Design Tradeoffs in Selection of the DC-Side Voltage for a D-STATCOM

A distribution static synchronous compensator (D-STATCOM) is installed in a distribution system to provide reactive power. The controller of a D-STATCOM regulates its DC-side voltage and injected reactive power. This letter proposes a method for choosing the tradeoff reference value of the DC-side voltage of a D-STATCOM to minimize the switching losses and the harmonic content of its output current without compromising its dynamic performance. This letter also proposes an estimation method to determine the circuit parameter required for the proposed DC voltage selection method. Experimental results validate the effectiveness of the proposed methods.