Performance analysis of three-phase PWM rectifiers for high power quality applications

Abstract

New power quality issues have brought new concerns about how the electrical devices connected to the mains behave and how their behaviour affects the mains quality and, consequently, other energy consumers. In result of these recent concerns, various new standards were made to limit the harmonic pollution that each device may produce. Diode rectifiers are one of the main polluters, not complying with these standards. The necessity for alternatives reaffirmed PWM rectifiers as a viable alternative. PWM additional capabilities as unity power factor and energy regeneration are other advantages that can be decisive in certain applications. This paper compares diode and PWM rectifiers. It analyses the performance of these systems and explores the PWM systems’ new capabilities. A Matlab/Simulink model has been made to allow the comparison. Simulation results are then verified by laboratorial implementation of the model. Simulation and experimental results are presented and commented.