Design and Hardware Implementation of an IGBT-Based Half-Bridge Cell for Modular Voltage Source Inverters

Roberto Morales-Caporal,Raúl Cortés-Maldonado,Haydee P Martínez-Hernández,José F Pérez-Cuapio

doi:10.3390/electronics10202549

Roberto Morales-Caporal, Raúl Cortés-Maldonado + Show 2 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/electronics10202549

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Abstract

This article presents the design and hardware implementation of an IGBT-based half-bridge voltage source inverter (VSI) to be used as a basic cell to assemble VSIs of different topologies in modular ways. Herein, we have presented the design methodology and utilized techniques for reducing stray inductances and EMI radiation on the printed circuit board, as well as the way to calculate and select the main electronic components. For the design of the circuit board, local regulations for grid interconnection and international standards were considered in order to obtain a safe and reliable electronic power cell. The developed hardware was subjected to different tests using AC electric motors as loads to validate its design. Two VSIs topologies were evaluated: a single-phase two-level full-bridge inverter and a three-phase two-level inverter. The experimental results validated the theory and demonstrated the excellent performance, reliability, and high efficiency of the developed half-bridge power cell for modular VSIs.

Highlights

A power inverter converts a direct current (DC) source at its input into an alternating current (AC) output waveform [1]
Power cells and even multilevel inverters (MLIs) of different levels and topologies can be found on the market [21], in developing economies, it is still difficult to obtain or assemble modular voltage-source inverter (VSI) to alleviate some of the problems that commonly appear in rural power generation facilities from unconventional source, such as:
In order to have previous references to compare voltage and current waveforms at the outputs of the single-phase and three-phase inverters, open loop control simulations were carried out, with DC-link voltage and loads similar to those that will be used in laboratory tests

Summary

Introduction

A power inverter converts a direct current (DC) source at its input into an alternating current (AC) output waveform [1]. According to the type of AC output waveform, the inverter topology can be considered a voltage-source inverter (VSI), where the independently controlled AC output is a voltage waveform, or as current-source inverter, where the independently controlled AC output is a current waveform [2]. VSI topologies are the most widely used because they naturally behave as voltage sources, as required by many electrical applications, such as: variable speed electrical drives, electric vehicles, active power filters, uninterruptible power supplies, power generation from renewable energy sources, etc. It is well known that power electronics is one of the key technologies to address real-life issues in energy access and its utilization

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