Hierarchical Control of Bridge-of-Bridge Multilevel Power Converters

• Published in: IEEE transactions on industrial electronics (1982) Vol. 57; no. 8; pp. 2679 - 2690
• Main Authors: Ludois, D C, Reed, J K, Venkataramanan, G
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York IEEE 01.08.2010; The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc. (IEEE)
• Subjects: Application software; Asymmetry; Bridge of bridges; cascaded H-bridge; Converters; current-source inverter (CSI); Dynamical systems; Dynamics; Inverters; Mathematical models; Multilevel; multilevel power converter; Packaging; Power harmonic filters; Power semiconductor switches; Power system modeling; simulation; Steady-state; Switching converters; Topology; Voltage; voltage-source inverter (VSI); Waveforms
• ISSN: 0278-0046; 1557-9948
• DOI: 10.1109/TIE.2009.2030205

Multilevel converters are among the members of the family of power-converter topologies for realizing higher power levels and better waveform quality. In addition to the established topologies of neutral-point-clamped three-level and cascaded H-bridge converters, novel topologies that offer attractive features, such as ease of modularity and functionality, continue to be introduced. Among these, the bridge-of-bridge multilevel converters have the potential for realizing multimegawatt systems with ease. This paper is aimed at presenting a systematic approach to developing their dynamic and steady-state models, leading to a hierarchical-control approach that is intuitive to realize and versatile in application. This paper presents the dynamic and steady-state models and computer simulations that demonstrate the approach in dc-1φ/ac and 3φ/ac- 3φ/ac power-conversion applications. An experimental validation of the models using a dc-1φ/ac asymmetrical-half-bridge converter is presented.