When one-phase or two-phase loads are connected to the three-phase AC network, voltage asymmetries can occur which affect the correct operation of certain devices and increase transmission losses. The unbalanced load problem is particularly important in low-voltage networks with low short-circuit power, which is often associated with small meshing levels or long network extensions. The FNN is currently carrying out a corresponding "asymmetry study" [1], which indicates the increasing relevance of the subject area against the back-ground of a changing producer and consumer structure.
If the ratio between the voltage negative- and positive-sequence-component, which is set at 2 % in accordance with DIN EN 50160, is exceeded, classic measures in the form of network expansion and passive balancing circuits are available. On the other hand, active, power electronic solutions are also conceivable, which are theoretically examined within the scope of the present work and are tested in practice on the basis of a specially developed three-phase, four-wire inverter.
A complete, i.e. precise stationary extinction of the grid-frequency voltage negative- and possibly the zero-sequence-component takes place at the grid connection point of the inverter without direct knowledge of the load currents. Instead, the compensation is based on a simple voltage measurement. After appropriate signal processing and using the network admittance determined by the inverter, the necessary compensation currents to be applied by the inverter can be determined.
Due to cross-couplings between the symmetrical-component current and voltage values, pendulum power with double grid frequency occurs which affects the DC-link circuit of the inverter. Instead of relying on passive DC-link variants to maintain a small voltage ripple, a dedicated active filter is used. Using an enlarged voltage swing decoupled from the DC-link level, it enables the energy efficiency of the storage capacity to be improved and thus electrolyte capacitors to be replaced by foil capacitors. In addition to the expected higher reliability, the measure reduces the associated construction volume to 53 %. An optimized control strategy with high dynamics limits transient deviations in the DC link voltage (when the DC rated load is applied) to max. 7 % of the nominal value. Thus, taking into account the cur-rent limits, operation as an active rectifier for feeding low-voltage DC networks or loads is still possible. | English |