• The Transactions of the Korean Institute of Power Electronics
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.328-334
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• 2016

This paper examines the reliability of a VSC-HVDC valve based on a modular multilevel converter (MMC) HVDC system. The main objective of this paper is to determine the redundancy of the MMC valve. Several prediction methods are introduced, but the binomial failure method is selected to be used. To determine the availability and reliability prediction of MMC valve, which comprises a DC/DC converter, a gate driver, a capacitor, and an IGBT, the failure data of the MMC module are used as the tracking data according to the experimental result. This method uses a simplified equation to find the valve redundancy by transforming the binomial function to De Moivre's formula. This method is the first to be used to find the valve margin.

• Journal of Power Electronics
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.163-172
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• 2016

The modular multilevel converter (MMC) has been receiving increased attentions in recent years. The new modular multilevel converter is a derivative topology from the traditional MMC in which the number of sub-modules (SMs) necessitated by each phase can be reduced by one. This paper presents a phase-shifted carrier pulse-width modulation (PSC-PWM) for the new MMC with an optimal phase-shifted angle to suppress the harmonics of the output voltage. Further, the harmonic features when the capacitor voltage of the middle SM is selected as two different values are also investigated. Moreover, in order to avoid introducing an unnecessary dc offset current at the ac terminals of the new MMC, a novel capacitor voltage balancing scheme is proposed by adjusting the amplitude of the reference signals rather than the offset. Finally, the validity and effectiveness of the proposed modulation and balancing schemes have been verified by experimental results based on a three-phase prototype of the new MMC.

• Journal of international Conference on Electrical Machines and Systems
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.246-253
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• 2013

The Modular Multilevel Converter (MMC) with full bridge cells is available for utility interactive inverter in high voltage line. When it is interconnected with power line, it is possible to control the active power flow in order to supply or charge the power in the line. This research applied the MMC to grid connection system of distributed generator and a power flow control for the MMC is investigated. Theory of power flow between the MMC and the power line is described and control method of power flow and capacitor voltages on arm cells for the MMC are proposed. And effectiveness of the proposed control method is presented by simulation.

• Journal of Electrical Engineering and Technology
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.298-306
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• 2018

This paper presents a harmonic analysis of the modular multilevel converter (MMC) using a double Fourier series (DFS) algorithm. First, the application of DFS for harmonic calculation in the MMC is made by considering the effect of arm inductor. The analytical results are then confirmed by comparing with the simulation results of using the fast Fourier transform (FFT) algorithm. Finally, distribution of harmonics and total harmonic distortion (THD) in the MMC will be analyzed in three cases: harmonics versus number of levels of MMC, harmonics versus total switching frequency and harmonics versus modulation index. The simulation results are performed in the PSCAD/EMTDC simulation program in order to verify the analytical results obtained by Matlab programming.

• Proceedings of the KIEE Conference
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• 2011.07a
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• pp.1214-1215
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• 2011

현재 HVDC 및 FACTS와 같은 전력전자소자 기반 전력기기의 최신 개발은 능동형 스위치소자의 발전 및 설치 환경의 변화로 인하여 VSC Topology로 이동되고 있다. 하지만 VSC Toplolgy의 스위칭 손실등의 문제로 대용량 전력기기의 경우 MMC(Modular Multilevel Converter) 적용이 가속화되고 있다. 이에 본 논문에서는 MMC Topology의 특징, 구동 원리, 시뮬레이션 과정을 소개한다. Modulation 및 Quantization 그리고 Sorting Algorithm을 통해 7-level, 151-level 삼상 MMC Topology을 시뮬레이션을 수행하였다.

• Journal of Power Electronics
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• v.10 no.5
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• pp.572-578
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• 2010

This paper discusses a transformerless shunt static compensator (STATCOM) based on a modular multilevel converter (MMC). It introduces a new time-discrete appropriate current control algorithm and a phase-shifted carrier modulation strategy for fast compensation of the reactive power and harmonics, and also for the balancing of the three-phase source side currents. Analytical formulas are derived to demonstrate the accurate mechanism of the stored energy balancing inside the MMC. Various simulated waveforms verify that the MMC based STATCOM is capable of reactive power compensation, harmonic cancellation, and simultaneous load balancing, while controlling and balancing all of the DC mean voltages even during the transient states.

• Proceedings of the KIPE Conference
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• 2016.11a
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• pp.143-144
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• 2016

The circulating current control within the phase legs is one of the main control objectives in a modular multilevel converter (MMC) under different operating conditions. This paper proposes a control strategy of circulating currents in the MMC under unbalanced voltage by using a proportional-resonant (PR) controller. Under the unbalanced voltage, the circulating currents in the MMC consists of three components such as positive-sequence, negative-sequence, and zero-sequence circulating currents. With the PR controller, all components of the circulating current will be directly controlled in the stationary reference frame without decomposing into positive- and negative-sequence components. Thus, the ripples in the circulating currents and the DC current are suppressed under the unbalanced voltage. The effectiveness of the proposed method is verified by simulation results based on PSCAD/EMTDC simulation program.

• Journal of Power Electronics
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• v.16 no.6
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• pp.2294-2305
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• 2016

The introduction of a high-voltage direct-current (HVDC) system based on a modular multilevel converter (MMC) for wind farm integration has stimulated studies on methods to control this type of converter. This research article focuses on the control of the AC voltage and circulating current for a wind-farm-side MMC (WFS-MMC). After theoretical analysis, emotional learning (EL) controllers are proposed for the controls. The EL controllers are derived from the learning mechanisms of the amygdala and orbitofrontal cortex which make the WFS-MMC insensitive to variance in system parameters, power change, and fault in the grid. The d-axis and q-axis currents are respectively considered for the d-axis and q-axis voltage controls to improve the performance of AC voltage control. The practicability of the proposed control is verified under various conditions with a point-to-point MMC-HVDC system. Simulation results show that the proposed method is superior to the traditional proportional-integral controller.

• Transactions on Electrical and Electronic Materials
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.103-110
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• 2017

The number of applications of solar photovoltaic (PV) systems in power generation grids has increased in the last decade because of their ability to generate efficient and reliable power in a variety of low installation in domestic applications. Various PV converter topologies have therefore emerged, among which the modular multilevel converter (MMC) is very attractive due to its modularity and transformerless features. The modeling and control of the MMC has become an interesting issue due to the extremely large expansion of PV power plants at the residential scale and due to the power quality requirement of this application. This paper proposes a novel control method of MMC which is used to directly integrate the photovoltaic arrays with the power grid. Traditionally, a closed loop control has been used, although circulating current control and capacitors voltage balancing in each individual leg have remained unsolved problem. In this paper, the integration of model predictive control (MPC) and traditional closed loop control is proposed to control the MMC structure in a PV grid tied mode. Simulation results demonstrate the efficiency and effectiveness of the proposed control model.

• Proceedings of the KIPE Conference
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• 2014.11a
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• pp.159-160
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• 2014

본 논문에서는 ${\Delta}$결선으로 구성된 Modular Multilevel Converter(MMC)에서 흐르는 전류가 매우 적은 경우 계통에 영향이 없이 셀 직류전압의 불평형을 제어할 수 있도록 영상분전류를 주입하는 방법을 제안하였고, 시뮬레이션을 통해 검증하였다.