Linear and Nonlinear Control Techniques for a Three-Phase Three-Level NPC Boost Rectifier

This paper deals with three control techniques for a three-phase three-level neutral-point-clamped (NPC) boost rectifier to study their relative performance. Linear, nonlinear, and nonlinear model reference adaptive control (MRAC) methods are developed to control power factor (PF) and regulate output and neutral point voltages. These controllers are designed in Simulink and implemented in real time using the DS1104 DSP of dSPACE for validation on a 1.2-kW prototype of an NPC boost rectifier operating at 1.92 kHz. The performance of boost converter with three control methods has been investigated respectively in steady state in terms of line-current harmonic distortion, efficiency, and PF and during transients such as load steps, utility disturbances, reactive power control, and dc-bus voltage tracking behavior. The linear PI controllers are characterized by reduced complexity but poor performance, whereas the nonlinear control technique has improved the converter performance significantly, while nonlinear MRAC exhibits much better performance in a wide operating range