Non-Conventional Multilevel Inverter Topology with Reduced Number of Switches for PV Applications using Staircase PWM Technique

Multilevel inverters have got high quality output when compared with two-level inverters so for high power applications the usage of Multi-level inverters has grown more ubiquitous in industries. In this paper, foremost a new topology for multilevel inverters is studied. This multilevel inverter has reduced number of switching devices and voltage sources. This topology is asymmetrical, employing isolated dc voltage sources of ratio 4: 2: 1 (Binary fashion). Since the gating of power switches is done at fundamental frequency makes it suitable for applications like flexible alternative current transmission systems (FACTS), renewable energy sources and drive control. The structure of this inverter is modular and thus best suited for PV applications. The optimal structure concerning the criteria such as standard voltage on the switches, number of switches and number of dc voltage sources etc., is succeeded by paying a special attention. Asymmetric condition is verified for proposed multilevel inverter by using MATLAB SIMULINK software.