Power factor correction based on diode clamped rectifier

Multilevel converters are recent alternative ways of implementing high power medium voltage applications compared with two-level converters. This paper presents a three-level pulse-width modulation scheme based on the diode clamped rectifier for power factor correction. Eight power switches are employed in the adopted switching mode rectifier. The voltage stress of each power switch is only half of the de-link voltage. This advantage allows the low voltage stress semiconductor to be used in the high voltage applications. The control scheme is based on a look-up table to achieve high power factor and low current harmonics to meet the harmonic limits of International Electrotechnical Commission standard 1000-3-2. The neutral point voltage balance problem is overcome by using a voltage compensator to reduce the voltage variation under the unbalanced load condition. The proposed control technique illustrates its validity and effectiveness through simulations and experiments.