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Power Conditioning and Power Protection for Electronic Systems

A special issue of Energies (ISSN 1996-1073). This special issue belongs to the section "F3: Power Electronics".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 April 2022) | Viewed by 14513

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
School of Engineering, University of Waikato, Hamilton 3240, New Zealand
Interests: power converters; supercapacitor applications; power conditioning; surge protection; linear circuits
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Welcome to the Special Issue of Energies on “Power Conditioning and Protection of Electronic Systems”.

State-of-the-art electronic circuits are an integral part of electrical systems such as LED lighting, white goods and industrial electronics. In the modern scenario of IOT and electronics, complex integrated circuits, progressing towards system-on-a-chip (SoC) concepts, are powered by DC power rails as low as 1.2–0.7 V. Complex power conversion interfaces are used to power these systems from our central AC supply or a renewable resource on-site.

Modern electronic systems are uniquely vulnerable to power line disturbances because they bring together high-energy power lines and sensitive low-power integrated circuits controlling power semiconductors in the conversion interfaces. External disturbances to renewable sources can also affect the reliability of the energy supply. The term ‘power conditioning’ deals with a broad class of techniques and products designed to improve or assure the quality of the energy source powering sensitive electronic systems.

Utilities realize that different types of customers require different levels of reliability, and make every effort to supply disturbance-free power. However, normal occurrences, most of which are beyond control and are acts of nature, make it impossible to provide disturbance-free power with 100% reliability. In addition to these external disturbances, sources within buildings, such as the switching of heavy inductive loads, poor wiring, overloaded circuits, and inadequate grounding, can cause electrical disturbances. With the rapid advances of semiconductor technology with nanometer feature size transistors, power quality issues are becoming serious concerns for reliable operation.

This Special Issue is dedicated to the subject of Power Conditioning and Protection of Electronic Systems where we invite researchers and industry experts to contribute research papers and review articles on the state of the art and future.

Assoc. Prof. Nihal Kularatna
Guest Editor

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Energies is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • power quality
  • transient protection
  • RMS voltage controllers
  • harmonics and harmonic control
  • RFI and EMI control
  • electrical noise
  • devices for transient absorption
  • power protection systems for low voltage AC distribution
  • insulation
  • lightning protection
  • protection of power converters
  • circuit breakers for DC systems
  • modeling and simulation of power conditioners and protection circuits
  • practicing engineers’ viewpoint on power quality and protection systems

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Published Papers (6 papers)

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Editorial

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4 pages, 742 KiB  
Editorial
Power Conditioning and Power Protection for Electronic Systems
by Nihal Kularatna
Energies 2023, 16(6), 2671; https://doi.org/10.3390/en16062671 - 13 Mar 2023
Viewed by 1432
Abstract
Electrical energy is the most convenient form of energy, and modern society takes it for granted that it is always available by our side [...] Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Power Conditioning and Power Protection for Electronic Systems)
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Research

Jump to: Editorial

16 pages, 4398 KiB  
Article
Preliminary Evaluation of the Impact of Sustained Overvoltage on Low Voltage Electronics-Based Equipment
by Jason David, Philip Ciufo, Sean Elphick and Duane Robinson
Energies 2022, 15(4), 1536; https://doi.org/10.3390/en15041536 - 19 Feb 2022
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2426
Abstract
Low voltage devices connected to public electricity supply networks can be subjected to a wide range of voltage quality, including sustained overvoltage. Assessing the impact of sustained overvoltage on devices connected to the distribution network is important in determining the appropriate variance of [...] Read more.
Low voltage devices connected to public electricity supply networks can be subjected to a wide range of voltage quality, including sustained overvoltage. Assessing the impact of sustained overvoltage on devices connected to the distribution network is important in determining the appropriate variance of standard voltage levels without unduly impacting the utility and customers from a technical and economic perspective. Therefore, a clear understanding of the impact that sustained overvoltage has on the lifetime of the connected equipment is a necessary task. This paper investigates the impact of sustained overvoltage through a series of accelerated-life testing experiments on a custom designed test device representative of a common interface between the power supply and distribution network, a switch mode power supply. The switch mode power supply with combined rectifier and filtering capacitor represents one of the most common front ends of LV equipment in modern appliances, and the work here concentrates on the impact of overvoltage on capacitor ageing. The results of the testing indicate that there is an accelerated ageing impact correlated with the applied voltage magnitude. Furthermore, analysis shows that mismatches between appliance voltage rating and sustained network voltage, leading to accelerated ageing, may result in premature device failure without the consumer being aware of the root cause. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Power Conditioning and Power Protection for Electronic Systems)
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21 pages, 23064 KiB  
Article
Optimization of Supercapacitor Assisted Surge Absorber (SCASA) Technique: A New Approach to Improve Surge Endurance Using Air-Gapped Ferrite Cores
by Sadeeshvara Udayanga Silva Thotabaddadurage, Nihal Kularatna and D. Alistair Steyn-Ross
Energies 2021, 14(14), 4337; https://doi.org/10.3390/en14144337 - 19 Jul 2021
Cited by 11 | Viewed by 2648
Abstract
SCASA is a patented technique commercialized as a surge protector device (SPD) that adheres to UL-1449 test standards. Apart from the novel use of supercapacitors, SCASA design incorporates a coupled-inductor wound to a specially selected magnetic material of powdered-iron. In this study, we [...] Read more.
SCASA is a patented technique commercialized as a surge protector device (SPD) that adheres to UL-1449 test standards. Apart from the novel use of supercapacitors, SCASA design incorporates a coupled-inductor wound to a specially selected magnetic material of powdered-iron. In this study, we investigate the limitations of the present design under transient operation and elucidate ways to eliminate them with the use of air-gapped ferrite cores. In modelling the operation under 50 Hz AC and transient conditions, a permeance-based approach is used; in addition, non-ideal characteristics of the transformer core are emphasized and discussed with empirical validations. The experimental work was facilitated using a lightning surge simulator coupled with the 230 V AC utility mains; combinational surge-waveforms (6 kV/3 kA) defined by IEEE C62.41 standards were continuously injected into SPD prototypes during destructive testing. Such procedures substantiate the overall surge-endurance capabilities of the different core types under testing. With regard to optimizations, we validated a 95% depletion of a negative-surge effect that would otherwise pass to the load-end, and another 13–16% reduction of the clamping voltage verified the effectiveness of the methods undertaken. In conclusion, SCASA prototypes that utilized air-gapped cores revealed a greater surge endurance with improved load-end characteristics. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Power Conditioning and Power Protection for Electronic Systems)
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16 pages, 5595 KiB  
Article
Optimal Detection and Identification of DC Series Arc in Power Distribution System on Shipboards
by Hong-Keun Ji, Guoming Wang and Gyung-Suk Kil
Energies 2020, 13(22), 5973; https://doi.org/10.3390/en13225973 - 16 Nov 2020
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1919
Abstract
In this paper, a series arc was simulated under resistive load and motor load, which are mainly used in small ships, and the arc signal was analyzed using discrete wavelet transform. After calculating the correlation coefficient between the single arc pulse and the [...] Read more.
In this paper, a series arc was simulated under resistive load and motor load, which are mainly used in small ships, and the arc signal was analyzed using discrete wavelet transform. After calculating the correlation coefficient between the single arc pulse and the wavelet, Biorthogonal (bior) 3.1 was selected as the optimal mother wavelet, and the signal was analyzed using multiresolution analysis. From the results, arc signals were distributed in the detail components D2, D3, D4 and D5, corresponding to a frequency range of 19.5–312.5 kHz, with the optimal arc signal extracted based on these values. In addition, in order to distinguish between arc and normal conditions, signal energy was analyzed. By applying the magnitude and signal energy analysis method, the DC series arc generated in the power distribution system of a shipboard was identified. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Power Conditioning and Power Protection for Electronic Systems)
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14 pages, 3714 KiB  
Article
Phase Analysis of Series Arc Signals for Low-Voltage Electrical Devices
by Hong-Keun Ji, Sung-Wook Kim and Gyung-Suk Kil
Energies 2020, 13(20), 5481; https://doi.org/10.3390/en13205481 - 20 Oct 2020
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2241
Abstract
An arc fault is an electrical breakdown of the insulating medium in an electrical system. When arc faults occur, they cause electrical fires with local sparks and temperatures of over 5000 °C. A series arc is generated in series with a load due [...] Read more.
An arc fault is an electrical breakdown of the insulating medium in an electrical system. When arc faults occur, they cause electrical fires with local sparks and temperatures of over 5000 °C. A series arc is generated in series with a load due to an incomplete connection between cords or a loose connection between a cord and terminal. However, it is hard to detect series arc faults with arc protection devices because the fault current flowing by series arc in the circuit is not higher than the load current. Especially in Korea, preventing electrical fires by series arc is rarely applied because there is no national standard for arc fault circuit interrupters (AFCI) and arc fault detection devices (AFDD). Therefore, many studies for reliable arc detection and analysis are still necessary to prevent electrical fires. In this study, phase analyses of series arc signals for low-voltage electrical devices such as heaters, computers, refrigerators, and air conditioners were conducted. The arc generator was fabricated according to UL 6199 and an optimal filter was designed to detect series arc signals without any attenuation. The phase of detected series arc signals was analyzed according to load types and finally a new algorithm was proposed based on the result of phase-resolved series arc (PRSA) analysis to identify types of loads. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Power Conditioning and Power Protection for Electronic Systems)
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9 pages, 3443 KiB  
Article
Assessment of MOV Deterioration under Energized Conditions
by Sung-Wook Kim, Nam-Hoon Kim and Gyung-suk Kil
Energies 2020, 13(15), 4018; https://doi.org/10.3390/en13154018 - 4 Aug 2020
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2855
Abstract
Metal oxide varistors (MOVs) are widely used to protect electrical and electronic devices that are very vulnerable to surges due to the low insulation level of the equipment. MOVs deteriorate gradually due to manufacturing defects, mechanical and thermal stress, or repeated protective operations [...] Read more.
Metal oxide varistors (MOVs) are widely used to protect electrical and electronic devices that are very vulnerable to surges due to the low insulation level of the equipment. MOVs deteriorate gradually due to manufacturing defects, mechanical and thermal stress, or repeated protective operations against surges. These defects result in the thermal runaway of MOV and finally lead to the explosion and electric fire of electrical and electronic devices due to a short circuit and a line-to-ground fault. Therefore, the reliable assessment of the condition of MOV deterioration is required for electrical and electronic equipment. However, when most accelerated degradation tests for the MOV have been performed to date, an 8/20 μs standard surge current is applied under de-energized conditions, which is unlike the actual operating environment. In this study, a surge generator was designed to apply a surge current to MOVs to monitor their deterioration. Three different types of leakage currents were measured to analyze the change rates of their electrical characteristics of MOVs by comparing them with the reference voltage variation. Furthermore, the condition assessment of MOV deterioration under energized and de-energized conditions was investigated. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Power Conditioning and Power Protection for Electronic Systems)
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