Design and Implementation of a Laboratory Prototype of a Modular Multilevel Converter with Embedded Storage

Modular Multilevel Converters (MMCs) have captured the interest of many researchers and power system planners as a novel and flexible voltage source converter topology. The MMC can be extended to integrate energy storage in a modular structure. The converter generates output ac voltages in multiple steps, therefore offering improved harmonic performance. Battery units can be dispersed within the converter, which increases the redundancy of the battery bank. This paper presents the design and development of a laboratory scale single phase MMC with embedded storage. Experimental results are presented and analyzed.