• Journal of the Korean Institute of Illuminating and Electrical Installation Engineers
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.94-99
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• 2003

A strong need to improve the quality of electric power is increased because of increasing use of the sensitive and small-sized electronic devices. The transient overvoltages on low-voltage AC power distribution systems are induced by direct or indirect lightning return strokes, and they can cause damage and/or malfunction of the utility systems for home automation, office automation and factory automation as well as medical equipment. The behaviors of lightning overvoltages transferred through the transformer to the low voltage AC power distribution systems were experimentally investigated using a Marx generator. The surge voltages in low-voltage ac power systems are rarely limited by the application of the surge arrester to the primary side of distribution transformer and a custom service ground.

• KIEE International Transactions on Electrophysics and Applications
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• v.3C no.3
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• pp.91-98
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• 2003

The importance of improving the quality of electric power is being strongly raised, owing to an increasing use of sensitive and small-sized electronic devices and systems. The transient over-voltages on low-voltage power distribution systems are induced by direct or indirect lightning return strokes. These can cause damage and/or malfunction of the utility systems for home automation, office automation, factory automation, medical automation, etc. The behaviors of lightning overvoltages transferred through the transformer to the low-voltage distribution systems using a Marx generator were experimentally investigated. Furthermore, the coupling mechanisms of lightning overvoltages transferred to the low-voltage systems were clearly illustrated through a theoretical simulation using a Pspice program. The overvoltages in low-voltage ac power systems are rarely limited by the application of the surge arrester to the primary side of the distribution transformer. A superior surge protection scheme is to install surge protection devices at the service entrance switchboard and/or at the load devices in TN power systems.

• Journal of Electrical Engineering and Technology
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• v.13 no.4
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• pp.1459-1473
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• 2018

This paper focuses on voltage control schemes for multi-terminal low-voltage direct current (LVDC) distribution systems. In a multi-terminal LVDC distribution system, there can be multiple AC/DC converters that connect the LVDC distribution system to the AC grids. This configuration can provide enhanced reliability, grid-supporting functionality, and higher efficiency. The main applications of multi-terminal LVDC distribution systems include flexible power exchange between multiple power grids and integration of distributed energy resources (DERs) using DC voltages such as photovoltaics (PVs) and battery energy storage systems (BESSs). In multi-terminal LVDC distribution systems, voltage regulation is one of the most important issues for maintaining the electric power balance between demand and supply and providing high power quality to end customers. This paper focuses on a voltage control method for multi-terminal LVDC distribution system that can efficiently coordinate multiple control units, such as AC/DC converters, PVs and BESSs. In this paper, a control hierarchy is defined for undervoltage (UV) and overvoltage (OV) problems in LVDC distribution systems based on the control priority between the control units. This paper also proposes methods to determine accurate control commands for AC/DC converters and DERs. By using the proposed method, we can effectively maintain the line voltages in multi-terminal LVDC distribution systems in the normal range. The performance of the proposed voltage control method is evaluated by case studies.

• Journal of Electrical Engineering and Technology
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• v.9 no.3
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• pp.812-819
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• 2014

The proposed technical work attempts to compare the two key technologies of power distribution, i.e. direct current (DC) and alternating current (AC) in a fiscal manner. The DC versus AC debate has been around since the earliest days of electric power. Here, at least four types of a low voltage DC (LVDC) distribution are examined as an alternative to the existing medium voltage AC (MVAC) distribution with an economic assessment technique for a project investment. Besides, the sensitivity analysis will be incorporated in the overall economic analysis model to cover uncertainties of the input data. A detailed feasibility study indicates that many of the common benefits claimed for an LVDC distribution will continue to grow more profoundly as it is foreseen to arise with the increased integration of renewable energy sources and the proliferation of energy storage associated with the enhanced utilization of uninterruptible power supply (UPS) systems.

• Journal of Power Electronics
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• v.15 no.4
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• pp.876-885
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• 2015

High frequency alternating current (HFAC) has been widely used in a wide range of power distribution systems (PDS) due to its superior performance. A high frequency AC/DC converter plays the role of converting HFAC voltage to DC voltage. In this paper, a new LCL-T resonant AC/DC converter has been proposed, and an easier control method based on input voltage comparison is presented, without the complicated calculation of the zero-crossing point. Both a low distortion and near-to-unity power factor can be achieved by the proposed resonant converter and control strategy. The operational principle and steady-state analysis are given for the proposed resonant converter. A simulation model and experimental prototype are implemented with an operation frequency of 25kHz and a rated power of 20W. The simulation and experimental results verify the accuracy of the analysis and the excellent performance of the proposed topology.

• Journal of Power Electronics
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• v.16 no.5
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• pp.1861-1868
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• 2016

In this paper, a three-phase AC-DC high step-up converter is developed for application to microscale wind-power generation systems. Such an AC-DC boost converter prossessess the property of the single-switch high step-up DC-DC structure. For power factor correction, the advanced half-stage converter is operated under the discontinuous conduction mode (DCM). Simulatanously, to achieve a high step-up voltage gain, the back half-stage functions in the continuous conduction mode (CCM). A high voltage gain can be obtained by use of an output-capacitor mass and a coupled inductor. Compared to the output voltage, the voltage stress is decreased on the switch. To lessen the conducting losses, a low rated voltage and small conductive resistance MOSFETs are adopted. In addition, the coupled inductor retrieves the leakage-inductor energy. The operation principle and steady-state behavior are analyzed, and a prototype hardware circuit is realized to verify the performance of the proposed converter.

• Journal of Power Electronics
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.1015-1026
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• 2018

A family of dual-DC-input (DI) dual-buck inverters (DBIs) is proposed by employing a DI switching cell as the input of traditional DBIs. Three power ports, i.e. a low voltage DC input port, a high voltage DC input port and an AC output port, are provided by the proposed DI-DBIs. A low voltage DC source, whose voltage is lower than the peak amplitude of the AC side voltage, can be directly connected to the DI-DBI. This supplies power to the AC side in single-stage power conversion. When compared with traditional DBI-based two-stage DC/AC power systems, the conversion stages are reduced, and the power rating and power losses of the front-end Boost converter of the DI-DBI are reduced. In addition, five voltage-levels are generated with the help of the two DC input ports, which is a benefit in terms of reducing the voltage stresses and switching losses of switches. The topology derivation method, operation principles, modulation strategy and characteristics of the proposed inverter are analyzed in-depth. Experimental results are provided to verify the effectiveness and feasibility of the proposed DI-DBIs.

• Journal of Electrical Engineering and Technology
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• v.8 no.3
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• pp.428-435
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• 2013

Flexible AC Transmission System (FACTS) application study on enhancing the flexibility of AC power system has continued to make progress. A thyristor-controlled series capacitor (TCSC) is a useful FACTS device that can control the power flow by adjusting line impedances and minimize the loss of power flow and voltage drop in a transmission system by adjusting line impedances. Reduced power flow loss leads to increased loadability, low system loss, and improved stability of the power system. This study proposes the optimal location and compensation rate method for TCSCs, by considering both the power system loss and voltage drop of transmission systems. The proposed method applies a multi-objective function consisting of a minimizing function for power flow loss and voltage drop. The effectiveness of the proposed method is demonstrated using IEEE 14- and a 30-bus system.

• Journal of Power Electronics
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• v.11 no.4
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• pp.527-532
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• 2011

Due to the need for improved fuel consumption and the trend towards increasing the electrical content in automobiles, integrated starter generator (ISG) systems are being considered by the automotive industry. In this paper, in order to change the conventional generator of a vehicle, a belt driven integrated starter generator is considered. The overall ISG system, the design considerations for the claw pole type AC electric machine and a low voltage very high current power stage implementation are discussed. Test data on the low voltage claw pole type machine is presented, and a large current voltage source DC/AC inverter suitable for low voltage integrated starter generator operation is also presented. A metal based PCB (Printed Circuit Board) power unit to attach the 4-parallel MOS-FETs is used to achieve extremely high current capability. Furthermore, issues related to the torque assistance during vehicle acceleration and the generation/regeneration characteristics are discussed. A prototype with the capability of up to 1000 A and 27 V is designed and built to validate the kilo-amp inverter.

• Journal of Power Electronics
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• v.14 no.6
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• pp.1293-1302
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• 2014

A flyback inverter using voltage sensorless maximum power point tracking (MPPT) for photovoltaic (PV) AC modules is presented. PV AC modules for a power rating from 150 W to 300 W are generally required for their small size and low price because of the installation on the back side of PV modules. In the conventional MPPT technique for PV AC modules, sensors for detecting PV voltage and PV current are required to calculate the PV output power. However, system size and cost increase when the voltage sensor and current sensor are used because of the addition of the auxiliary circuit for the sensors. The proposed method uses only the current sensor to track the MPP point. Therefore, the proposed control method overcomes drawbacks of the conventional control method. Theoretical analysis, simulation, and experiment are performed to verify the proposed control method.