved circulating current suppression control method is proposed in this paper. In the proposed controller, an outer loop of the average capacitor voltage control model is used to balance the sub-module capacitor voltage. Meanwhile, an individual voltage balance controller and an arm voltage balance controller are also used. The DC and harmonic components of the circulating current are separated using a low pass filter. Therefore, a multiple quasi-proportional-resonant (multi-quasi-PR) controller is introduced in the inner loop to eliminate the circulating harmonic current, which mainly contains second-order harmonic but also contains other high-order harmonics. In addition, the parameters of the multi-quasi-PR controller are designed in the discrete domain and an analysis of the stability characteristic is given in this paper. In addition, a simulation model of a three-phase MMC system is built in order to confirm the correctness and superiority of the proposed controller. Finally, experiment results are presented and compared. These results illustrate that the improved control method has good performance in suppressing circulating harmonic current and in balancing the capacitor voltage.

• Journal of Power Electronics
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• v.17 no.5
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• pp.1349-1362
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• 2017

In order to further improve the harmonic suppression capability of conventional 12-pulse rectifiers, this paper proposes a low harmonic 12-pulse rectifier using an Active Inter-Phase Reactor (AIPR). Through a detailed analysis of the relationship between the input current, output current and circulating current of the DC side, the mechanism where the AC grid side current harmonics can be suppressed by the DC side circulating current is revealed. On this basis, an interleaved APFC controlled by a DSP is designed and used as an AIPR along with an interphase reactor. A simulation is carried out with MATLAB/Simulink and an experiment is performed on a 9-kVA prototype. The obtained results verify the feasibility and validity of the proposed approach. Compared with a traditional 12-pulse rectifier, the THD can be reduced to 1/5 of the original value, and the capacity of the AIPR is only 2% of the load power. Thus, it is suitable for high-power applications.

• Journal of Power Electronics
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.942-952
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• 2017

Modular multilevel converters (MMCs) have been receiving extensive research interest in high/medium-voltage applications due to its modularity, scalability, reliability, high-voltage capability, and excellent harmonic performance. Submodule capacitors are usually rather bulky because they have to withstand fundamental frequency voltage fluctuations. To reduce the capacitance of these capacitors, this study proposes a modified MMC with an active power decoupling circuit within each submodule. The modified submodule contains an auxiliary half bridge, with its capacitor split in two. Also, the midpoints of the half bridge and the split capacitors are connected by an inductor. With this modified submodule, the fundamental frequency voltage fluctuation can be suppressed to a great extent. The second-order voltage fluctuation, which is the second most significant component in submodule voltage fluctuations, is removed by the proper control of the second-order circulating current. Consequently, the submodule capacitance is significantly reduced. The viability and effectiveness of the proposed new MMC are confirmed by the simulation and experimental results. The proposed MMC is best suited for medium-voltage applications where power density is given a high priority.