White Paper on the New ABB Medium Voltage Drive System, Using IGCT Power Semiconductors and Direct Torque Control

AbstractThis paper describes the new medium voltage PWM converter developed by ABB for driving medium voltage squirrel cage induction motors in a power range of 500 kVA to 6000 kVA. The role of the author was to witness, as an academic party, the different features that the developer-manufacturer included to come to a competitive product. The paper is built up around the technical features that the developer’s team selected to reach their objectives: three level converter topology with LC output filter and input isolation transformer, advanced thyristor technology (IGCT-Integrated Gate Commutated Thyristor), advanced control principles (DTC = Direct Torque Control) and fuseless design. The author asked the manufacturer to provide comprehensive experimental data, which are reported in this paper, to evaluate the statements and the benefits of the drive.