SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR POWER CONVERSION

• US 20140211520A1
• Filed: 01/24/2014
• Published: 07/31/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 01/30/2013
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: GE Energy Power Conversion Technology Limited (GE Vernova, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: GE Energy Power Conversion Technology Limited (GE Vernova, Inc.)
• Inventors: Zhang, Fan, Liu, Yan, Soua, Samir, Shen, Jie, Schroeder, Stefan, Zhang, Richard S.
• Application Number:
  US14/162,801
• Publication Number:
  US 20140211520A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 363/37
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 1/0095 Hybrid converter topologies, e.g. NPC mixed with flying capacitor, thyristor converter mixed with MMC or charge pump mixed with buck
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 1/126 using passive filters
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 7/4837 Flying capacitor converters
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 7/487 Neutral point clamped inverters

Abstract

A grid-side transformerless power conversion system configured to perform power conversion between a power grid and a load, the transformerless power conversion system includes a first converter, a first filter, and a second converter. The first converter is configured to convert first AC power provided from the power grid into DC power. The first converter includes a first converter module and a second converter module coupled to the first converter module to form a nested neutral point piloted topology. The first filter is coupled between the power grid and the first converter. The second converter is coupled to the first converter. The second converter is configured to convert the DC power into second AC power and provide the second AC power to the load.

Claims

1. A grid-side transformerless power conversion system configured to perform power conversion between a power grid and a load, the power conversion system comprising:

a first converter configured to convert first AC power provided from the power grid into DC power, the first converter comprising;

a first converter module; and

a second converter module coupled to the first converter module to form a nested neutral point piloted topology;

a first filter coupled between the power grid and the first converter; and

a second converter coupled to the first converter, the second converter configured to convert the DC power into second AC power and provide the second AC power to the load.

2. The power conversion system of claim 1, wherein the first filter comprises a differential-mode (DM) filter.

3. The power conversion system of claim 2, wherein the DM filter comprises:

at least one DM inductor attached to at least one connection line coupled between the power grid and the first converter; and

a branch line coupled to the at least one connection line, the branch line comprising at least one capacitor.

4. The power conversion system of claim 2, wherein the DM filter comprises:

at least one first DM inductor attached to at least one connection line coupled between the power grid and the first converter;

at least one second DM inductor attached the at least one connection line and coupled in series with the at least one first DM inductor; and

a branch line coupled to the at least one connection line, the branch line comprising at least one capacitor.

5. The power conversion system of claim 2, wherein the DM filter comprises at least one branch line comprising an inductor and a capacitor coupled in series.

6. The power conversion system of claim 2, wherein the DM filter comprises a three-phase DM filter, the three-phase DM filter comprising:

a first-phase first inductor attached to a first-phase line coupled between the power grid and the first converter;

a second-phase first inductor attached to a second-phase line coupled between the power grid and the first converter;

a third-phase first inductor attached to a third-phase line coupled between the power grid and the first converter;

a first branch line attached to the first-phase line, the first branch line comprising a first capacitor;

a second branch line attached to the second-phase line, the second branch line comprising a second capacitor; and

a third branch line attached to the third-phase line, the third branch line comprising a third capacitor;

wherein the first branch line, second branch line, and the third branch line are commonly connected to form a joint connection point.

7. The power conversion system of claim 6, wherein the joint connection point is selectively grounded.

8. The power conversion system of claim 6, wherein the three-phase DM filter further comprises:

a first-phase second inductor coupled in series with the first-phase first inductor;

a second-phase second inductor coupled in series with the second-phase first inductor; and

a third-phase second inductor coupled in series with the third-phase first inductor.

9. The power conversion system of claim 1, further comprising a second filter coupled between the power grid and the first converter, the second filter is a common-mode (CM) filter.

10. The power conversion system of claim 1, further comprising a second filter coupled between the first converter and the second converter, the second filter is a common-mode (CM) filter.

11. The power conversion system of claim 1, further comprising a load-side filter coupled between the second converter and the load.

12. The power conversion system of claim 11, wherein the load-side filter comprises a three-phase filter, the three-phase filter comprising:

a first-phase inductor attached to a first-phase line coupled between the second converter and the load;

a second-phase inductor attached to a second-phase line coupled between the second converter and the load; and

a third-phase inductor attached to a third-phase line coupled between the third converter and the load.

13. The power conversion system of claim 1, wherein each of the first converter module and the second converter module comprises a plurality of switch units, and wherein when the converters are operated to perform the power conversion, at least two of the plurality of switch units are configured to be switched both in a complementary pattern and a non-complementary pattern.

14. The power conversion system of claim 1, wherein each of the first converter module and the second converter module comprises a plurality of switch units, and wherein at least one of the switch units comprises a single switch device or multiple switch devices coupled in series.

15. The power conversion system of claim 1, wherein the first converter comprises a first flying capacitor and a second flying capacitor coupled in series with the first flying capacitor, wherein voltages of the first flying capacitor and the second flying capacitor are substantially balanced in at least one switching control cycles by selectively using redundant switching states of switching signals supplied to a plurality of switch units.

16. The power conversion system of claim 1, wherein each of the first converter module and the second converter module comprises a plurality of switch units, and wherein at least one switching signal supplied to at least one of the plurality of switch units is blocked to reduce the switching numbers during at least part of the time period of a switching control cycle.

17. A grid-side transformerless power conversion system configured to perform power conversion between a power grid and a load, the power conversion system comprising:

a first converter configured to convert first AC power provided from the power grid into DC power, the first converter comprising;

a first converter module; and

a second converter module coupled to the first converter module to form a nested neutral point piloted topology;

a differential-mode (DM) filter coupled between the power grid and the first converter;

a second converter coupled to the first converter, the second converter configured to convert the DC power into second AC power and provide the second AC power to the load; and

a common-mode (CM) filter coupled between the power grid and the first converter or coupled between the first converter and the second converter.

18. A method for performing power conversion between a power grid and a load using a power conversion system, wherein the power conversion system comprises an AC-DC converter and a DC-AC converter, wherein the AC-DC converter comprises at least a first converter module and a second converter module coupled together to form a nested neutral point piloted topology, the method comprising:

receiving first AC voltage filtered by a grid-side filter, wherein the first AC voltage is not processed by a grid-side transformer;

converting the first AC voltage to DC voltage using the AC-DC converter;

converting the DC voltage to second AC voltage using the DC-AC converter; and

providing the second AC voltage to the load.

19. The method of claim 18, further comprising filtering the first AC voltage by a differential-mode (DM) filter.

20. The method of claim 19, further comprising selectively grounding the DM filter.