Date of Award
12-2025
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Department
Electrical and Computer Engineering (Holcomb Dept. of)
Committee Chair/Advisor
Dr. Christopher S. Edrington
Committee Member
Dr. Gokhan Ozkan
Committee Member
Dr. Johan H. Enslin
Committee Member
Dr. Dingrui Li
Committee Member
Dr. Behnaz Papari
Abstract
The application of power electronic converters (PEC) in electric vehicles (EVs) has significantly increased due to their enhanced controllability and flexibility. Additionally, Permanent Magnet Synchronous Machines (PMSMs) are favored in EVs for their higher torque, efficiency, performance, and heat dissipation capabilities compared to asynchronous machines. The reliable operation of power converters in PMSM drives is crucial for EV operation, and this is driving interest in developing innovative and sustainable technologies that ensure the safe and reliable functioning of PECs. One of the main challenges in achieving reliable PECs is designing effective thermal management systems to control junction temperature and reduce the thermal cycling of power semiconductors. Active Thermal Control (ATC), which reduces short and medium term thermal cycles by utilizing temperature-related control parameters, and active cooling methods that utilize external energy to circulate cooling air or liquid, can address these concerns. This dissertation proposes a thermal management system that combines active thermal control with liquid-based active cooling to enhance the thermal performance of a motor drive system. The proposed method uses the Finite Control Set Model Predictive Control (FCS-MPC) approach to predict the electrothermal characteristics of a three level Neutral Point Clamped (3L-NPC) converter and determine its optimum state. The speed reference is converted to the reference current using the Maximum Torque per Ampere (MTPA) method and a Cauer-based thermal network is employed to predict the junction temperature of the semiconductors. Moreover, a closed-loop active thermal control approach via power routing of parallel DC-AC converters is presented. The power routing-based ATC technique efficiently distributes the thermal load across various segments of a modular converter, thereby minimizing thermal stress on the most susceptible components. The effectiveness of the proposed thermal management system is demonstrated through MATLAB/Simulink results, with real time verification conducted using OPAL-RT OP4510 digital real time simulator and controller hardware in the loop verification conducted using dSPACE DS1202 MicroLabBox and OPAL-RT OP4510 digital real time simulator.
Recommended Citation
Rahman, S M Imrat, "Thermal Management of Power Electronic Converters in Electric Motor Drives Using Active Thermal Control and Active Cooling" (2025). All Dissertations. 4145.
https://open.clemson.edu/all_dissertations/4145
Author ORCID Identifier
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3934-0240