SiC-Based Wireless Power Transformation for Data Centers & Medium Voltage Applications

Suvendu Samanta & Isaac Wong

Funding Source: US DOE and EATON Corporation

Object: The main objective of this project is to design a power supply which facilitates power transmission to data centers at medium voltage. The present system distributes power to the data centers at or below 400V to ensure safety.

Summary: Generally, the data center server racks are supplied power at or below 400V, primarily due to safety. However, due to rapid increase in size of data centers, the power demand is rising sharply, which results in bulky and inefficient low voltage distribution power cables. In this research, an attempt is made to directly feed medium voltage to data centers using SiC converters, where the safety issues are addressed with a contactless power transfer technique. The different parts of this project are 1) proposing suitable power electronic converter topology, 2) analyzing performance, 3) proposing control techniques, 4) building experimental set-up, and 5) packaging complete system.

Impact: The major impact of this research is energy conservation. Power transmission to data centers at medium voltage will reduce large amount of power loss which occurs due to power transmission at low voltage. This will ultimately reduce carbon emission and preserve nature.