UNISP050

Knowledge Base Document

Technical Support Department, U79, Newtown

Title: Unidrive SPM - guidance for 12-pulse and other high pulse-number
rectifiers

Document Application related Product Unidrive SP

Category: Category:

Credits Dr Colin Hargis.

Revision History
Revision Date Revising Author Released for Mark Authorised Comments
Website ? X By
1.0 18/9/06 Dr Colin Hargis. CTSupport x B.Powell
CTVip x
Both x
None

Summary of Contents
Unidrive SPM - guidance for 12-pulse and other high pulse-number rectifiers

Summary of rules.............................................................................................................................. 1
Basic rules ........................................................................................................................................ 2
System designs................................................................................................................................. 3
Recommended configurations....................................................................................................... 3
Transformers and input chokes ................................................................................................. 3
Odd numbers of inverters .......................................................................................................... 4
Pulse numbers greater than 12 ..................................................................................................... 5
Typical currents ............................................................................................................................. 5
Fuse protection.............................................................................................................................. 7
Selection of drive modules ............................................................................................................ 8
Transformer specification .............................................................................................................. 9
Coupling of secondary windings ................................................................................................ 9
Transformer K-factor................................................................................................................ 10

This guidance supplements the harmonics reduction application guide. It gives general rules, with explanations, and
data for designing modular systems with high pulse numbers.

Summary of rules
1. The linkage between 6-pulse groups must always be done at the d.c. link, not at the inverter outputs
2. If there is more than one complete multi-pulse rectifier supplying one motor, the loads on the rectifiers must be the
same, i.e. each must have the same number of inverter modules.

1
 Basic rules
1. The linkage between 6-pulse groups must always be done at the d.c. link, not at the inverter outputs

(2)

(3)

Link must be
here
Figure 1: Correct point for linking phase groups

Explanation
The d.c. links for the phase groups (i.e. the individual 6-pulse rectifier groups) have a differential ripple voltage at 6
times the supply frequency. Therefore wherever the groups are connected together there will be a current at this
frequency circulating in the d.c. connection between the two groups. Figure 2 shows a typical example circulating
current waveform for a 50Hz 12-pulse drive system, where the output current is 100A and transformer reactance 5%.
The r.m.s current is 29.4A and frequency predominantly 300Hz.
40

Scales:
30
2ms/div
10A/div
20

10
Idiff / A

-10

-20

-30

-40
262 264 266 268 270 272 274 276 278 280

Time/mSecs 2mSecs/div

Figure 2: Current circulating between 6-pulse rectifier groups in a 12-pulse

rectifier (drive system with 100A r.m.s. motor current)

When the d.c. bus is common between the groups, this current circulates between the rectifier groups only. Its effect is
to cause additional ripple current in the d.c. sides of the rectifiers at the 6th harmonic, and additional 5th and 7th harmonic
current on the a.c. sides and the transformer secondaries, but it has no effect on the transformer input current. The
current is only limited by the input chokes and the leakage reactance in the transformer between the groups. This is the
reason for the requirement for loosely-coupled transformer secondaries, or alternatively the use of line reactors at the
group inputs. This increased current is within the ratings of the SPMC rectifier modules, since they are designed for 6-
pulse operation. It could be reduced further by using additional input reactance or by interbridge reactors, and this
would result in some reduction of power loss in the rectifier and transformer. However this is not necessary and is
usually not cost-effective at typical drive power levels.

If the phase groups were to be connected together only at the inverter outputs then this current would flow between the
groups, including in the inverters. This would increase the current in the inverters, so that their load capability would be
reduced. It would also cause the automatic current balancing control system to move into saturation as it attempted to
equalise the currents, and it would cause wrong operation of the d.c. ripple compensation in the PWM modulator of the
master inverter. Poor current balance would result between all of the inverter modules. Although it might be possible to
operate successfully in this mode by using sufficient inductance at the inverter outputs to keep the differential current
within tolerable limits, this mode of operation is not recommended.

2. If there is more than one complete multi-pulse rectifier supplying one motor, the loads on the rectifiers must be
the same, i.e. each must have the same number of inverter modules.

2
Explanation
For successful parallel operation, the inverter modules which are connected (paralleled) at their outputs must have the
same d.c. link voltage. The automatic current balancing system in the inverters has a limited range of compensation
voltage, which would be exceeded if the loads on the rectifiers differed substantially. Although in principle this could
be corrected by ensuring that input chokes had the correct reactance in proportion to their loading, in practice it would
be difficult to match chokes with differing current ratings and inductance values.

The impact of this rule is that where the ideal number of inverter modules is not an integer multiple of the number of
groups (e.g. 2 for 12-pulse, 3 for 18-pulse etc.), it is not permissible to create unequal groups. Either the number of
modules must be increased to an integer multiple of the number of groups, or else groups must be connected together at
the d.c. bus. In this case d.c. fuses are necessary if more than two rectifiers feed a bus, unless the a.c. fuses supplying
the rectifier can be chosen to give the same or lower total I2t let-through than the equivalent single fuse. The designer
has to judge in each case whether the total cost is lower using fuses and a d.c. bus, or an increased number of inverter
modules.

System designs
The application of the rules is illustrated here by 12-pulse systems, but applies by extension to higher pulse numbers.

Recommended configurations
The d.c. bus must be connected across the phase groups, for the reasons given above.

This can be achieved by using a common d.c. bus for the entire system, but the additional cost of cables or busbars and
d.c. fuses means that this is usually only cost-effective where the d.c. bus needs to be common for other reasons, usually
in order to recirculate regenerated power. The following recommendations are based on minimising the d.c. connections
and making the parallel connections as far as possible at the inverter output only.

For minimum module cost, this can be done by using SPMC2X0X rectifiers which have six input phase connections
and two output d.c. connections. The two outputs are connected together to form the 12-pulse rectifiers. In this case no
fuse protection is required in the d.c. link because the a.c. fuses also provide protection at d.c. See Figure 3.

(2)

(3)

(3)
(3) (3)
(3) (2)

etc.

Figure 3: 12-pulse system using dual rectifiers and 6-phase a.c. distribution

Transformers and input chokes

In this and all following illustrations, the rectifiers are shown as being connected directly to the transformer secondary
winding, with no additional chokes. In this arrangement the transformer is providing the necessary a.c. reactance. This
is correct provided that:

− The transformer is dedicated to the drive, i.e. not shared with other equipment
− The transformer has reactances from primary to secondary and between secondaries of at least 4% based on the
drive rating . This represents a fully-wound transformer with loosely-coupled secondaries, whose rating (kVA)
does not much exceed the drive rating.

For other cases, input chokes must be provided to bring the input reactance up to at least 4% based on the drive kVA
rating.

3
 Avoiding 6-phase distribution
One disadvantage of the Figure 3 arrangement is that all six a.c. phases must be distributed to all enclosures. For high
power systems this may be physically difficult. The alternative shown in Figure 4 is to connect individual rectifier units
to the same 3-phase source, but to add coupling links between the pairs. The links need only be rated, at most, for the
current of the pair. This still avoids the creation of a d.c. bus, and provided that no more than two rectifier outputs are
connected in parallel, no fuse protection is required in the d.c. links because the a.c. protection is sufficient.

(2)

(3)
(2)

etc. (3)

(2)
(3)

Figure 4: 12-pulse system using 3-phase distribution and d.c. balancing links

Odd numbers of inverters

In Figures 3 and 4 there are even numbers of inverters, resulting in identical 12-pulse groups. Because the groups are
nominally identical they can be connected in parallel at the a.c. output alone, using the automatic balancing system of
the parallel-mode inverters to ensure current matching. For odd numbers of inverters the system would not be balanced.
If the load requirement indicates an odd number of inverters there are two possible approaches:

1. Select an even number of inverters with suitable reduced individual ratings

2. Use a single d.c. bus, with d.c. fuses for each inverter and each rectifier pair, as shown in Figure 5.

The costs of these two alternatives need to be considered case-by-case. Generally case 1. is more attractive, because it
avoids the need for a high-power d.c. bus and fuses. Note also that in case 2., if no input chokes are fitted then attention
must be paid to the current sharing of the rectifier modules within the groups. Rectifier current sharing is achieved by
controlling the total loop resistance and by making the heatsink temperatures of each rectifier similar. The main
contributors to loop resistance are the fuses and fuse holders. Balancing heatsink temperatures and loop resistances can
best be done by making sure all the rectifiers are close together and share the same input and output air-flow and
temperature. The fuse and wiring resistance must be no less than 300µΩ.

4
 (2)
(3)
(3) (2)

(3)
(3) (3)
(3)

Figure 5: 12-pulse system using dual rectifiers and 6-phase a.c. distribution with odd number of inverter
modules, using common d.c. bus

Pulse numbers greater than 12

The same considerations apply as for 12-pulse systems. Additional attention is required to the question of fuse
protection of the d.c. connections, because the SPMD inverters are only safety approved for d.c. bus parallel connection
without d.c. fuses for up to two SPMD modules, with appropriately rated and protected rectifiers. In those cases the a.c.
fuses also provide protection on the d.c. side. For 18- and 24-pulse systems using three or more inverter modules
connected to common bus(es), d.c. fuses must be fitted to the inputs of all inverter modules unless it can be shown that
the I2t let-through of the a.c. fuses is no greater than for the corresponding 6-pulse case. There is a further explanation
of fuse requirements in the “Fuse protection” section below.

Typical currents
Figures 6 and 7 below show normalised r.m.s. currents for the 12-pulse arrangements, covering both structures
discussed above. Where two values appear in a box, the upper value represents the ideal balanced case and the lower the
worst likely unbalanced case. Unbalance is based on a 1% error in voltage ratio between the two transformer winding
groups, and 5% unbalance of inverter output current.

5
 111 55.5
51.9 50
111 58.3
55.8 52.5
91.9 (3) (2)

62.9 (3)
51.9 68.4
47.6 62.9
57.8
(2) 100
(3) (2)

55.5 50
52.7 47.5
100

80

100

100
60
80

40
50
80

20
60

0 0
Igrp / A
Iin / A

Idcgrp / A

Iout / A
0 0
60

-20
40

-50 40
-40

-60 20
20
-100

-80

Time/mSecs
245 250 255 260 265 270 275 280

5mSecs/div Time/mSecs
245 250 255 260 265 270 275 280

5mSecs/div 0 0

Time/mSecs
245 250 255 260 265 270 275 280

5mSecs/div
0 0

Time/mSecs
245 250 255 260 265 270 275 280

5mSecs/div

Figure 6: Typical current distribution for 12-pulse system with common d.c. bus.
The currents are shown in the boxes, the upper value is for the ideal balanced case and the lower for a worst-case
combination of unbalanced inverter and rectifier.

62.9 55.5
68.4 58.3 50
52.5
91.9 (3) (2)

51.9 (2)
(3)
55.8 29.5 50
51.9
47.5
47.6
(3) (2) 100
40

30

62.9 55.5
20

57.8
10

52.7 0
Idiff / A

-10

-20

-30

-40
245 250 255 260 265 270 275 280

Time/mSecs 5mSecs/div

Figure 7: Typical current distribution for 12-pulse system with linked d.c. bus (waveforms not shown are as in
Figure 6)

6
Note that the output currents from the rectifier groups are higher than the d.c. current into the inverters, because they
contain substantial ripple at the 6th harmonic. The nominal average current, which is used for rectifier rating selection, is
the same as the nominal inverter input current.

The following parameters have been used to produce the current data:

Motor power factor 0.85

Transformer turns ratio 1.0
Transformer reactance primary-secondary (p-s) 5%
Transformer reactance secondary-secondary (s-s) 5%
Interbridge reactance 0

For practical variations in the motor power factor and transformer turns ratio, the currents are in simple proportion. The
following table shows the effect of changes in the reactances, including the possible use of an interbridge reactance, in
terms of the change of current (A) for a 1% increase in reactance. Note that these coefficients are only valid for changes
around the nominal values, which are 5% for the transformer reactances and 20% for the interbridge reactance.
Transformer reactances should not be reduced below 3%.

Change of current (A) for 1% reactance increase

Input to phase group Output from phase D.c. balancing current
group (Fig 5)
Reactances Transformer p-s 0.8 No effect No effect
(%) Transformer s-s -2 -2.5 -4.9
Interbridge -0.6 -0.6 -2.1

Where the table shows “no effect”, the change is less than 0.5A per % reactance. It is clear that the most important
parameter is the reactance of the transformer between secondaries.

Fuse protection
The SPMD modular system has undergone safety testing and proving when using the specified a.c. input fuses,
including the case where the SPMC2 series rectifier is used to supply two SPMD modules. A fault in any module is
cleared by the a.c. input fuses.

If more rectifiers or inverters are connected to the d.c bus then the prospective fault current and the energy delivered
before a fault is cleared are increased because of the multiple sources and the increased stored energy in the inverter
capacitors. It then becomes necessary to provide fuses in the d.c. bus. This is illustrated in Figure 8.

7
 (2)

a.c. fuses are adequate

(2)

a.c. fuses not adequate

d.c. fuses are required

(2)

Figure 8: Fault current contributions

Note that as shown in Figure 5, when d.c. fuses are required they must be placed in the rectifier output circuits as well
as the inverter inputs, since they are also exposed to the total fault-current infeed. For the SPMC2 and SPMU2
rectifiers, only one fuse pair is needed for the complete module.
The only exception to this rule is where the rectifier input fuses are reduced in rating so that the total i2t let-through for
all of the phases is no greater than that for the standard recommended fuses for the 6-pulse arrangement. This will be
the case for some of the lower-power multi-pulse arrangements. This needs to be verified on a case-by-case basis.
All d.c. fuses are in pairs, i.e. one in each pole, to provide protection against earth faults.

Selection of drive modules

Table 3-6 of the Unidrive SPM user guide gives suggested module arrangements for 400V - 480V parallel systems up to
710kW/1000hp. The module selection spreadsheet (SPMD drive sizing tool) gives suggested inverter and rectifier
modules for the complete power range. In view of the structural variations discussed above, for higher pulse numbers
the choice of rectifier and/or inverter might need to be adapted to the needs of the installation.

6p 12p 18p 24p

Motor Rectifier Inverter Rectifier Inverter Rectifier Inverter Rectifier Inverter
power SPMC/U SPMD SPMC/U SPMD SPMC/U SPMD SPMC/U SPMD
(kW)
110 1401 1401 2402 1401 2402 + 1401* 1401 2 × 2402* 1401
132 1402 1402 2402 1402 2402 + 1401* 1402 2 × 2402* 1402
160 1402 1403 2402 1403 2402 + 1401* 1403 2 × 2402* 1403
200 1402 1404 2402 1404 2402 + 1401* 1404 2 × 2402* 1404
225 2402 2 × 1401 2402 2 × 1401 2402 + 1401* 2 × 1401 2 × 2402* 2 × 1401
280 2402 2 × 1402 2402 2 × 1402 2402 + 1401* 2 × 1402 2 × 2402* 2 × 1402
315 2402 2 × 1403 2402 2 × 1403 2402 + 1401* 2 × 1403 2 × 2402* 2 × 1403
355 2402 2 × 1404 2402 2 × 1404 2402 + 1401* 2 × 1404 2 × 2402* 2 × 1404

8
 * D.c. fuses might be required, depending on total i2t let-through of a.c. fuses. If the fuse I²t is greater than the values in
the table blow then D.C. fuses will be needed.

Rectifier Model Maximum fuse I²t

(A²s)
SPMU1402 368
SPMU2402 368
SPMC1402 256
SPMC2402 256
SPMU1601 331
SPMU2601 331
SPMC1601 110
SPMC2601 110

From 400kW upwards there are cases where the natural choice would be to use an odd number of inverters. Then either
the Figure 5 arrangement must be used, or alternatively an even number of inverters of lower rating. Two or more
SPMC2402 modules are required.

6p 12p 18p 24p

Motor Rectifier Inverter Rectifier Inverter Rectifier Inverter Rectifier Inverter
power SPMC/U SPMD SPMC/U SPMD SPMC/U SPMD SPMC/U SPMD
(kW)
400 2402 + 3 × 1402 2 × 2402 3 × 1402* 2402 + 1402* 3 × 1402 2 × 2402* 3 × 1402
1402 or
4 × 1401
450 2402 + 3 × 1403 2 × 2402 3 × 1403* 2402 + 1402* 3 × 1403 2 × 2402* 3 × 1403
1402 or
4 × 1401
500 2402 + 4 × 1402 2 × 2402 4 × 1402 2402 + 1402* 3 × 1404 2 × 2402* 3 × 1404
1402
560 2402 + 3 × 1404 2 × 2402 3 × 1404* 2402 + 1402* 3 × 1404 2 × 2402* 3 × 1404
1402 or
4 × 1403
630 2 × 2402 4 × 1403 2 × 2402 4 × 1403 3 × 2402* 4 × 1403 2 × 2402* 4 × 1403
710 2 × 2402 4 × 1404 2 × 2402 4 × 1404 3 × 2402* 4 × 1404 2 × 2402* 4 × 1404
* D.c. fuses required

For higher numbers of modules the SPMD drive-sizing tool should be used. As the number of modules increases there
is a diminishing range of output current ratings where it could be beneficial to use an odd number of inverters.

Transformer specification
The design of transformers for high-pulse rectifiers is quite specialised, and an experienced supplier must be used.

Coupling of secondary windings

Considering the 12-pulse transformer as the simplest illustration, the issue here is the degree of magnetic coupling
between the delta and star secondaries. This is determined by the layout of the transformer, for example whether the
secondary windings are on opposite sides of the primary. It can be quite difficult to ensure both that the reactances are
balanced and that coupling between secondaries is minimised.

Although the constructional details may be quite complex, the equivalent circuit for the reactances can be represented
quite simply as shown in Figure 9:

x2
x1 Star secondary
Primary
x2
Delta secondary
Figure 9: Equivalent circuit for one phase of 12-pulse transformer

9
This equivalent circuit assumes that the transformer designer has managed to produce balanced secondary reactances. If
this is not the case then the harmonic cancellation will be imperfect.
Typically the transformer is designed for a specified overall reactance in the range 4% to 7%, which controls the
prospective fault current and ensures that the transformer can withstand a total short-circuit without physical damage
until the circuit protection (fuse or circuit breaker) operates.

Then X1 + X 2/2 = X overall = (typically) 5%

The loosest possible coupling occurs when X 1 = 0 so that X 2 = 2 X overall, e.g. X 2 = 10%. This is only achieved if
separate transformers are used for the two groups. It is quite common for 24-pulse transformers to comprise two
separate 12-pulse transformers. For a single transformer more typical values would be X 1 = 2.5% X 2 = 5% giving X
overall = 5%. These values were used to produce the current waveform in Figure 2.

Tight coupling must be avoided since it will cause the conduction angles of the rectifier diodes to fall below the
desirable 120°, resulting in high r.m.s currents which will cause excessive temperatures in the transformer and the
diodes.

Transformer K-factor
The transformer K-factor is a measure of its capability to handle harmonic current without excessive heating,
particularly in eddy current paths where the losses at high frequencies are proportionately higher for a given r.m.s. value
than at the fundamental frequency.

In the case of the phase-shifting transformer, the K-factor for the primary is 1 (negligible harmonic current) and for the
secondary between 7 (for totally loosely coupled secondaries, i.e. separate transformers) and 13 (for 5% secondaries).

An experienced transformer supplier should be able to take account of this requirement routinely.

10