A Unified Topology for the Integration of Electric Vehicle, Renewable Energy Source, and Active Filtering for the Power Quality Improvement of the Electrical Power Grid: An Experimental Validation

Abstract

Electrical power grids are facing challenges concerning new linked technologies and associated contributions of power electronics, both regarding innovative topologies of power converters and advanced power management algorithms. Additionally, technologies related to renewables and electric mobility have several points in common, especially about the interface with the power grid, which allows to foresee a convergence for unified solutions in the power grid interface, without jeopardizing the functionalities and added values of each technology. Encompassing this purpose, this paper presents a unified topology, based on a three-phase structure, which, in addition to a collaborative operation with the power grid targeting the compensation of power quality problems, also enables the integration of a renewable energy source and an electric vehicle. The main contribution of this paper resides in the fact that only an interface with the power grid is necessary to involve three central features of smart grids: renewables, electric mobility, and power quality. Overall, the unified topology presents a four-quadrant structure, both in the perspective of AC and DC interfaces, offering multiple functionalities, mainly to the power grid. In the AC interface, the structure operates in interleaved mode, while in the DC interface, the structure operates in multilevel mode. The global control algorithm is presented, covering the interconnection between the mentioned technologies, as well as the details of implementation of the individual control algorithms regarding each interface. A laboratory prototype, connected to a three-phase 400 V-50 Hz power grid, was used to obtain an experimental validation for a maximum operating power of 12.5 kW, corroborating the essential advantage characteristics and the correct functioning of the presented unified topology.