Decoupled Control Scheme for THD Reduction and One Specific Harmonic Elimination in the Modular Multilevel Converter

This article proposes a decoupled control scheme for the modular multilevel converter (MMC) to reduce the total harmonic distortion (THD) and eliminate one specific harmonic. First, to realize the decoupled control between the ac and dc paths of the MMC, an improved nearest level control (INLC) method is proposed. It applies the round function to generate the ac output voltage levels, instead of the arm output voltage levels. Thus, a staircase wave is generated by the INLC method. Then, by adding an additional pulse to each quarter of the staircase wave, one specific harmonic can be eliminated without optimizing each conduction angle. Furthermore, a decoupled circulating current fuzzy control method is proposed to suppress the second-order harmonic and balance the arm energy. By this decoupled control structure, the output voltage and the circulating current can be controlled independently. Taking the fifth-order harmonic as an example, simulation and experimental results validate that the proposed scheme can simultaneously realize THD reduction and one specific harmonic elimination in the MMC output voltage.

Automated summary

This article proposes a decoupled control scheme for the modular multilevel converter (MMC) to reduce the total harmonic distortion (THD) and eliminate one specific harmonic. By using an improved nearest level control method, a staircase wave is generated and one specific harmonic can be eliminated by adding additional pulses. A decoupled circulating current fuzzy control method is also introduced to suppress the second-order harmonic and balance the energy.