Date of Graduation

12-2020

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science in Electrical Engineering (MSEE)

Degree Level

Graduate

Department

Electrical Engineering

Advisor/Mentor

Zhao, Yue

Committee Member

Balda, Juan C.

Second Committee Member

McCann, Roy A.

Keywords

Electric Vehicle; Low Inductance; Motor Drive; Power Density; Silicon Carbide

Abstract

The objective of this thesis is to present a design for a low parasitic inductance, high power density 3-phase inverter using silicon-carbide power modules for traction application in the electric vehicles with a power rating of 350 kW. With the market share of electric vehicles continuing to grow, there is a great opportunity for wide bandgap semiconductors such as silicon carbide (SiC) to improve the efficiency and size of the motor drives in these applications. In order to accomplish this goal, careful design and selection of each component in the system for optimum performance from an electrical, mechanical, and thermal standpoint. At each level from top to bottom the inverter sub-assembly performance will be characterized including DC link inductance, power module switching losses, and inverter efficiency. The core power electronics will be built around the latest generation of 1200 V half-bridge SiC power modules with an ultra-low inductance dc bus capacitor and laminated bussing, fast switching speed and very low loss. A custom controller and gate drivers are designed capable of driving the power electronics at high switching speed without disturbance from high dv/dt noise. Finally, the inverter is packaged into a complete system and tested under various conditions with a 3-phase inductive load simulating a motor load. The test results presented include output power and efficiency at various bus voltages, currents, and switching frequencies.

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