Three-phase inverter for small high speed motors

摘要

A high-frequency three-phase inverter is being developed to drive a miniature centrifugal compressor which is a key component in a long-life space-borne cryocooler. The inverter is a unique transformer-coupled design, tailored to the low-voltage high-current characteristic of the compressor's induction motor. The design and performance demonstration of a breadboard model of the inverter are described. The cryocooler uses a reverse-Brayton cycle with turbomachines to provide 5 watt of cooling at 70 K. The design target for input power to the compressor motor is 175 watts. Line-to-neutral phase voltage waveforms to be supplied by the inverter have an amplitude of 15 volt-rms at a frequency of 8 kHz. DC power at 28 volt is supplied to the inverter. The breadboard inverter was tested with a preliminary development model of the compressor. It drove the compressor over a range of operating conditions encompassing frequencies of 5 to 9 kHz at powers of 56 to 437 watt. Inverter efficiencies, calculated from experimentally verified loss models, ranged from 89 to 95 percent over the tests. The design target on efficiency is 90 percent. The inverter was demonstrated to supply starting current adequate to overcome the starting friction of the compressor's self-acting gas bearings by a safe margin.