Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Igbt 4
Igbt 4
To cite this version Lucia, Oscar and Maussion, Pascal and Dede,
Enrique and Burdio, Jose M. Induction Heating Technology and
Its Applications: Past Developments, Current Technology, and
Future Challenges. (2013) IEEE Transactions on Industrial
Electronics, vol. 61 (n°5). pp. 2509-2520.
O. Lucía and J.M. Burdío are with the Department of Electronic Engineering and
Communications, University of Zaragoza, SPAIN (phone: +34976761000, e-mail:
olucia@unizar.es). P. Maussion is with the University of Toulouse, FRANCE. E. Dede
is with the University of Valencia, SPAIN.
TABLE I. DIFFERENTIAL CHARACTERISTICS OF INDUCTION HEATING APPLICATIONS FOR EACH ENABLING TECHNOLOGY.
Enabling technology
Modulation and Control
Power Electronics Magnetic Components
Algorithms
Application
x High power. x Multi-zone control algorithm. x High efficiency.
x Improved reliability. x Improved interface and x Variable shape.
x Assembly-line read. communications. x Optimized heat
x Low-high operating x Variable load and power ranges.
Industrial
distribution.
frequency. x Multi-load management.
x Temperature control.
x Low cost. x Power factor and harmonics control. x High efficiency.
x High efficiency. x Variable load and power ranges. x Heat non-ferromagnetic
x Limited cooling x Need to avoid accoustic noise. materials.
x Multi-load management. x Flexible cooking surfaces.
Domestic
capability.
x Medium operating x Temperature control.
frequency.
x Low power. x Accurate power and temperature x Local heating.
x High quality factor control. x Controlled magnetic field
Medical resonant tank. x Frequency selection. interactions.
x High operating x Ferromagnetic fluids.
frequency.
summarizes the main differential characteristics of the main theory of electromagnetism and James P. Joule described the
IH applications and the enabling technologies involved. heat produced by a current in a conductor, establishing the
Although all IH applications share the main fundamental fundamental principles of induction heating.
principle, they have differential characteristics that have to be The first industrial applications of the IH phenomenon
addressed through the technologies involved in each design. were identified in 1887 by Sebastian Z. de Ferranti, who
Industrial applications require usually higher output powers proposed IH for melting metals, filling the first patent on
and higher reliability, constraining the power converter industrial applications of IH. Later, in 1891, F.A. Kjellin
topology selection. Besides, since they have intensive presented the first fully functional induction furnace. The first
industrial usage, assembly-line readiness and an improved major advance came when Edwin F. Northrup implemented
interface and communications are required. In addition to this, the first high-frequency induction furnace at Princeton in
the inductor design needs to adapt to the different shapes of 1916. Nearly at the same time, M.G. Ribaud developed high-
induction targets, e.g. shafts, gears, etc., and provide the frequency IH technology using spark-gap generators and,
required heat profile. later, Valentin P. Vologdin developed IH generators using
By contrast, domestic IH systems that are usually machine generators and vacuum tubes. These were the
implemented in induction cookers require low cost and highly beginnings of modern high-frequency induction heating
efficient implementations due to the limited cooling systems. During WWII and later, automotive and aircraft
capabilities. Besides, the wide load range due to the different industry boosted the use of IH technology not only for melting
materials, geometries and required output powers is the main metals but also for advanced material treatment, significantly
challenge from the control point of view. The inductor system increasing the IH technology penetration on industrial
must be designed also to obtain high-efficiency and be able to processes. The second major revolution of IH technology
heat non-ferromagnetic materials typical of some cultures. came along with the development of solid-state generators.
Finally, medical applications require specific but vital These generators took advantage of new power semiconductor
requirements to IH systems. These systems are usually low technology, mainly thyristors, to implement highly reliable
power, but they require very accurate control of the heating power converters. Later, the development of higher frequency
process, including temperature and localization. power devices, such as the power bipolar junction transistor
The next lines give a brief outline of the evolution of IH (BJT) and the power metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect
systems and its applications. transistor (MOSFET), enabled the design of higher efficiency
power converters, making IH the technology of choice in
II. HISTORY OF INDUCTION HEATING SYSTEMS many applications. The grade of performance and efficiency
IH technology has been in constant evolution following achieved in IH systems, together with further advances in
industrial and technological advances since the end of XIX semiconductor technology and the introduction of the
century [8]. The principle of induction heating was discovered successful insulated-gate bipolar transistor (IGBT), expanded
by Michael Faraday when he discovered induced currents by the applications of IH technology beyond the industrial
a magnet. James C. Maxwell developed later the unified environment. Since late 80s, many domestic applications of
TABLE II. SELECTED REFERENCES CLASSIFIED ACCORDING THE FOCUS ON APPLIACIONS AND ENABLING TECHNOLOGIES
Enabling technology
Modulation and Control
Power Electronics Magnetic Components
Algorithms
Application
Industrial [1], [4], [5], [9-27]. [25], [26], [28-33]. [26], [30], [34-43].
[42], [43], [45], [62], [77], [79-
Domestic [2], [44-63]. [33], [50], [62], [64-78].
89].
Industrial and domestic
Medical [3], [90-92]. [43], [93-99].
techniques applied.
(a)
(a)
S1 Cr1
Cs S1
il1 Leq1 Req1
D2
S2 + vl1 - Leq Req
vbus Cs vbus il
Leq2 Req2 i
l2 S2 + v -
+ vl2 - D1 Cs l Cr
Cr2 Cs vo
S3
-
(b) (b)
S1
Cs Leq1 Req1 Cr1
(c) (d)
Fig. 13. Example of IH applications: (a) IH metal by transverse flux, (b)
IH of rails for hardening, (c) bonding by IH, and (d) sealing by IH. Courtesy
Five Celes.
2000
2.000
800
800
600
600
PARALLEL
400
400
SERIES
200 SERIES OR
200
PARALLEL
100
100
kHz (a)
5 50 150 500
(b)
(a)
120A
80A
10 300
kHz kHz
40A
0A
1. 0KHz 3. 0KHz 10KHz 30KHz 100KHz 300KHz 1. 0MHz
I ( L2) 0
Fr equency
(b) (c)
(c)
Fig. 16. Double-frequency induction heating generator: (a) block
diagram, (b) output current (25 A/div, time 10 µs/div), and (c) output Fig. 17. Induction heating appliances: (a) exploded view, (b) inductor
current spectrum. system detail, and (c) power conversion diagram.
power levels. The method in Fig. 13 (c) consists in into new fields of application. This is the case of the dual
accelerating the polymerization of the glue by heating the frequency generators [22] used to feed the inductor,
metal parts to be glued by induction. The temperatures sequentially or simultaneously, with two different frequencies
required are generally low (150 to 300°C). Fig. 13 (d) is an (Fig. 16) to achieve different penetration depths. One
elegant means of sealing aluminum covers on jars of food frequency is typically set in the medium frequency range (3 to
product. Inductive heating of the aluminum film increases the 10 kHz), and the other one in the high frequency range (200
temperature of the sealing product applied to the side of the to 400 kHz). These types of generators are used for hardening
cover in contact with the jar. work pieces with irregular surface geometry like gears.
Depending on the final application and the material to It is important to note that control and interoperability of
heat, the power converter operating frequency is significantly industrial IH systems are extremely important. On the one
different, varying from a few Hz for high power systems, hand, the power converter operation must be accurately
typical for metal melting, to several hundreds of kHz, for controlled to obtain the desired results in the IH target. On the
surface heat processing. As a consequence, semiconductors other hand, the IH system must be interconnected to the
used in industrial heating converters are thyristors, operating complete assembly line using industrial protocols such as
at frequencies up to 3 kHz, for power ratings of several MWs, Profinet, Interbus, Profibus, etc.
while IGBTs, operating at frequencies up to 150 kHz B. Domestic applications
for power ratings up to 3 MW are normally used. MOSFETs
are used for higher frequencies, up to several hundreds of kHz The main domestic applications of IH are the induction
and output powers lower than 500 kW. Fig. 15 summarizes heating appliances [62]. IH cookers take advantage not only
the semiconductor device utilization area depending on the of improved heating times and efficiency, but also lower
switching frequency, the power level, and the type of resonant surface temperatures, which implies better security and
tank, series or parallel, used. cleanness, since food does not get burnt.
Fig. 17 shows the main structure of an IH appliance (a)
Certain applications require more advanced topologies and a detail of the inductor-pot system (b). The main
that aim to improve the heating characteristics or expanding characteristics of this application is the low-profile compact
management is required. This is a remarkable example of how
advances in enabling technologies leads to improved
induction heating systems present in the market.
C. Medical applications
Nowadays, the third major area of application of IH
technology is related to its medical applications. Initially, IH
was applied in the manufacturing and sterilization of many
surgical instruments, since it is a clean, fast, and portable heat
source. However, in recent years IH has also been introduced
in some minimally-invasive therapies [3].
Hyperthermia is a cancer treatment therapy based on
heating the target tumor temperatures over 50 ºC. This local
treatment removes cancer tissue while minimizing the damage
to surrounding healthy cells. IH is therefore a good alternative
Fig. 18. Total active surface IH Appliance. for hyperthermia treatments because it is a contactless heating
technique, i.e. less invasive, and provides accurate power
design, and the highly variable IH target, which can change in control. In order to precisely deliver the power the tumor,
shape, materials, and position very easily. Efficiency is also a usually a ferromagnetic material is placed in the area to be
key design parameter due to the limited cooling capabilities. treated. Modern research trends investigate about the use of
For this reason, large efforts have been paid to improve the fluids with ferromagnetic nanoparticles in order to obtain
power converter and inductor efficiency [50-52], [54], [55], precise heat distributions [93-97]. These techniques require
[61]. the design of accurate power converters and control [90-92],
Nowadays, two technological trends are present in IH and specific inductor designs [3], [98]. Due to the typical low
appliances. Both of them follow the same power conversion resistivity nature of IH loads for medical applications, parallel
diagram shown in Fig. 17 (c), but differ in the inverter resonant inverters are applied in order to minimize the current
topology. Designs for Europe and America are usually through the inverter. Besides, the operating frequencies are set
specified for output powers up to 4 kW, and the power to be higher than 300 kHz up to several MHz to obtain
converter topology usually chose is the series resonant half- appropriate equivalent electrical parameters, being the
bridge inverter [50], [56]. By contrast, appliances for Asiatic MOSFET the power device commonly implemented.
countries are usually designed with 2 kW output power and Future research include more precise and homogeneous
the preferred topology is the ZVS single-switch quasi- heating, and temperature monitoring in the cancer and
resonant inverter [58]. In addition to this, this technology also surrounding tissues, along with combining this technique with
offers the capability to heat high-conductivity materials [53], other therapies to improve results.
such as aluminum or copper, usually employed in these
countries. Taking into account the output power and cost V. FUTURE CHALLENGES
restrictions, switching frequencies usually ranges from 20 kHz Although IH systems have reached certain maturity, there
up to 100 kHz. The lower limit is set in order to avoid acoustic are still some issues to address to further increase its
noise emissions, not desirable in domestic applications, performance. Moreover, advances in enabling technologies
whereas the higher limit is imposed by the switching losses of and applications continuously open new research trends and
the power devices. industrial interest. Among the many topics of interest,
These appliances feature also advanced control techniques significant efforts are expected in these topics in the next