Inverters for commercial fuel cell power generation

This paper describes the results of work accomplished in developing low cost, high efficiency dc to ac power conversion equipment for fuel cell powerplants to be used in two different commercial applications. The first is for on-site power generation in the range of 10 to 500 kW and the second is for dispersed electric utility power generation in substations at a 26 MW power level. Performance data is presented on single-phase and three-phase prototype inverters in the first category. Work currently in progress on the 26 MW inverter is described including operational tests on a 500 kW unit delivering power into the lines of the Connecticut Light and Power Company. To accomplish the desired results, fast switching thyristors with low forward drop and high dv/dt are used.