Electrical Power and Machines EPE491

Introduction to Power Electronics

Introduction
 Electronic devices can be used as
o rectifiers to convert ac power to dc power and vice versa
o high-speed switches
 Such devices include semiconductor diodes, thyristors and they are frequently used to control
electric machines

Diodes
 An electronic device that possess 2 terminals: anode (A) and cathode (K).
 Symbol for a diode:

Figure 1: Diode symbol

 It conducts current in one direction only from A to K.

o A diode is said to be forward biased when it is connected to a voltage supply in such a way
that the diode conducts.
o If connected the other way round, a diode is reverse biased.

+ - - +
a) Forward biased b) Reverse biased

Figure 2: Diode circuits

 For an ideal diode, it is considered as short circuit during forward-biased condition.

 For a non-ideal diode, there is a small voltage drop across its terminals called the forward
voltage.
o 0.7 V for Silicon diodes
o 0.3 V for Germanium diodes
 Therefore, for it to conduct, a voltage higher than this voltage drop is needed.
 Main characteristics of a diode is the peak inverse voltage (PIV)
o It is the maximum reverse biased voltage that a diode can withstand without “breaking
down”
o Ranges between 50 V to 4000 V
o If rated PIV is exceeded, the diode begins to conduct in reverse & is immediately destroyed.

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V-I Characteristics of a Diode

Breakdown region Forward biased

region

Reverse
biased Forward voltage
region

Figure 3: V-I Characteristics of a Diode

 Has a low resistance to current flow when forward biased but has a high resistance when
reverse biased.
 During reverse-biased, a very small amount of current passes through the diode. It is called the
leakage current but it can be ignored for most purposes.
 If reverse biased voltage becomes too great, the diode will breakdown.

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Example 1
Calculate the current I1 and the voltage V o for the circuit below:

Solution

By KVL, 10 V = I1 (1k + 10k) + 0.7 V

Therefore, I1 = (10 – 0.7) / 11k = 0.84 mA
V o = I1 (10k) = 0.84mA (10k) = 8.4 V

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Single-Phase Rectifier
 A rectifier is a circuit that converts ac signal into dc signal.
 Classified into 2 categories:
o Half-wave rectifier
o Full-wave rectifier

Single-Phase Half-Wave Rectifier

 Consists of a single diode.

Vo
Vi

Figure 4: Half-wave rectifier circuit

 Conducts only during the half cycle of the ac signal.

o During the positive half cycle, X becomes positive.
o Current flows in clockwise direction and the diode becomes forward biased.
o Voltage across the load, Vo = Vi (assuming ideal diode)
o During the negative half cycle, X becomes negative.
o Current is supposed to flow anti-clockwise.
However, the diode becomes reverse biased. Therefore, the circuit becomes open-circuited.
There will be no current flow.
o Voltage across the load, Vo = 0 V
 Voltage variations in the circuit are shown below.

Vi Vo

a) AC input voltage b) DC output voltage

Figure 5: Voltage variations in half-wave rectifier circuit

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Single-Phase Full-Wave Rectifier

 Allow the load to draw current from the supply on each half of the cycle.
 Consists of at least 2 diodes that operate alternately during the positive and negative cycles.

D1
+

_
D2

a) Forward biased b) Reverse biased

Figure 6: Single-phase full-wave rectifier

o During the positive half cycle, current flows from +ve to –ve potential in clockwise direction
o Diode D1 becomes forward biased and conducts while diode D2 becomes reverse biased
and does not conduct.
o Voltage across the load, Vo = Vi (assuming ideal diode)
o During the negative half cycle, current flows from +ve to –ve potential in anti-clockwise
direction.
o Diode D2 becomes forward biased and conducts while diode D1 becomes reverse biased
and does not conduct.
o Voltage across the load, Vo = Vi (assuming ideal diode)
 Voltage variations in the circuit are shown below.

Vo
Vi

a) AC input voltage b) DC output voltage

Figure 7: Voltage variations in single-phase full-wave rectifier circuit

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Single-Phase Bridge Rectifier

 A full-wave rectifier using 4 diodes is called a single-phase bridge rectifier.

Figure 8: Single-phase bridge rectifier circuit

 When X is positive, B and D conduct.

 When Y is positive, A and C conduct.
 In each case, the current through the load is in the same direction i.e. from N to M.
 The average dc voltage is given by:

Ed = 0.90 E

Ed – dc voltage of a single-phase bridge rectifier (across the load) (V)

E – Effective value of the ac line voltage (V)
0.90 – constant [exact value = (2√2)/π]
 For a resistive load, the average current is given by:

Id = Ed / R

Example 2
An AC source of a single phase bridge rectifier circuit has an effective voltage of 120 V, 60 Hz. The
load draws a DC current of 20 A. Calculate
a. The dc voltage across the load
b. The average dc current in each diode

Solution
a. The dc voltage across the load is given by
Ed = 0.90 E = 0.90 x 120 = 108 V
b. The dc current in the load is known to be 20 A, but the diodes only carry the current on
alternate half-cycles. Consequently, the average dc current in each diode is
I = Id / 2
= 20 / 2 = 10 A
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Filters
 The pulsating output produced by both half-wave and full wave rectifiers can be made
smoother by using a dc filter.

Ripple

a) Half-wave rectification

b) Full-wave rectification
Figure 9: Variation of output voltage with the use of filter

 The filter maintains a constant dc voltage and current in the load by:
o absorbing energy when voltage or current tend to rise
o releasing energy when voltage or current tend to fall
 The most common filters are:
o inductors
– maintain constant current
– placed in series
o capacitors
– maintain constant voltage
– placed in parallel

a) Rectifier with inductive filter b) Rectifier with capacitive filter

Figure 10

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3-Phase Rectifier
3-Phase Half-Wave Rectifier
 The simplest composes of 3 diodes connected in series with the secondary winding of a 3-
phase, delta-wye transformer

Figure 11: 3-phase half-wave rectifier with inductive filter fed by a 3-phase transformer

 Voltage across the load

o The voltage and current waveforms are shown below:

Figure 12: Voltage and current waveforms in a 3-phase half-wave rectifier

o At t = 0,
– diode D1 conducts
o At angle of 60° (critical moment),
– diode D2 conducts & begins to carry current I while diode D1 stops conducting
o At angle of 180° (next critical moment),
– conduction switches from D2 to D3
o The dc voltage across the load is given by

Ed = 0.675 E

Ed – Average or dc voltage of a 3-phase half-wave rectifier [V]

E – Effective (RMS) value of the ac line voltage [V]
0.675 – constant [exact value = (3/ π √2)]
o The fundamental ripple frequency is 3x the supply frequency.

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3-phase Full-Wave Rectifier

 Also called as a 3-phase bridge rectifier
 An improvement to the 3-phase half-wave rectifier
 Circuit shown below is a 3-phase full-wave rectifier with an inductive filter

Figure 13: 3-phase full-wave rectifier with inductive filter

 The output voltage across the load is shown below:

E12, E23 &

E31 are line
voltages

Figure 14: Voltage waveform in a 3-phase full-wave rectifier

o At t = 0° – 60°, diodes D1 & D6 conduct

o At t = 60° – 120°, diodes D2 & D6 conduct
o At t = 120° – 180°, diodes D2 & D4 conduct
o At t = 180° – 240°, diodes D3 & D4 conduct
o At t = 240° – 300°, diodes D3 & D5 conduct
o At t = 300° – 360°, diodes D1 & D5 conduct
 The output voltage fluctuates between 1.414 E and 1.225 E.

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 Its average value is given by

Ed = 1.35 E

Ed – Average or dc voltage of a 3-phase full-wave rectifier [V]

E – Effective (RMS) line voltage [V]
1.35 – constant [exact value = (3√2 / π)]
 The PIV across each diode is √2 E
 The peak-to-peak voltage ripple is

Epeak-to peak = 0.189 E

(i.e. 1.414 E – 1.225 E)
 The fundamental ripple frequency is 6x the line frequency.

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 Electrical Power and Machines EPE491

Example 4
A 3-phase bridge rectifier has to supply power to a 360 kW, 240 V dc load. If a 600 V, 3-phase, 60
Hz feeder is available, calculate the following:
a. Voltage rating of the 3-phase transformer
b. DC current per diode
c. PIV across each diode
d. Peak-to-peak ripple in the output voltage and its frequency

Solution
a. Secondary line voltage is
E = Ed / 1.35 = 240 / 1.35 = 177 V
Thus, a 3Ф transformer having a line voltage ratio of 600 V/177 V would be satisfactory. The
primary & secondary windings may be connected in either wye or delta.

b. dc load current Id = 360 k/240 = 1500 A From P = VI for the dc load

dc current per diode = 1500/3 Each diode conducts for 120°.
= 500 A Therefore, for 1 cycle of 360°, only 3
diodes conduct
Peak current in each diode = 1500 A

c. PIV across each diode = √2 E = 1.414 x 177 = 250 V

d. The output voltage fluctuates between 1.225 E and 1.414 E. In other words, the voltage
fluctuates between
E min = 1.225 x 177 = 216.8 V
E max = 1.414 x 177 = 250.3 V

The peak-to-peak ripple is therefore,

E peak-to-peak = 250 – 217 = 33.5 V or Epeak-to-peak = 0.189 E = 0.189 x 177
= 33.5 V
Fundamental ripple frequency = 6 x 60 Hz = 360 Hz

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Thyristors (SCR)
 Similar to a diode but the instant of conduction can be controlled.
 Commonly called as semiconductor controlled rectifier or SCR
 Possess 3 terminals: anode (A), cathode (K) and gate (G)
 Symbol for a thyristor:

Figure 15: Thyristor symbol (or SCR)

 A thyristor does not conduct when the gate is connected to cathode.

 It conducts when these 2 conditions are met:
o Anode is positive
o Current Ig flows into the gate for at least a few µs

a) Thyristor does not conduct and b) A thyristor conducts when anode is

is said to be blocked positive and a current is injected into the
gate by applying a short, positive voltage
Figure 16: Thyristor behaviour

 When conduction starts, however, the gate loses further control.

Principles of Gate Firing

 Consider the following circuit:

a) Thyristor & resistor connected b) Thyristor behaviour depends on

to an ac source the timing of the gate pulses

Figure 17

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 A thyristor and a resistor are connected in series across an ac source

 Short, positive pulses Eg is applied to the gate at instant θ1, θ2, θ3, θ4 and θ5
 The description of the thyristor behaviour is as follows:

Angle or time
Circuit Operation
interval
Anode is positive but gate voltage is zero. Thyristor behaves like open
0 to θ1
switch.
angle θ1 Both anode and gate are positive. Conduction starts.
θ1 to 180° Conduction continues even though gate voltage has fallen to zero.
angle 180° Thyristor current is zero, conduction stops and the gate regains control.
Eg is applied at θ2. There is no conduction because anode is negative. The
180° to 360°
thyristor experience an inverse voltage during this half cycle.
Conduction starts at θ3 and stops again when current is zero. The gate pulse
360° to 540°
is delayed more. Anode current flows for a shorter time.

Conduction starts at θ5 but resulting anode current is very small because of

720° to 900°
long delay in firing the gate.

 As a conclusion, current in ac circuit can be controlled by delaying the gate pulses.

 Output voltage?

Figure 18: Output voltage in thyristor circuit

So, how does the output

voltage looks like?
Refer to the red colour
curve…That is the output
voltage.

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3-phase Full-Wave Controllable Converter

 A converter is a device that converts power of one frequency to another.
 Consists of 6 thyristors connected to the secondary winding of a 3-phase transformer.
 It can operate in 2 modes either as:
o rectifier (convert ac to dc)
o inverter (convert dc to ac)

3-phase Full-Wave Controlled Rectifier  The keyword here is controlled. Kalau

controlled it means thyristor rectifier. Tanpa
 Similar to 3-phase full-wave diode rectifier except
controlled, maknanya, diode rectifier
o the diodes are replaced by thyristors
 Kita boleh control bila nak suruh
o the thyristors can be made to conduct at precise moment
dia conduct. Kalau diode, tak boleh
 Consider the rectifier circuit below that supplies power to a load:

 This is the
thyristor converter
in rectifier mode.

Figure 19: 3-phase full-wave controlled rectifier

 The rectifier is fed from a 3-phase transformer.

 The load is composed of a dc voltage E0 and a resistor R in series with a smoothing inductor.
 The average dc voltage between K and A (no significant voltage drop across the inductor;
hence between point 4 and point A) is given by

Ed = 1.35 E cos α  Please memorize the formula! Important!

Ed – dc voltage produced by the 3-phase, 6-pulse rectifier [V]

E – Effective ac line to line voltage [V]
1.35 – constant [exact value = (3√2 / π)]
α – firing angle [°]  Maksudnya, waktu bila kita nak suruh the
thyristor to conduct

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 The dc current Id is given by

Id = (Ed – E0)/R  Please memorize!

Kalau rearrange jadi Id R = Ed – E0 where Id R
is voltage drop across the resistance, R

 Assuming that the rectifier has been in operation for sometime, the output waveform for α=15°
is shown below:

1.414 E
 Output waveform
yang bold ni …
Pls memorize …

Figure 20: Output waveform for a 3-phase full-wave controlled rectifier with delay angle=15°

 The converter can be made to operate as inverter with 3 basic conditions:

o Must have a source of dc current Id i.e. a voltage source E0 is connected in series with a
large inductance
o The converter must be connected to a 3-phase line
o To force power into the line, the thyristors must be switched so that current Id flows into
an ac line that is momentarily positive.
 Its circuit diagram is given as below.

 This is the
thyristor converter
in inverter mode.

Figure 21: 3-phase full-wave controlled inverter

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Example 1
A 3-phase full-wave thyristor rectifier is connected to a 3-phase, 480 V, 60 HZ source. The load
consists of a 500 V dc source having an internal resistance of 2 Ω. Calculate the power supplied to
the load for triggering delays of 15°.

Solution
The dc output voltage of the converter is
Ed = 1.35 E cos α
= 1.35 x 480 x cos 15°
= 626 V
Voltage drop across the inductor is negligible. Therefore, the IR drop across the 2Ω internal
resistance is
ER = Ed – E0 From Id = (Ed – E0)/R
= 626 – 500
= 126 V
The dc load current is therefore,
Id = E/R
= 126/2 = 63 A
The power supplied to the load is
P = Ed Id = 626 x 63 = 39.4 kW

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Example 2 (important example…)

In Example 1 above for a triggering angle of 15°, calculate the following:
a. The displacement power factor
b. The reactive power absorbed by the converter
c. The total power factor

Solution
a. The displacement btwn fundamental line current & the line-to-neutral voltage is α = 15°.
The displacement power factor is
 Please memorize this
cos α = cos 15° = 0.966 formula!

b. The active power supplied to the converter is

P = Ed Id = 39.4 kW
Now,

Q = P tan α
 And this formula!

Q – Reactive power absorbed by the converter [var]

P – dc power of the converter (+ve for rectifier, -ve for inverter) [W]
α – triggering angle
Hence, Q = P tan α
= 39.4 tan 15° = 10.6 kvar
c. The total power factor = displacement power factor x distortion power factor
= 0.966 x 0.955  And this formula!
= 0.923 = 92.3% Distortion power factor = 0.955

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Example 3
A 16 kV dc source having an internal resistance of 1 Ω supplies 900 A to a 12 kV, 3-phase, 6-
pulse, 60 Hz inverter. Calculate:
a. The dc current carried by each SCR
b. The dc voltage generated by the inverter
c. The required firing angle α
d. The effective value of the ac line currents
e. The reactive power absorbed by the inverter

Solution
a. Each SCR carried the load current for 1/3 of the time. The dc current is therefore,
I = Id/3
= 900 / 3 = 300 A
b. The voltage Ed generated by the inverter is equal to E0 less than IR drop. Thus,
Ed = E0 – Id R
= 16 000 – (900 x 1) = 15100 V
c. Ed = 1.35 E cos α
15100 = 1.35 x 12 000 cos α
cos α = 0.932
α = 21.2°
This is the firing angle if the converter operates as a rectifier. In inverter mode, the actual
firing angle is
α = 180 – 21.2 = 158.8°
d. The effective value of the ac line current is
I = 0.816 Id
= 0.816 x 900 = 734 A

e. The dc power absorbed by the inverter is

P = Ed Id
= 15 100 x 900
= 13.6 MW
Because the inverter absorbs dc power, P is actually –ve. Hence, P = – 13.6MW
The reactive power absorbed by the inverter is therefore,
Q = P tan α
= –13.6 tan 158.8 = 5.27 Mvar

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