Wide Bandgap SiC and GaN Semiconductor Performance Evaluation in a 3-Phase 3-Level NPC Inverter for Transportation Application

Research and Development of Auxiliary Converters for Application in Electric Vehicles

“…This chapter discusses the potential of wide bandgap semiconductor use in auxiliary converters and analyses the further energy saving measures. A detailed analysis is shown in [2].…”

“…The auxiliary drive for air compressor in a variable frequency operation mode shows stable system pressure, gradual transitions between turn-on and steady state, energy consumption reduction by 2 % at turn-on and by 2.5 % at steady state. Further energy savings are achieved by utilizing PMSM instead of IM, as it achieves better efficiency at partial load below the base speed, as well as by implementing GaN FETs in a 3-level NPC inverter topology that show efficiency about 99 % even at partial load [2]. Thus, by operating the system constantly with partial load, the thermal and mechanical stresses are minimized by reducing the component wear out due to frequent heavy starts.…”

“…A typical functional diagram of a trolleybus electric power circuit is shown in Fig. 1 [2]. Another example is the functional diagram of an electric locomotive power circuit, depicted in Fig.…”