High-power Converters and AC Drives: Table of Contents

Part One--Introduction

1. Introduction

2. High-Power Semiconductor Devices

Part Two--Multipulse Diode and SCR Rectifiers

3. Multipulse Diode Rectifiers

4. Multipulse SCR Rectifiers

5. Phase-Shifting Transformers

Part Three--Multilevel Voltage Source Converters

6. Two-Level Voltage Source Inverter

7. Cascaded H-Bridge Multilevel Inverters

8. Diode-Clamped Multilevel Inverters

9. Other Multilevel Voltage Source Inverters

Part Four--PWM Current Source Converters

10. PWM Current Source Inverters

11. PWM Current Source Rectifiers

Part Five--High-Power AC Drives

12. Voltage Source Inverter-Fed Drives

13. Current Source Inverter-Fed Drives

14. Advanced Drive Control Schemes

With technology advancements in semiconductor devices such as insulated gate bipolar transistors (IGBTs) and gate commutated thyristors (GCTs), modern high power medium voltage (MV) drives are increasingly used in petrochemical, mining, steel and metals, transportation and other industries to conserve electric energy, increase productivity and improve product quality.

Although research and development of the medium voltage (2.3 KV to 13.8 KV) drive in the 1-MW to 100-MW range are continuously growing, guides dedicated to this technology seem unavailable. This guide provides a comprehensive analysis on a variety of high-power converter topologies, drive system configurations, and advanced control schemes.

This guide presents the latest technology in the field, provides design guidance with tables, charts and graphs, addresses practical problems and their mitigation methods, and illustrates important concepts with computer simulations and experiments. It serves as a reference for academic researchers, practicing engineers, and other professionals. This guide also provides adequate technical background for most of its topics such that it can be adopted as a guide for a graduate-level course in power electronics and ac drives.

This guide is presented in five parts with fourteen sections.

Part One, Introduction, provides an overview of high-power MV drives, which includes market analysis, drive system configurations, typical industrial applications, power converter topologies and semiconductor devices. The technical requirements and challenges for the MV drive are highlighted; these are different in many aspects from those for low-voltage drives.

Part Two, Multipulse Diode and SCR Rectifiers, covers 12-, 18- and 24-pulses rectifier topologies commonly used in the MV drive for the reduction of line current distortion. The configuration of phase-shifting (zigzag) transformers and principle of harmonic cancellation are discussed.

Part Three, Multilevel Voltage Source Inverters, presents detailed analysis on various multilevel voltage source inverter (VSI) topologies, including neutral point clamped and cascaded H-bridge inverters. Carrier-based and space-vector modulation schemes for the multilevel inverters are elaborated.

Part Four, PWM Current Source Converters, deals with a number of current source inverters (CSI) and rectifiers for the MV drive. Several modulation techniques such as trapezoidal pulse width modulations, selective harmonics elimination and space vector modulations are analyzed. Unity-power factor control and active damping control for the current source rectifiers are also included.

Part Five, High-Power ac Drives, focuses on various configurations of VSI- and CSI-fed MV drives marketed by major drive manufacturers. The features and limitations of these drives are discussed. Two advanced drive control schemes, field oriented control and direct torque control, are analyzed. Efforts are made to present these complex schemes in a simple, easy to understand manner.