UNIT-I

1. What is an Inverter?

An inverter converts the DC voltage to an AC voltage. In most cases, the input DC

voltage is usually lower while the output AC is equal to the grid supply voltage of either
120 volts, or 240 Volts depending on the country.
The inverter may be built as standalone equipment for applications such as solar power,
or to work as a backup power supply from batteries which are charged separately.
The other configuration is when it is a part of a bigger circuit such as a power supply
unit, or a UPS. In this case, the inverter input DC is from the rectified mains AC in the
PSU, while from either the rectified AC in the in the UPS when there is power, and from
the batteries whenever there is a power failure.
There are different types of inverters based on the shape of the switching waveform.
These have varying circuit configurations, efficiencies, advantages and disadvantages
An inverter provides an ac voltage from dc power sources and is useful in powering
electronics and electrical equipment rated at the ac mains voltage. In addition they are
widely used in the switched mode power supplies inverting stages. The circuits are
classified according the switching technology and switch type, the waveform, the
frequency and output waveform.
Basic inverter operation
The basic circuits include an oscillator, control circuit, drive circuit for the power
devices, switching devices, and a transformer.
The conversion of dc to alternating voltage is achieved by converting energy stored in
the dc source such as the battery, or from a rectifier output, into an alternating voltage.
This is done using switching devices which are continuously turned on and off, and then
stepping up using the transformer. Although there are some configurations which do
not use a transformer, these are not widely used.
The DC input voltage is switched on and off by the power devices such as MOSFETs or
power transistors and the pulses fed to the primary side of the transformer. The varying
voltage in the primary induces an alternating voltage at secondary winding. The
transformer also works as an amplifier where it increases the output voltage at a ratio
determined by the turn’s ratio. In most cases the output voltage is raised from the
standard 12 volts supplied by the batteries to either 120 Volts or 240 volts AC.
The three commonly used Inverter output stages are, a push-pull with centre tap
transformer, push-pull half-bridge, or push-pull full bridge. The push pull with centre
tap is most popular due to its simplicity and, guaranteed results; however, it uses a
heavier transformer and has a lower efficiency.
A simple push pull DC to AC inverter with centre tap transformer circuit is a shown in
the figure below.

Figure 1 basic inverter switching circuit

Inverter output waveforms
The inverters are classified according to their output waveforms with the three common
types being the square wave, the pure sine wave and the modified sine wave.
The square wave is simple and cheaper, however, it has a low power quality compared
to the other two. The modified square wave provides a better power quality (THD~
45%) and is suitable for most electronic equipment. These have rectangular pulses that
have dead spots between the positive half cycle and the negative half cycle (THD about
24%).
Figure 2: Modified sine waveform
The true sine wave inverter has the best waveform with the lowest THD of about 3%.
However, It is the most expensive and used in applications such as medical equipment,
stereos, laser printers and other applications requiring sinusoidal waveforms. These are
also used in the grid ties inverters and grid connected equipment
 Figure 3: Pure Sine wave
Applications
Inverters are used for a variety of applications that range from small car adapters to
household or office applications, and large grid systems.
 Uninterruptible power supplies
 As standalone inverters
 In solar power systems
 As a building block of a switched mode power supply

2. What do you mean by commutation and how do you commutate a

thyristors ?
Commutation is the process by which we can turn OFF a thyristor. So the process of
switching OFF a thyristor or SCR is known as Commutation.
As we know that once a thyristor starts conducting then it continues to conduct till the
current flowing through it reduced below the holding current. In commutation we
mainly reduce thyristor’s current from holding current.
There are two methods of commutation of thyristors:
Natural Commutation
Forced Commutation.
Explanation:
1. Natural Commutation:
The process of turning off a thyristor without using any external circuits is known as
Natural commutation. This type of commutation is only possible in AC Applications.

When using A.C. Supply, the current passing through the device is alternating. This
alternating current go to peak positive value , passes through its zero and then go
through peak negative value. When the alternating quantity at zero then the current
passing through the device also zero and at same time a reverse polarity develops
across the thyristor. This will quickly Turn OFF the thyristor. This process of
commutation is known as Natural Commutation as no external circuits or components
are used.
This method is only applicable when using A.C. Supply. This is not possible to get this
work on D.C. Because D.C. is a unidirectional quantity and doesn't change its direction
as a result there is no change in polarity voltage that is required to Turn OFF the
thyristor.

2. Forced Commutation:
The process of turning OFF a thyristor or SCR by using external circuits is known as
Forced Commutation. This method of commutation is used for D.C. Commutation.
When using D.C. supply, we make use of external circuit and other active/passive
components to reduce the passing current's value below holding current. That means
we forces the forward current to come to zero value. Therefore it is called forced
commutation. The circuit used for this commutation method is known as commutation
circuit and the components that are used in the circuitry , are known as commutating
components.
3. What is meant by current commutation?
The circuit of Fig. 20.6 can be converted into a current commuted one just by
interchanging the positions of the diode and the capacitor. Here the Capacitor is
automatically charged through D-L-LF-Load with the dot as positive. Any of the SCRs
can thus be switched on first. Version 2 EE IIT, Kharagpur 9 If ThM is triggered first, it
immediately takes the load current turning off DF. When ThAux is triggered, it takes a
half cycle of the ringing current in the L-C circuit and the polarity of the charge across
the capacitor reverses. As it swings back, Th Aux is turned off and the path through D-
C-L shares the load current which may again be considered to be reasonably level. The
Current-share of THM is thus reduced in a sinusoidal (damped) manner. Turn-off
process is consequently accompanied by an overlap between ThM and the diode D in
the D-C-L path. Once the main SCR is turned off, the capacitor current becomes level
and the voltage decreases linearly. A voltage spike appears across the load when the
voltage across the commutating inductance collapses and the capacitance voltage adds
to the supply voltage. Fig. 20.7 A current commutated DC-DC Chopper and most
significant waveforms The free-wheeling diode also turns on through a overlap with D
when the capacitor voltage just exceeds the supply voltage and this extra voltage drives
the commutating current through the path D-Supply-DF-L. Thus there is soft switching
of all devices during this period. Further an additional diode may be connected across
the main SCR. It ensures ‘soft’ turnoff by conducting the excess current in the ringing L-
C circuit. The low forward voltage appearing across the SCR causes it to turn-off slowly.
Consequently switching frequencies have to be low. Note that such a diode cannot be
connected across the Main SCR in the voltage commutated circuit.
4. How are inverters classified?
Considering the classification based on the mode of operation, inverters can be
classified into three broad categories:
1. Stand-alone inverters (supplies stable voltage and frequency to load)
2. Grid-connected inverters (the most commonly used option)
3. Bimodal inverters (usually more expensive and are used less often)
There are different basis of classification of inverters. Inverters are broadly classified as
current-source inverter and voltage-source inverter. Moreover, it can be classified on
the basis of devices used (SCR or gatecommunication devices), circuit configuration
(half-bridge or fullbridge), nature of output voltage (square, quasi-square or sine-wave)
and type of circuit (Switch mode PWM or resonant converters), etc.
Types of Grid-connected Inverters
Aside from the modes of operation, grid-connected inverters are also classified
according to configuration topology. There are four different categories under this
classification.
1. Central inverters, which are usually around several kW to 100 MW range.
2. String inverters, typically rated around a few hundred Watts to a few kW.
3. Multi-string inverters, typically rated around 1 kW to 10 kW range.
4. And finally, Module Inverters or Micro Inverters, typically rated around 50 to 500
W.
5. Central Inverter
Let's start with the central inverter, as shown in Figure 1. This is a PV array that
consists of three strings, where each string has three series connected modules. Before
these strings are connected to the utility grid, a power conditioning unit is required as
an interface between the array and the grid. Designers can use one central inverter as
illustrated in Figure1, where all strings are connected to the DC side of the inverter and
the single AC output is connected to the utility grid.

Figure 1: Central Inverter Topology

Credit: Mohammed Amer Chaaban
Advantages of a Central Inverter
1. The most traditional inverter topology
2. Easy system design and implementation
3. Low cost per Watt
4. Easy accessibility for maintenance and troubleshooting
Disadvantages of a Central Inverter
1. High DC wiring costs and power loss due to Voltage Drop.
2. Single MPPT for the entire PV system
3. System output can be drastically reduced in case of partial shading and string
mismatch
4. Difficult to add strings or arrays for future expansion
5. Single failure point for the entire system
6. Monitoring at array level
Huge size! (It is a disadvantage because the bigger size requires more land and creates
a shading issue for the PV array.)
String Inverter
Now, we are moving to the String inverters as shown in Figure 2. Assuming the same
PV array that consists of three strings, another way to connect it to the grid is using
three string inverter as illustrated in Figure 2. In this case, each PV string is connected
to a single string inverter at the DC side, and all AC outputs of inverters are combined
and connected to the utility grid.

Figure 2: String Inverter Topology

As the name indicates, each string of PV modules has its own inverter. In this case, we
are moving closer to the PV modules level.
Advantages of a String Inverter
1. Smaller in size when compared to central inverters
2. Better MPPT capability per string
3. Scalability for future expansion by adding parallel strings
4. Short DC wires
5. Monitoring at string level
Disadvantages of a String Inverter
1. The installation requires special racking for the inverter for each string
2. Poor flexibility at partial shading
3. Higher per Watt cost than central inverter
Note:
There is another topology of string inverters called the multi-string inverter. It utilizes
string DC-DC converter for MPPT and then central inverter. This type is not very
common and is beyond our discussion for this class.
Micro Inverter
Finally, let's look at the micro inverters. These are also referred to as module inverters.
In this case, each module has one dedicated inverter connected on the back of the
module. The module DC terminals are connected to the DC side of the inverter and
then all AC wires of all terminals are combined and then connected to the utility
interconnection point as illustrated in Figure 3.
Figure 3: Micro Inverter Topology
As the name suggests, each module has a dedicated inverter with an MPP tracker.
Advantages of Micro Inverters
1. Resilience to partial shading effects as compared to the central and string
inverters.
2. MPPT at module level
3. Highest system flexibility for future expansion
4. Minimum DC wiring costs
5. Monitoring at module level
Disadvantages of Micro Inverters
1. High per Watt cost
2. High maintenance costs
3. Difficult access for maintenance since the installation is under the PV modules

Types of Inverters
Introduction
As we know that inverters are finding their extensive uses now a days. Previously they
were only used in some main applications, which would be large scale and expensive.
But now a days, inverters are like a small compulsory electronic device, on which many
of our other main electronic equipment depend.
They are extensively used, not only because of their universal function of converting DC
power to AC power, but also because of their high efficiency, reduced power costs and
versatile applications.
These days, they are being used extensively in applications where there is a frequent
power cut off, because in case of power failures, inverters are a very good and efficient
power remedies. For every classification, we form some basis first, depending upon
which we can further categorize our results for easier understanding and a better
approach. This is done in order to promote better understanding and a more extensive
classification of different things.
In the same way, we primarily classify inverters on the basis of their output
characteristics. So there are three different types of outputs we get from inverters, and
hence we classify inverters into three primary classes, which are:
 1. The Square Wave inverter
2. The Modified Sine wave inverter or quasi sine wave inverter
3. A Pure sine wave inverter
The Square Wave inverter
A square wave inverter is one of the simplest inverter types, which convert a straight
DC signal to a phase shifting AC signal. But the output is not pure AC, i.e. in the form of
a pure sine wave, but it is a square wave.
At the same time they are cheaper as well. The simplest construction of a square wave
inverter can be achieved by using an on-off switch, before a typical voltage amplifying
circuitry like that of a transformer. This is shown below:

The output of this type of a circuit is a square wave.

The modified Sine wave inverter or quasi sine wave inverter
The construction of this type of inverter is a bit more complex than a simple square
wave inverter, but still it is a lot simpler than a pure sine wave inverter.
A Modified sine wave shows some pauses before the phase shifting of the wave, i.e.
unlike a square it does not shift its phase abruptly from positive to negative, or unlike a
sine wave, does not make a smooth transition from positive to negative, but takes brief
pauses and then shifts its phase.
The output waveform of a modified sine wave inverter is shown below:
A Pure Sine Wave Inverter

The electrical circuit of a pure sine wave inverter is far more complex than a square
wave or modified sine wave inverter. Another way to obtain a sine output is to obtain a
square wave output from a square wave inverter and then modify this output to achieve
a pure sine wave. A pure sine wave inverter has several advantages over its previous
two forms:
 More efficiency, hence consumes less power.
 They can be adjusted according to your personal power requirements, since
several types are available with different power outputs.
 The output of a pure sine wave inverter is very reliable, but at the same time,
there is a tradeoff between the price and reliability.
 Due to this reason they are the best option for sensitive equipment.

This was all about the types of inverters. However, one must know that
which of these types is most suitable for his use. So in the next article I will
explain how to select an inverter according to your need.
5. What is meant by forced commutation?

The process of turning OFF a thyristor or SCR by using external circuits is known as
Forced Commutation. This method of commutation is used for D.C. Commutation.
When using D.C. supply, we make use of external circuit and other active/passive
components to reduce the passing current's value below holding current. That means
we forces the forward current to come to zero value. Therefore it is called forced
commutation. The circuit used for this commutation method is known as commutation
circuit and the components that are used in the circuitry, are known as commutating
components.