THYRISTOR COMMUTATION TECHNIQUES

INTRODUCTION
In practice it becomes necessary to turn off a conducting thyristor. (Often thyristors
are used as switches to turn on and off power to the load). The process of turning off a
conducting thyristor is called commutation. The principle involved is that either the anode
should be made negative with respect to cathode (voltage commutation) or the anode current
should be reduced below the holding current value (current commutation).
The reverse voltage must be maintained for a time at least equal to the turn-off time of
SCR otherwise a reapplication of a positive voltage will cause the thyristor to conduct even
without a gate signal. On similar lines the anode current should be held at a value less than
the holding current at least for a time equal to turn-off time otherwise the SCR will start
conducting if the current in the circuit increases beyond the holding current level even
without a gate signal. Commutation circuits have been developed to hasten the turn-off
process of Thyristors. The study of commutation techniques helps in understanding the
transient phenomena under switching conditions.
The reverse voltage or the small anode current condition must be maintained for a
time at least equal to the TURN OFF time of SCR; Otherwise the SCR may again start
conducting. The techniques to turn off a SCR can be broadly classified as
Natural Commutation
Forced Commutation.

NATURAL COMMUTATION (CLASS F)
This type of commutation takes place when supply voltage is AC, because a negative
voltage will appear across the SCR in the negative half cycle of the supply voltage and the
SCR turns off by itself. Hence no special circuits are required to turn off the SCR. That is the
reason that this type of commutation is called Natural or Line Commutation. Figure 1.1
shows the circuit where natural commutation takes place and figure 1.2 shows the related
waveforms.
c
t is the time offered by the circuit within which the SCR should turn off
completely. Thus
c
t should be greater than
q
t , the turn off time of the SCR. Otherwise, the
SCR will become forward biased before it has turned off completely and will start conducting
even without a gate signal.


Fig. 1.1: Circuit for Natural Commutation



~
T
+

v
o
v
s
R


Fig. 1.2: Natural Commutation Waveforms of Supply and Load Voltages (Resistive
Load)

This type of commutation is applied in ac voltage controllers, phase controlled
rectifiers and cyclo converters.

FORCED COMMUTATION
When supply is DC, natural commutation is not possible because the polarity of the
supply remains unchanged. Hence special methods must be used to reduce the SCR current
below the holding value or to apply a negative voltage across the SCR for a time interval
greater than the turn off time of the SCR. This technique is called FORCED
COMMUTATION and is applied in all circuits where the supply voltage is DC - namely,
Choppers (fixed DC to variable DC), inverters (DC to AC). Forced commutation techniques
are as follows:
Self Commutation
Resonant Pulse Commutation
Complementary Commutation
Impulse Commutation
External Pulse Commutation.
Line Side Commutation.
t
t
t
t
Supply voltage v
s
Sinusoidal
Voltage across SCR
Load voltage v
o
Turn off
occurs here
0
0

2
2
3
3

t
c
SELF COMMUTATION OR LOAD COMMUTATION OR CLASS A
COMMUTATION: (COMMUTATION BY RESONATING THE LOAD)
In this type of commutation the current through the SCR is reduced below the holding
current value by resonating the load. i.e., the load circuit is so designed that even though the
supply voltage is positive, an oscillating current tends to flow and when the current through
the SCR reaches zero, the device turns off. This is done by including an inductance and a
capacitor in series with the load and keeping the circuit under-damped. Figure 1.3 shows the
circuit.
This type of commutation is used in Series Inverter Circuit.



Fig. 1.3: Circuit for Self Commutation


EXPRESSION FOR CURRENT

At 0 t = , when the SCR turns ON on the application of gate pulse assume the current
in the circuit is zero and the capacitor voltage is ( ) 0
C
V .

Writing the Laplace Transformation circuit of figure 1.3 the following circuit is
obtained when the SCR is conducting.




Fig.: 1.4.

V
R
L
V (0)
c
C
T
i
Load
+ -
V
S
R
sL
1
CS
V (0)
S
C
C
T
I(S)
+ + - -
( )
( ) 0
1
C
S
V V
S
I S
R sL
C
(

=
+ +


( )
2
0
1
S C
C V V
S
RCs s LC
(

=
+ +


( )
2
0
1
C
C V V
R
LC s s
L LC
(

=
(
+ +
(



( )
2
0
1
C
V V
L
R
s s
L LC

=
+ +


( ) ( )
2 2
2
0
1
2 2
C
V V
L
R R R
s s
L LC L L

=
| | | |
+ + +
| |
\ \


( ) ( )
2
2 2
0
1
2 2
C
V V
L
R R
s
L LC L

=
(
| | | |
( + +
| |
\ \ (



( )
2
2
A
s
=
+ +
,

Where

( ) ( )
2
0
1
, ,
2 2
C
V V
R R
A
L L LC L

| |
= = =
|
\


is called the natural frequency

( )
( )
2
2
A
I S
s

=
+ +


Taking inverse Laplace transforms


( ) sin
t
A
i t e t

=

Therefore expression for current

( )
( )
2
0
sin
R
t
C
L
V V
i t e t
L

=

Peak value of current
( ) ( )
0
C
V V
L

=

Expression for voltage across capacitor at the time of turn off

Applying KVL to figure 1.3

c R L
v V v V =

c
di
v V iR L
dt
=

Substituting for i,
sin sin
t t
c
A d A
v V R e t L e t
dt




| |
=
|
\



( )
sin cos sin
t t t
c
A A
v V R e t L e t e t




=


[ ] sin cos sin
t
c
A
v V e R t L t L t

= +

sin cos sin
2
t
c
A R
v V e R t L t L t
L

(
= +
(



sin cos
2
t
c
A R
v V e t L t

(
= +
(



Substituting for A,
( )
( ) ( )
0
sin cos
2
C
t
c
V V
R
v t V e t L t
L

(
= +
(



( )
( ) ( )
0
sin cos
2
C
t
c
V V
R
v t V e t t
L

(
= +
(



SCR turns off when current goes to zero. i.e., at t = .

Therefore at turn off


( ) ( )
( )
0
0 cos
C
c
V V
v V e

= +

( ) 0
c C
v V V V e

= + (



Therefore ( )
2
0
R
L
c C
v V V V e

= + (



Note: For effective commutation the circuit should be under damped.

That is
2
1
2
R
L LC
| |
<
|
\


With R = 0, and the capacitor initially uncharged that is ( ) 0 0
C
V =

sin
V t
i
L LC
=

But
1
LC
=

Therefore sin sin
V t C t
i LC V
L L LC LC
= =

and capacitor voltage at turn off is equal to 2V.

Figure 1.5 shows the waveforms for the above conditions. Once the SCR turns off
voltage across it is negative voltage.
Conduction time of SCR

= .




Fig. 1.5: Self Commutation Wave forms of Current and Capacitors Voltage

Problem 1.1 : Calculate the conduction time of SCR and the peak SCR current that flows in
the circuit employing series resonant commutation (self commutation or class A
commutation), if the supply voltage is 300 V, C = 1F, L = 5 mH and R
L
= 100 . Assume
that the circuit is initially relaxed.


Fig. 1.6.
Current i
Capacitor voltage
Gate pulse
Voltage across SCR
0 /2
t
t
t
t
V
V
2V
C
V
L
V
=300V
R
L
L
1 F 100
5 mH
C
T
+
Solution:

2
1
2
L
R
LC L

| |
=
|
\




2
3 6 3
1 100
5 10 1 10 2 5 10

| |
=
|

\



10, 000 rad/sec =


Since the circuit is initially relaxed, initial voltage across capacitor is zero as also the
initial current through L and the expression for current i is

sin
t
V
i e t
L

= , where
2
R
L
= ,


Therefore peak value of
V
i
L
=


3
300
6
10000 5 10
i A

= =



Conducting time of SCR 0.314msec
10000

= = =


Problem 1.2 : Figure 1.7 shows a self commutating circuit. The inductance carries an initial
current of 200 A and the initial voltage across the capacitor is V, the supply voltage.
Determine the conduction time of the SCR and the capacitor voltage at turn off.


Fig. 1.7.
V
=100V
L
50 F
10 H
C
T
+

i(t)
I
O
V
C
(0)=V
Solution :
The transformed circuit of figure 1.7 is shown in figure 1.8.



Fig.1.8: Transformed Circuit of Fig. 1.7

The governing equation is

( )
( )
( )
0
1
C
O
V
V
I S sL I L I S
s s Cs
= + +

Therefore ( )
( ) 0
1
C
O
V
V
I L
s s
I S
sL
Cs
+
=
+


( )
( )
2 2
0
1 1
C
O
V
V
Cs
s s
I LCs
I S
s LC s LC
(

(

= +
+ +


( )
( )
2 2
0
1 1
C
O
V V C
I LCs
I S
LC s LC s
LC LC
(

= +
( (
+ +
( (



( )
( )
2 2 2 2
0
C O
V V sI
I S
s L s

= +
+ ( +



( )
( )
2 2 2 2
0
C
O
V V
sI
I S
s L s

(

= +
+ ( +

where
1
LC
=

Taking inverse LT
( ) ( ) 0 sin cos
C O
C
i t V V t I t
L
= + (



sL
V
S
V (0)
S
C
I L
O
+
+
+

1
CS
I(S)
=V
The capacitor voltage is given by

( ) ( ) ( )
0
1
0
t
c C
v t i t dt V
C
= +

( ) ( ) ( )
0
1
0 sin cos 0
t
c C O C
C
v t V V t I t dt V
C L



= + + (
`


)

( )
( ) ( )
( ) ( ) ( )
0
1
cos sin 0
C
O
c C
V V t t
I C
v t t t V
o o C L


(
= + +
(
(



( )
( ) ( )
( ) ( ) ( )
0
1
1 cos sin 0
C
O
c C
V V
I C
v t t t V
C L


(
= + +
(
(



( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( )
1
sin 0 1 cos 0
O
c C C
I C
v t LC t V V LC t V
C C L
= + +

( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) sin cos 0 0 cos 0
c O C C C
L
v t I t V V t V V t V
C
= + + +

( ) ( ) ( )
sin 0 cos
c O C
L
v t I t V V t V
C
= +

In this problem ( ) 0
C
V V =

Therefore we get, ( ) cos
O
i t I t = and

( ) sin
c O
L
v t I t V
C
= +

The waveforms are as shown in figure 1.9



Fig.: 1.9

Turn off occurs at a time to so that
2
O
t

=

Therefore
0.5
0.5
O
t LC

= =

6 6
0.5 10 10 50 10
O
t

=

6
0.5 10 500 35.1 seconds
O
t

= =

and the capacitor voltage at turn off is given by

( ) sin
c O O O
L
v t I t V
C
= +

( )
6
0
6
10 10
200 sin90 100
50 10
c O
v t

= +

( )
35.12
200 0.447 sin 100
22.36
c O
v t
| |
= +
|
\


( ) 89.4 100 189.4
c O
v t V = + =

I
0
i(t)
/2
/2
t
t
v
c
(t)
V
Problem 1.3: In the circuit shown in figure 1.10. V = 600 volts, initial capacitor voltage is
zero, L = 20 H, C = 50F and the current through the inductance at the time of SCR
triggering is I
o
= 350 A. Determine (a) the peak values of capacitor voltage and current (b)
the conduction time of T
1
.

Fig. 1.10
Solution:
(Refer to problem 1.2).

The expression for ( ) i t is given by
( ) ( ) 0 sin cos
C O
C
i t V V t I t
L
= + (



It is given that the initial voltage across the capacitor, ( )
C
V O is zero.
Therefore ( ) sin cos
O
C
i t V t I t
L
= +

( ) i t can be written as
( ) ( )
2 2
sin
O
C
i t I V t
L
= + +

where
1
tan
O
L
I
C
V

=

and
1
LC
=

The peak capacitor current is

2 2
O
C
I V
L
+

Substituting the values, the peak capacitor current

V
L
i(t)
I
0
C
T
1

6
2 2
6
50 10
350 600 1011.19
20 10
A

= + =

The expression for capacitor voltage is

( ) ( ) ( )
sin 0 cos
c O C
L
v t I t V V t V
C
= +

with ( ) ( ) 0 0, sin cos
C c O
L
V v t I t V t V
C
= = +


This can be rewritten as

( ) ( )
2 2
sin
c O
L
v t V I t V
C
= + +

Where
1
tan
O
C
V
L
I

=

The peak value of capacitor voltage is


2 2
O
L
V I V
C
= + +

Substituting the values, the peak value of capacitor voltage


6
2 2
6
20 10
600 350 600
50 10

= + +

639.5 600 1239.5V = + =


To calculate conduction time of
1
T
The waveform of capacitor current is shown in figure 1.11. When the capacitor
current becomes zero the SCR turns off.


Fig. 1.11.
Therefore conduction time of SCR

=


1
tan
1
O
L
I
C
V
LC

| |
|
|

|
|
\
=

Substituting the values

1
tan
O
L
I
C
V

| |
|
|
=
|
|
\


6
1
6
350 20 10
tan
600 50 10

0
20.25 i.e., 0.3534 radians =

6 6
1 1
31622.8 rad/sec
20 10 50 10
LC

= = =



Therefore conduction time of SCR



0.3534
88.17 sec
31622.8

= =

RESONANT PULSE COMMUTATION (CLASS B COMMUTATION)
The circuit for resonant pulse commutation is shown in figure 1.12.

t
Capacitor
current

0

Fig. 1.12: Circuit for Resonant Pulse Commutation
This is a type of commutation in which a LC series circuit is connected across the
SCR. Since the commutation circuit has negligible resistance it is always under-damped i.e.,
the current in LC circuit tends to oscillate whenever the SCR is on.
Initially the SCR is off and the capacitor is charged to V volts with plate a being
positive. Referring to figure 1.13 at
1
t t = the SCR is turned ON by giving a gate pulse. A
current
L
I flows through the load and this is assumed to be constant. At the same time SCR
short circuits the LC combination which starts oscillating. A current i starts flowing in the
direction shown in figure. As i reaches its maximum value, the capacitor voltage reduces to
zero and then the polarity of the capacitor voltage reverses b becomes positive). When i
falls to zero this reverse voltage becomes maximum, and then direction of i reverses i.e.,
through SCR the load current
L
I and i flow in opposite direction. When the instantaneous
value of i becomes equal to
L
I , the SCR current becomes zero and the SCR turns off. Now
the capacitor starts charging and its voltage reaches the supply voltage with plate a being
positive. The related waveforms are shown in figure 1.13.
L
C
V
Load
FWD
a
b
i
T
I
L


Fig. 1.13: Resonant Pulse Commutation Various Waveforms


EXPRESSION FOR
c
t , THE CIRCUIT TURN OFF TIME
Assume that at the time of turn off of the SCR the capacitor voltage
ab
v V and
load current
L
I is constant.
c
t is the time taken for the capacitor voltage to reach 0 volts from
V volts and is derived as follows.

0
1
c
t
L
V I dt
C
=

L c
I t
V
C
=

seconds
c
L
VC
t
I
=

Gate pulse
of SCR
Capacitor voltage
v
ab
t
1
V
t
t
t
t
t
I
p
i
Voltage across
SCR
I
L
t
C
t

I
SCR
For proper commutation
c
t should be greater than
q
t , the turn off time of T. Also, the
magnitude of
p
I , the peak value of i should be greater than the load current
L
I and the
expression for i is derived as follows

The LC circuit during the commutation period is shown in figure 1.14.


Fig. 1.14.

The transformed circuit is shown in figure 1.15.



Fig. 1.15.
( )
1
V
s
I S
sL
Cs
=
+


( )
2
1
V
Cs
s
I S
s LC
| |
|
\
=
+


( )
2
1
VC
I S
LC s
LC
=
| |
+
|
\


i
L
C
T
+

V
C
(0)
=V
I(S)
sL
T 1
Cs
V
s
+

( )
2
1
1
V
I S
L
s
LC
=
+


( )
2
1
1
1
1
V LC
I S
L
s
LC
LC
| |
|
\
=
| |
+
|
\


( )
2
1
1
C LC
I S V
L
s
LC
| |
|
\
=
+

Taking inverse LT

( ) sin
C
i t V t
L
=

Where
1
LC
=

Or
( ) sin sin
p
V
i t t I t
L

= =

Therefore amps
p
C
I V
L
= .

EXPRESSION FOR CONDUCTION TIME OF SCR
For figure 1.13 (waveform of i), the conduction time of SCR

t

= +
1
sin
L
p
I
I

| |
|
|
\
= +

ALTERNATE CIRCUIT FOR RESONANT PULSE COMMUTATION
The working of the circuit can be explained as follows. The capacitor C is assumed to
be charged to ( ) 0
C
V with polarity as shown,
1
T is conducting and the load current
L
I is a
constant. To turn off
1
T ,
2
T is triggered. L, C,
1
T and
2
T forms a resonant circuit. A resonant
current ( )
c
i t flows in the direction shown, i.e., in a direction opposite to that of load current
L
I .
( )
c
i t = sin
p
I t (refer to the previous circuit description). Where ( ) 0
p C
C
I V
L
= &
and the capacitor voltage is given by


( ) ( )
( ) ( )
( ) ( )
1
.
1
0 sin .
0 cos
c C
c C
c C
v t i t dt
C
C
v t V t dt
C L
v t V t

=
=
=

.


Fig. 1.16: Resonant Pulse Commutation An Alternate Circuit

V
L
O
A
D
FWD
L
T
1 I
L
T
3
T
2
i
C
(t)
i
C
(t)
V
C
(0)
a b
+
C
When ( )
c
i t becomes equal to
L
I (the load current), the current through
1
T becomes
zero and
1
T turns off. This happens at time
1
t such that


1
sin
L p
t
I I
LC
=

( ) 0
p C
C
I V
L
=


( )
1
1
sin
0
L
C
I L
t LC
V C

| |
=
|
|
\


and the corresponding capacitor voltage is

( ) ( )
1 1 1
0 cos
c C
v t V V t = =

Once the thyristor
1
T turns off, the capacitor starts charging towards the supply
voltage through
2
T and load. As the capacitor charges through the load capacitor current is
same as load current
L
I , which is constant. When the capacitor voltage reaches V, the supply
voltage, the FWD starts conducting and the energy stored in L charges C to a still higher
voltage. The triggering of
3
T reverses the polarity of the capacitor voltage and the circuit is
ready for another triggering of
1
T . The waveforms are shown in figure 1.17.

EXPRESSION FOR
c
t
Assuming a constant load current
L
I which charges the capacitor


1
seconds
c
L
CV
t
I
=

Normally ( )
1
0
C
V V

For reliable commutation
c
t should be greater than
q
t , the turn off time of SCR
1
T . It is
to be noted that
c
t depends upon
L
I and becomes smaller for higher values of load current.

Fig. 1.17: Resonant Pulse Commutation Alternate Circuit Various Waveforms

RESONANT PULSE COMMUTATION WITH ACCELERATING DIODE


Fig. 1.17(a)
t
t
t
C
t
1
V
1
V
V
C
(0)
Capacitor
voltage v
ab
Current i
C
(t)
V
L
O
A
D
FWD
L C
T
1
I
L
T
3
T
2
i
C
(t)
V
C
(0)
+ -
D
2
i
C
(t)


Fig. 1.17(b)

A diode
2
D is connected as shown in the figure 1.17(a) to accelerate the discharging
of the capacitor C. When thyristor
2
T is fired a resonant current ( )
C
i t flows through the
capacitor and thyristor
1
T . At time
1
t t = , the capacitor current ( )
C
i t equals the load current
L
I and hence current through
1
T is reduced to zero resulting in turning off of
1
T . Now the
capacitor current ( )
C
i t continues to flow through the diode
2
D until it reduces to load current
level
L
I at time
2
t . Thus the presence of
2
D has accelerated the discharge of capacitor C.
Now the capacitor gets charged through the load and the charging current is constant. Once
capacitor is fully charged
2
T turns off by itself. But once current of thyristor
1
T reduces to
zero the reverse voltage appearing across
1
T is the forward voltage drop of
2
D which is very
small. This makes the thyristor recovery process very slow and it becomes necessary to
provide longer reverse bias time.
From figure 1.17(b)


2 1
t LC t =

( ) ( )
2 2
cos
C C
V t V O t =

Circuit turn-off time
2 1 C
t t t =

Problem 1.4 : The circuit in figure 1.18 shows a resonant pulse commutation circuit. The
initial capacitor voltage
( )
200
C O
V V = , C = 30F and L = 3H. Determine the circuit turn
off time
c
t , if the load current
L
I is (a) 200 A and (b) 50 A.

I
L
0
V
C
0
V
1
V (O)
C
i
C
t
t
t
1
t
2
t
C


Fig. 1.18.
Solution
(a) When 200
L
I A =
Let
2
T be triggered at 0 t = .
The capacitor current ( )
c
i t reaches a value
L
I at
1
t t = , when
1
T turns off

( )
1
1
sin
0
L
C
I L
t LC
V C

| |
=
|
|
\


6
6 6 1
1 6
200 3 10
3 10 30 10 sin
200 30 10
t

| |

= |
|

\


1
3.05 sec t = .



6 6
1 1
3 10 30 10
LC

= =




6
0.105 10 / sec rad = .

At
1
t t = , the magnitude of capacitor voltage is ( )
1 1
0 cos
C
V V t =

That is
6 6
1
200cos 0.105 10 3.05 10 V

=


1
200 0.9487 V =


1
189.75 Volts V =

and
1
c
L
CV
t
I
=

V
L
O
A
D
FWD
L C
T
1
I
L
T
3
T
2
i
C
(t)
V
C
(0)
+

6
30 10 189.75
28.46 sec
200
c
t

= = .

(b) When 50
L
I A =
6
6 6 1
1 6
50 3 10
3 10 30 10 sin
200 30 10
t

| |

= |
|

\

1
0.749 sec t = .

6 6
1
200cos0.105 10 0.749 10 V

=

1
200 1 200 Volts V = = .

1
c
L
CV
t
I
=

6
30 10 200
120 sec
50
c
t

= = .

It is observed that as load current increases the value of
c
t reduces.

Problem 1.4a : Repeat the above problem for 200
L
I A = , if an antiparallel diode
2
D is
connected across thyristor
1
T as shown in figure 1.18a.



Fig. 1.18(a)
V
L
O
A
D
FWD
L C
T
1
I
L
T
3
T
2
i
C
(t)
V
C
(0)
+
-
D
2
i
C
(t)
Solution

200
L
I A =

Let
2
T be triggered at 0 t = .
Capacitor current ( )
C
i t reaches the value
1 1
at , when turns off
L
I t t T =

Therefore
( )
1
1
sin
L
C
I L
t LC
V O C

(
=
(




6
6 6 1
1 6
200 3 10
3 10 30 10 sin
200 30 10
t

| |

= |
|

\


`
1
3.05 sec t = .


6 6
1 1
3 10 30 10
LC

= =




6
0.105 10 radians/sec =


1
At t t =
( ) ( )
1 1 1
cos
C C
V t V V O t = =

( ) ( )
6 6
1
200cos 0.105 10 3.05 10
C
V t

=

( )
1
189.75
C
V t V =

( )
C
i t flows through diode
2
D after
1
T turns off.
( )
C
i t current falls back to
2
at
L
I t

2 1
t LC t =

6 6 6
2
3 10 30 10 3.05 10 t

=

2
26.75 sec t = .

6 6
1 1
3 10 30 10
LC

= =



6
0.105 10 rad/sec. =

2
At t t =
( )
6 6
2 2
200cos 0.105 10 26.75 10
C
V t V
+
= =

( )
2 2
189.02
C
V t V V = =

Therefore
6 6
2 1
26.75 10 3.05 10
C
t t t

= =

23.7 secs
C
t =

Problem 1.5: For the circuit shown in figure 1.19 calculate the value of L for proper
commutation of SCR. Also find the conduction time of SCR.



Fig. 1.19.
Solution:
The load current
30
1 Amp
30
L
L
V
I
R
= = =
For proper SCR commutation
p
I , the peak value of resonant current i, should be
greater than
L
I ,
Let 2
p L
I I = , Therefore 2 Amps
p
I = .
Also
1
p
V V C
I V
L L
L
LC

= = =

Therefore
6
4 10
2 30
L

=

Therefore 0.9 L mH = .

3 6
1 1
16666 rad/sec
0.9 10 4 10
LC

= = =



V
=30V
L
i
4 F
R
L
I
L 30
Conduction time of SCR =
1
sin
L
p
I
I

| |
|
|
\
+


1
1
sin
2
16666 16666

| |
|
\
= +


0.523
radians
16666
+
=

0.00022 seconds =

0.22 msec =

Problem 1.6: For the circuit shown in figure 1.20 given that the load current to be
commutated is 10 A, turn off time required is 40sec and the supply voltage is 100 V. Obtain
the proper values of commutating elements.


Fig. 1.20.
Solution
p
I peak value of
C
i V
L
= and this should be greater than
L
I . Let 1.5
p L
I I = .

Therefore ( ) 1.5 10 100 ...
C
a
L
=

Also, assuming that at the time of turn off the capacitor voltage is approximately
equal to V, (and referring to waveform of capacitor voltage in figure 1.13) and the load
current linearly charges the capacitor

seconds
c
L
CV
t
I
=

and this
c
t is given to be 40 sec.

Therefore
6
100
40 10
10
C

=
V
=100V
L
i I
L
I
L
C
Therefore 4 C F =

Substituting this in equation (a)


6
4 10
1.5 10 100
L

=


4 6
2 2
10 4 10
1.5 10
L

=

Therefore
4
1.777 10 L H

=

0.177 L mH = .

Problem 1.7 : In a resonant commutation circuit supply voltage is 200 V. Load current is 10
A and the device turn off time is 20s. The ratio of peak resonant current to load current is
1.5. Determine the value of L and C of the commutation circuit.

Solution
Given 1.5
p
L
I
I
=

Therefore 1.5 1.5 10 15
p L
I I A = = = .

That is ( ) 15 ...
p
C
I V A a
L
= =

It is given that the device turn off time is 20 sec. Therefore
c
t , the circuit turn off
time should be greater than this,

Let 30 sec
c
t = .

And
c
L
CV
t
I
=
Therefore
6
200
30 10
10
C

=

Therefore 1.5 C F = .


Substituting in (a)

6
1.5 10
15 200
L

=


6
2 2
1.5 10
15 200
L

=

Therefore 0.2666 mH L =


COMPLEMENTARY COMMUTATION (CLASS C COMMUTATION, PARALLEL
CAPACITOR COMMUTATION)

In complementary commutation the current can be transferred between two loads.
Two SCRs are used and firing of one SCR turns off the other. The circuit is shown in figure
1.21.


Fig. 1.21: Complementary Commutation

The working of the circuit can be explained as follows.
Initially both
1
T and
2
T are off; Now,
1
T is fired. Load current
L
I flows through
1
R . At
the same time, the capacitor C gets charged to V volts through
2
R and
1
T (b becomes
positive with respect to a). When the capacitor gets fully charged, the capacitor current
c
i
becomes zero.
To turn off
1
T ,
2
T is fired; the voltage across C comes across
1
T and reverse biases it,
hence
1
T turns off. At the same time, the load current flows through
2
R and
2
T . The capacitor
C charges towards V through
1
R and
2
T and is finally charged to V volts with a plate
positive. When the capacitor is fully charged, the capacitor current becomes zero. To turn off
2
T ,
1
T is triggered, the capacitor voltage (with a positive) comes across
2
T and
2
T turns off.
The related waveforms are shown in figure 1.22.

EXPRESSION FOR CIRCUIT TURN OFF TIME
c
t
From the waveforms of the voltages across
1
T and capacitor, it is obvious that
c
t is the
time taken by the capacitor voltage to reach 0 volts from V volts, the time constant being
RC and the final voltage reached by the capacitor being V volts. The equation for capacitor
voltage ( )
c
v t can be written as

V
R
1
R
2
T
1
T
2
I
L
i
C
C
a b
( ) ( )
t
c f i f
v t V V V e

= +

Where
f
V is the final voltage,
i
V is the initial voltage and is the time constant.

At
c
t t = , ( ) 0
c
v t = ,


1
RC = ,
f
V V = ,
i
V V = ,

Therefore ( )
1
0
c
t
R C
V V V e

= +

1
0 2
c
t
R C
V Ve

=

Therefore
1
2
c
t
R C
V Ve

=


1
0.5
c
t
R C
e

=

Taking natural logarithms on both sides

1
ln 0.5
c
t
RC

=


1
0.693
c
t RC =

This time should be greater than the turn off time
q
t of
1
T .

Similarly when
2
T is commutated


2
0.693
c
t R C =

And this time should be greater than
q
t of
2
T .

Usually
1 2
R R R = =





Fig. 1.22


Gate pulse
of T
1
Gate pulse
of T
2
Current through R
1
p
I
L
V
t
t
t
t
t
t
Current through T
1
Voltage across
capacitor v
ab
Voltage across T
1
Current through T
2
t
C
t
C
t
C
V
- V
2
2
V
R
2
1
V
R
V
R
1
V
R
2
2
1
V
R
V
R
1
Problem 1.8 : In the circuit shown in figure 1.23 the load resistances
1 2
5 R R R = = = and
the capacitance C = 7.5 F, V = 100 volts. Determine the circuit turn off time
c
t .



Fig. 1.23.
Solution
The circuit turn-off time 0.693 RC seconds
c
t =


6
0.693 5 7.5 10
c
t

=

26 sec
c
t = .

Problem 1.9: Calculate the values of
L
R and C to be used for commutating the main SCR in
the circuit shown in figure 1.24. When it is conducting a full load current of 25 A flows. The
minimum time for which the SCR has to be reverse biased for proper commutation is 40sec.
Also find
1
R , given that the auxiliary SCR will undergo natural commutation when its forward
current falls below the holding current value of 2 mA.



Fig. 1.24.
Solution
In this circuit only the main SCR carries the load and the auxiliary SCR is used to turn
off the main SCR. Once the main SCR turns off the current through the auxiliary SCR is the
sum of the capacitor charging current
c
i and the current
1
i through
1
R ,
c
i reduces to zero after
a time
c
t and hence the auxiliary SCR turns off automatically after a time
c
t ,
1
i should be less
than the holding current.
V
R
1
R
2
T
1
T
2
C
V
=100V
R
1
R
L
Main
SCR
Auxiliary
SCR
i
C
C
I
L
i
1
Given 25
L
I A =

That is
100
25
L L
V
A
R R
= =

Therefore 4
L
R =

40 sec 0.693
c L
t R C = =

That is
6
40 10 0.693 4 C

=

Therefore
6
40 10
4 0.693
C

14.43 C F =

1
1
V
i
R
= should be less than the holding current of auxiliary SCR.
Therefore
1
100
R
should be < 2mA.

Therefore
1 3
100
2 10
R

>

That is
1
50 R K >


IMPULSE COMMUTATION (CLASS D COMMUTATION)
The circuit for impulse commutation is as shown in figure 1.25.



Fig. 1.25: Circuit for Impulse Commutation

V
L
O
A
D
FWD
C
T
1
T
3
I
L
T
2
V
C
(O)
+

L
The working of the circuit can be explained as follows. It is assumed that initially the
capacitor C is charged to a voltage ( )
C
V O with polarity as shown. Let the thyristor
1
T be
conducting and carry a load current
L
I . If the thyristor
1
T is to be turned off,
2
T is fired. The
capacitor voltage comes across
1
T ,
1
T is reverse biased and it turns off. Now the capacitor
starts charging through
2
T and the load. The capacitor voltage reaches V with top plate being
positive. By this time the capacitor charging current (current through
2
T ) would have reduced
to zero and
2
T automatically turns off. Now
1
T and
2
T are both off. Before firing
1
T again,
the capacitor voltage should be reversed. This is done by turning on
3
T , C discharges through
3
T and L and the capacitor voltage reverses. The waveforms are shown in figure 1.26.




Fig. 1.26: Impulse Commutation Waveforms of Capacitor Voltage, Voltage across
1
T .

Gate pulse
of T
2
Gate pulse
of T
3
Voltage across T
1
Capacitor
voltage
Gate pulse
of T
1
V
S
t
t
t
t
C
V
C
V
C
EXPRESSION FOR CIRCUIT TURN OFF TIME (AVAILABLE TURN OFF TIME)
c
t
c
t depends on the load current
L
I and is given by the expression

0
1
c
t
C L
V I dt
C
=

(assuming the load current to be constant)

L c
C
I t
V
C
=

seconds
C
c
L
V C
t
I
=

For proper commutation
c
t should be >
q
t , turn off time of
1
T .

Note:

1
T is turned off by applying a negative voltage across its terminals. Hence this is
voltage commutation.

c
t depends on load current. For higher load currents
c
t is small. This is a disadvantage
of this circuit.
When
2
T is fired, voltage across the load is
C
V V + ; hence the current through load
shoots up and then decays as the capacitor starts charging.


AN ALTERNATIVE CIRCUIT FOR IMPULSE COMMUTATION
Is shown in figure 1.27.


Fig. 1.27: Impulse Commutation An Alternate Circuit
V
C
D
T
1
I
T1
I
L
i
T
2
L
R
L
V
C
(O)
+
_
The working of the circuit can be explained as follows:
Initially let the voltage across the capacitor be ( )
C
V O with the top plate positive.
Now
1
T is triggered. Load current flows through
1
T and load. At the same time, C discharges
through
1
T , L and D (the current is i) and the voltage across C reverses i.e., the bottom plate
becomes positive. The diode D ensures that the bottom plate of the capacitor remains
positive.
To turn off
1
T ,
2
T is triggered; the voltage across the capacitor comes across
1
T .
1
T is
reverse biased and it turns off (voltage commutation). The capacitor now starts charging
through
2
T and load. When it charges to V volts (with the top plate positive), the current
through
2
T becomes zero and
2
T automatically turns off.
The related waveforms are shown in figure 1.28.

Fig. 1.28: Impulse Commutation (Alternate Circuit) Various Waveforms
Gate pulse
of T
1
Gate pulse
of T
2
Current through SCR
Load current
This is due to i
Voltage across T
1
Capacitor
voltage
t
t
t
t
t
t
C
t
C
V
C
I
L
I
L
V
I
T
1
V
V
R
L
2V
R
L
Problem 1.10: An impulse commutated thyristor circuit is shown in figure 1.29. Determine
the available turn off time of the circuit if V = 100 V, R = 10 and C = 10 F. Voltage
across capacitor before
2
T is fired is V volts with polarity as shown.


Fig. 1.29.

Solution
When
2
T is triggered the circuit is as shown in figure 1.30.



Fig. 1.30.

Writing the transform circuit, we obtain



Fig. 1.31.

C
T
1
T
2
V (0)
C
V
+
+
-
-
R
C
i(t)
T
2
V
+
+
-
-
R
V (O)
C
V
s
V (0)
s
C
+
+

I(s)
1
Cs
R
We have to obtain an expression for capacitor voltage. It is done as follows:

( )
( ) ( )
1
0
1
C
V V
s
I S
R
Cs
+
=
+


( )
( ) ( )
0
1
C
C V V
I S
RCs
+
=
+


( )
( ) ( )
0
1
C
V V
I S
R s
RC
+
=
| |
+
|
\


Voltage across capacitor ( ) ( )
( ) 0
1
C
C
V
V s I s
Cs s
=

( )
( ) ( ) 0 0
1
1
C C
C
V V V
V s
RCs s
s
RC
+
=
| |
+
|
\


( )
( ) ( ) ( ) 0 0 0
1
C C C
C
V V V V V
V s
s s
s
RC
+ +
=
| |
+
|
\


( )
( ) 0
1 1
C
C
V
V V
V s
s
s s
RC RC
=
+ +


( )
( )
( ) 1 0
t t
RC RC
c C
v t V e V e

=

In the given problem ( ) 0
C
V V =

Therefore ( )
( )
1 2
t
RC
c
v t V e

=


The waveform of ( )
c
v t is shown in figure 1.32.


Fig. 1.32.

At
c
t t = , ( ) 0
c
v t =

Therefore 0 1 2
c
t
RC
V e

| |
=
|
\


1 2
c
t
RC
e

=


1
2
c
t
RC
e

=

Taking natural logarithms

1
log
2
c
e
t
RC

| |
=
|
\


( ) ln 2
c
t RC =

( )
6
10 10 10 ln 2
c
t

=

69.3 sec
c
t = .

Problem 1.11 : In the commutation circuit shown in figure 1.33. C = 20 F, the input voltage
V varies between 180 and 220 V and the load current varies between 50 and 200 A.
Determine the minimum and maximum values of available turn off time
c
t .

Fig. 1.33.
t
t
C
V
V (0)
C
v (t)
C
C
T
1
T
2
I
0
I
0
V (0)=
C
V
+

V
Solution
It is given that V varies between 180 and 220 V and
O
I varies between 50 and 200 A.
The expression for available turn off time
c
t is given by


c
O
CV
t
I
=

c
t is maximum when V is maximum and
O
I is minimum.

Therefore
max
max
min
c
O
CV
t
I
=


6
max
220
20 10 88 sec
50
c
t

= =

and
min
min
max
c
O
CV
t
I
=


6
min
180
20 10 18 sec
200
c
t

= =


EXTERNAL PULSE COMMUTATION (CLASS E COMMUTATION)



Fig. 1.34: External Pulse Commutation

In this type of commutation an additional source is required to turn-off the conducting
thyristor. Figure 1.34 shows a circuit for external pulse commutation.
S
V is the main voltage
source and
AUX
V is the auxiliary supply. Assume thyristor
1
T is conducting and load
L
R is
connected across supply
S
V . When thyristor
3
T is turned ON at 0 t = ,
AUX
V ,
3
T , L and C from
an oscillatory circuit. Assuming capacitor is initially uncharged, capacitor C is now charged
to a voltage 2
AUX
V with upper plate positive at t LC = . When current through
3
T falls to
zero,
3
T gets commutated. To turn-off the main thyristor
1
T , thyristor
2
T is turned ON. Then
V
S
V
AUX
L
C
T
1
T
3
T
2
R
L
2V
AUX
+

1
T is subjected to a reverse voltage equal to 2
S AUX
V V . This results in thyristor
1
T being
turned-off. Once
1
T is off capacitor C discharges through the load
L
R