Neste tabalho à realizado o estudo de um conversor de trÃs nÃveis com ponto neutro grampeado (NPC), proposto para a interligaÃÃo de sistemas de conversÃo de energia à rede elÃtrica. Para tanto à utilizado um filtro indutivo L, tÃcnicas de controle vetorial, e a tÃcnica PLLcomo mÃtodo de sincronismo. SÃo desenvolvidas equaÃÃes para a determinaÃÃo das perdas do conversor, as quais podem ser aplicadas a diversas tÃcnicas de modulaÃÃo PWM. TrÃs tÃcnicas sÃo apresentadas: modulaÃÃo PD; modulaÃÃo com injeÃÃo de terceiro harmÃnico (THIPWM); e modulaÃÃo vetorial baseada em portadora (CB-SVPWM). Toda a modelagem do sistema à apresentada, bem como um exemplo de projeto para um sistema de 6 kW.SÃo realizadas simulaÃÃes computacionaispara diferentes estudos de caso, validando o projeto do conversor e a modelagem desenvolvida. A resposta Ãs dinÃmicas do sistema à satisfatÃria, sendo o conversor capaz de controlar o fluxo de potÃncia ativa (com fator de potÃncia uniÃrio) e reativa entregues à rede. / This work deals with the study of a three-level inverter with Neutral Point Clamped (NPC), proposed for the interconnection of energy conversion systems to the grid. In order to accomplish a complete study, an inductive filter L is proposed, as well as vector control techniques and a PLL synchronization method. Equations are developed for the determination of the losses of the converter, which can be applied to various PWM techniques. Three Modulation techniques are presented: Phase Disposition modulation(PD), modulation with injection of the third harmonic (THIPWM) and carrier-based space vector modulation (SVPWM-CB). The complete modeling system is presented, as well as an example for designing a system of 6 kW. Numerical simulations are performed for different study cases, validating the converter design and modeling developed. The simulation results show that the proposed NPC converter is fully satisfactory, the converter being able to control the active (unity power factor) and reactive power flow delivered to the grid.

The problem with the implementation of the PV generators is that majority of the UNDP offices are in developing and underdeveloped countries. Majority of these countries experience various problems with the power quality from the national electrical grid. There is also a second problem with the installed PV system, the problem is that the installed PV sources show a significant decrease in the expected annual yield ranging from 10 % – 60 % in some cases. The main aim of this thesis is to analyze the power quality in three countries (Nepal, Sao Tome and Namibia) and find the correlation between power quality and PV generation. This aim is done in five steps. The first step is the collection of measured data from the grid for a specific period of one year from July 2020 to August 2021. The collected data includes the current, voltage, power factor, frequency, reactive and active power. To achieve this, the Acuvim II power quality analyzer was sent to these three countries. In the second step, a literature review is done to research about power quality problems, identifying the power quality problems and analyzing the problems created by these identified power quality problems. In the three countries, undervoltage, overvoltage, swells, and sags where the main power quality problems which were recorded. The third step is a system case study process in which an in-depth analysis is done on the three PV systems and a simulation is done to understand the solar parameters which includes the specific yield, and performance ratio. The fourth step involves comparing the collected data from the PQ analyzer with the simulation results and determine the effects the power quality problems and system design have on the low annual yield. Also, the yearly amount of overvoltage and undervoltage in the three countries within the analysis period was analyzed. The voltage and fluctuation analysis also includes other power quality parameters which were measured. The collected parameters were analyzed and the correlation between the electrical grid requirements in the three countries were made with the recorded data. The final step involves recommending improvements and optimization techniques for the three systems to improve life cycle cost and long-term vision. Thus, analyzed results and simulated results are compared to evaluate the performance. The PV system in Namibia had the best grid conditions with all the grid parameters operating within the defined grid limits, there was a 30 % reduction in annual energy production in the Nepal system due to poor power quality conditions which included overvoltage, undervoltage, and frequency deviations. There was also a 50 % energy loss in the annual production of the PV systeminstalled in Sao Tome. Sao Tome also had the highest number of recorded outages with an average of 6 – 7 hours of outages recorded daily. Power quality problems recorded in Sao Tome included voltage fluctuation problems and frequency deviations.

Grid-connected inverters have wide application in the field of distributed generation and power quality. As the power level demanded by these applications increase, the design and performance evaluation of these converters become important. In the present work, a 50 kVA three-phase back-to-back connected inverter with output LCL filter is built to study design and performance evaluation aspects of grid-connected inverters. The first part of the work explores the split-capacitor resistive-inductive (SC-RL) passive damping scheme for the output LCL filter of a three-phase grid-connected inverter. The low losses in the SC-RL scheme makes it suitable for high power applications. The SCRL damped LCL filter is modelled using state space approach. Using this model, the power loss and damping are analysed. A method for component selection that minimizes the power loss in the damping resistors while keeping the system well damped is proposed. Analytical results show the losses to be in the range of 0.05-0.1% and the quality factor to be in the range of 2.0-2.5. These results are validated experimentally. In the second part of the work, a test method to evaluate the thermal performance of the semi-conductor devices of a three-phase grid-connected inverter is proposed. The method eliminates the need for high power sources, loads or any additional power converters for circulation of power. Only energy corresponding to the losses is consumed. The capability of the method to evaluate the thermal performance of the DC bus capacitors and the output filter components is also explored. The method can be used with different inverter configurations -three-wire or four-wire and for different PWM techniques. The method has been experimentally validated at a power level of 24kVA. In the third part of the work, the back-to-back connected inverter is programmed as a hardware grid simulator. The hardware grid simulator emulates the real-time grid and helps create grid disturbances often observed at the point of common coupling in an ac low voltage grid. A novel disturbance generation algorithm has been developed, analysed and implemented in digital controller using finite state machine model for control of the grid simulator. A wide range of disturbance conditions can be created using the developed algorithm. Experimental tests have been done on a linear purely resistive load, a non-linear diode-bridge load and a current-controlled inverter load to validate the programmed features of the grid simulator.