Silicon-carbide based power converter systems with advanced control methods for wind turbines

预计到2020年，加拿大的温室气体(GHG)排放量将比2010年增加15%以上，因此，通过采用清洁和可持续的能源来减少温室气体排放至关重要。加拿大各地都提供了各种倡议计划和慷慨的激励措施，例如WindVision2025项目，该项目旨在到2025年生产足够的清洁风力发电，以满足加拿大20%的国内电力需求。在典型的风电场中，由于风电机组的输出电压太低，不能进行有效的远距离输电，因此每个风电机组都使用预定的低频中压(MV)升压变压器，以将风电机组的输出电压提升到MV级。然而，升压变压器体积大、重量重，通常安装在风力涡轮机的附近。总部位于安大略省的电力变压器制造商北方变压器公司已经开始研究创新的电力解决方案，用紧凑高效的电力电子升压转换器取代低频中压变压器，用于大功率风力涡轮机。虽然文献报道了各种类型的中高频升压功率转换器用于风能，但由于开关功率损耗的存在，它们要么限制了工作频率范围，要么需要昂贵而复杂的磁元件。在这个项目中，将设计一种新型的升压式电力电子转换器，它采用具有创新的转换器结构的碳化硅开关器件，以最大限度地降低整体导通功率损耗。将研究和使用新的绝缘材料，以使所设计的转换器中的高频变压器能够在更高的温度下运行，从而降低整个系统的冷却需求。

With an expected rise of over 15% in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2020 from 2010 in Canada, it iscrucial to reduce GHG emissions by embracing clean and sustainable energy sources. Various initiativeprograms and generous incentives are offered across Canada such as the WindVision2025 project that seeks toproduce enough clean wind power to meet 20% of Canada's domestic electricity demand by 2025. In a typicalwindfarm, as the output voltage of the wind turbine is too low for effective long-distance power transmission, adedicated low frequency medium voltage (MV) step-up transformer is used for each wind turbine to step up theturbine output voltage to the MV level. However, the step-up transformers are bulky; heavy, and typicallylocated in the immediate vicinity of the wind turbines. Ontario-based manufacturer of electrical transformers,Northern Transformer Corporation has started to look into innovative power solutions to replace the lowfrequency MV transformers with compact and highly efficient power electronic step-up converters for highpower wind turbines. Although various types of medium to high frequency step-up power converters havebeen reported in literature for wind energy application, they either have restricted operating frequency rangedue to the presence of switching power loss or require expensive and complicated magnetic components. Inthis project, a new step-up power electronic converter that employs silicon-carbide switching devices withinnovative converter structure to minimize the overall conduction power losses will be devised. New insulationmaterial will be investigated and used to enable the high frequency transformer in the devised converter tooperate at higher temperatures and hence reducing the cooling requirement of the overall system.