Modular Multilevel Series/Parallel Converter with Switched-Inductor Energy Transfer between Modules

Journal article (2019)

Authors

Ricardo Lizana Universidad Católica de la Santísima Concepción
Sebastian Rivera Universidad de los Andes, Chile, Universidad Técnica Federico Santa María
Zhongxi Li Duke University
Jenny Luo Duke University
Angel V. Peterchev Duke University
Stefan M. Goetz Duke University
Affiliation
External organisation
Energy storage DC-DC power conversion Modular multilevel converter (MMC) Power converter DC-AC power conversion
More Info
expand_more

Published Date

2019-5

Language

English

Reuse Rights

Other than for strictly personal use, it is not permitted to download, forward or distribute the text or part of it, without the consent of the author(s) and/or copyright holder(s), unless the work is under an open content license such as Creative Commons.

Affiliation

External organisation

Abstract

This paper presents a modular multilevel series/parallel converter (MMSPC) with intermodule switched-inductor power transfer. The switched-inductor voltage conversion feature allows controllable and efficient transfer of energy between modules with nonnegligible voltage difference, providing both step-down and step-up functionalities. Thus, this converter can accurately control and rapidly adjust the voltage of each module to generate an ac output voltage waveform with a controllable number of levels, increasing the quality of the output. Moreover, the intrinsic DC-DC conversion feature can generate a dc controllable output voltage and enable new applications. In this text, we specifically demonstrate how the flexibility of obtaining both ac and dc output with the same setup renders the topology promising for battery energy storage systems and dc microgrid applications. Experimental results validate the topology and concept of an MMSPC with intrinsic switched-inductor conversion.