Improving control quality in inverter systems has attracted considerable attention, particularly in multilevel inverters for high-power applications. This study suggests a straightforward predictive direct power control system for a five-level Active Neutral Point Clamped inverter connected to the grid. The proposed method offers the benefit of reducing the heavy computational load by implementing a two-stage optimization process for the objective function. In contrast to the conventional finite control set model predictive control which involves comprehensive searches for all possible switching configurations within the iterative optimization process, the suggested approach focuses only on potential voltage vectors based on the desired inverter voltage’s location at the initial stage. Second, the self-balancing flying capacitor voltages are guaranteed by employing the duplicative switching states. Another advantage of the presented algorithm is an obviation of numerous selecting weighting factors. The effectiveness of the advanced strategy is confirmed through extensive comparative simulation and hardware-in-the-loop studies conducted in both conditions during stable states and transitions. Contrasted to the previous technique, this innovative method demonstrates an improvement in the grid’s power ripple and total harmonic distortion of the current by 14.66% and 19.58%. Furthermore, the computational time required for this method is significantly reduced by 64.58%, and 61.36% correlate to the traditional and other approaches, respectively. These results may facilitate the implementation of an effective control approach for multilevel inverters, employing a cost-effective control platform by a limited sampling interval.
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