Transformer to drive the transition from AC to DC
Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne researchers have developed a compact and efficient medium-frequency transformer.
Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne researchers have developed a compact and efficient medium-frequency transformer.
Their device will enhance the flexibility and efficiency of tomorrow’s smart grids and DC power distribution networks. The prototype has been thoroughly tested and presented in several tutorials designed for experts from the academic and industrial worlds.
The researchers have designed, optimized and built a working MFT prototype, rated for 100kW and operated at 10kHz. Following rigorous testing, it serves as the basis for technical tutorials, some of which have already been given to various specialists from the academic and industrial worlds.
“We can be highly flexible and quickly alter the power flow – and we can do that very efficiently,” explains Marko Mogorovic, one of the device’s designers. “This will be very important when it comes to integrating the intermittent energy generation from renewable sources into tomorrow’s smart grids.”
Another plus is the small size of the device: “In an AC system, the frequency at which transformers operate depends on that of the surrounding grid. In Europe, that frequency is fixed at 50Hz,” explains Drazen Dujic, director of PEL.
Source: TechExplore
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