Here, the DC side passive harmonic reduction circuits (PHRCs) are compared from a technical and economic point of view. In researches on multipulse rectifiers (MPRs), the comparison is mainly based on different source and load conditions, especially accurate information on the amount of the source impedance is not available, which has a considerable impact on the performance of MPRs. Here, all source conditions such as voltage, frequency, and the source impedance, as well as the load power are set to be the same, in order to have an accurate and fair comparison among PHRCs at the DC side of MPRs. Some commonly-used and several DC side PHRCs are compared in terms of their operation principles, kVA rating, weight and size, power losses, input current total harmonic distortion (THD), design complexity, reliability, and cost. The results of the comparisons are used to suggest and select the most suitable PHRCs for different important industrial applications.
INTRODUCTIONRectifiers are widely used in various applications like adjustable speed drives, telecommunication power supplies, high voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission, battery chargers, electric vehicles (EVs), arc furnace units, uninterruptible power supplies (UPS), aircraft converter systems, and power supplies of radar power systems. These rectifiers, are usually fed from the 3-phase system in the range of a few kW and more and have problems such as poor power factor, harmonics, AC voltage distortion, and rippled DC outputs. Many standards and recommendations have been presented, that should be considered by designers, manufacturers, and also users [1]. The designers have to simultaneously satisfy the following two requirements for any solution:• Considering the limits specified in the standards, nearly sinusoidal line currents must be obtained at a high power factor,