Abstract: (Sponsored by PELS TC 1)
Modular power conversion – using multiple power converters in parallel, series, or other configurations to accomplish a single task – offers many advantages: higher achievable current/voltage/power ratings, natural redundancy, higher operating frequency, access to superior and more commoditized devices, commoditized manufacturing and shipping options, improved thermal dissipation, and the ability to create grids from distributed energy resources. These advantages are only achievable if the modules share power proportional to their rating (or some other logic). While power sharing can be achieved through centralized (one master controller) or distributed (communication among modules) ways, a truly decentralized, communication-less, master-less approach offers the best scalability and interoperability. In this webinar, we will discuss methods to achieve decentralized power sharing in modular power conversion, including the more conventional droop control and a novel nonlinear method that overcomes the sharing-versus-regulation tradeoff of droop control.
