Novel power electronics application in traction power supply system in Japan

The electric railroads have expanded and have been improved by power electronics technologies. This paper introduces power electronics applications in traction power supply systems in Japan. The three-phase 25-MVA STATCOMs (STATic synchronous COMpensator) suppress fluctuations of the system voltage in an independent power system of a metropolitan rail network. The single-phase STATCOMs called as RPCs operate in high-speed railroad substations in the Shinkansen. The RPCs (Railway Power Conditioner) are able to control reactive power or to transfer active power between the two single-phase power systems and achieve voltage stabilization of the power sysytem. These STATCOMs consist of large capacity 3-level GCT (Gate Commutated Turn-off) thyristor converters which achieves downsizing.