Power electronic reactors

Reactors for power electronics components

Power electronics devices have a wide potential for what concerns production, transmission and utilization of energy, and as of now they influence more or less the whole electricity sector. Although the active parts of electronic components are silicon-based semiconductors with doping elements, the role of more classical components as capacitors and electrical reactors still holds.

They work to provide energy storage, being it magnetic or electric, so that stability in the power supply is granted while the switches perform their fast commutation in the circuits. Therefore, their importance is crucial in allowing the correct and continuous power transmission towards the load.

Each converter is different, and has its own specific needs to express its optimal performance. FDUEG knows this, and responds with a production line of reactors specifically made for their final purpose. Being the application standard, special or requiring a dedicate study, the internal Technical Department can be addressed to provide a solution that is both adapted and optimized for its usage.

Reactors for power electronics components, tailored solutions

Features of power electronics reactors

The production of inductive reactances for power electronics marked FDUEG is mainly oriented towards iron-core single phase models that are shell-type or with two wound columns, or three-phase pieces. The possibilities are not anyway limited to these standard models, and the Engineers and Technicians ad FDUEG’s headquarters are available for considering prototypes and special projects, tailor-made upon customer’s request.

The technique that is mostly applied allows the production of dry type vacuum pressure impregnated inductors, able to sustain currents up to 6 kA indicatively, and the possibility of dealing with medium voltages (MV).

Common features on this line are the exceptional reliability in usage and performance, which remains constant in time. The thermal aspect is carefully considered, so that ageing of the insulation is slowed down and the resistive components of the products are reduced.

A particular care is placed in the analysis of the effects of the harmonic content upon each sample. The design is such that in no expected working condition the core is allowed to saturate: this way the electrical linearity of the device is preserved, together with its ideal operationality. In parallel, the choice for the best performance involving magnetic sheet steel and a design aimed at the efficiency allow to retain the losses caused by higher harmonics ripple.

Main typologies

The principal groups of power electronics reactors can be defined as line impedances, filter reactors and DC chokes.

Line reactors are used to stabilize the circuit from the point of view of the converter and towards the grid, at the cost of a small voltage drop. The Technical Department designs components that grant this stabilization, so that the whole rest of the system can operate in ideal conditions and without unwanted disturbances which may jeopardize its functionality.

Similar features are offered by DC chokes, which are designed to make the current as smooth and controllable as possible. These inductors sport the largest currents, so their cooling is precisely studied in order to maximize the reliability of the apparatus.

FDUEG boasts a long experience in sizing dedicate harmonic filters, able to limit the non linear effects of power electronics while restricting them as close as possible to their generation point. Filters are available up to the voltage of 36 kV.