Search

In this paper, a two-leg-transfer switch structure method that can continuously supply three-phase power even when an accident occurs in a power semiconductor of a three-level active neutral-point-clamped (ANPC) inverter for railway vehicles is presented. The proposed method can minimize the ripple effect caused by power semiconductor faults by separating the faulty leg from the main circuit and connecting the load-side circuit to a neutral point. As a result of simulations, the average values of MAE and RMSE can be reduced by 1.53 [A] and 1.77 [A], respectively, when using the proposed leg-transfer switch structure compared to using the conventional structure. In the IGBT failure experiment, when the proposed method was applied to a three-level ANPC inverter, there was only a 0.21 [%] difference from the THD under normal conditions. As a result, the magnitude, phase, and total harmonic distortion of the three-phase current waveforms measured before and after the fault were identical. Thus, normal three-phase power could be effectively supplied to the load when the proposed leg-transfer switch method was applied after a power semiconductor fault occurred in the three-level ANPC inverter. If this leg-transfer switch method is applied in three-level ANPC inverterd for railway vehicles, track schedule errors can be minimized by continuously supplying three-phase power to the electric motor even when an accident occurs in a power semiconductor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Liquid hydrogen has been studied for use in vehicles. However, during the charging process, liquid hydrogen is lost as gas. Therefore, it is necessary to estimate and reduce this loss and simulate the charging process. In this study, the initial charging process of a vehicle liquid hydrogen tank under room temperature and atmospheric pressure conditions was numerically investigated. A transient thermal-fluid simulation with a phase-change model was performed to analyze variations in the volume, pressure, mass flow rate, and temperature. The results showed that the process could be divided into three stages. In the first stage, liquid hydrogen was actively vaporized at the inner wall surface of the storage tank. The pressure increased rapidly, and liquid droplets were discharged into the vent pipe during the second stage. In the third stage, the mass flow rates of liquid and hydrogen gas at the outlet showed significant fluctuations, owing to complex momentum generated by the evaporation and charging flow. The temperatures of the inner and outer walls, and insulation layer, decreased significantly slower than that of the gas region because of its high heat capacity and insulation effect. The optimal structure should be further studied because the vortex, stagnation, and non-uniform cooling of the wall occurred near the inlet and outlet pipes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The practical application of lithium–sulfur batteries (LSBs) is limited by the shuttle effect of lithium polysulfides (LiPSs), large volume expansion, and sluggish conversion kinetics of sulfur. Herein, the crystallinity regulation of NixFey alloy anchored on oxidized carbon nanotube/nitrogen‐doped graphene (NixFey@OCNT/NG) for application of a functional separator into LSBs is demonstrated. A low crystalline NixFey@OCNT/NG (LC‐NixFey@OCNT/NG) modified polypropylene separator is systematically compared with its highly crystalline counterpart (HC‐NixFey@OCNT/NG), demonstrating superior LiPS absorbability, redox mediating capability into facilitated conversion kinetics, and uniform flux of Li+ into the anode. Furthermore, theoretical calculations confirm that the LC‐NixFey alloy features high adsorption energies and low diffusion energy barriers toward LiPSs, as well as a decreased energy gap and larger electron density near Fermi level. Accordingly, the LSB cells with LC‐NixFey@OCNT/NG modified separators deliver a high specific capacity of 1379.13 mA h g−1 at 0.1 C and a low decay ratio of 0.04%/cycle over 600 cycles at 5.0 C with a high capacity of 410 mA h g−1. Even under high sulfur loading (5.37 mg cm−2) and lean electrolyte (E/S = 4.9 µL mg−1) conditions, the LSB cells with LC‐NixFey@OCNT/NG/PP deliver a high areal capacity of 4.1 mAh cm−2 at 0.2 C. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]