Operation of inverters supplying mutually coupled induction heating loads

A novel method of induction heating was recently proposed which allows closer control of the heating profile within the workpiece. The system, known as complementary profile heating (CPH) use a number of separate inverter-fed heating coils to supply the metallic strip. The immediate application for CPH is the heating of strip metals and it is envisaged that the power levels could be several MW, with an operating frequency of around 3 KHz. One of the most common types of inverter used for such applications is the current-fed load-commutated inverter. The principles of the CPH system and the inverter are described. Result of the computer simulation and experiments are given.