Upgrade of paper machine winders with AC drives and the synchronous rectifier

This paper reviews the application of a regenerative AC winder drive system that utilizes vector-controlled, pulse-width modulated technology with IGBT power devices. The "front-end" of the drive system is a synchronous rectifier which converts the AC line supply to DC using the same IGBT devices as the output inverter sections. A review of power flow, regeneration, transformer sizing and power dip ride-through capabilities is included. Finally, the sizing of variable-speed AC motors and their torque characteristics for winder applications are discussed.