A survey on reduced switch count multilevel inverters

Abstract

An efficient and cost-effective power converter is a pre-requisite for the modern power ap plications. With the evolvement of matured medium power self-commutated switching devices, multilevel inverters (MLIs) are emerged as a promising solution for high-power medium-voltage applications. Though, MLIsareperforming a promising role in industrial applications, their high device count, size, cost and control complexities have restricted their market penetration. To address the disadvantages of MLIs, researchers are continuously contributing to new generation topologies under the name of reduced switch count (RSC) MLIs. From the past decade, numerous RSC-MLIs topologies have been reported for various applications. Therefore, this paper presents a comprehensive review and classification of RSC-MLI topologies, in terms of their structure, features, limitations, suitability and selection for specific applications.