Efficient ultra-fast electromechanical actuators for switching applications in power systems

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Project abstract

In a power system with the ability to integrate geographically spread diverse renewable energy sources, there is a need for an efficient control of the power flow and effective power transmission. Power electronics can provide this controllability, at the expense of conductive losses in the used components. These losses can be reduced substantially by use of controllable mechanical switches in parallel with a semiconductor. This project aims at an improvement and detail understanding of such switches. The two major activities towards the project are:
1) Motion control studies (Fast, efficient and controlled Actuation and deceleration).
2) Understanding and design of the electrical contact system and arcing chamber for such ultrafast current commutation switches.

Summary of work

2016 Development of Passive damper prototype for damping 2 kg mass with velocities up to 7 m/s.

2017 Preliminary experimental evaluation of V-I characteristics of electrical arc with different contact opening velocities.

2018 New 3mH, 0.1 Ohm air-core reactor is designed and installed in the lab.

2018 Fully automated flexible Controlled current source is designed and developed in the lab. This enables study of an arc behavior with ultra-fast contact opening. It also allows studying current interruption and commutation in AC/DC circuit breakers.

2019 Experimental study on Arc voltage build up with ultra-fast contact opening was done and results were successfully published.

2020 MHD (Magneto hydrodynamic) model of rapidly elongated arc was developed.

2020 Optical (time resolved and space resolved) diagnostics were performed to understand the physics of rapidly elongated arcs in air.

Event log

2017 Oral presentation at INTERMAG (international magnetics conference) at Dublin, Ireland, in April.

2017 Oral presentation at ISEM (international symposium on applied electromagnetics and mechanics) at Chamonix, France, in September.

2018 Poster presentation at Actuator 2018, Bremen, Germany

2018 One week IEEE Intensive course on electrical contacts, Albuquerque, NM,USA

2018 Oral presentation at 64th IEEE Holm Conference on Electrical Contacts, Albuquerque, NM, USA

2019 Two months Mobility to NTNU (Norwegian Technical University), Trondheim was completed.

Project reference-group

Baoliang Sheng,  Hitachi ABB Power Grids
Göran Engdahl,  KTH
Jesper Magnusson,  ABB
Thomas Eriksson,  ABB
Marley Becerra,  KTH and ABB
Hans Peter Nee,  KTH

Publications by this researcher

See alternatively the researcher's full DiVA list of publications, with options for sorting.
Publications in journals and conferences usually will not show until a while after they are published.

Thomson-Coil Actuator System for Enhanced Active Resonant DC Circuit Breakers
Tim Augustin,   Mrunal Parekh,   Jesper Magnusson,   Marley Becerra Garcia,   Hans-Peter Nee.
2022,   IEEE Journal of Emerging and Selected Topics in Power Electronics, vol. 10(1)

Ultra-fast electromechanical commutation switch for hybrid breakers
Mrunal Parekh.
2021,   Thesis (PhD), KTH Royal Institute of Technology, TRITA-EECS-AVL 2021:38

Arc Characteristics of Ultra-Fast Opening Switching Contacts in Hybrid Breakers
Mrunal Parekh,   Jesper Magnusson,   Göran Engdahl,   Marley Becerra Garcia.
2021,   IEEE Transactions on Power Delivery, vol. 36(5)

New Sensor for Medium- and High-Voltage Measurement
Andrzej Wetula,   Andrzej Bien,   Mrunal Parekh.
2021,   Energies, vol. 14(15)

System Design of Fast Actuator for Vacuum Interrupter in DC Applications
Tim Augustin,   Marley Becerra Garcia,   Jesper Magnusson,   Hans-Peter Nee,   Mrunal Parekh.
2018,   28th International Symposium on Discharges and Electrical Insulation in Vacuum, ISDEIV 2018, Greifswald, Germany, 23 September 2018 through 28 September 2018

Design of a linear Halbach magnetic damper
Mrunal Parekh,   Ara Bissal,   Jesper Magnusson,   Göran Engdahl.
2018,   International journal of applied electromagnetics and mechanics, vol. 59(2)

Effect of contact velocity on the behaviour of decaying arcs in air
Mrunal Parekh,   Jesper Magnusson,   Marley Becerra Garcia,   Göran Engdahl.
2018,   Joint Meeting of the 29th International Conference on Electrical Contacts (ICEC) / 64th IEEE Holm Conference on Electrical Contacts, OCT 14-18, 2018, Albuquerque, NM

Study of an Electromagnetic Damping Actuator
Mrunal Parekh,   Jesper Magnusson,   Göran Engdahl.
2018,   ACTUATOR 2018: 16th International Conference on New Actuators, Bremen, Germany, 25–27 June 2018

Study of a linear Halbach passive magnetic damper
Mrunal Parekh,   Ara Bissal,   Jesper Magnusson,   Göran Engdahl.
2017,   2017 IEEE International Magnetics Conference, INTERMAG 2017, Dublin, Ireland, 24 April 2017 through 28 April 2017

Publication list last updated from DiVA on 2024-01-10 15:20.

Page started: 2016-04-01
Last generated: 2024-01-10