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This article proposes three-phase cascaded multilevel rectifiers for wind energy conversion system applications. These configurations operate as machine-side converters and play an essential role in the integration of wind power generation units. The proposed rectifiers are connected to a permanent magnet synchronous machine by an open-end winding arrangement, making the ac–dc conversion of the power delivered with high-power factor operation. Their structures are composed of a combination of a converter based on Vienna rectifiers and one H-bridge per phase with a floating capacitor. Compared with the conventional configurations, the proposed ones provide sinusoidal currents with lower harmonic distortion using, proportionally, a fewer number of controlled switches. Furthermore, they can operate with a lower switch blocking voltage. These features make them attractive options for industrial applications due to their good performance, providing an interesting cost–benefit. The system model, pulsewidth modulation technique, capacitor voltage balancing, and control strategy are detailed. Computer simulations and experimental tests are provided in order to validate their feasibility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article proposes three-phase configurations for wind energy conversion system applications. The proposed topologies are based on Vienna rectifiers and they have a reduced number of controlled switches, which may allow reducing size and costs. Despite they can work with other arrangements, the proposed structures operate at an open-end winding configuration in this article, providing some benefits over the traditional ones. Compared to the conventional topology, the proposed ones provide a better power quality employing, proportionally, a fewer number of controlled switches, offering a higher levels-per-switch ratio. Moreover, they can also operate at a lower switch blocking voltage. These features offer an interesting cost–benefit and make them attractive options to industry applications. The system model, modulation technique, and control strategy are discussed. Simulation and experimental results are provided in order to validate their performance and feasibility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, analysis and design of a 3.3-kW isolated single-stage three-phase buck-type rectifier for aircraft applications is presented. The operating principle and modulation method of the proposed rectifier are introduced. The advantageous zero-voltage switching (ZVS) feature in all of the switching transitions is analyzed. A comparison with the VIENNA Rectifier III is done, being different both in the phase-leg implementation and the modulation sequence. A detailed rectifier design guideline is discussed and losses estimations are provided aiming at reaching 93.7% overall efficiency, including the EMI (electromagnetic interference) filter. Simulation waveforms are presented. Finally, experimental results obtained with the designed 3.3-kW hardware demonstrator are provided. The results verify achievement of ZVS in all of the switching transitions from full load down to 50% of nominal load, while exhibiting 1.9% THD $_I$ (total harmonic distortion) and 0.9996 PF (power factor) at nominal power, ultimately showing very good agreement to the simulation results. This article is accompanied by a video demonstrating experimental operation of the proposed rectifier at nominal input voltage, output voltage, and output power. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Neutral-point (NP) voltage imbalance is an inherent issue of three-level converters. The alternating input current distortion is generated by using the conventional discontinuous pulsewidth modulation (DPWM) scheme without NP voltage balance control. In this article, the deviation vector between the synthesis vector and the reference vector, which is the fundamental cause of alternating input current distortion under NP voltage unbalance conditions, is revealed. Then, by optimizing the subsector division and the switching state sequence, a dynamic-space-vector DPWM (DSV-DPWM) is proposed to eliminate the deviation vector. Further, the comparisons of the proposed DSV-DPWM, the conventional DPWM, and an existing triangle carrier-based DPWM (TCB-DPWM), are addressed. Finally, a 10-kW prototype was built to verify the effectiveness of the proposed DSV-DPWM scheme. Experimental results show that, compared with the conventional DPWM scheme and the TCB-DPWM scheme, both the current THD performance and efficiencies can be significantly improved by the proposed DSV-DPWM scheme under unbalanced NP voltage conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]