IEEE Electrification Magazine - December 2013 - 38

By P. Cairoli and R.A. Dougal

New Horizons
in DC Shipboard
Power Systems
New fault protection strategies are essential
to the adoption of dc power systems.

n the last decade, the increased performance, improving efficiency, and
decreasing cost of electronic power converters have spurred the rediscovery and proliferation of dc power distribution systems. these are increasingly of interest for ships,
where a dc grid has significant benefits, yet significant challenges must also be overcome before these systems can be widely adopted.
the benefits of dc systems in microgrids in general, and ships in particular, are many. voltage conversion is performed at high frequencies (tens of kilohertz), thereby eliminating the need for large
60-hz transformers. the need to synchronize generators is eliminated, so each generating plant can
operate at its own optimum speed for maximum efficiency. as shown in figure 1, many different kinds
of power generation, conversion, or storage elements (flywheels, batteries, supercapacitors, etc.) can be
interfaced to the main distribution bus with simplified common interfaces to provide back-up power,
compensate for temporary power mismatches, and provide premium power that may be necessary to
support future pulse loads. the distribution bus can be divided into multiple sections to improve survivability, and bus ties can be instantly operated without first synchronizing the buses. most loads,
including nearly all motors, have electronic power interfaces to the grid, so dc distribution eliminates
redundant rectification and inversion, as shown in figure 2.
many of these advantages also apply to terrestrial microgrids that are applied in data and telecommunication centers, renewable energy systems, and other increasingly common industrial applications
that have no inherent 50-hz ac nature, even if the size and weight advantages are not as valuable.
While these benefits of dc systems also apply to all other forms of transportation, from automobiles to locomotives, ship systems are somewhat different in terms of power and size; the large scale
of ship systems presents unique challenges for system protection. it is one thing to protect a lowvoltage system, even at relatively high currents. it is quite another to protect a system operating at
tens of kilovolts and tens of kiloamperes-approximately 100 mW.
a new approach has been proposed for the protection and rapid reconfiguration of such systems,
capitalizing on the inherent controllability and current-limiting capabilities of electronic power

I

Digital Object Identifier 10.1109/MELE.2013.2291431
Date of publication: 26 February 2014

38

I E E E E l e c t r i f i cati o n M agaz ine / december 2013

2325-5987/13/$31.00©2013IEEE



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