Efficient Isomorphism Based Simulation of Modular Multilevel Converters

Modular multilevel converters (MMCs) are increasingly acquiring a prominent role in modern high-voltage direct current power systems. Despite the conceptually simple structure of each submodule making up the converter, the transient simulation of an MMC poses significant computational challenges. Several models have been proposed that present a trade-off between simulation accuracy and computational burden. To develop an efficient simulation framework for MMCs, we employ concepts of isomorphism, a well-established computational framework widely adopted in electronics, to substantially simplify the simulation of intrinsically modular electronic systems, such as memory modules. By grouping together isomorphic submodules, our algorithm dramatically reduces the number of equations to be solved, thus allowing for the implementation of detailed, transistor-level descriptions of each submodule.