EPE3301 Power Electronics - 5. AC-DC Rectifiers

EPE3301
Power Electronics
AC‐DC Rectifiers
Dr Lee Sze Sing, CEng
SzeSing.Lee@newcastle.ac.uk
SIT-NU Electrical Power Engineering

Contents
• Single‐phase uncontrolled rectifier
• Single‐phase controlled rectifier
• Three‐phase uncontrolled rectifier
• Three‐phase controlled rectifier
• Commutation
• Applications of controlled rectifiers
• Active front‐end PWM rectifiers and power factor

correction
SS Lee 2
Single‐Phase Uncontrolled Rectifier
Half wave rectifier Full wave rectifier
• Converts single phase ac voltage to dc voltage

• Full wave rectifier is preferred due to following advantages:
‐ The average current in the ac source is zero
‐ The output of the full‐wave rectifier has inherently less ripple
than the half‐wave rectifier
SS Lee 3
Half wave rectifier:
Sketch the current supplied by AC source
SS Lee 4
Full wave rectifier:
SS Lee 5
Full wave rectifier (R load):
Average current in the AC source is zero
SS Lee 6
• D1 & D3 and D2 & D4 cannot conduct

simultaneously.
• Output voltage is +vs when D1 and D2 are ON.
• Output voltage is ‐vs when D3 and D4 are ON.

• The load current can be positive or zero but can
never be negative (diode current is
unidirectional).
• The average source current is zero.
• The fundamental frequency of the output
voltage is 2fsource
• The Fourier series of the output consists of a DC
term and the even harmonics of the source
frequency.
SS Lee 7
The output voltage can be expressed as
Vm sin  t  for 0  t  

v o  t   
 Vm sin  t  for   t  2
The DC component of output voltage and

current can be expressed as

1 2Vm
Vo  Vm sin  t  d  t  

0 
The rms of load and source current are same.
Im
I rms 
2
SS Lee 8
The output voltage can be expressed as a

Fourier series

vo  t   Vo  
n  2,4...
Vn cos  n0 t  
2Vm
where Vo 

2Vm  1 1 
and Vn    
  n 1 n  1 
SS Lee 9
Full wave rectifier (RL load):
The output voltage can be expressed as a
Fourier series

vo  t   Vo  
n  2,4...
Vn cos  n0 t  
2Vm
where Vo 

2Vm  1 1 
and Vn    
  n 1 n  1 
Inductor acts as a filter to reduce

current harmonics:
Zero impedance at DC
Impedance increases with frequency
SS Lee 10
Full wave rectifier:
R load RL load
SS Lee 11
SS Lee 12
L is large – pure dc current
If L is infinitely large, the load current become purely DC.

Impedance of L is zero at DC
Impedance of L is infinite at any frequency (assume L is infinite)
SS Lee 13
Single‐Phase Controlled Rectifier
Replacing the diodes of uncontrolled rectifier with thyristors allow for voltage and hence
the power control by controlling the firing/delay angle
R Load:
Average output voltage

Average load current

1 Vm Vo Vm
Vo  Vm sin  t  d  t  
 1  cos   Io   1  cos  
  R R
SS Lee 14
Single Phase Controlled Rectifier
RL Load:
• The current conduction angle is extended beyond π due to energy storage of
inductor.
• Load current can be continuous or discontinuous depending on the inductance.
Discontinuous current Continuous current (Large L)
SS Lee 15
 L 
RL load, consider continuous current:   tan 1  
 R 
Continuous current (Large L)
Fourier series of the output voltage:


v o (t)  Vo  V
n 1
n cos  n0 t  n 
2Vm  cos(n + 1) cos(n  1) 
 an =  
1
Vm sin  t  d  t  
2Vm   n +1 n  1 
Vo 
 


cos 
2Vm  sin(n + 1) sin(n  1) 
bn = 
Vn  a 2n  b2n   n + 1 n  1 
n = 2, 4, 6 . . .
SS Lee 16
1 Vdc 
RL‐Source Load, consider continuous current   sin  
V
 m
For continuous current:

Average output voltage: Average load current: Power absorbed by DC source:
2Vm Vo  Vdc
Vo  cos  Io  Pdc  Io Vdc
 R
SS Lee 17
Example: Charge battery from ac supply
The controlled rectifier has an ac source of 240V rms at 50Hz,
Vdc = 100V, R=5Ω, and inductor is large enough to cause
continuous current. Determine the delay angle α such that the
power absorbed by the dc source is 1kW.
SS Lee 18
Example: Charge battery from ac supply
The controlled rectifier has an ac source of
240V rms at 50Hz, Vdc = 100V, R=5Ω, and
inductor is large enough to cause
continuous current. Determine the delay
angle α such that the power absorbed by
the dc source is 1kW.
SS Lee 19
Charge 100V battery at 10A (R=5Ω)
10A Discharge 100V battery at 10A (R=5Ω)
10A 10A
150V 100V ‐50V ‐100V
Power transfer Power transfer

*Io is always positive because thyristor is unidirectional current
conducting device
* Vo can be positive or negative depending
SS Lee on firing angle 20
Controlled single phase converter operating as an inverter:
• It is also possible for power to flow from the load to the ac source, which
classifies the circuit as an inverter.
• By referring to the equation, Vo  2Vm cos  the output voltage reduces with
firing angle. 
• At 0.5π, the average output voltage is zero.
• The output voltage becomes negative (while the load current is remain positive)
when α is greater than 0.5π.
• The average power is negative (positive current X negative voltage) indicates
that the direction of power flow is reversed; from output (dc power source at
load terminal) to input alternating supply.
• Vdc (dc source) must be negative.
SS Lee 21
Controlled single phase converter operating as an rectification and inversion mode:
current
*Output current flows

in +ve direction in both
rectification and
inversion mode
‐ ve ‐ ve *The load (battery)

supplies power (during
inversion mode) hence
Power flow the polarity must be
0 <  < 90  Vo > 0, rectifier operation reversed
90 <  < 180  Vo < 0, inverter operation
SS Lee 22
Example: Supply PV power into AC grid
Figure shows the voltage generated by an array of solar cells
that has a value of 110V are connected such that Vdc = – 110V.
The solar cells are capable of producing 1000W. The ac source
is 120V rms 50Hz, R = 0.5Ω, and L is large enough to cause the
load current to be essentially dc. Determine the delay angle
such that 1000W is supplied by the solar cell.
Io
R=0.5Ω L
+ +
120Vrms, Vo PV Vdc = -110V
50Hz P = 1000W
‐ ‐
SS Lee 23
Solution: Supply PV power into AC grid
Io
R=0.5Ω L
+ +
120Vrms, Vo PV Vdc = -110V
50Hz P = 1000W
‐ ‐
SS Lee 24
Three‐Phase Uncontrolled Rectifier
• Three phase rectifiers are commonly used in industry to
produce a dc voltage and current for large loads.
• Six pulse rectifier: output voltage consists of 6 combinations
(6 pulses of 60 degree) of line‐to‐line voltages.
SS Lee 25
Some basic observations about the circuit are as follows:
1. Kirchhoff’s voltage law around any path shows that only one diode in the top half of the
bridge may conduct at one time (D1, D3, or D5). The diode that is conducting will have its
anode connected to the phase voltage that is highest at that instant.
2. Kirchhoff’s voltage law also shows that only one diode in the bottom half of the bridge may
conduct at one time (D2, D4, or D6). The diode that is conducting will have its cathode
connected to the phase voltage that is lowest at that instant.
3. As a consequence of items 1 and 2 above, D1 and D4 cannot conduct at the same time.
Similarly, D3 and D6 cannot conduct simultaneously, nor can D5 and D2.
4. The output voltage across the load is one of the line‐to‐line voltages of the source. For
example, when D1 and D2 are on, the output voltage is vac. Furthermore, the diodes that are
on are determined by which line‐to‐line voltage is the highest at that instant. For example,
when vac is the highest line‐to‐line voltage, the output is vac.
SS Lee 26
Each diode conduct one‐third of the time, resulting in
Average diode current: RMS diode current: RMS source current:
1 1 2
I D,avg  I o,avg I D,rms  I o,rms Is,rms  I o,rms
3 3 3
The output voltage can be expressed as Fourier series:


v o (t)  Vo   Vn cos  n0 t    0  2f 0
n  6,12,18... f 0  Frequency of AC
6Vm,L L Source in Hz
Vo  0.955Vm,L L Vn  n=6, 12, 18,....

 n2 1 
SS Lee 27
Three‐Phase Controlled Rectifier
• Three‐phase rectifier can
be controlled by replacing
diodes in uncontrolled
rectifier by thyristors.
Line to line voltage

• The delay angle is vab vbc vca
referenced from where
the thyristor would begin
to conduct if it were a
diode.
SS Lee vba vcb vac

28
• Average output voltage
can be controlled by the
firing angle.
Firing angle = 30‐degree Firing angle = 60‐degree
SS Lee 29
• Average output voltage
can be controlled by the
firing angle.
Firing angle = 90‐degree Firing angle = 150‐degree
SS Lee 30
• For controlled rectifier with continuous load current (large
inductor) the average output voltage is given by,
s
where, p is the pulse number and Vm is the peak of supply
voltage.
• For single phase converter, p = 2 and hence,
• For three phase converter, p = 6 and hence,
SS Lee 31
Commutation/Overlap
Ideal condition:
waveform without
overlap
vac Overlap vbc
SS Lee 32
Commutation/Overlap
• Ideally, thyristors should turn on and off instantaneously.
• However, practical device has a finite turn on and off time.
• In addition, inductive current (due to source inductance or inductive
load) cannot change instantaneously. Current must be transferred
gradually from one diode pair to the other over a commutation interval u.
• Triggering the next thyristor results in two thyristors with current, hence
two lines are shorted and connected to the load.
vac vbc
SS Lee 33
Commutation/Overlap
• During the transfer of current from one thyristor to the next in the
sequence the voltage at the cathodes of the two thyristors is halfway
between that of the two line voltages.
Voltage from
phase B
Voltage from
Output voltage phase A
due to overlap
SS Lee 34
Commutation/Overlap
• Due to overlapping, the average output voltage is
reduced by
𝐿 is source inductance
𝐼 is the average load current of rectifier
𝜔 is frequency of AC supply in rad/s
• Hence the average output voltage from a three‐

phase controlled rectifier with overlapping is
𝑉 is peak of AC supply voltage

𝛼 is firing angle
SS Lee 35
Applications of Controlled Rectifiers
By adjusting the firing/delay angle, bidirectional power transfer
can be achieved between ac and dc terminal. This is the
fundamental concept for HVDC power transmission.
Vo = +ve Rectification Vdc = +ve

0 < α < π/2
AC Controlled rectifier
Power transfer DC
Vo = -ve π/2 < α < π Vdc = -ve

Inversion
SS Lee 36
DC Motor Drive
Converter 1 Converter 2
+ ‐
+
AC V1 V2 AC
‐ ‐ +
Motor torque Converter 1 Converter 2 Operation

Rectification off Forward motoring
Reverse Forward (V1 = +ve)
regenerating motoring
off Inversion Forward regenerating
Motor speed (V2 = ‐ve)
Reverse Forward off Rectification Reverse motoring
motoring regenerating (V2 = +ve)
Inversion off Reverse regenerating
(V1 = ‐ve)
SS Lee 37
DC Power Transmission
• Notice that the direction of current is fixed as thyristors are

unidirectional current conducting device.
• Vo1 and Vo2 are controlled such that one is positive (rectification)
and the other one is negative (inversion).
• Power transfer can be controlled properly from AC system 1 to AC
system 2 and vice versa.
SS Lee 38
Advantages:
• The inductance of the transmission line has zero impedance to dc,
whereas the inductive impedance for lines in an ac system is
relatively large.
• The capacitance that exists between conductors is an open circuit
for dc. For ac transmission lines, the capacitive reactance provides
a path for current, resulting in additional I^2R losses in the line. In
applications where the conductors are close together, the
capacitive reactance can be a significant problem for ac
transmission lines, whereas it has no effect on dc lines.
• There are two conductors required for dc transmission rather than
three for conventional three‐phase power transmission. (There
will likely be an additional ground conductor in both dc and ac
systems.)
SS Lee 39
Advantages:
• Transmission towers are smaller for dc than ac because of only
two conductors, and right‐of‐way requirements are less.
• Power flow in a dc transmission line is controllable by adjustment
of the delay angles at the terminals. In an ac system, power flow
over a given transmission line is not controllable, being a function
of system generation and load.
• Power flow can be modulated during disturbances on one of the
ac systems, resulting in increased system stability.
• The two ac systems that are connected by the dc line do not
need to be in synchronization. Furthermore, the two ac systems
do not need to be of the same frequency nor voltage. A 50‐Hz
system can be connected to a 60‐Hz system via a dc link.
SS Lee 40
DC Power Transmission: Exercise
Calculate the voltages V1 and V2 for the transmission system shown in figure below.
Determine the firing angle of the rectifier and the inverter. The system specification in
given in table below with the resistance of cable, R is 0.002 Ω. Ignoring power losses of
the two converters, calculate the system efficiency.
V1 V2
SS Lee 41
“Front‐End” of Power Electronic Systems
• Typically, power is provided by a single‐phase or a three‐phase
utility source, for example in adjustable‐speed motor drives.
• Such power‐electronic interfaces often consist of a voltage‐link
structure, where the input from the ac source is first rectified into
a dc voltage across a large capacitor.
• Interaction between the utility supply and power electronic
systems depends on the “front‐ends” (within the power‐
processing units), which convert line‐frequency ac into dc.
Diode‐bridge rectifiers in Switch‐mode converters in which

which power flows only in the power flow can reverse, and
one direction. the line currents are sinusoidal at
the unity power factor.
SS Lee 42
Diode‐Rectifier Bridge “Front‐Ends”
• Diode rectifiers rectify line‐frequency ac into dc across the dc‐bus
capacitor, without any control over the dc‐bus voltage.
• They draw currents with highly distorted waveforms and the
power through them can flow only in one direction.
• In switch‐mode dc power supplies, these diode‐bridge rectifiers
are supplemented by a power‐factor‐correction circuit, to meet
current harmonic limits and power factor requirement.
• At power levels below a few kW, for example in residential
applications, power electronic systems are supplied by a single‐
phase utility source.
• commonly used full‐bridge diode rectifier:
SS Lee 43
• In order to achieve a voltage waveform that is fairly dc, a large filter
capacitor Cd is connected on the dc‐side.
• Before t1: vd exceeds the input voltage magnitude, all diodes remain
reverse biased, and the input current is zero.
• t1 to t2: Diodes 1 and 2 conduct and
the input current increases due to
positive voltage across the inductor.
• t2 to t3: As inductor current cannot
change instantaneously, diodes 1
and 2 continue to conduct. Input
current decreases due to negative
voltage across the inductor.
• t3 to zero crossing: Diodes 1 and 2
stop conducting and reverse biased.
• Similar analysis for negative half
cycle. SS Lee 44
• In steady state, all waveforms repeat from one cycle to the next.
• The average value of the capacitor current over a line‐frequency
cycle must be zero so that the dc‐bus voltage is in steady state.
(Capacitor charge balance)
• The average current through the equivalent load‐resistance Req
equals the average of the rectifier dc‐side current; that is, Id = Idr.
• The input ac current is distorted. In practice, it is almost
impossible to meet the harmonic limits specified by the IEEE‐519
(for example, the THD in the current must be less than 5%) by
using the diode rectifier. Therefore, the power‐factor‐correction
circuits are needed to meet the harmonic specifications.
SS Lee 45
Active Front‐End PWM Rectifiers
Single‐Phase Power Factor Correction Circuit:
• A boost dc‐dc converter is introduced between diode rectifier and
dc‐bus capacitor.
• By pulse‐width‐modulating the MOSFET at a constant switching
frequency, the current iL through the inductor Ld is shaped to have
the full‐wave‐rectified waveform:
• As the waveform of inductor current ( ) is similar to
the rectified voltage ( ), the ac source current is sinusoidal,
and it is in phase with the ac source voltage.
PFC circuit and waveforms

SS Lee 46
• In the Boost converter, it is essential that
the dc‐bus voltage be greater than the peak
of the supply voltage:
• As the input voltage of the boost converter

is a full‐wave rectified waveform, the duty‐
cycle of the boost converter should be
controlled dynamically to produce a
constant Vd:
where,
Therefore:
PFC circuit and waveforms
SS Lee 47
• The size of inductor Ld can be calculated
based on the limit of high‐frequency
current ripple (similar to the analysis
discussed in the boost converter chapter).
• Considering the maximum input voltage of
the boost converter:
ˆ diL I L
Vs  Ld  Ld
dt d minT
Vˆs d min
Ld 
I L f
Minimum duty‐cycle, dmin

SS Lee 48
• The size of capacitor Cd can be calculated
based on the limit of double‐line‐frequency
voltage ripple.
• From boost converter analysis (with a
constant input voltage), we know that the
average diode current can be written as the
average inductor current multiply by (1‐D). Instantaneous average
of id ( consists of dc
component and
double‐line‐frequency
I D  (1  D) I L component)
• For boost converter in PFC circuit, the input

voltage is a full wave rectified waveform that
has an additional double‐line‐frequency Double‐line‐
dc
component. Therefore, the instantaneous frequency
component
average of inductor and diode currents also component
consist of double‐line‐frequency component.
SS Lee 49
• The instantaneous average of diode current
is:
where, is the instantaneous average of

inductor current.
Instantaneous average
component and
component)
Therefore, Double‐line‐
dc
frequency
component
component
SS Lee 50
component and
• Instantaneous average of diode current: double‐line‐frequency
component)
double‐line‐
dc
frequency
component
component
SS Lee 51
• Instantaneous average of diode current:
• The dc component Id flows through the load.

• Assuming the capacitor is large and its impedance
at double‐line‐frequency is negligible, the double‐
component and
line‐frequency component of diode current flows
entirely through the capacitor.
component)
• Therefore, the voltage ripple of Cd is the peak‐to‐
peak voltage across the capacitor at double‐line‐
frequency:
 1 Vˆs  1 Vˆ Iˆ
IˆL 
double‐line‐
Vd  2   s L
dc
 2 Vd  2Cd 2Vd Cd
frequency
component
component
  2 fline
SS Lee 52
• Control of PFC circuit:
To produce the desired
dc‐bus voltage
To synthesize inductor current waveform that is

proportional to the rectified voltage for sinusoidal ac
source current with unity power factor.
SS Lee 53
• Control of PFC circuit:
The outer voltage control loop determines the amplitude of based on the output
voltage feedback.
The inner current control loop ensures the form of based on the template
provided by measuring the rectifier output voltage .
SS Lee 54
• Example:
By considering the instantaneous power at
the ac source, prove that the instantaneous
average (low‐frequency component without
switching ripple) of diode current is
SS Lee 55
Single‐Phase H‐Bridge PWM Rectifier:
• Instead of using diode

rectifier, H‐bridge
inverter which is
capable of
bidirectional power
flow can be operated
in rectification mode.
SS Lee 56
Single‐Phase H‐Bridge PWM Rectifier:
• The controller consists of
outer voltage loop and inner
current loop to produce the
desired dc‐bus voltage with
sinusoidal ac source current.
• The magnitude of ac source
current changes depending
on the power of dc load.
Further reading:
J. R. Rodriguez, J. W. Dixon, J. R. Espinoza, J. Pontt and P. Lezana, "PWM regenerative
rectifiers: state of the art," in IEEE Transactions on Industrial Electronics, vol. 52, no. 1, pp.
5-22, Feb. 2005, doi: 10.1109/TIE.2004.841149.
SS Lee 57
Three‐Phase PWM Rectifier:
• Three‐phase voltage source inverter which is capable of bidirectional power flow
can be controlled in rectification mode: generating a dc‐bus voltage from ac
source with sinusoidal ac current and unity power factor.
SS Lee 58
Three‐Phase PWM Rectifier:
• The controller of three‐phase PWM rectifier can also be designed in
dq domain.
Component of dq current that controls the active power
Component of dq current that controls the

reactive power (set to 0 for unity power
factor without reactive power support)
SS Lee 59
PLECS demo model: https://www.plexim.com/support/application‐examples/189

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EPE3301

SIT-NU Electrical Power Engineering

• Active front‐end PWM rectifiers and power factor

• Converts single phase ac voltage to dc voltage

Sketch the current supplied by AC source

Average current in the AC source is zero

• D1 & D3 and D2 & D4 cannot conduct

• Output voltage is ‐vs when D3 and D4 are ON.

The output voltage can be expressed as

Vm sin  t  for 0  t  

The DC component of output voltage and

The output voltage can be expressed as a

Inductor acts as a filter to reduce

If L is infinitely large, the load current become purely DC.

Average output voltage

Discontinuous current Continuous current (Large L)

Fourier series of the output voltage:

For continuous current:

150V 100V ‐50V ‐100V

Power transfer Power transfer

*Output current flows

‐ ve ‐ ve *The load (battery)

The output voltage can be expressed as Fourier series:

Line to line voltage

SS Lee vba vcb vac

Average output voltage

Firing angle = 30‐degree Firing angle = 60‐degree

Average output voltage

Firing angle = 90‐degree Firing angle = 150‐degree

• For single phase converter, p = 2 and hence,

• For three phase converter, p = 6 and hence,

vac Overlap vbc

• Hence the average output voltage from a three‐

𝑉 is peak of AC supply voltage

Vo = +ve Rectification Vdc = +ve

Vo = -ve π/2 < α < π Vdc = -ve

Motor torque Converter 1 Converter 2 Operation

• Notice that the direction of current is fixed as thyristors are

Diode‐bridge rectifiers in Switch‐mode converters in which

PFC circuit and waveforms

• As the input voltage of the boost converter

Minimum duty‐cycle, dmin

• For boost converter in PFC circuit, the input

where, is the instantaneous average of

• The dc component Id flows through the load.

To synthesize inductor current waveform that is

• Instead of using diode

Component of dq current that controls the

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