A DCM Three-Phase High Frequency Semi-Controlled Rectifier Feasible for Low

Power WECS Based on a Permanent Magnet Generator

D. S. Oliveira Jr., L. H. S. C. Barreto, F. L. M. Antunes, M. I. B. V. Silva, D. L. Queiroz, A. R. Rangel


Department of Electrical Engineering
Federal University of Cear
Technological Center, Campus do Pici, Fortaleza, Cear (Brazil)
Phone/Fax number:+5585 3366-9581, e-mail: demercil@yahoo.com.br,



Abstract. This paper proposes the use of a three-phase
high frequency semi-controlled rectifier operating in the
discontinuous conduction mode, feasible for small wind energy
conversion systems based on permanent magnet generator. The
main advantages of the topology are: simple gate drive circuits,
since all active switches are connected to a common point;
robustness, as short circuit through a leg is not possible; high
efficiency due to reduced number of elements; simplicity since
the DCM operation avoid feedback circuits and sensors as well
as it allows open loop control. As a disadvantage, higher but
acceptable THD of the generator currents results. The complete
operation of the converter and theoretical analysis are
presented. Additionally, a conventional single-phase PWM
inverter is also employed in the grid connection. Experimental
results on 1.6 kW prototype are presented and discussed.

Key words

Three-phase PWM rectifier, discontinuous conduction
mode, grid-connected system, power factor correction,
and wind energy conversion system.

1. Introduction

According to the U. S. Department of Energy, through of
International Energy Outlook 2006 (IEO) report of
Energy Information Administration (EIA), the global
consumption of energy will grow at an annual average of
2% between the years of 2003 and 2030. The forecast for
the growth of demand for energy specifically in the
electric form is even greater i.e. 2.7% to the year [1].

Either for ambient, strategic, or geographic questions, the
generation of electric energy from wind energy systems
has grown quickly, changing from a global installed
power of 4.8 GW in 1995 to 58 GW in 2005, at annual
average growth of 24% [2]. Considering the current
estimations of increase in the demand for electric energy
generation in the next few years, one concludes that the
growth of the electric energy obtained from wind systems
tends to continue.

As the electrical power available in a WECS based on
permanent magnet (PM) generators can not be delivery
directly to the grid, power electronics plays a
fundamental role. This paper proposes a variable speed
wind energy conversion system (WECS) for connection
to the grid feasible to small wind energy conversion
systems, improving robustness and efficiency but
introducing acceptable harmonic content in the generator
currents. The considered system is composed by a high
frequency semi-controlled rectifier and a full-bridge
single-phase PWM inverter.

2. Wind Energy Conversion Systems

It is observed that the maximum extraction of the wind
energy is achieved when the rotational speed of the
turbine varies with the wind speed, keeping a constant ,
as a variable speed WECS results. The possibility to
control the frequency and the amplitude of the generated
voltage through the excitement, independent of the speed
rotation, made the doubly-fed induction generator
(DFIG) the main choice in variable speed WECSs of
great size directly connected to grid (Fig. 1) [5]-[6].




Fig. 1. Variable speed WECS directly connected to the
grid based on DFIG.

The WECS in Fig. 1 allows the processing of high power
levels, since the power converter processes only about
30% of the rated power [7]. On the other hand, the
reduced number of poles of the DFIG demands the use of
gearbox between the wind turbine and the generator,
implying bigger weight, size, and maintenance, reducing
its efficiency and reliability [5].

An alternative to the DFIG is the permanent magnet
synchronous generator (PMSG), which can be designed
with higher number of poles to avoid the use of gearbox.
Being a synchronous generator, all the generated power
must be conditioned through a power converter before it
can be used (Fig. 2), restricting the power of this type of
WECS.


Fig. 2. Variable speed based in PMSG.

The PMSG presents some advantages when compared
with the DFIG [8]-[9]:

No external excitation current is required;
Light weight;
Small size;
High reliability;
Low maintenance;
High efficiency;
Smaller wind turbine blade;
Large mechanical speed control.

These characteristic makes the PMSG an optimum
choice for small WECSs. The main disadvantage of the
PMSG is the high cost of permanent magnet material and
power converter. The mathematical model of a PMSG
and the main power processing topologies are presented
as follows.

A. Power Processing Topologies Applied to PMSG

In order to feed the dc link of the inverter stage, a dc-dc
stage between the conventional rectifier and the output
stage is introduced as shown in Fig. 3.



Fig. 3. WECS using intermediate dc-dc stage.

However, the rectifier stage of the power converter used
in systems such as that in Fig. 3 must present high power
factor, otherwise harmonic distortion in the current and
voltage of PMSGs may cause several undesirable effects
to the generator, such as [10]:

Increased heating due to iron and copper losses
at the harmonic frequencies;
Reduction in machine efficiency;
Torque Loss;
Increased audible noise emission;
Eventual occurrence of mechanical oscillations.
In order to avoid these problems, systems capable of
emulating resistive loads for the PMSG must be used,
resulting in low total harmonic distortion (THD).

A dc-dc converter with current source input characteristic
can be used in the WECS of Fig. 3. The simplicity of
control, the reduced number of components, and the
predominant need to increase the generated voltage,
make the boost converter the main choice [11]-[16] in
this WECS, as shown in Fig. 4.



Fig. 4. WECS with intermediate boost converter.

It can be observed in Fig. 4 that there are always three
power semiconductors in the input stage conducting the
current, reducing the efficiency of this topology. Besides,
the power factor correction is achieved only in
discontinuous conduction mode.

Another option to achieve high power factor in the
generator side is to use a PWM rectifier in the WECS, as
shown in Fig. 5.



Fig. 5. WECS with power factor correction using PWM
rectifier.

The traditional topology applied in high power WECSs is
shown in Fig. 5 [6] and uses the back-to-back converter
[17]-[18]. In the rectifier stage of this structure there are
only two semiconductors in the current path of each
phase and the current can be modulated in both half
cycles. However, there are switches connected in series,
increasing the complexity of the command circuits.



Fig. 6. WECS with back-to-back converter.

Fig. 6 shows a WECS that uses a variation of the back-to-
back converter [19], as proposed in [20]. Only four
semiconductors are used in the rectifier stage of this
topology. Moreover, the voltage balance across the
capacitors of dc link is not a trivial task, what is
compromised by the low level modulation of this
converter.



Fig. 7. WECS with back-to-back variation converter.

3. Proposed WECS

The wind energy conversion system in Fig. 8 is
composed of a PMSG rated at 1.6 kW connected to three-
phase semi-controlled rectifier, composed of three
IGBTs and three diodes. The dc-ac stage of the wind
system is a single-phase full-bridge topology with
unipolar modulation.

The main advantages of the proposed WECS, when
compared to standard WECSs are:

All switches are connected to the same reference
in the rectifier stage, simplifying the drive
circuit;
There are not switches in series in the rectifier
stage, discarding the possibility of the short-
circuit through legs;
There are only two semiconductors in the
current path, increasing efficiency;
The DCM operation required the use of smaller
magnetics than those used in CCM operation.

Besides the DCM operation avoids the use of current
sensors and feedback circuits as well as it allows open
loop control with the same duty cycle for all switches.

A. Rectifier operation

The rectifier operates as a boost converter in
discontinuous conduction mode. When switches S1, S2,
and S3 are turned on, the current flows through them and
the current through the respective inductor will increase,
while diodes D1, D2, and D3 are reverse biased and
capacitor C supplies power to the inverter.

When switches S1, S2, and S3 are turned off, diode D1,
D2, or D3 can be forward biased depending on the
current direction, and energy is transferred to the load.



Fig. 8 Schematic diagram of the proposed WECS.

The input voltages Va, Vb, Vc can assume two states:
positive (+) or negative (-), resulting in eight
combinations. However, only six combinations are
physically pertinent, as shown in Table I.


TABLE I. - Possible Combinations of the Input Currents

COMBINATIONSECTOR I
a
I
b
I
c
1 + - +
2 + - -
3 + + -
4 - + -
5 - + +
6 - - +

In Fig. 9 it can be observed that a complete period of
voltages Va, Vb, and Vc can be divided in six sectors
with similar behaviour.


Fig. 9 Theoretical waveforms of the voltages Va, Vb,
and Vc.

1) Sector 1

In this sector voltages Va and Vb are positive, and
voltage Vc is negative. When switches S1, S2 and S3 are
turned on the line currents Ia and Ib increase linearly
flowing through switches S1 and S2 and the line current
Ic decreases linearly flowing through the anti-parallel
diode of switch S3, as shown in Fig. 10a and Fig. 12.
When switches S1, S2 and S3 are turned off the line
currents Ia and Ib decrease linearly flowing through
diodes D1 and D2, and the current Ic increases linearly
flowing through the anti-parallel diode of switch S3, as
shown in Fig. 11b. When current Ia or Ib becomes null
the other one becomes equal to Ic and the currents vary
linearly until they become null.



Fig. 10 Topological states associated to the sector 1.

The corresponding equivalent circuits for these
topological states are shown in Fig. 11.


Fig. 11 Equivalent circuits associated to sector 1.
0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3
x 10
-3
-15
-10
-5
0
5
10
15

Fig. 12 Line currents I
a
, I
b
, and I
c
.


Fig. 13 Line currents I
a
, I
b
, and I
c
.

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
x 10
-3
-5
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40

Fig. 14 Line current I
a
during T/2.



0 0.005 0.01 0.015
-6
-4
-2
0
2
4
6

Fig. 13 Filtered input current waveform.


0.05 0.1 0.15 0.2 0.25 0.3 0.35
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
1400
X: 0.25
Y: 518.3
P
IN
(W)
D

Fig. 14 Output power (per phase) versus duty cycle.

C. Rectifier control

Considering the magnitude and frequency of the input
voltage and the output voltage constant, fixed duty cycle
for all the switches provides sinusoidal envelop of the
inductors currents. Resides, a low-pass filter provides a
current whose THD is less than 15%.

In order to achieve the operation of the wind turbine in
the maximum power point, the mechanical speed of the
generator is supposed to be proportional to the wind
speed, as the voltage magnitude and frequency varies
accordingly. Then, for each mechanical speed value. a
previously established current must be obtained. This
current can be performed from the characteristic curve of
input power versus duty cycle, as shown in Fig. 14.

4. Experimental Results

The proposed rectifier prototype was built and tested.
The specifications and parameters used to implement the
prototype are shown in Table I.

TABLE I. Rectifier Specifications and Parameters.

PARAMETER SPECIFICATION
Rms input voltage range 30 V 120 V
Frequency of the input voltage 15 - 60 Hz
Output voltage 400 V
Switching frequency range 50 kHz
Input inductors 57 H
Output power 1.6 kW

At the submission time, only partial experimental results
for 50% of the rated power were obtained. At the final
version, experimental results for rated power operation
are supposed to be presented. Fig. 15 shows current I
LA

and the voltage across the respective switch. The
behavior of the currents is according to the analysis of the
operational stages.



Fig. 15 Voltage across switch S
1
and inductor current I
La


Fig. 16 shows the nearly sinusoidal envelop of the
inductor currents as expected in the discontinuous
conduction mode.


Fig. 16 Voltage across switch S
1
and inductor current I
La

Fig. 17 shows phase a current and as well as its
respective voltage including a low pass filter. The
displacement power factor is nearly unity and the voltage
distortion tends to increase the current THD.


Fig. 17 Input current and voltage in phase a

Fig. 18 shows the harmonic spectrum of the input
current. The total harmonic distortion is about 22,6%
with predominance of the 5 harmonic, which also
corresponds to the higher harmonic content of the input
voltage. This test was performed using the local grid but
in the WECS improved voltages and currents waveforms
are expected.


Fig. 18 Harmonic spectrum of the input current

Fig. 19 shows the harmonic spectrum of the input
voltage. The total harmonic distortion is about 3.213%.

Fig. 19 Harmonic spectrum of the input voltage

Fig. 20 shows the measured efficiencies. As it can be
seen, efficiency higher than 95.5% is reached from low
power to 50% of the rated power. This characteristic is
optimum for variable speed WECSs since the energy
extracted from low wind speeds can be predominant in
many sites.

0.945
0.95
0.955
0.96
0.965
0.97
0.975
0.98
0.985
68.25 187 289.8 492 623 780
Power (W)
E
f
f
i
c
i
e
n
c
y
Srie2
89.00%
90.00%
91.00%
92.00%
93.00%
94.00%
95.00%
0 500 1000 1500 2000
Power ( W)
Srie1

Fig. 20 Efficiency versus output power

5. Conclusion

A wind energy conversion system was presented. The
proposed topology uses the DCM for the three-phase
semi-controlled high frequency rectifier. The main
advantages, when compared to a conventional WECS,
are the use of switches with the source connected to the
same point, robustness due to the absence of more than
one controlled switch in the same leg, and high efficiency
due to reduced number of elements. Also the DCM
operation avoids the use of current sensors and feedback
circuits as well as it allows open loop control with the
same duty cycle for all switches.

At the final version experimental results from a
experimental prototype of 1.6kW are supposed to be
presented.

Acknowledgement

The authors acknowledge the Brazilian wind generator
manufactory (Enersud) and the governmental support
agencies FINEP, ELETROBRS and CNPQ.

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