A Single-Phase Asymmetrical T-Type Five-Level Transformerless PV Inverter

Abstract

This paper presents a transformerless single-phase inverter topology based on a modified H-bridge-based multilevel converter. The topology comprises two legs, namely, a usual two-level leg and a T-type leg. The latter is based on a usual two-level leg, which has been modified to gain access to the midpoint of the split dc-link by means of a bidirectional switch. The topology is referred as an asymmetrical T-type five-level (5L-T-AHB) inverter. An ad hoc modulation strategy based on sinusoidal pulsewidth modulation is also presented to control the 5L-T-AHB inverter, where the two-level leg is commuted at fundamental frequency. Numerical and experimental results show that the proposed 5L-T-AHB inverter achieves high efficiency, exhibits reduced leakage currents, and complies with the transformerless norms and regulations, which makes it suitable for the transformerless PV inverters market. <sup xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">11</sup> This updated version includes experimental evidence, considerations for practical implementation, efficiency studies, visualization of semiconductor losses distribution, a deeper and corrected common mode analysis, and an improved notation among other modifications.