2013 International Conference on Power, Energy and Control (ICPEC)
Effect of Voltage Sag on Ageing of Front End
Rectifier Diodes of ASD
Atul M. Shewale#, Prof. T. N. Date*, Prof. Dr. B. E. Kushare
#
Electrical Engineering Department, K. K. Wagh Inst. of Engg. Edu. & Research, Nashik, India
atul_shewale@yahoo.com
1
2
tndate@rediffmail.com
3
be_kushar@rediffmail.com
Abstract— Adjustable-speed drives are the type of equipment
most sensitive to voltage sags. This paper analyzes the behaviour
of front end rectifier of three-phase ac adjustable-speed drives
during balanced and unbalanced sags. Emphasis is placed on the
i2t rating of diode assuming that the drive will not trip. By using
a previously introduced classification of three-phase balanced
and unbalanced sags, i2t curves for various capacitor values and
different sag conditions are obtained for ac adjustable-speed
drive. The conclusion from the analysis is that voltage sags due to
three-phase faults are a serious problem for adjustable-speed
drives. However, single-phase and phase-to-phase faults, causing
the majority of voltage sags, can be tolerated up to 80% of
voltage sag for type C & F sag. While higher value capacitor is
selected for enhancing voltage sag ride through, at the same time
the bridge rectifier diode I2t value should also be selected such
that it should not cross the diode I2t limit during sag and sag
recovery duration.
Keywords— Voltage sag, ac drive, front end rectifier, dc-bus, i2t
rating.
I. INTRODUCTION
Extensive voltage monitoring data suggests that voltage
sags occur much more frequently than voltage surges and
those current surges that accompany voltage sag recovery may
be the actual culprit causing equipment damage. The
disruption of an industrial process, no matter the cause, can
result in substantial costs. Manufacturing facilities have
interruption costs ranging up to tens millions of rupees. These
costs include damaged products, delays in delivery, damage in
equipment and processes and reduced customer satisfaction
[1], [2], [3].
Voltage sags are short duration reductions in the supplied
RMS voltage. They are normally classified as a reduction of
the RMS voltage to between 0.1pu and 0.9pu, for a time
period of 0.5 to 60 seconds. A study of various fault types has
shown that there are seven types of voltage sags for three-
phase systems [1], [2], [4].
A modern automated factory is replete with voltage
sensitive devices and processes, among them computers,
programmable logic controllers, sensors, servo drives, robots,
CNC machines, extruders and aseptic processes. A common
requirement of all these devices is a dc supply that converts
incoming single or three-phase ac line voltage into a dc
voltage that feeds the electronics and power electronics
circuits [2], [3].
978-1-4673-6030-2/13/$31.00 ©2013 IEEE
There are drawbacks in the use of extra capacitors on the
dc-bus. The dc-bus capacitor will draw a large current as it
recharges. At this point, large voltage and current transients
are present, as the system returns to normal. This recharging
current may even burn out the diodes in the rectifier if the
incoming circuit protection does not trip first. Voltage sag can
cause most of its damage to equipment and circuit protection
devices when it is cleared.
II. VOLTAGE SAG
Voltage sags can be either balanced or unbalanced,
depending on the cause. A classification of voltage sags into
seven types [1], [2].
Single-phase faults can produce type B, C* and D* sags
(types C* and D* are identical to types C and D but restricted
to h = 0.333 . . . 1) Type C and D sags (h = 0 . . . 1) are
produced by two-phase faults. Many types of sag are caused
by a single-phase fault because two-phase, two-phase-to-
ground and three-phase faults are rather uncommon (usually
an occurrence of less than 20%). Then, the most common
voltage sags experienced by a three-phase load are types B, C
and D, as these are caused by a single-phase fault.
The effects of a type D* sag are equal to the effects of a
type B sag because they only differ in the zero-sequence
component (the rectifier has no neutral connection).
Moreover, the current peaks during the sag increase
because the rectifier works as a single-phase rectifier. It can
also be observed that the current peak in the post sag (when
voltage is restored) is lower than the current peak during the
sag. This is not the usual case for the remaining sag types
because the post-sag current peak is usually higher than the
current peak during the sag [3], [4].
It is pointed out that type C* sags are caused by single-
phase faults and can only drop to a value h = 0.333. The dc
voltage drop-in steady-state and the current peak are more
severe in a type C* sag than in a type B sag.
Type A sag is caused by a three-phase fault, whereas type E,
F, and G sags are caused by two-phase-to-ground faults (type
C and D sags are caused by two-phase faults but they are not
considered because they are identical to the previously studied
types C* and D*). These sags are more severe than sags due
to single-phase faults (types B and C*). Type A is the only sag
type that is balanced. This sag type is more severe than the
other six sag types. The effects of type E and G sags are
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identical because they only differ in the zero-sequence voltage
Diode 5 Current
12000
X: 7.001e+004
Y: 1.102e+004

[4]. 10000

III. ADJUSTABLE SPEED DRIVE MODEL 8000

Diode Current
A normal ac drive has three parts as shown in Fig. 1 and 6000

mentioned below, 4000

• An input converter to rectify ac power to dc power. It

is normally called the front end converter.
2000

• An energy storage device (capacitor) which separates 0

4.5 5 5.5 6 6.5
Time
7 7.5 8 8.5
4

the input from the output and allows each to operate

x 10

Fig. 3 Current peak at post-sag through the diode

independently from the other. It is usually called a dc-link.
• A dc-to-ac inverter in the output stage. It is called an A vector control ASD model is used with uncontrolled
inverter. It generates the desired ac output voltage and rectifier bridge supplied from the sag generator. The drive is
frequency. connected to constant power load and simulated in MATLAB.
Voltage sags cause a decrease of the dc-bus voltage in the The following parameters are used in the model for
ASD. During very brief sags it may be possible to supply the various components.
energy from the dc-bus capacitor. During longer sag periods, Supply: 3 phase, 415 volts, 50 Hz
the dc-bus voltage will drop to a lower level. If this falls Diode: Ron – 0.001 Ω, Vf – 0.8 V
below the dc-bus trip voltage then the inverter will trip [6], DC Reactor: Inductance – 1.22 μH
[7], [8]. Capacitor: 3300 μF, 820 μF and 560 μF
Induction Motor: 10 Hp/7.5 kW, 50 Hz, 400 V, 1440 rpm
S1 S3 S5
D1 D3 D5
squirrel cage induction motor
Sag Duration: 10 cycles (200 msec)
The results are obtained for 80%, 70%, 60%, 40% and
3φ C IM 20% sag and for 3300 μF, 820 μF and 560 μF capacitor values.
AC
Supply S4 S6 S2
Diode D5 and D6 are drawing current peaks during post sag
D4 D6 D2 duration.

Supply Uncontrolled Rectifier dc-bus Inverter Load

Fig. 1 Typical ac motor drive topology

During the initial drop in the voltage, the diodes in the

rectifier circuit are reversed biased, thus the capacitor supplies
the energy to the inverter and there is no current drawn from
the ac supply. As the dc-bus voltage level starts to recover,
current is again drawn from the ac supply. When the ac supply
voltage returns to 1 per unit, a large current transient occurs as The waveforms are shown for 60% voltage sag and 3300μF
the capacitor recharges and the drive accelerates. Fig. 3 shows capacitor
that this inrush current transient is in the range of thousand
amperes. This leads to thermal ageing of diodes as it exceeds
i2t rating of diodes. Fig. 2 Vector Control ASD Model used in Matlab Simulation

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Input Voltage Sag DC Bus Voltage
400

700

300

600

200

500

100

DC Voltage
Input Voltage

400
X: 7.18e+005
0 Y: 341.3

300

-100

200
-200

100
-300

0
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
-400
4.5 5 5.5 6 6.5 7 7.5 Time 5
x 10
Time 4
x 10

Fig. 4 Input three-phase instantaneous supply voltage Fig. 7 dc-bus voltage

Diode 5 Current
Input RMS Voltage 12000
X: 7.001e+004
Y: 1.102e+004
400

10000
350

300
8000

X: 6.355e+005
Y: 244
250

Diode Current
RMS Voltage

6000
200

150 4000

100

2000

50

0 0
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 4.5 5 5.5 6 6.5 7 7.5 8 8.5
Time 5 Time 4
x 10 x 10

Fig. 5 Input three-phase rms supply voltage Fig. 7 Diode 5 Current peak at post-sag
Capacitor Charging Diode 6 Current
800 12000
X: 7.001e+004
Y: 1.102e+004

700
10000

600

8000
500
Diode Current
Voltage

400 6000

300
4000

200

2000
100

0 0
4.5 5 5.5 6 6.5 7 7.5 8 8.5 4.5 5 5.5 6 6.5 7 7.5 8 8.5
Time 4 Time 4
x 10 x 10

Fig. 6 Capacitor charging current at the instant of post-sag Fig. 8 Diode 6 Current peak at post-sag

For different types of voltage sags, I2t values are calculated

for diodes as indicated in the Table I. First row shows (i.e.
small font size) current through diode in Amp and next row
(i.e. bold font size) shows I2t in A2s. The current peak is for
0.0002 sec for 3300 μF capacitor and 0.0001 sec for 820 μF
and 560 μF capacitor as observed from the plots and it is same
for all sags.
TABLE I
I2T VALUES FOR VARIOUS PERCENTAGE OF SAGS AND FOR VARIOUS CAPACITOR VALUES
Capacitor 3300 μF 820 μF 560 μF
Type of Sag
Type - A Type - B Type - C Type - E Type - F Type - G Type - F Type - G Type – F Type - G
% of Sag
5453 267.5 938.2 3060 2449 3995 1221 2693 1008 2362
80%
5947 14.311 176.006 1872.72 1199.520 3190.4072 149.0841 725.2249 101.6064 557.9044
8270 267.3 2497 4332 5552 6940 2850 3965 2352 3608
70%
13678.58 14.289 1247.001 3754.977 6164.940 9632.72 812.25 1572.1225 553.1904 1301.7664
11020 267.4 3981 5589 8758 9991 4454 5693 3667 5049
60%
24288.08 14.300 3169.672 6240.679 15340.51 19964.016 1983.8116 3241.0249 1344.6889 2549.2401
16500 267.5 6784 8061 14980 15930 7628 8735 6290 7548
40%
54450 14.311 9204.531 12995.944 44880.08 50752.98 5818.6384 7630.0225 3956.41 5697.2304
16630 267.5 9610 10210 16630 16630 10810 11840 8915 9838
20%
55311 14.311 18470.42 20848.82 55311.38 55311.38 11685.61 14018.56 7947.7225 9678.6244

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sag it is 149.084 A2s and 101.606 A2s, which is lower than
permissible limit for dc-bus capacitor of 820 µF and 560
µF respectively.
• While higher value capacitor is selected for enhancing
voltage sag ride through, at the same time the bridge
rectifier diode I2t value should also be selected such that it
should not cross the diode I2t limit during sag and sag
recovery duration.

REFERENCES
[1] M. H. J. Bollen, Understanding Power Quality Problems Voltage Sags
and Interruptions, IEEE Press Series, New York, A John Wiley &
Sons Inc. Hoboken, New Jersey, 1996, pp. 174–197, 265–299.
[2] M. H. J. Bollen and L. D. Zhang, “Analysis of voltage tolerance of AC
Fig. 9 Comparison of I2t for ‘type F sag’ for various percentage of sag and adjustable-speed drives for three-phase balanced and unbalanced sags,”
various capacitor values IEEE Trans. Ind. Application, vol. 36, no. 3, pp. 904–910, May/Jun.
2000.
[3] Ashish Bendre, Deepak Divan, William Kranz and William
Brumsickle, “Equipment Failures Caused by Power Quality
Disturbances”
[4] J. Pedra, F. Córcoles, and F. J. Suelves “Effects of Balanced and
Unbalanced Voltage Sags on VSI-Fed Adjustable-Speed Drives” IEEE
Transactions on Power Delivery, vol. 20, no. 1, pp 224-233, January
2005
[5] S. Ž. Djokic´, K. Stockman, J. V. Milanovic´, J. J. M. Desmet and R.
Belmans, “Sensitivity of AC Adjustable Speed Drives to Voltage Sags
and Short Interruptions”, IEEE Transactions on Power Delivery, vol.
20, no. 1, pp. 497-505, January 2005
[6] G. Alonso Orcajo, J. M. Cano R., C. H. Rojas G., M. G. Melero, M. F.
Cabanas and F. Pedrayes, “Voltage sags in industrial systems”
[7] Kevin Lee, Thomas M. Jahns, Thomas A. Lipo, Giri Venkataramanan,
and William E. Berkopec, “Impact of Input Voltage Sag and
Fig. 10 Comparison of I2t for ‘type G sag’ for various percentage of sag and Unbalance on DC-Link Inductor and Capacitor Stress in Adjustable-
various capacitor values Speed Drives”, IEEE Transactions on Industry Applications, vol. 44,
no. 6, pp. 1825-1833, November/December 2008
IV. CONCLUSIONS [8] José Luis Durá-Gómez, Prasad N. Enjeti and Byeong Ok Woo, “Effect
of Voltage Sags on Adjustable-Speed Drives: A Critical Evaluation and
• As type of sag changes, for the same percentage of sag the an Approach to Improve Performance”, IEEE Transactions On
current peak drawn by the capacitor at the end of sag Industry Applications, vol. 35, no. 6, pp. 1440-1449,
November/December 1999
recovery is of different magnitude. [9] IGBT-Diode Module (FP25R12KT3), eupec, 2003.
• Type A symmetrical sag is more severe than other
unsymmetrical sags.
• The sag due to L-G fault i.e. type B and C* and L-L-G
fault i.e. type F are less severe than type A symmetrical
sag and other unbalanced type sags.
• During the sag period the three-phase rectifier is working
under single-phasing condition and the load is shared by
the two legs.
• This over current depends on the capacitor rating used in
the dc-bus. As the capacitor microfarad rating goes on
increasing the post-sag recovery charging peak current
also increases.
• As the percentage of sag decreases the post-sag recovery
peak current also increases because the rate of discharging
the energy is very high/steep.
• The duration is very small but the peak current is in
thousands of amperes and exceeds the I2t rating of the
diode.
• Diode sustains up to 80% of the sag for its I2t rating.
• A Danfoss drive of 10 Hp having the IGBT-Diode module
FP25R12KT3 can sustain for 80% sag. It has 340 A2s for
tp = 10 ms and Tvj = 150°C (495 A2s for tp = 10 ms and Tvj
= 25°C) I2t value and by simulation it is observed for 80%

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