• Journal of Power Electronics
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• 제19권4호
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• pp.968-979
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• 2019

Recently, there has been increased interest in the study of multiphase machines due to their higher fault-tolerant capability when compared to their conventional three-phase counterparts. For six-phase machines, stator windings configured with a single isolated neutral (1N) provide significantly more post-fault torque/power than two isolated neutrals (2N). Hence, this configuration is preferred in applications where post-fault performance is critical. It is well known that min-max injection has been commonly used for three-phase and multiphase machines in healthy condition to maximize the modulation limit. However, there is a lack of discussion on min-max injection for post-fault condition. Furthermore, the effects in terms of the common-mode voltage (CMV) in modulating signals has not been discussed. This paper investigates the effect of min-max injection in post fault-tolerant control on the voltage and speed limit of a symmetrical six-phase induction machine with single isolated neutral. It is shown that the min-max injection can minimize the amplitude of reference voltage, which maximizes the modulation index and post-fault speed of the machine. This in turn results in a higher post-fault power.

• Journal of Power Electronics
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• 제19권3호
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• pp.714-726
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• 2019

This paper proposes a hybrid-boost Modular Multilevel Converter (MMC) for the Medium-Voltage (MV) Variable Speed Drives (VSDs) employed in subsea applications, such as oil and gas recovery. In the presented architecture, a hybrid-boost MMC with a reduced number of semiconductor devices driving a multiphase Induction Machine (IM) is investigated. The stepped output voltage generated by the MMC reduces or eliminates the filtering requirements. Moreover, the boosting capability of the proposed architecture eliminates the need for bulky low-frequency transformers at the converter output terminals. A detailed illustration of the hybrid-boost MMC operation, the expected limitations/constraints, and the voltage balancing technique are presented. A simulation model of the proposed MV hybrid-boost MMC-based five-phase IM drive has been built to investigate the system performance. Finally, a downscaled prototype has been constructed for experimental verification.

• Journal of Power Electronics
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• 제14권1호
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• pp.61-73
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• 2014

Multiphase machines are characterized by high power density, enhanced fault-tolerant capacity, and low torque pulsation. For a voltage source inverter supplied multiphase machine, the probability of load imbalances becomes greater and unwanted low-order stator voltage harmonics occur. This paper deals with the PWM control of multiphase inverters under unbalanced load conditions and it proposes a novel near-five-vector SVPWM algorithm based on the five-phase six-leg inverter. The proposed algorithm can output symmetrical phase voltages under unbalanced load conditions, which is not possible for the conventional SVPWM algorithms based on the five-phase five-leg inverters. The cause of extra harmonics in the phase voltages is analyzed, and an xy coordinate system orthogonal to the ${\alpha}{\beta}z$ coordinate system is introduced to eliminate low-order harmonics in the output phase voltages. Moreover, the digital implementation of the near-five-vector SVPWM algorithm is discussed, and the optimal approach with reduced complexity and low execution time is elaborated. A comparison of the proposed algorithm and other existing PWM algorithms is provided, and the pros and cons of the proposed algorithm are concluded. Simulation and experimental results are also given. It is shown that the proposed algorithm works well under unbalanced load conditions. However, its maximum modulation index is reduced by 5.15% in the linear modulation region, and its algorithm complexity and memory requirement increase. The basic principle in this paper can be easily extended to other inverters with different phase numbers.