University of Tennessee Research Foundation

Ut-battelle, Inc.

Leon Monroe Tolbert

Fei Wang

Yiwei Ma

Shuoting Zhang

Yilu Liu

Jingxin Wang

Kevin Tomsovic

Kai Sun

Lin Zhu

Burak Ozpineci

Omer C Onar

Clifford P White

Madhu Sudhan Chinthavali

Fred Wang

Aleksandar D Dimitrovski

Benjamin J Blalock

Larry E Seiber

He Yin

Steven L Campbell

Maximiliano Flavio Ferrari Maglia

Ben Guo

Bo Liu

Philip R Irminger

Aditya Sundararajan

Guodong Liu

Yang Chen

Thomas B Ollis

Daniel J Costinett

Zhi Li

Fei Yang

Mohammed M Olama

Xiaojie Shi

Fei (Fred) Wang

Fan Xu

Handong Gui

Dingrui Li

Sheng Zheng

Ishita Ray

Methods and systems comprising an inverter comprising: a semiconductor-based power module that is overrated by a factor fhaving a value greater than two and configured to receive a DC signal and convert the DC signal into an AC signal; a saturable inductive grid filter configured to filter the AC signal; at least one sensor configured to produce a current measurement and a voltage measurement from the AC signal output from the saturable inductive grid filter; and a processor configured to compute adaptive controller gain values using at least the current measurement and temperature, and cause an adjustment to a gain of an inverter controller in accordance with the adaptive controller gain values to maintain stability when the saturable inductive grid filter saturates at high current operations.

Inverter design with high short-circuit fault current contribution

A system includes a controller that is configured to generate a node control signal and a plurality of switch control signals, a plurality of programmable emulators, each of the plurality of programmable emulators being configurable as one of a plurality of node types responsive to the node control signal, and a plurality of switches that are programmable to couple ones of the plurality of programmable emulators to each other responsive to the plurality of switch control signals.

Power electronics converter based reconfigurable grid emulation platform

Methods, systems, and computer readable mediums for protecting and controlling a microgrid with a dynamic boundary are disclosed. One method includes detecting a fault in a microgrid that includes a dynamic point-of-common-coupling (PCC), in response to determining that the microgrid is operating in a grid-connected mode, isolating the fault by tripping a microgrid side smart switch and a grid side smart switch that are located immediately adjacent to the fault, initiating the reclosing of the grid side smart switch, and initiating the reclosing for the microgrid side smart switch via resynchronization if the grid side smart switch is successfully reclosed, and in response to determining that the microgrid is operating in an islanded mode, isolating the fault by tripping a microgrid side smart switch that is located immediately adjacent to the fault, and initiating the reclosing of the microgrid side smart switch.

Methods, systems, and computer readable media for protecting and controlling a microgrid with a dynamic boundary

An electronic circuit includes a charge pump circuit, which includes a drive power supply; a flying capacitor; and a pump capacitor that is coupled in parallel to the drive power supply and the flying capacitor in response to a first control signal being in first state and is configured to receive charge from the flying capacitor to boost a pump voltage across the pump capacitor to a value that exceeds a drive voltage provided by the drive power supply responsive to a transition of the first control signal from the first state to a second state. The electronic circuit further includes a gate drive circuit coupled to the charge pump circuit.

Charge pump gate drive circuit for reduction in turn-on switching loss for MOSFETs

Circuits and methods for power conversion. In some examples, a modular multi-level converter (MMC) is configured for power conversion between an alternating current (AC) bus and a direct current (DC) bus. The MMC includes submodules arranged into a phase leg for at least one phase of the AC bus. Each submodule includes an energy storage component and a switch configured for bypassing the energy storage component or connecting the energy storage component into the phase leg. The MMC includes a pre-charger circuit configured to pre-charge the energy storage components of the submodules. The pre-charger circuit is configured for providing a first DC voltage that is lower than a second DC voltage on the DC bus, and the pre-charger circuit is coupled to an end submodule of the phase leg.

Modular multi-level converter pre-chargers

An energy system includes a microgrid including a network of at least one distributed energy resource and a plurality of loads, the at least one distributed energy resource being configured to supply power to the plurality of loads. The microgrid is configurable to connect to one of a plurality of feeder circuits of a main power grid at one of a plurality of coupling interface locations, respectively. The microgrid is also configurable to expand or shrink its power supply area according to the available power generation capabilities.

Microgrids with dynamically configurable boundaries including multiple main grid feeder coupling locations and methods of operating the same

A direct current controller includes a rectifier configured to convert alternating current input into a direct current output. A converter electrically coupled to the rectifier generates a converted direct current voltage that regulates a converted direct current from the direct current output of the rectifier and synthesizes an ac component of an alternating current grid to counteract an induced back-emf. A direct current controller central controller coupled to the converter regulates the converted direct current.

DC current controller for continuously variable series reactor

A three-phase alternating current (AC) to direct current (DC) converter may include a three-phase AC filter receiving a three-phase AC power supply, a plurality of three-phase current source rectifiers (CSR) connected in parallel with each other and connected to a three-phase AC filter, and an output filter connected to the CSR's to generate a DC output. Each of the CSRs may include six switches and a free-wheeling diode. Each of the three filtered AC inputs from the three-phase AC filter may be connected via a switch of the six switches to selectably send current into a positive line, and each of three filtered AC inputs from the three-phase AC filter may be connected via another switch of the six switches to selectably receive current from a negative line. The free-wheeling diode may have a cathode connected to the positive line and an anode connected to the negative line.

Control of parallel-connected current source rectifiers

Growing community of inventors

Knoxville, TN, United States of America

Leon Monroe Tolbert