NEXT GENERATION MODULAR SIC-BASED ADVANCED POWER ELECTRONICS CONVERTERS FOR ENHANCED RENEWABLES INTEGRATION INTO THE GRID

SiC4GRID is a 48-months project gathering partners from the complete value chain of SiC-based converters collaborating to tackle current obstacles to the technologies' market uptake. SiC4GRID thus aims for an optimised integrated SiC-based technology composed of three-fold innovations in terms of hardware, software and IoT. Indeed, to optimise both techno-economic and environmental pillars, the consortium will design, produce, test and validate an integrated product composed of a 30% smaller size energy-efficient SiC-based power module competitive with state-of-the-art technology and coupled with an adapted optimised self-healing energy management system (EMS). This EMS amplifies the benefits of a strong system-level IoT architecture and adapted digital tools such as digital twin and optimisation algorithms. Throughout the project, the circularity and eco-design of all steps of the converter manufacturing process will be targeted with a strong emphasis on resource optimisation and carbon emission reduction. The testing phase will be done both as an integrated modular converter on a physical test bench, as well as digitally to increase the variety of relevant applications and real-condition scenario. For the digital simulations, three use cases will therefore be chosen to increase the validated parameters and scope of applications, including MMC and SST converters, onshore/offshore wind and PV applications, as well as the potential for storage. Overall, the project contributes to advancing the market readiness of the technology by lowering its cost (30% cost reduction compared to silicon converters), its size (15% size reduction), its lifetime (30+ years) and its environmental impact (30% resource consumption reduction and 50% CO2 emission reduction). In the longer-term, SiC4GRID will thus also help renewable energies integrate the energy grid and bring European leadership to the forefront of converter technology providers.