Circular Image

T. Luo

info

Please Note

16 records found

Capacitance plays a crucial role in high dv/dt situations, making the accurate estimation of parasitic capacitance essential. This paper introduces an improved method of moments (MoM) for calculating the capacitance of round conductors, with or without insulation layers. The proposed method combines MoM with an analytical solution based on Laplace's equation. Compared to the original MoM, the proposed method does not require consideration of polarization charges on the surface of the insulation layer, which reduces the matrix size. Additionally, the proposed method can provide asymptotic formulas for capacitance calculation. The proposed method is compared with the 2D finite-element method (FEM), MoM and measurements. The results demonstrate that the proposed method aligns well with both the FEM simulations and the actual measurements. The proposed method uses less than half the time to calculate the same cases compared to the original MoM. ...
Doctoral thesis (2025) - T. Luo, P.T.M. Vaessen, P. Bauer, M. Ghaffarian Niasar
AC power transformers are one of the most sophisticated technologies in electrical engineering. However, they have some drawbacks facing volume-sensitive or weight-sensitive applications and energy conversion situations. The solid-state transformer is a promising power electronic technology that can solve the requirements of these applications. It utilizes power electronics and medium frequency (MF) transformers to achieve high power density and multiple functions in energy conversion. With the development of semiconductor switches, it is possible to handle medium voltage in the MF range (1kHz to 1MHz). Therefore, as an essential part of solid-state transformers, medium voltage high power medium frequency transformers require validated tools to model and optimize their design, which is the goal of this thesis. There are several challenges in designing such transformers. They include multiphysics models, Litz wire models, insulation design and design optimization, which are addressed in the thesis.... ...
Journal article (2025) - Zhaoxin Wang, Xing Wei, Claus Leth Bak, Filipe Faria da Silva, Tianming Luo, Weichuan Zhao, Peter Vaessen, Henrik Sorensen, Mohamad Ghaffarian Niasar
As the voltage levels of solid-state transformers (SSTs) increase using medium-voltage switches, high-frequency transformers (HFTs) used inside SSTs are subjected to increased electrical stress. This stress, characterized by high voltage, high-frequency pulsewidth modulation (PWM) voltage, can cause insulation partial discharge (PD) and potentially lead to failure of the HFT insulation system. While PD behavior under power-frequency sinusoidal voltage has been extensively studied, the behavior of HFT insulation under PWM square pulse conditions is less well understood. To address this gap, a high voltage high-frequency PWM voltage PD test platform is developed and high-frequency current transformer (HFCT) and ultra-high-frequency (UHF) antenna are used for PD signal detection. PD tests are performed under a variety of PWM conditions including PWM frequency, rise time, voltage amplitude, and different insulation layers to thoroughly investigate the HFT insulation behavior. The PD characteristics of repetitive PD inception voltage and phase-resolved PD patterns at different PWM conditions are recorded and analyzed under PWM conditions. In addition, this article explores the underlying PD mechanisms of the HFT insulation under high-frequency PWM stress, providing insights to explain the observed test results. The findings from this research provide essential references and lay a solid foundation for future advances in optimal design, health monitoring, reliability analysis, and lifetime prediction for HFTs in power electronics applications. ...
Journal article (2025) - F. Nasirpour, T. Luo, M. Ghaffarian Niasar, M. Popov
This paper presents a comprehensive model for power transformers, by considering eddy current losses in both the core and conductors. This is achieved through a meticulous analytical approach that ensures high fidelity in representing the transformer's electromagnetic properties. The consideration of magnetic flux effects on inductance and resistance values significantly enhances the model's accuracy and validity. Traditional analytical methods often resort to simplified approaches due to the complexity of these calculations. The paper addresses these limitations by evaluating the eddy current losses in the core and conductors, and by providing a detailed understanding of each component's impact on transformer behavior. Furthermore, by considering the core and conductor effects on the magnetic field distribution, the model handles a wide range of frequencies, making it suitable for conducting comprehensive transient analysis. To validate the model, comparisons with the finite element method and empirical measurements are conducted. Additionally, a reduced-order transformer model is developed using admittance matrix reduction. This approach focuses on the nodes of interest, effectively eliminating not-observed nodes and reducing computational complexity without compromising accuracy. In this way, voltages at specific points of interest are computed efficiently, maintaining the accuracy of the original model. ...
Journal article (2024) - Minjie Chen, Zhengzhao Li, Reza Mirzadarani, Ruijun Liu, Lu Wang, Tianming Luo, Dingsihao Lyu, Mohamad Ghaffarian Niasar, Zian Qin, More authors...
This article summarizes the main results and contributions of the MagNet Challenge 2023, an open-source research initiative for data-driven modeling of power magnetic materials. The MagNet Challenge has (1) advanced the state-of-the-art in power magnetics modeling; (2) set up examples for fostering an open-source and transparent research community; (3) developed useful guidelines and practical rules for conducting data-driven research in power electronics; and (4) provided a fair performance benchmark leading to insights on the most promising future research directions. The competition yielded a collection of publicly disclosed software algorithms and tools designed to capture the distinct loss characteristics of power magnetic materials, which are mostly open-sourced. We have attempted to bridge power electronics domain knowledge with state-of-the-art advancements in artificial intelligence, machine learning, pattern recognition, and signal processing. The MagNet Challenge has greatly improved the accuracy and reduced the size of data-driven power magnetic material models. The models and tools created for various materials were meticulously documented and shared within the broader power electronics community. ...
Litz wires, which are utilized to suppress eddy current, often have complex structures. This paper presents a partial element equivalent circuit (PEEC)-based 3D model for Litz wires with round conductor. The model accounts for both transverse and longitudinal magnetic fields. The discretization of the Litz wire is based on cylindrical elements resulting in a reduced number of elements. Cylindrical element analysis is based on a 2D analytical method. The proposed model is compared with 3D FEM, which shows the model has good accuracy and fast computational speed. It is promising to facilitate Litz wires optimization. ...
Traditional methods such as Steinmetz's equation (SE) and its improved variant (iGSE) have demonstrated limited precision in estimating power loss for magnetic materials. The introduction of Neural Network technology for assessing magnetic component power loss has significantly enhanced accuracy. Yet, an efficient method to incorporate detailed flux density information—which critically impacts accuracy—remains elusive. Our study introduces an innovative approach that merges Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) with a Feedforward Neural Network (FNN), aiming to overcome this challenge. To optimize the model further and strike a refined balance between complexity and accuracy, Multi-Objective Optimization (MOO) is employed to identify the ideal combination of hyperparameters, such as layer count, neuron number, activation functions, optimizers, and batch size. This optimized Neural Network outperforms traditionally intuitive models in both accuracy and size. Leveraging the optimized base model for known materials, transfer learning is applied to new materials with limited data, effectively addressing data scarcity. The proposed approach substantially enhances model training efficiency, achieves remarkable accuracy, and sets an example for Artificial Intelligence applications in loss and electrical characteristic predictions with challenges of model size, accuracy goals, and limited data. ...
Journal article (2024) - Christian Mier Escurra, Armando Rodrigo Mor, Tianming Luo, Peter Vaessen
The correct identification of partial discharges (PDs) is instrumental for the maintenance plan in gas-insulated systems (GIS). However, onsite PD measurements are difficult, especially in HVDC systems, where partial discharges can be confused with interference. This paper proposes a method to discern PDs from interferences based on the GIS characteristic impedance. The characteristic impedance is measured using very-high frequency electric and magnetic sensors, and it is calculated using four approaches based on the PD charge magnitude, peak value, peak-to-peak value, and frequency spectrum. The method is first tested with a PD calibrator in a matched and open-circuited GIS testbench. Then, the identification of PDs and interference is tested in a full-scale GIS, where the measurements are subjected to pulse overlapping and noise. Five types of interferences and PDs are injected into the GIS in two positions and measured in multiple mounting holes. The results show that all four approaches can precisely calculate the characteristic impedance in a matched testbench. In the full-scale GIS, these approaches show more deviation, with the peak approach being the most accurate. A practical application of the method is demonstrated using a calibrator in the full-scale GIS. The proposed method contributes to a more reliable PD monitoring system for HVDC/AC GIS and allows better maintenance planning, reducing unnecessary costs, notably for offshore substations. ...
This article presents a 3-D numerical impedance calculation method based on cylindrical elements. It can be used to model the Litz wire and further air-core coil wound by the Litz wire. The discretization is based on cylindrical elements, resulting in a small amount of elements. Cylindrical element analysis is based on a 2-D analysis and its analog to 3-D. The analysis considers both transverse and longitudinal magnetic fields applied to elements. The proposed method is applied to several Litz wires and compared with 3-D finite element method (FEM), which validates that the method has good accuracy and fast computational speed. The effectiveness of the method for the air-core coil is validated by measurements. The proposed method is promising in facilitating coil optimization. ...
Magnetic components are essential parts in many power electronic applications. Their characteristics deeply impact the performances of the applications. This article proposed a 2-D calculation method for frequency-dependent winding losses and leakage inductance of magnetic components of round conductors. The method does not have any limitations on the winding arrangement and considers the impact of magnetic cores and air gaps. The method is compared with several analytical methods and the 2-D finite-element method (FEM). Measurements and 3-D FEM are also used to validate the method. The results show that the proposed method generally has more than ten times shorter computational time than 2-D FEM and comparable accuracy, which can speed up the magnetic component design. ...
In this article, an approach combining semi-empirical equations and the method of images is proposed for round conductor layer windings with un-gapped core. The new equation for proximity effect can convert the constant field strength from the magneto-motive force (MMF) across the core window into a frequency-dependent uniform background magnetic field strength, which can take partly the interaction between conductors into account. Geometric factors are introduced by fitting the finite element method (FEM) results to improve the accuracy. The method of images is used to calculate the field strength in order to counteract the impact of the 2-D edge effect. The new method is compared with the 2-D FEM, analytical methods, and is also validated by measurements with EE core transformers. The proposed method shows good accuracy (< 10% error) compared with 2-D FEM for both high and low porosity factor windings. Therefore, it can handle more winding configurations than other 1-D analytical methods. ...
Litz wire, which is used to suppress eddy current, always have complex structure. Solving its 3-D finite element model (FEM) requires high computational resources. This article presents a 2.5-D loss calculation method for round Litz wires, which do not need mesh. One pitch of Litz wire is set as an object. The exact structure is constructed by a recursive method and then is sliced into several sections per pitch. Each section is represented by a cross section area. Two-dimensional problems are solved based on an analytical method, which is based on magnetic vector potentials in quasi magneto-statics situation. One pitch of the Litz wire is approximately represented by the summation of 2-D problems. The proposed method is compared with 3-D FEM results, which shows the proposed method has good accuracy and fast computational speed. ...
Conference paper (2023) - T. Luo, M. Ghaffarian Niasar, P.T.M. Vaessen
In this paper, air discharges for different frequencies are tested in a point-plane geometry with different air gaps. The stress frequencies vary between 50 Hz to 5 kHz, and air gaps vary from 2.5mm to 10mm. It is observed that the partial discharge inception voltage of the positive corona increases with the increase of frequency, while the inception voltage of the negative corona stays nearly the same. The breakdown voltage increases with the increase of frequency in our test set, and breakdowns happen during negative half-cycle, especially at 5kHz, which is supposed to be caused by the space charges. ...
Winding loss calculation is essential for inductor and transformer design. In this article, a revised 1-D Ferreira's formula is proposed, which considers the interaction between conductors. Then, a 2-D loss calculation approach is proposed based on the analytical solution of round conductors under a uniform external field. An equivalent external magnetic field is calculated to estimate the winding losses, considering the impact of eddy current. The proposed approach is compared with the 2-D FEM with three types of windings and shows good accuracy with less than 10% error. 3-D FEMs and samples are built based on two simulated windings to validate the loss calculation. ...
Conference paper (2021) - W. Zhao, T. Luo, M. Ghaffarian Niasar
In this study, the immediate time to breakdown for pure epoxy resin is measured by applying a ramp sinusoidal voltage signal at certain frequency (50Hz, 500Hz and 5000Hz) until breakdown occurs. The HV testing procedures, epoxy resin sample and experimental set-up preparation and Weibull analysis of obtained results are elaborated. The experiments were carried out on epoxy samples with the thickness between 0.1mm and 0.2mm and the thickness was divided into three groups for more accurate statistical analysis. ...
Conference paper (2021) - T. Luo, W. Zhao, M. Ghaffarian Niasar
With widely use of power electronics in medium voltage level, there is increasing concern about behaviour of insulation material under arbitrary voltage stress. Solid-gas insulation is a general choice in medium voltage level. Therefore, it’s unavoidable to encounter surface discharge problem. In this paper, the surface discharge on epoxy-air interface is investigated, which is a commonly used insulation material. Point to plate electrode was used to test the surface flashover voltage and partial discharge (PD) behaviour at 50Hz, 500Hz, 1kHz, 2kHz and 5kHz. As the result, with increasing frequency, PDIV keeps roughly constant and flashover voltage first increases and then decrease, and the frequency obtaining highest flashover voltage is related to gap length. ...