A&D October 2006

Inverter commutation failure in line-commutated converters

caused by line voltage failures or dips and remedial
solution based on a quenching mechanism (SIMOREG DC-
MASTER Converter Commutation Protector)

Dipl.-Ing. Franz Wöhrer, Siemens AG Austria, Vienna;

Ing. Wilfried Hofmüller, Siemens AG Austria, Vienna;
Prof. Dr. Dipl.-Ing. Felix Himmelstoss, Vienna University of Applied
Sciences, Vienna;

Summary
Despite the successful progress of three-phase AC drives into all sectors of industrial drive
technology, the DC drive – comprising a DC motor and line-commutated converter – can
offer advantages for many types of application. One drawback of this technology, however, is
that so-called inverter commutation failures can occur in response to line voltage failures or
dips when the drive is operating in generator mode. The rise in current associated with this
commutation failure can rupture fuses or destroy thyristors. Based on the example of the
most common line-commutated converter connection, the 6-pulse three-phase bridge
connection, the following article will explain the process of load current commutation in the
thyristor arms and describe the scenarios in which inverter commutation can fail.
By combining a line-commutated converter with a special quenching mechanism ("Converter
Commutation Protector“, CCP), it is possible to prevent fuse ruptures or permanent thyristor
damage following inverter commutation failure. Downtimes of production machinery and
plant can be significantly reduced, so helping to revive the popularity of DC technology. The
operating principle of the quenching mechanism (CCP), which consists of diodes, thyristors,
capacitors, charging circuits and a voltage limiter, is described in detail below. This
mechanism quenches the converter currents after commutation failure, but does not carry
load current in fault-free operation. It also functions as a line-side and motor-side voltage
limiter.

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1. Introduction
Despite the successful progress of three-phase AC drives, comprising a frequency converter
and three-phase motor, into all sectors of industrial drive technology, the tried and tested DC
drive, consisting of a DC motor and line-commutated converter, still plays an important role in
many applications and is still the drive of choice for many new installations.
To make the right decision as to whether a DC or AC drive system is the better option for a
particular application, it is necessary to evaluate the whole system, i.e. the motor, the supply
power section and any other necessary additional electrical components such as line filters
or commutating reactors.
A decision in favor of DC drive technology is often influenced by the significantly lower power
loss of the power electronic components, the space-saving design and the lower cost of the
overall drive system.
In addition to the increased maintenance requirements for DC motors as compared to AC
motors, there is one other disadvantage which weighs against DC drive technology. This is
the problem of so-called "inverter commutation failure", a fault which can occur under certain
operating conditions and which causes fuses to blow and, in the worst-case scenario,
permanent thyristor damage.

2. The 6-pulse three-phase bridge connection

The most common form of line-commutated converter connection, i.e. the controlled 6-pulse
three-phase bridge connection (B6C) as shown in Figure 1 is examined below. Separately
excited DC machines are employed for most industrial applications which use DC drives.
Figure 1 shows the armature circuit of the DC machine as an equivalent circuit diagram
comprising armature circuit inductance La, armature circuit resistance Ra and the induced
source voltage Uq.

Id
Controlled 6-pulse three-
V1 V3 V5
LK Ra phase bridge connection
u12 LK (B6C) for supplying the
u31 u dα La
u23 LK
armature circuit of a
Uq separately excited DC
V4 V6 V2
machine

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 Id
Armature current Id passes
V1
LK Ra through V1 and V2.

u13 u13 → u dα La

LK

Uq
V2
b
Id
The commutation period
V1 V3
LK iv1
Ra commences when V3 is fired.
iK21
u12 u21 LK iv3
The "commutating" line
u13 + u23 La
u13 → udα
u23 LK
2 voltage u21 causes short-
Uq circuit current ik21 to develop.
V2
c
Id
After successful
V3
Ra commutation, armature

LK current Id flows through V3

u23 → udα La
u23 LK
and V2.
Uq
V2

Figure 1 a Controlled 6-pulse three-phase bridge connection (B6C), b to d show the 3

phases of commutation illustrated by the example of commutation sequence of
thyristor V1 to thyristor V3
The thyristor bridge, consisting of thyristors V1 to V6, is supplied by an idealized 3-phase
voltage system (line-to-line sinusoidal voltages u12, u23, u31). The inductance Lk includes all
the inductance of the supply system plus the effective inductance of line-side transformers
and commutating reactors. The operating principle of this converter type is based on the
well-known "line commutation" method, i.e. the thyristors must be fired in such a sequence
that the load current Id flowing through the DC machine is always switched from one line
phase to the next (u12 → u13 → u23 → u21 → u31 → u32). The thyristors are numbered (1 to 6)
in the same sequence in which they are fired when a 3-phase voltage supply with clockwise
phase sequence is applied (i.e. u23 lags 120 degrees and u31 lags 240 degrees behind the
line-to-line voltage u12). In steady-state operation, a "new" thyristor is fired at every 60 degree
interval. To allow conduction with a discontinuous load current, the previously conducting

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thyristor must be fired simultaneously, a process which has given rise to the term "double
pulses". Each thyristor conducts the load current for 2 successive firing cycles (twice within a
maximum of 60 degrees in steady state).
The average value of the rectified output voltage udα can be adjusted by the so-called delay
or gating angle α. The delay angle α is measured from the so-called "natural commutation
instant“ N. This is the point at which current commutation would commence in a new line
phase in a diode bridge (intersection between u12 and u13, u13 and u23, u23 and u21, u21 and
u31, u31 and u32, u32 and u12).
One segment at a time (with interval that can be varied by delay angle α) from one of the
line-to-line supply voltages (u13, u23, u21, u31, u32, u12) is "switched through" continuously to
the DC machine via a pair of thyristors (V1+V2, V2+V3, V3+V4, V4+V5, V5+V6, V6+V1).
Due to the inductance Lk in the circuit, however, the load current Id cannot transfer
instantaneously from the outgoing ("turning off") thyristor arm to the incoming ("turning on")
thyristor arm. With a continuous load current Id, the "commutation period" or "overlap"
commences in each case when the "new" (incoming) thyristor is fired, while the load current
Id from one terminal of the DC machine is split between two line phases via the outgoing and
incoming thyristors. The other terminal of the DC machine is connected to the remaining
supply connection via the thyristor fired in the previous cycle, which is now in the second
conduction phase and conducting the full load current Id.
While the 6-pulse three-phase bridge connection can supply only a positive load current Id, it
is capable of generating positive or negative average values of the rectified output voltage
udα through variation of delay angle α. Depending on whether the DC machine is operating
as a motor or generator, the converter bridge is said to be operating in "rectifier mode" or
"inverter mode". A single three-phase bridge connection is therefore suitable for a drive with
only positive torque in different directions of rotation. A typical application for this type of
operation in the 1st and 4th speed/torque quadrant would be the hoisting or lowering of a
hoist load. If the DC machine is also required to operate with negative torques, then a double
converter (also referred to as "reversible converter") must be used. The most common
design of reversible converter is based on a circulating-current-free anti-parallel connection
of two three-phase bridge connections.

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3. Commutation of current in thyristor arms
To explain the process of inverter commutation failure, commutation of the load current from
V1 to V3 as illustrated in Figure 1 b to d is examined in more detail in the following example.
The voltage and current waveforms associated with this type of commutation in regenerative
feedback mode are shown in Figure 2.
In the initial state (as shown in Figure 1 b), the full load current Id flows across thyristors V1
and V2 and, as a result, the line voltage u13 is "switched through" to the output.
At instant ωtD as shown in Figure 2, i.e. delayed by angle α in relation to the natural
commutation instant N, the "new" (incoming) thyristor V3 is fired for the purpose of switching
through the line-to-line supply voltage u23 in the correct phase sequence to the output
(thyristor V2 is fired simultaneously). Due to the inductance Lk in the circuit, the current
cannot transfer instantaneously from V1 to V3. The period of "commutation" or "overlap"
commences while the load current Id is split between V1 (iV1) and V3 (iV3) (interval between
ωtD and ωtE as shown in Figure 2).
If the inductance in the load circuit (armature inductance La of DC machine including an
armature current smoothing reactor if used) is very much higher than the effective
commutation inductance Lk, then the load current Id can be regarded as an approximately
constant quantity over the commutation period (the armature circuit inductance La acts like a
power source).
Figure 1 c shows that the line-to-line supply voltage u21 (i.e. the difference between the line-
to-line supply voltages u13 and u23 involved in the commutation) is shorted across V1 and V3
during the commutation period. Inductance 2*Lk is effective in the shorted circuit and the
"commutating" line voltage u21 causes short-circuit current ik21 to develop. This is overlaid on
the direct current Id in the outgoing thyristor V1 in such a way that the sum of both gradually
decreases. Once it has reached zero, it ceases to flow as a result of the blocking effect of
thyristor V1. At the same time, the current ik21 across V3 has increased from zero to Id, at
which point the commutation period ends. On completion of commutation, the line voltage u23
is the output voltage and Id flows (as shown in Figure 1 d) through thyristors V3 and V2. V2 is
now in the second conduction phase and is conducting load current Id until the commutation
is (or should be) transferred from V2 to V4 when V4 is next fired (V3 is fired simultaneously).

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Figure 2 Voltages and currents in a B6C thyristor bridge: 4 successful commutations close
to the inverter stability limit can be seen on the left. On the right, a minor dip in
the line voltage from instant ωtG causes an increase in armature current Id
and commutation failure between V2 and V4.
During the commutation period (angle of overlap u), the waveform of the converter output
voltage udα approximately follows the arithmetic average value of the line voltages u13 and
u23. involved in the commutation for La >> Lk. The voltage-time area (see shaded areas in
Figure 2) which spans this average value and one of the involved line-to-line supply voltages
during the commutation period is proportional to the load current Id and causes a change in
voltage ("inductive direct voltage drop“, also referred to as "Dällenbach drop") from the
idealized scenario with zero overlap time. This "inductive direct voltage drop" has exactly the
same effect as a voltage drop across the armature circuit resistance.

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The said voltage-time area corresponds exactly to the integral of the voltage at inductance Lk
over the commutation period, or to half the value of the integral of the "commutating" line
voltage u21 over the commutation period and is also referred to as the "commutating voltage
area“. As this voltage-time area is proportional to the commutating load current Id, it is clearly
evident that the commutation period is also dependent on delay angle α, because
commutation commences at different instantaneous values of the effective "commutating"
line voltage u21 as a function of delay angle α.
The time characteristic of current iV3 in the incoming ("turning on") thyristor V3 represents a
segment (beginning at ωtD) from a cosine wave ik21 displaced in the y axis. Figure 2 shows
ik21 for the commutation from V1 to V3. The displacement in the y axis depends on the
instantaneous value of the "commutating" line voltage u21 as commutation commences and
thus also on the delay angle. The imaginary amplitude of the cosine-wave short-circuit
current ik21 produced is not determined by the output direct current Id, but only by the
inductance Lk and the amplitude of the line voltage u21. If one were to cut a segment with
amplitude Id out of this displaced cosine wave, the commutation periods would vary in length
for Id values of different magnitude (overlap angle), although the commutation periods are not
proportional to Id.
After it has reached zero current, the outgoing thyristor V1 requires a negative voltage
(blocking voltage) between the anode and cathode for as long as the thyristor takes to
acquire its ability to block positive voltage. To prevent the development of an on-state
current, this so-called "recovery time“ τq, during which the minority charge carriers recombine
in the barrier junction, must be allowed to elapse before the anode-cathode voltage becomes
positive again.
It is clear from Figure 1 c that the commutating line voltage u21, which is still positive at the
end of the commutation period (from instant ωtE according to Figure 2), is applied as a
blocking voltage at thyristor V1. The turn-off angle γ drawn in Figure 2 is the remaining angle
until the sign of the commutating line voltage u21 is reversed (instant ωtF or point P) and it
must at least equal the recovery time τq of thyristor V1 (γmin = ωτq).

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4. Inverter commutation failure
One reason for commutation failure is when the current in the outgoing thyristor V1 has not
reached zero before the sign of the commutating line voltage u21 is reversed (instant ωtF or
point P). In this case, the commutation current – driven by u21 – is transferred from thyristor
V3 back to V1. This type of failure is illustrated in Figure 2 which shows the transfer of
commutation current from V2 to V4 (i.e. one firing cycle after the successful commutation
from V1 to V3 described in the example). In this case, u31 is the commutating voltage and the
current commutates – driven by the sign reversal of u31 – from thyristor V4 back to V2. V4 is
turned off again and V2 conducts the full load current Id again from instant ωtJ. However,
because the original line voltage u23 is "switched through" to the output again, the load
current increases (similar to a short-circuit current) to an impermissibly high value due to the
rapidly rising voltage difference between the source voltage Uq of the DC machine and the
instantaneous value of the line voltage u23. This process is known as "inverter commutation
failure" (or "conduction-through“). The load current will tend towards steady-state value Uq/Ra
on which an AC component is superimposed as a result of the driving line voltage. It must
therefore be interrupted, for example, by fuses in the thyristor arms, and can cause
permanent damage to the thyristors. The thyristor current waveforms following a
commutation failure are also dependent on whether other thyristors have been fired after the
failure. In this case, the turn-on of additional thyristors can cause a so-called "shoot-through
fault", with the result that the DC machine is directly shorted via 2 thyristors and placed at
extreme risk of damage.
Another reason for commutation failure is when the current in the outgoing thyristor V1 has
dropped to zero before the commutating line voltage u21 reverses polarity, but the required
recovery time of the thyristor as defined by γmin is not allowed to elapse. Since, in this
instance, the thyristor has not yet regained its ability to block positive voltage when the
commutating line voltage u21 changes polarity, the full load current Id likewise in this case
commutates (driven by u21) from thyristor V3 back to V1 and a commutation failure occurs.
In order to guarantee reliable commutation in the converter under normal operating
conditions, the following must apply: α + u + γmin < 180 degrees.
In order to prevent commutation failure, the delay angle α is limited to a maximum
permissible value known as the "inverter stability limit“ αw (typical setting is 150 degrees).
Inverter commutation failure can also occur despite a permissible delay angle if the voltage in
the three-phase system briefly dips or fails altogether. For a particular current to commutate
to the required thyristor arm, a specific voltage-time area (commutating voltage area) is
needed at a given inductance Lk. The commutation period therefore increases at a lower line

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voltage and the associated reduction in commutating voltage in the shorted circuit. If the
current in the outgoing thyristor does not reach zero promptly, i.e. within the prescribed
recovery time τq, before the commutating line voltage reverses polarity, then commutation
will fail in the current firing cycle.
Sometimes, however, commutation failure does not occur until one of the following firing
cycles because the reduction in average value of the converter output voltage udα associated
with a lower line voltage at a constant source voltage of the DC machine will result in a rapid
rise in the load current Id, thereby further increasing the angle of overlap and causing a
commutation failure.
Under the conditions depicted in Figure 2, a dip in the line voltage (from instant ωtG) by a
mere 5 % leads to instantaneous commutation failure. The reason in this case is the rise in
load current associated with the reduction in converter output voltage. The commutating
voltage area (represented by shaded area from instant ωtH) is not sufficient to allow the load
current (which is rising sharply during commutation) to decay completely in V2. Commutation
from V2 to V4 fails. As a result of the reversal in the commutating voltage sign, the current
commutates from V4 back to V2 and, from instant ωtJ onwards, the full, rapidly increasing
load current Id starts to flow across V2 (and V3) again.
If the line voltage is expected to fluctuate, the inverter stability limit αw must be lowered even
further, resulting in a corresponding reduction in the absolute value of the maximum
permissible source voltage Uq of the DC machine for inverter operation. However, it must be
mentioned at this point that inverter mode is not intrinsically unreliable. When line-
commutated converters are used to supply a drive, it operates close to the inverter stability
limit for only a small proportion of its total operating time. As soon as the delay angle drops
below αw, the probability of failure, even following dips in the line voltage, decreases
correspondingly. With a small enough delay angle, the converter can even recover itself.
Nevertheless, it must be borne in mind that a converter may be required to continuously
operate close to the inverter instability limit with some applications, e.g. brake generator.

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5. Outline description of problem and known potential remedies
The problem of inverter commutation failure can occur in line-commutated converters
operating in regenerative feedback mode. If the line voltage dips, for example, and the
source voltage of the DC machine is high enough, an overcurrent, which the converter itself
cannot quench, can develop and build. The fuses provided for the protection of the thyristors
will inevitably trip, resulting in a prolonged outage of the converter and the DC machine it
supplies. The time required to replace the protective fuses, which are normally fast-acting
semiconductor fuses, can cause significant delays. An important objective in the past,
therefore, was to build devices (of complex design in some cases) which could limit and
interrupt this overcurrent, i.e. which could prevent inverter commutation failures or remedy
them in a controlled manner.
One known solution, for example, is the inclusion of high-speed, mechanical DC circuit-
breakers in the DC circuit. However, to guarantee the reliable operation of such breakers, it
is necessary to use highly controllable reactors to limit the current rise But reactors of this
type are not only costly, but also bulky to install. They are difficult to rate correctly and
require regular maintenance.
Other methods of direct thyristor turn-off using quenching capacitors are also known, for
example, the one which turns off only one of the two converter half-bridges using a capacitor.
In this instance, however, the valves of the other half-bridge conduct the full motor current
until it decays to zero which means that the method does not afford comprehensive
protection. Another similar method uses two capacitors with a voltage limiter connected in
parallel with each to turn off both half-bridges, but this option allows surge voltages to
develop on the motor. Furthermore, neither of these methods protects against overvoltage
following a line interruption on the primary side of a transformer supplying the converter
bridge.

6. Requirements of a quenching mechanism

A "quenching mechanism for converters" must be capable of turning off the thyristors of a
converter operating in regenerative feedback mode so quickly that the semiconductor fuses
connected on the line side (to protect individual thyristors or the whole converter) are
protected (especially in the case of inverter commutation failure) against melting or life-
shortening damage. Where fuses are fitted, they must not be loaded to their full pre-arcing i²t
value. In operation without fuses, thyristors must not be loaded to their full i²t value. In
addition, the converter must be protected against overvoltages such as those which typically

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result from line interruptions on the primary side of a supply transformer and which often lead
to "false turn-on" and irreparable damage to thyristors.

7. General description of the new quenching mechanism

By combining a line-commutated converter with a special new quenching mechanism
("Converter Commutation Protector“, CCP) developed by SIEMENS AG Austria, it is possible
to prevent fuse ruptures or permanent thyristor damage following inverter commutation
failure. Downtimes of production machinery and plant can be significantly reduced, so
helping to revive the popularity of DC technology. The operating principle of the new
quenching mechanism ("Converter Commutation Protector“, CCP), which consists of diodes,
thyristors, capacitors, charging circuits and a voltage limiter, is described in detail below. This
mechanism quenches the converter currents after commutation failure, but does not carry
load current in fault-free operation. It also functions as a line-side and motor-side voltage
limiter.
The quenching mechanism employs a method which affords particularly smooth turn-off of
both half-bridges using two capacitors. A voltage limiter is connected in parallel with the
motor and limits surge voltages at the motor end. A connection is provided between a line
voltage bridge rectifier (comprising 6 diodes) and the voltage limiter via a further two diodes.
This also protects against line-side overvoltages caused, for example, by a line interruption
on the primary side of a transformer supplying the bridge. By connecting another quenching
thyristor in series with each of the quenching capacitors, a charging circuit without
transformer can be implemented. Furthermore, this configuration prevents a double voltage
load on the quenching thyristors. A high-speed chopper resistor is employed as a voltage
limiter.
The quenching mechanism is tripped according to a process based on a software algorithm
which evaluates several criteria. These include measurement of the available commutating
voltage time area and analysis of the waveform of the measured load current.

8. Operating principle and design of the quenching mechanism

Figure 3 shows the circuit diagram for a combination of line-commutated reversible converter
SRB (circulating-current-free anti-parallel connection of two three-phase bridge connections)
and special quenching mechanism LOV. The LOV is connected in parallel with the three-
phase AC and DC terminals of the converter (5 power connections).
A DC machine MOT is supplied by the converter. The gating circuit AST contains the logic
for generating the synchronous firing pulses for the converter bridges. The direct current is

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sensed by current transformers in line phases L1 (U) and L3 (W) of the converter. The trigger
unit ALE contains the logic required to trip the quenching mechanism.
The quenching mechanism LOV is equipped with a quenching capacitor C1 or C2 for each
half-bridge V11, V13, V15 or V14, V16, V12 (with reverse load current direction for V21, V23,
V25 or V24, V26, V22). Each of these capacitors is charged at the polarity shown in the
diagram. The two charged capacitors (C1 and C2) are connected to the converter on one
side via diodes (V41, ..., V46) and on the other via thyristors (V31, ..., V34).
The DC terminals (motor) are connected to capacitor C3 and its parallel voltage limiter SBG
via thyristors (V35, ..., V38). Capacitor C3 is not essential to the operating principle, but
allows a chopper resistor to be employed as a voltage limiter. It must be noted that a voltage
of the same polarity is always applied to capacitor C3 (unlike quenching capacitors C1 and
C2).
The DC end of the bridge arrangement of diodes V41, ..., V46 is connected to the input of the
voltage limiter SBG and C3 via diodes V47 and V48. On the one hand, these allow the
current decay in line inductances Lk while the quenching mechanism is active and, on the
other, the transfer of transient overvoltages from the supply (such as those which occur with
primary-side line interruptions on a supply transformer) and commutation voltage peaks from
the converter itself when the converter bridges are operating normally (in motor and
generator mode).
Lk includes all the inductance of the supply system, plus the effective inductance of line-side
transformers and commutating reactors. Ls, L1 and L2 are parasitic inductance, i.e. air-core
inductors, which are included only when required (for limiting current rise).

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Figure 3 Circuit diagram: Combination of reversible converter SRB and quenching
mechanism LOV Gating circuit AST generates firing pulses for SRB. Trigger unit
ALE contains the logic required to trip LOV. Quenching capacitors C1 and C2 are
precharged via R and switch S and quench a current in the top or bottom half-
bridge of the converter. Voltage limiter SBG limits the line and motor voltages.

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 LK V11

LS L1
Id
iC1 V31 V35
+
C1 Ra
-
V41 V39

-
u13 C3 i3 La
+
V42 V40
+ -
C2 Uq
-
iC2 SBG
V33 V37 +

LS L2

LK
V12

Figure 4 Relevant circuits when a current, which was originally flowing through V11 and
V12, is quenched. Due to the currents produced (iC1 for the one half-bridge and iC2
for the other), the full load current Id commutates first to the quenching capacitor
paths. The load current then recharges quenching capacitors C1 and C2 and
commutates to capacitor C3 or the voltage limiter SBG when the voltage is high
enough. The load current Id is then reduced to zero as a result of the difference
between the voltage at C3 and the source voltage Uq.

9. Quenching process
The quenching process for the polarity of motor voltage and load current Id (motor current)
shown in Figure 3 is described below. The circuit must include quenching capacitors C1 and
C2 as shown in Figure 3. To illustrate this quenching process more clearly, Figure 4 shows
the circuits which are relevant for current flow in V11 and V12.
When the quenching thyristors V31, V39, V33 and V40 are fired by trigger unit ALE, the
currents commutate from both the upper half-bridge V11, V13, V15 to capacitor C1 and the
lower half-bridge V14, V16, V12 to capacitor C2. All currents in the converter operating in
regenerative feedback mode (V11, ..., V16) are quenched immediately. The motor voltage
polarity is reversed briefly by the quenching process.
At the same time as the quenching pulses (firing pulses for quenching thyristors) are output,
the firing pulses for the bridge SRB are disabled.

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C1 and C2 are discharged by the load current and recharged with the reverse polarity.
Recharging C1 and C2 with the reverse polarity increases the voltage on the DC machine.
When the voltage level at C3 is reached, the load current commutates – at approximately the
instant of voltage zero at C1 and C2 – to the capacitor C3 on the voltage limiter SBG across
thyristors V35 and V37 which have just been fired. If the voltage at C3 has not reached the
limit level of limiter SBG, it is charged up to this value by the load current. It must be noted
here that currents flow through thyristors V32, V34, V36 and V38 only when the load current
changes direction.
In order to ensure that the load current driven by the armature inductance is subsequently
reduced to zero, the voltage at C3 must be higher than the source voltage Uq of the DC
machine. The voltage limiter SBG limits the voltage at C3 to a maximum value. Voltage
limiting can be implemented, for example, by means of a two-position controller with
appropriate hysteresis, which switches load resistors in and out (chopper resistor).

10. Charging circuit

The two quenching capacitors C1 and C2 must be charged to a percentage of the peak value
of the line-to-line system voltage. This function is performed by a charging circuit with two
charging resistors R per capacitor, that are taken to the plus pole and minus pole of the
bridge rectifier (V41, ..., V46), and two semiconductor switches S that are controlled by a
two-position controller. A minimum charging voltage is required to ensure protection of the
converter thyristor recovery time during recharging – until approximately the instant of
polarity reversal of the voltage at C1 and C2 – following the actual quenching process. With a
given recovery period and defined capacitance value of C1 and C2, the minimum charging
voltage required is determined by the maximum current value to be quenched, the maximum
anticipated source voltage Uq of the DC machine and by the armature inductance.
When quenching occurs, the semiconductor switches S of the charging circuit must be
opened as soon as the quenching thyristors are fired in order to prevent these from
conducting current via the charging resistors after the current has successfully decayed.

11. Controlling the quenching mechanism and tripping algorithms

The entire quenching mechanism can be controlled by means of an analog circuit with
microprocessor which also provides communication with the converter.
The quenching mechanism is tripped according to a process based on a software algorithm
which evaluates several criteria. The time characteristics of the measured voltages and
currents provide the basis for evaluation. A first criterion for activating the quenching

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mechanism is to measure the commutating voltage area still available after commutation and
to compare this with the theoretical value calculated for a successful commutation. This
voltage-time area is obtained by integration for approximately 30° of the corresponding
commutating line voltage measured at the converter terminals, starting at the firing instant.
The quenching mechanism is then triggered if the measured area is a certain percentage
smaller than the theoretically available commutating voltage area.
Another criterion for activating the quenching mechanism is that the second derivative
obtained from the measured output current Id is calculated according to time, which is
negative between firing instants with "normal" armature current peak values. d2id/dt2 < 0
must therefore apply for each ("normal") current peak. If this is not the case, i.e. if the current
peak begins to curve at the top (as shown, for example, during commutation failure in Figure
2), it must be assumed than an overcurrent will soon occur as a result of a line voltage dip in
which case the quenching mechanism can be activated in advance of an overcurrent event.
The height of the armature current peak can be evaluated as the third criterion, with the crest
value corresponding, for example, to two and a half times the rated current of the converter
bridge.

12. Examples of faults which can be controlled by the quenching mechanism

Lightning strikes in high-voltage or medium-voltage installations ignite protective spark gaps
or gas-filled surge protective devices, causing low-resistance line voltage dips lasting several
milliseconds. Other scenarios involving low-resistance line voltage dips can be caused by
any type of short circuit in the supply system. As explained in this article, dips in the line
voltage can cause commutation failure. However, the resultant overcurrent is quenched by
tripping of the quenching mechanism. In some cases, no significant overcurrent can develop
at all thanks to early detection of the commutation failure and tripping of the quenching
mechanism.
Overvoltages in the supply system occur, for example, when a short circuit develops in a
parallel circuit on the same supply, causing the relevant fuse to disconnect the faulty circuit
from the supply. The overvoltage peaks which develop on system recovery are limited by the
quenching mechanism at the converter terminals.
Even in the event of a line interruption on the primary side of a supply transformer, e.g. at
medium-voltage level, the magnetizing energy stored in the transformer can cause
overvoltages which are limited by the quenching mechanism described above at the
converter terminals. "False turn-on" of thyristors can thus be prevented. A line interruption on
the primary side of a supply transformer can also cause a sharp rise in the effective line

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inductance for converter commutation, another potential cause of converter commutation
failure (i.e. the last conductive thyristor pair remain conductive). In this instance, an
overcurrent does not develop until other converter thyristors are fired, causing a short circuit
on the DC machine. Thanks to the quenching mechanism, an overcurrent does not develop
at all because the mechanism is tripped on detection of commutation failure and prevents all
further thyristor firing.

13. Available on the market: The "SIMOREG DC-MASTER Converter Commutation

Protector" (CCP)
SIEMENS AG Austria / SIMEA (Siemens Industrial Manufacturing, Engineering and
Applications) has developed a series of quenching mechanisms of the type described in this
article for use in combination with converters in the product range "SIMOREG DC-MASTER
6RA70“. This series of quenching devices has been launched on the market under the
product name "SIMOREG DC-MASTER Converter Commutation Protector“ or "SIMOREG
DC-MASTER CCP“ for short. The current CCP product spectrum covers converters with DC
current ratings of 300 A to 2000 A and rated voltages up to 690 V 3AC.

14. Summary
As described in this article, it is possible to prevent fuse ruptures or permanent thyristor
damage following inverter commutation failure by combining a line-commutated converter
with a special quenching mechanism. Downtimes of production machinery and plant can be
significantly reduced, so helping to revive the popularity of DC technology.

References
[1] Möltgen, G.: Netzgeführte Stromrichter mit Thyristoren (Line-Commutated Converters
with Thyristors). Siemens AG, Berlin-Munich, 3rd Edition/1974.
[2] Zach, F.: Leistungselektronik (Power Electronics). Springer-Verlag, Vienna-New York,
1979.
[3] Kolar, J; Drofenik, U.: Interactive Power Electronics Seminar (iPES), Netzgeführte
Thyristorschaltungen, Wechselrichterkippen (Line-Commutated Thyristor Circuits,
Inverter Commutation Failure). ETH Zürich, Oct. 2004. Available at
http://www.ipes.ethz.ch/ipes/kommutierung/kipp.html

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