Safe-Commutation Strategy for the Novel Family of Quasi-Z-Source AC-AC Converter

A novel quasi-Z-source ac-ac converter for voltage sag/swell compensation in smart grids is proposed in this paper. Derived from the basic ac-ac safe-commutation mechanism, a new voltage-based commutation strategy is developed, which is achieved without snub circuit and only by sampling the output voltage. Therefore, the control circuit is simplified greatly. Two switches in a one-phase loop are always turned on for current freewheel path in dead time, and current spike and voltage spike are solved well. Compared with conventional ac-ac converters, fewer switches conduct with soft switching during operation, resulting in high efficiency. Then, the proposed converter is analyzed, including the operating modes and voltage ration based on a state-space average. The experimental results validate the theoretical predication well. The safe-commutation strategy can also be easily applied to other converters of the proposed family.