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abstract: This dissertation presents a new hybrid fault current limiter (FCL) topology that is primarily intended to protect single-phase power equipment. It can however be extended to protect three phase systems but would need three devices to protect each individual phase. In comparison against the existing fault current limiter technology, the salient fea-tures of the proposed topology are: a) provides variable impedance that provides a 50% reduction in prospective fault current; b) near instantaneous response time which is with-in the first half cycle (1-4 ms); c) the use of semiconductor switches as the commutating switch which produces reduced leakage current, reduced losses, improved reliability, and a faster switch time (ns-µs); d) zero losses in steady-state operation; e) use of a Neodym-ium (NdFeB) permanent magnet as the limiting impedance which reduces size, cost, weight, eliminates DC biasing and cooling costs; f) use of Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) to control the magnitude of the fault current to a user's desired level. g) experi-mental test system is developed and tested to prove the concepts of the proposed FCL. This dissertation presents the proposed topology and its working principle backed up with numerical verifications, simulation results, and hardware implementation results. Conclu-sions and future work are also presented. / Dissertation/Thesis / Ph.D. Electrical Engineering 2013

Semiconductor devices are widely used in the automotive industry, and they are key components of the inverter and the converter in an electric vehicle. Thus, the concern of protecting the inverter and the converter from damaging operation has been raised. The junction temperature is one of the main considerations. It is directly related to the inverter power loss and overheat which can lead to fatigue or even failures. Therefore, to protect the semiconductor device from thermal runaway and apply active thermal control, the junction temperature must be obtained.To derive the junction temperature of an Insulated-Gate Bipolar Transistor (IGBT) and a diode, an instant model is proposed.   The instant model updates the junction temperature at the PWM switching frequency (around 2-5 kHz in this thesis). Compared with the traditional algorithm which calculates the average temperature over one fundamental cycle, the instant algorithm can show the instant temperature swing.  A high power IGBT module, FF1200R12IE5 Infineon, is selected to verify the algorithm with temperature results from IPOSIM and Power HIL tests. The temperature deviations for different cases are below 6 ◦C and the relative errors are below 10 %.With an accurate estimation of the junction temperature, the current limit is set to avoid that average temperature, maximum temperature and temperature swing exceed their limits. The currentlimits are derived from the curve/ surface fitting method. / Halvledare används mycket i fordonsindustrin, och är viktiga komponenter i växelriktare i elektriska fordon. Vikten av att skydda växelriktarna från skadliga driftsförhållanden ökat. Övergångstempe- raturen hos halvledarna är en av de viktigaste parametern att beakta. Den är direkt relaterad till väx- elriktarens förluster, vilket kan leda till termisk utmattning, och i värsta fall haveri. För att skydda halvledarna från termisk rusning och tillämpa aktiv termisk styrning måste övergångstemperaturen kunna uppskattas.För att härleda övergångstemperaturen hos en Insulated-Gate-Bipolar Transistor (IGBT) och en diod föreslås en momentan modell. Den momentana modellen uppdaterar övergångstemperaturen vid PWM-frekvensen (cirka 2-5 kHz i denna avhandling). Jämfört med den traditionella algoritmen som beräknar medeltemperaturen under en grundtonscykel kan den momentana algoritmen visa den omedelbara temperatursvängningen. En IGBT-modul, Infineon FF1200R12IE5, valdes för att verifiera algoritmen mot resultat från simuleringar och mätningar. Temperaturavvikelserna för olika fall är under 6 ◦C och de relativa felen är under 10 %.Med en noggrann uppskattning av övergångstemperaturen kan strömgränsen ställas in för att undvika att medel- och maxtemperaturen och temperatursvängningenen överskrider sina gränser.Strömgränserna härleds genom kurv- och ytanpassning.

Les limiteurs de courants de court-circuit supraconducteurs sont des appareillages à fort potentiel pour les réseaux électriques. En effet, ils offrent une limitation efficace dès les premiers instants du court-circuit. On peut qualifier la limitation de "naturelle", c’est-à-dire qu’elle est intrinsèquement liée aux caractéristiques du matériau et ne nécessite pas de commande particulière. Afin de faciliter la conception et l’intégration des limiteurs de courant de court-circuit supraconducteurs résistifs (rSFCL) destinés aux réseaux électriques, il est nécessaire de disposer de modèles de simulation précis. Ces derniers doivent prendre en compte et simuler correctement (et le plus précisément possible) les phénomènes électriques et thermiques du rSFCL en présence de surintensités de courant, qu’il s’agisse d’un court-circuit franc ou d’un phénomène temporaire de plus faible amplitude. Il est difficile d’envisager la planification de l’intégration d’un rSFCL sans passer par des outils numériques qui permettent la simulation d’un tel dispositif dans un réseau électrique en régime transitoire. Il est alors plus facile d’appréhender et de prédire le comportement transitoire du limiteur dans des conditions de stress réalistes, qui peuvent comprendre une grande variété de surintensités, tant en durée qu’en amplitude. Néanmoins, les rSFCL sont des dispositifs fortement non-linéaires caractérisés par un couplage électrique et thermique très fort. L’implémentation d’un tel modèle dans un logiciel de simulation de type “circuits électriques” en régime transitoire présente un certain défi. Bien que des modèles de rSFCL existent déjà, des améliorations doivent être apportées pour prendre en compte i) l’ensemble des phénomènes physiques liés à la limitation (thermiques et électriques), ii) les propriétés géométriques des rubans supraconducteurs utilisés et iii) la possibilité de réaliser des études globales (impact du limiteur sur le réseau) et iv) l’influence de l’architecture du ruban en présence de phénomènes locaux (points chauds). Cette thèse se concentre donc sur le développement d’un modèle de rSFCL basé sur des rubans supraconducteurs de deuxième génération. Ce modèle est développé dans le logiciel EMTP-RV, qui est un outil utilisé par un grand nombre de compagnies d’électricité dans le monde. Le modèle proposé dans cette thèse repose sur une analogie qui fait le lien entre les phénomènes électriques et thermiques, et qui permet une modélisation entièrement basée sur des éléments de circuits électriques. Le modèle permet de prendre également en compte les propriétés non linéaires des matériaux, tant au niveau électrique qu’au niveau thermique, avec l’utilisation de dipôles non-linéaires. Le modèle a été développé pour offrir un niveau de généricité intéressant pour la modélisation des rubans supraconducteurs. Il permet un fonctionnement avec une excitation AC ou DC en tension ou en courant et tient compte de la non-uniformité de courant critique, qui est typiquement observée dans la longueur des rubans disponibles commercialement. Il est également possible de représenter des variantes d’architectures (géométries et matériaux), avec une souplesse de modélisation qui est basée sur un assemblage de blocs “élémentaires” dont les dimensions peuvent être différentes. Cela permet alors d’évaluer, dans une même simulation, l’architecture du limiteur à une échelle submillimétrique (points chauds) et à une échelle “systémique”, tel que le comportement de plusieurs centaines de mètres de ruban. Des comparaisons ont permis de vérifier que le modèle circuit avait un comportement similaire à son équivalent en éléments finis, seulement si la taille des éléments électrothermiques de base (dans EMTP-RV) est adéquate. Le modèle équivalent circuit permet de réaliser des simulations de différentes architectures de rubans supraconducteurs, avec ou sans résistance d’interface, entre les couches tampons et la couche de (RE)BCO par exemple [...] / Superconducting fault current limiters (SFCL) are a promising technology for power systems, i.e. they provide efficient current limitation from the very beginning of the fault without requiring any control system. In fact, the current limiting characteristics are directly connected to the physical properties of superconducting materials. There is a need for accurate models to help designing resistive-type SFCLs (rSFCL) and planning their integration into electrical networks. Such models have to take into account the physics involved for simulating (as accurately as possible) the electrical and thermal behaviours for a wide range of fault conditions, i.e. high and low short-circuit currents that can be of various durations. It is difficult to see how the planning and integration of SFCLs can be realized without using numerical tools, especially tools that allow realizing power system transient simulations, such as EMTP-RV. In fact, such software packages support engineers in predicting the behaviour of SFCLs in realistic network conditions, which may comprise a wide variety of overcurrent or fault situations. However, rSFCLs exhibit highly non-linear behaviours with a strong coupling between thermal and electrical phenomena. The implementation of such a model in power systems simulation tools is therefore challenging. Although some models have been already developed over the years, improvements are needed to take into account i) all the phenomena linked to the current limitation (electrical and thermal), ii) geometric properties of superconducting tapes that are used in rSFCLs, and iii) the possibility to perform simulations at the system level, and iv) the influence of the tape architecture in relationship to local phenomena (hot spots). This thesis hence focuses on the development of a models for resistive-type SFCLs based on second generation high temperature superconducting coated conductors (2G HTS CCs), i.e. (RE)BCO tapes. The models are implemented in EMTP-RV, a tool that is used by many utilities around the world. However, the modeling technique can be adapted to other simulation tools as well. The model proposed in this thesis is based on an electro-thermal analogy, which allows modeling thermal effects with non-linear electrical circuit elements such as resistors and capacitors. The model has been developed with the aim of providing flexibility. Hence, it can be used with an AC or DC excitation, and can also take into account non-uniformity in critical critical current density typically observed along length of the conductors (i.e. tapes). It also allows modeling virtually any tape architecture using modular and flexible electrical and thermal basic building blocks that can be different in size. This in turn also allows modeling SFCLs with different level of discretization, i.e. from hot spot modeling with local heat transfer to several meters of (RE)BCO tape. It therefore becomes possible to analyze in the same simulation phenomena happening at the sub-millimetric scale, such as hot-spot phenomena, and at the system-scale, such as the impact on the network of several hundred meters of superconducting tape. In order to validate the EMTP-RV circuit model, comparisons with results obtained with finite elements have been carried out. A similar behavior could be observed, as long as the discretization size of the electro-thermal elements were appropriate. The EMTP-RV circuit model allows performing optimizations of the tape architecture for various thicknesses of stabilizer, in presence or not of an interfacial resistance layer, e.g. between the superconductor and the substrate. While the circuit model was developed to allow representing heat transfer and current distribution in 3D, simulations are still limited to 2D cases because the size of the nodal matrix is otherwise exceeded in EMTP-RV. Simulation results also show that neglecting heat transfer along the thickness of the tape can be risky, [...]

For effective operation of microgrid systems (MGSs), it is important to understand the major types of power grid failures and how to deal with them. Detecting the fault, locating it, and isolating the faulty line are important to avoid damaging components and interrupting the service for customers. This will also improve the reliability and protection level of the system during fault conditions. Among the most successful protection methods to limit fault currents in power systems is the fault current limiter (FCL). The FCL improves the reliability of the system, voltage stability, and the fault current reduction. However, limited researches consider its applications inMGSs. The location and impedance size of the FCL play a major role in limiting fault currents in the system. Several studies concluded that installing FCLs near all generators, transformers, or loads in the system enhanced the performance of the system during fault conditions. However, increasing the number of FCLs in the system leads to an increase in cost. This dissertation proposes several effective approaches to specify the optimal locations and impedance values of the required number of installed FCLs in a grid-connected MGS. These FCLs improve the reliability and the protection level of the system by limiting fault currents during fault conditions. The goal is to reduce the required number of installed FCLs in the system. These installed FCLs must be able to reduce fault currents under the interrupting ratings of circuit breakers in the system. This goal will lead to lower the cost of installed protection devices in the system. In order to achieve this goal, this dissertation presents a novel fault management approach, sensitivity analysis, and an optimization model to find the optimal solutions. The study of this dissertation is meant to be used during the planning stage of power distribution system design. The results of this dissertation prove the robustness of the proposed approaches. This enhances the system’s performance while minimizing the required number of installed FCLs. Their sizes limit fault currents within safe ranges. Thus, the FCL significantly improves the reliability and protection scheme of the grid-connected MGS.

It is well known that a crucial factor determining the transmission capacity with regards to the voltage stability limit of a stressed power system, is the limitation of field and stator current of overexcited generators. These limiters are commonly referred to as overexcitation limiters (OEL) and stator current limiters (SCL). This thesis investigates the representation of overexcitation limiters and stator current limiters in the Swedish power system and how they could be implemented in the power system simulator PSS/E. Dynamic simulations in PSS/E are performed to investigate and validate differences between model types and parameters. The thesis compares different types of limiters and presents a representative set of parameters based on the documentation and implements them into PSS/E. The result from the study is a recommendation to migrate to limiter model MAXEX2 for generators without stator current limiters. The MAXEX2 model uses an inverse time characteristic which is becoming more common in installed voltage regulators. This feature makes it possible for extended use of generators before limiter action is applied. The MAXEX2 model is also possible to tune into a fixed time delay to represent older types of limiters.

Limitadores de corrente supercondutores resistivos (LCSR) são dispositivos com características elétricas próximas ao ideal quando ocorre a transição do estado supercondutor para o estado normal, limitando a corrente de falta através da inserção rápida de uma resistência na rede. A viabilidade técnica e econômica destes limitadores aumentou após o desenvolvimento dos supercondutores de alta temperatura crítica HTS. A primeira geração de fitas HTS (BSCCO) consiste em multifilamentos de material supercondutor embutidos em uma matriz de prata. A densidade de corrente crítica típica é de aproximadamente 140 A/mm2. Contudo, a resistência alcançada pelo LCSR quando atinge o estado normal não é suficiente para limitar a corrente de falta, sendo necessários longos comprimentos de fitas (~5 km) para que a corrente seja limitada. O recente desenvolvimento de fitas supercondutoras de YBCO com filmes finos texturizados e com substrato de alta resistividade superou o desempenho das fitas de BSCCO para esta aplicação. Com uma densidade de corrente crítica de 136 A/mm2, as fitas de YBCO são bem conhecidas pelo seu alto valor de índice n (aproximadamente 30), rápida resposta de transição após falta e alta resistência elétrica no estado normal. Neste trabalho foram analisados o comportamento elétrico e magnético das fitas de BSCCO e YBCO (em amostras curtas de 0,2 m) utilizando diferentes técnicas de caracterização das propriedades das fitas HTS. A partir destes resultados, medidas com pulsos de corrente DC e AC com intensidades de 3 a 7 vezes a corrente crítica do sistema (I=720 A a 1700 A) com duração de 1 a 5 ciclos da rede em 60 Hz (16 a 80 ms) foram realizados de forma a obter as características do tempo de recuperação em um elemento contendo 4 fitas em paralelo (0,4 m). Os resultados permitiram o projeto, construção e medidas em corrente AC de um protótipo LCSR (Ipico = 2 kA) contendo 16 elementos sob condições normais de operação da rede (220 V - 60 Hz). / Resistive Superconducting fault current limiter (SFCL) are devices with electrical behavior near the ideal when it changes its state from the superconducting to the normal state, limiting the fault current by the insertion of a fast transition resistance in the grid. The technical and economical feasibility of these limiters arose after the development of the high critical temperature superconductors HTS. First generation HTS tapes (BSCCO) consist of multifilamentary composite tapes embedded in a silver matrix. The typical critical current density is approximately 14 kA/cm2. However, the resistance reached by the SFCL when normal state occurs is not high enough to limit the fault current, making necessary long lengths of tapes (~5 km) for limiting purposes. The recently development of coated conductors composites with high resistivity metal substrate have succeeded the BSCCO tapes which are based on YBCO textured film. Upon carrying a critical current density of 13.6 kA/cm2, YBCO tapes are well known for their high n-index value (approximately 30), fast transition response after fault, and high electrical resistance in the normal state. In this work, we will present the electrical and magnetic performance of BSCCO and YBCO tapes (short samples of 0.2 m) using several techniques to characterize the properties of the HTS tapes. It was also performed analysis with DC and AC currents peaks with strength of 3 to 7 times the critical current (I=720 A to 1700 A) lasting 1 to 5 cycles (16 to 80 ms) in order to verify the recovery characteristics in an element with 4 tapes in a parallel connection. And with those characteristics we designed and constructed and measured in AC current a SFCL prototype (Ipeak = 2 kA) consisting in 16 elements to use in the grid (220 V - 60 Hz) under operational conditions.

Limitadores de corrente supercondutores resistivos (LCSR) são dispositivos com características elétricas próximas ao ideal quando ocorre a transição do estado supercondutor para o estado normal, limitando a corrente de falta através da inserção rápida de uma resistência na rede. A viabilidade técnica e econômica destes limitadores aumentou após o desenvolvimento dos supercondutores de alta temperatura crítica HTS. A primeira geração de fitas HTS (BSCCO) consiste em multifilamentos de material supercondutor embutidos em uma matriz de prata. A densidade de corrente crítica típica é de aproximadamente 140 A/mm2. Contudo, a resistência alcançada pelo LCSR quando atinge o estado normal não é suficiente para limitar a corrente de falta, sendo necessários longos comprimentos de fitas (~5 km) para que a corrente seja limitada. O recente desenvolvimento de fitas supercondutoras de YBCO com filmes finos texturizados e com substrato de alta resistividade superou o desempenho das fitas de BSCCO para esta aplicação. Com uma densidade de corrente crítica de 136 A/mm2, as fitas de YBCO são bem conhecidas pelo seu alto valor de índice n (aproximadamente 30), rápida resposta de transição após falta e alta resistência elétrica no estado normal. Neste trabalho foram analisados o comportamento elétrico e magnético das fitas de BSCCO e YBCO (em amostras curtas de 0,2 m) utilizando diferentes técnicas de caracterização das propriedades das fitas HTS. A partir destes resultados, medidas com pulsos de corrente DC e AC com intensidades de 3 a 7 vezes a corrente crítica do sistema (I=720 A a 1700 A) com duração de 1 a 5 ciclos da rede em 60 Hz (16 a 80 ms) foram realizados de forma a obter as características do tempo de recuperação em um elemento contendo 4 fitas em paralelo (0,4 m). Os resultados permitiram o projeto, construção e medidas em corrente AC de um protótipo LCSR (Ipico = 2 kA) contendo 16 elementos sob condições normais de operação da rede (220 V - 60 Hz). / Resistive Superconducting fault current limiter (SFCL) are devices with electrical behavior near the ideal when it changes its state from the superconducting to the normal state, limiting the fault current by the insertion of a fast transition resistance in the grid. The technical and economical feasibility of these limiters arose after the development of the high critical temperature superconductors HTS. First generation HTS tapes (BSCCO) consist of multifilamentary composite tapes embedded in a silver matrix. The typical critical current density is approximately 14 kA/cm2. However, the resistance reached by the SFCL when normal state occurs is not high enough to limit the fault current, making necessary long lengths of tapes (~5 km) for limiting purposes. The recently development of coated conductors composites with high resistivity metal substrate have succeeded the BSCCO tapes which are based on YBCO textured film. Upon carrying a critical current density of 13.6 kA/cm2, YBCO tapes are well known for their high n-index value (approximately 30), fast transition response after fault, and high electrical resistance in the normal state. In this work, we will present the electrical and magnetic performance of BSCCO and YBCO tapes (short samples of 0.2 m) using several techniques to characterize the properties of the HTS tapes. It was also performed analysis with DC and AC currents peaks with strength of 3 to 7 times the critical current (I=720 A to 1700 A) lasting 1 to 5 cycles (16 to 80 ms) in order to verify the recovery characteristics in an element with 4 tapes in a parallel connection. And with those characteristics we designed and constructed and measured in AC current a SFCL prototype (Ipeak = 2 kA) consisting in 16 elements to use in the grid (220 V - 60 Hz) under operational conditions.

[pt] O primeiro material supercondutor de alta temperatura foi descoberto em 1986. Desde então foram sintetizados mais de 150 novos supercondutores (cupratos, bismutatos, boretos e fulerenos) com temperatura crítica superior à temperatura de 23,3 K, a temperatura crítica mais alta entre os materiais supercondutores de baixa temperatura. Muitos destes novos materiais supercondutores têm provocado interesse acadêmico, sendo utilizados, por exemplo, para a compreensão do fenômeno de supercondutividade a alta temperatura. No entanto, há famílias supercondutoras que possuem propriedades atraentes para o desenvolvimento de novas tecnologias voltadas particularmente para sistemas elétricos de potência, medicina e transporte (veículo Maglev). Dois supercondutores da família BSCCO, Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+x (Bi-2212) e Bi2Sr2Ca2Cu3O10+x (Bi-2223), estão entre os mais pesquisados para aplicação em escala industrial no setor elétrico. Uma projeção do mercado de dispositivos para o setor elétrico, à base de supercondutores de alta temperatura, aponta que este mercado deve movimentar em torno de 47 bilhões de dólares em 2020, tendo como destaques, com quase 90% deste mercado, limitadores de corrente de curtocircuito, transformadores e SMES (Sistema Magnético Supercondutor de Armazenagem de Energia). A presente tese se propôs a contribuir para o desenvolvimento de uma nova tecnologia de produção de limitadores de corrente de curto-circuito (LCC) à base da fase supercondutora Bi-2212. Esta tecnologia baseia-se na produção de formas maciças (blocos) da fase Bi-2212, para a confecção de LCC, através da fusão parcial e solidificação peritéticas desta fase. Este método difere substancialmente do método de fusão completa, usualmente empregado para a obtenção destes blocos. Para o desenvolvimento e o aperfeiçoamento desta nova tecnologia foi necessário estudar a fusão e a solidificação peritéticas da fase Bi- 2212. Com este intuito, para acompanhar esses dois processos foram utilizadas técnicas de observação in situ, assim como análise de amostras temperadas. As propriedades supercondutoras foram estudadas por meio das caracterizações eletromagnéticas. Com base nestes estudos foi desenvolvido um ciclo térmico que proporciona uma densidade de corrente crítica da fase Bi-2212 na forma maciça superior a 1000A/cm2, em corrente direta, a 77K e sem campo magnético externo. Este valor confirma a viabilidade do método para a produção de material para LCC. / [en] High temperature superconductivity was discovered in 1986. Since then more than 150 new superconductors (cuprates, bismuthates, borides and fullerite) with critical temperature higher then 23,3K (the highest critical temperature for low temperature superconductors) have been synthesized. Many of them rise interest from the scientific viewpoint and are suitable for investigations focusing the phenomena of high temperature superconductivity. However, some superconducting families display properties that are attractive for applications in electrical power systems, medicine and transport. Two superconductors from the BSCCO family, Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+x (Bi-2212) e Bi2Sr2Ca2Cu3O10+x (Bi-2223), are among the most studied for application in electrical power systems at industrial scale. One prognostic for the market of superconducting electrical devices points out that this market will represent more than 47 billion dollars in the year 2020. More than 90% of this market will be dominated by devices such as: fault current limiters (FCL), transformers and superconducting magnetic energy storage systems (SMES). The present thesis aims to contribute for the development of a new technology for production of fault current limiters, based on the Bi-2212 phase, the partial melt method. This method involves peritectic fusion and solidification of the Bi-2212 phase and is substantially different from the complete melt processing usually used for production of Bi- 2212 blocks. The peritectic fusion and solidification of the Bi-2212 phase were investigated by quenching and in situ techniques. Superconducting properties were also studied by electromagnetic measurements. Based on these studies, a thermal cycle was established which results in a critical current density in bulk form, of the Bi-2212 phase, superior to 1000A/cm2, in direct current, at 77K and zero field. This value confirms the potential of the method to produce material for FCL.