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D.A. Ganeshpure

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This article proposes a new configuration of a modular multilevel converter (MMC) and a Marx generator to generate fast-rising impulse waveforms. This new configuration improves the capabilities of the MMC-based high voltage arbitrary wave shape generator to generate fast-rising impulse since the MMC topology faces many inherent limitations. Similar to the conventional superimposed circuit of the ac transformer or dc rectifier circuit with the Marx generator, three hybrid circuits of MMC and the Marx generator are introduced, where the most optimal choice is made considering the practical aspects of testing, such as the size, cost, and preparation time. Then, a detailed analytical study is performed on the Marx generator circuit and the MMC circuit, and both circuits are coupled together to deliver a complete guideline on choosing various system parameters when the impulse wave shape and the load capacitor are given. The concept of this new hybrid configuration is demonstrated with a scaled-down prototype where the impulse with a rise time of 1 μs is superimposed on different arbitrary wave shapes. Similarly, the MATLAB-Simulink simulation model validates the proposed configuration for a 200, k V dc link voltage and 67 submodules with the desired impulse performance. ...
The integration of wind and solar energy through power electronic converters has introduced new challenges to High Voltage (HV) equipment in the electrical power system. Switchgear, cables, and transformers are now subject to higher dV/dt stress and complex wave shapes due to solid-state switching. This poses a threat to the reliability of the grid by weakening the dielectric material of these assets. Existing HV test sources face limitations in generating complex wave shapes and have restricted current capabilities. Building a customized test setup is time-consuming when combining multiple HV test sources for complex waveforms.

To overcome these challenges, an Arbitrary Wave shape Generator (AWG) for dielectric testing of HV grid assets is proposed. The Modular Multilevel Converter (MMC) topology is chosen for its modular structure, low harmonic content, and scalability to higher voltage levels. The initial focus is on dielectric testing of Medium Voltage (MV) class equipment, with the ultimate goal being the development of a modular prototype as part of a PhD project.

HV test requirements and procedures for conventional tests of MV class equipment are compiled, along with specifications for non-standard wave shapes in consideration of the hybrid grid. Two main HV test requirements are addressed in the PhD thesis: the output voltage range of 10 kV to 100 kV with a load capacitance range of 50 pF to 10 nF and a large-signal bandwidth up to 2.5 kHz. The second requirement involves generating steep pulses with a rise time of a few microseconds for a voltage magnitude of 250 kV across a capacitive load of 10 nF.

Despite the maturity of MMC technology for HVDC transmission, adapting it for HV AWG applications presents unique challenges. The thesis explores design trade-offs related to MMC parameters such as the number of Submodules (SMs) per arm, arm inductance, arm resistance, modulation technique, SM capacitance, and control system. Design criteria are developed and demonstrated through simulation models and a scaled-down prototype.

The control hardware of the HV AWG is addressed using a commercially available Real Time Simulator (RTS) named Typhoon-HIL. This choice is based on its flexibility to program arbitrary waveforms in the FPGA without coding in any special hardware description language. The performance is demonstrated in the scaled-down prototype, achieving sinusoidal waveforms up to 5 kHz reference frequency with THD less than 5%.

The second HV test requirement, steep pulse generation, is investigated with the MMC topology. It is found that the series-connected SMs of MMC make it challenging to obtain a short rise time across a large capacitive load. To address this, an integrated hybrid circuit of MMC and Marx generator circuit is proposed for complex waveforms with a rise time faster than 100 μs. Proper guidelines for choosing circuit parameters are provided and experimentally validated with a scaled-down prototype. ...
Conference paper (2023) - Dhanashree Ashok Ganeshpure, Thiago B. Soeiro, Mohamad Ghaffarian Niasar, Peter Vaessen
A Modular Multilevel Converter (MMC)-based Arbitrary Wave shape Generator (AWG) for High Voltage (HV) testing faces challenges in the control hardware to generate kHz-range high-frequency waveforms. Real Time Simulators (RTS) provide a simple way to implement the control of the MMC-based AWG in the FPGA. One of the commercially available RTS named Typhoon HIL is found to satisfy the small simulation step requirement such as minimum of 200 ns for generating kHz-range high-frequency waveforms. The performance of Typhoon HIL device is demonstrated with a scaled-down prototype of MMC-based AWG where sinusoidal and other arbitrary waveforms are generated up to 5kHz with a THD less than 5 %. ...
Conference paper (2023) - Xiaochuan Zhou, Dhanashree Ganeshpure, Thiago Batista Soeiro, Mohamad Ghaffarian Niasar, Yang Wu, Peter Vaessen
In order to damp the resonance in the MMC-based Arbitrary Wave shape Generator (AWG) used for high voltage testing, an active damping control methodology is proposed in this paper instead of the passive damping with an arm resistor. It is vital to ensure the system’s stability when such an active damping closed loop control is implemented. Consequently, optimal parameters of a PI controller are designed by analyzing the stability margins of the involved transfer function using Bode-Plots. The performance of the designed active damping control methodology and the PI controller have been demonstrated with a 50 Hz sinusoidal waveform and arbitrary waveforms such as triangular, trapezoidal, and complex waveforms in MATLAB-Simulink. These results proves that the output voltage can track the reference without any reasonable error and does not contain any resonant frequency. Additionally, the Total Harmonic Distortion (THD) of the sinusoidal waveform and other arbitrary waveforms is less than 1% with the Phase Shift Carrier (PSC) modulation technique. ...
To test high-voltage (HV) equipment with increasingly complex transients obtained from various power system studies, this article demonstrates a hardware implementation of a medium-voltage (MV) submodule (SM) to be used in a modular multilevel converter (MMC)-based HV arbitrary wave shape generator (AWG). The MV SM is scalable with its own onboard auxiliary power supply (APS), and it is constructed by connecting three full-bridge SMs in series from the commercially available component. The designed MV SM can be operated for a wide voltage range of 0.8-2.7 kV to incorporate different test objects ranging from HV insulation material to MV equipment and generate a wide output range of 0.12-1.2 kV. Considering the hardware nonidealities in the APS, gate driver, and switches, the series operation of three SMs is ensured using an arm energy controller. Based on the current-based model of APS, SM capacitance design criteria are updated for variable-frequency output waveform, and the minimum dc-link voltage is calculated for the proper start-up of this scalable MMC module. Apart from the variable voltage per SM, the HV AWG application poses different conditions, such as a low value of SM capacitance value and the HV dc sources with a current rating of a few tens of milliamperes. Hence, this article proposes exclusive design guidelines for the proper start-up, steady-state, and shutdown operation of the MMC-based AWG. In addition, this article dives deeper analytically into the soft start-up algorithm to understand its working principle and to design the average charging current within the limit for any number of SMs of the arm. In the end, their performance is showcased with a single MV SM per arm, operating at a different voltage (0.8-2.7 kV) and frequency levels (1-600 Hz) and generating different wave shapes, such as triangular, sinusoidal with different harmonics, and pulse waveforms. In addition, the fault ride-through capability is verified for the MMC-based HV AWG. ...
Journal article (2022) - Yiming Zang, Mohamad Ghaffarian Niasar, Dhanashree Ashok Ganeshpure, Yong Qian, Gehao Sheng, Xiuchen Jiang, Peter Vaessen
With the widespread application of power electronic switching technology, power equipment is facing new electrical stresses brought about by multilevel staircase voltages during testing and operation. Therefore, the partial discharge (PD) behavior of five typical defects in power equipment under the staircase waveform needs to be investigated. This article mainly analyses the phase-resolved PD (PRPD) pattern and pulse repetition rate (PRR) of five typical defects under sinusoidal voltage and multilevel staircase voltage with different number of levels. Also, the PD behavior under staircase voltage with different step responses are investigated. By analyzing the reasons behind the PD behavior between different cases, the PD characteristics and the transformation of PRPD patterns under different staircase voltages are obtained. Moreover, this research finds that the sensitivity of different defects to the staircase voltage is different. These results provide experimental and theoretical support for the testing and diagnosis of PD under new electrical stress present in the future flexible electric grid. ...
This article compares the pulse current capability of various Semiconductor (SM) device technologies for Modular Multilevel Converter (MMC)-based High Voltage (HV) Arbitrary Waveform Generator (AWG) for dielectric testing of grid assets to find the most suitable SM device technology which can perform well in generating lightning impulse that demands a high peak current for a relatively short time. For the typical HV loads of the AWG, Lightning Impulse (LI) test may require a pulse current to rise to 1.7 kA in 0.2 µs. It is essential to highlight that most other dielectric tests performed with an HV AWG demand a relatively low current such as less than 10 A. Therefore, TO-packaged semiconductors would be well-suited for a large number of tests other than short impulses. To optimize the size and cost of the HV AWG, this paper evaluates the pulse current capabilities of TO-packaged semiconductors for the above-mentioned current requirement to generate LI waveform. The first comparison is made among Non-Punch Through (NPT) Si IGBT, Field Stop (FS) Si IGBT, Si MOSFET, and SiC MOSFETs with roughly the same current rating of 40 A. It is found that the Si MOSFET gives the fastest rise time of 0.42 µs and the NPT IGBT gives the highest current amplification factor of almost 12 times greater than its own rated current. However, 3rd Generation SiC MOSFET combines Si MOSFET and NPT IGBT capabilities to generate a fast rise time and high peak pulse current. Additionally, the FS IGBT is compared with the SiC MOSFET. The SiC MOSFET performs better in peak current capability and the obtained rise time. All in all, the research results and the stringent HV AWG requirements for LI show that the application requires a relatively complex switch implementation with far superior current capability than in normal operation. Therefore, a parallel connection of several TO-packaged devices is necessary to generate LI from MMC-based HV AWG. ...
This paper analyses different design trade-offs for a Modular Multilevel Converter (MMC)-based Arbitrary Wave shape Generator (AWG) used for High Voltage (HV) testing and certification of grid assets such as transformers, switchgear, and cables. Modulation techniques, number of submodules, output voltage levels, arm inductance, and series damping resistance play an essential role in obtaining different waveforms with good quality. Phase-Shift Carrier (PSC) modulation technique proves to be a superior modulation technique for different periodic waveforms over Nearest Level Control (NLC), even when a large number of submodules is considered. With the traditional second-order filter design strategy, proper values of the arm inductance and series resistance can be selected, guaranteeing a good quality of the generated voltage waveforms to verify different dielectric properties of grid-assets. The design of such an AWG is demonstrated with the simulations in MATLAB-Simulink. ...
This paper presents a comparison in Partial Discharge (PD) behaviour when an air corona setup is subjected to different waveforms, namely an idealized 50 Hz sinusoidal and staircase-based sinusoidal waveforms near inception voltage and at a higher voltage. In this study, it has been observed that the PD repetition rate and the Phase-Resolved PD (PRPD) pattern with the staircase waveform better resemble that of a pure sinusoidal waveform if the number of voltage levels of the staircase waveform is sufficiently increased. When observed more closely at the PRPD pattern near inception voltage, PDs tend to occur near the slope of the staircase waveform, even when the step voltage is small. ...
This paper comprehensivelyinvestigates the design trade-offs of a Modular Multilevel Converter (MMC) operations as an Arbitrary Wave shapesGenerator (AWG) to perform High Voltage (HV) dielectric testing of different grid assets. HV AWG applications pose unique operatingconditions to the MMC, which influences the selection of the various system parameters. This influence of the MMC system parameters is studied analytically, with MATLAB-Simulink simulations and a down-scaled MMC prototype. It is found that the Phase-Shift Carrier (PSC) modulation technique proves to be a superior modulation technique over Nearest Level Control (NLC). The correct choice of arm inductance and series damping resistance improves the harmonic performance of the output voltage waveform. The fast switching SiC MOSFETs are well suited to generate complex waveforms with high bandwidth. The adapted control system with the proportional controller can accurately generate the different waveforms with Total Harmonic Distortion (THD) less than 5%. The circulating current in the MMC is negligible for the HV AWG application, which explains why the submodule capacitor voltages are balanced even when asymmetric complex wave shapes are generated from the MMC. Additionally, the submodule capacitor ripple expression is derived for this unique application, and it matches well with the simulation and experimental results. For this application, submodule capacitance in the μF range is sufficient to keep the ripple within 1% of its average value. Moreover, the challenges of realizing the full-scale MMC setup are discussed. The discussed design guidelines are applied to simulate the full-scale prototype with 67 submodules per arm. ...
SiC MOSFETs have become more and more popular in recent years. Apart from its superior performance, attentions should be paid to its driving method. In this paper, an improved transformer driving circuit is proposed which can provide an almost constant negative turn-off voltage within a wide dutycycle range. Both simulation and experimental results are given to verify the effectiveness of this method. ...