Hybrid Modulation Strategies for Eliminating Low-Frequency Neutral-Point Voltage Oscillations in the Neutral-Point-Clamped Converter

Nearest vector (NV) modulation strategies for the neutral-point-clamped converter are known to generate low-frequency neutral point (NP) voltage oscillations. Non-NV strategies can eliminate these oscillations, but at the expense of higher switching losses and output voltage harmonic distortion. This letter proposes a simple way of creating hybrid strategies, as combinations of NV and non-NV strategies, which are also able to eliminate NP voltage oscillations. The approach minimizes the participation of non-NV strategies and hence their drawbacks, while it can be applied to any type of load (nonlinear and/or unbalanced). Simulations in MATLAB-Simulink are used to illustrate its operation.