IGBTs explained and IGBT based heater controller

[@Duffytoler]

I'm an engineer who has used IGBT's for years - this is the best explanation for using them I've seen so far. THANK YOU. Next time someone asks, I'm just going to send them a link to this video.

[@oariv]

The way you explained the correct use as also the don'ts was great. Thank you man you taught me a lot.

[@bowtie3963]

Well you seem just fine behind the camera to me.I am trying to learn about how to build an induction heater as I need one to repair a piece of machinery that has a hub frozen rusted to a shaft and torches/fluids,etc. didn't work.I am 52 and disabled so I can't buy one,but I horded enough electrical/electronics stuff over the years,I may have enough to build one.You have taught this "old man" a lot and I applaud you for posting this series about induction heaters!Continue learning and sharing that knowledge and you will go far! I was a machinist as well as a fabricator for nearly 30yrs,if you ever have any questions along those lines,I'd be glad to return the favor :)

[@mbunds]

Excellent primer! I aquired a few 1200 V @ 600 amp Dual IGBT's with a bank of very nice low-ESR capacitors on a copper bus assembly, and had no idea how to drive them. I also found some matching internals from a small VFD (600 volt, 250 amp) that may provide adequate driver parts. Now all I have to do is figure out what to power with it. Thanks for making this video!

[@picanazo420]

you can make a big drsstc with that

[@subcooledheatpump]

When I was going to college for electronics engineering, my professor told me once that I didn't need a free wheeling diode for driving a resistive load, since it wasn't inductive. Years later, I got my very own oscilloscope and took measurements. As it turns out, the wires connecting the resistor do have inductance, so do wirewound resistors. Capacitors and a freewheeling diode are a must for any IGBT setup. Thanks for watching

[@subcooledheatpump]

an isolated power supply for the gate drivers, another for the microprocessor/signal generator, and an isolation transformer for the inverter power source. Also shield your face, flying pieces of IGBT will hurt if it decides to blow. ear protection wouldn't hurt either. Good luck and thanks for watching

[@bikefarmbikes]

Brilliant, thanks , just subscribed. For anyone who wants to know you are the guy to look for. Clear informative instruction. You have already done a great job but if you had time a clear diagram ( sketch) would help viewers. Thanks for your effort and sharing. If...you are bored and wanted to talk about high powered SRCs I'm sure you'd have an audience :)

[@high1voltage1rules]

How can someone thumb this down!! He's great at what he does here! To go out of his way and help to explain the workings of an IGBT the correct way!! So I myself thank you for you time friend! And keep up the good work! ;-) BIG THUMBS UP*

[@bikefarmbikes]

Fantastic explanation. Watched it a year ago and enjoyed it even more this time~! Interested to know how much effort need to go into cooling the IGBTs in your set up and wouldn't the heater count as a resistive load. Reason I ask is that you seemed to imply that the large capacitor bank was for inductive loads. Would be interesting to see your AC-DC rectifier and capacitor set up too.You are a natural teacher and a credit to the youtube community. Thanks

[@semidemiurge]

That was a thorough and excellent brief tutorial, well done.

[@GuyWithBeardedLizard]

I have ran these IGBT's linearly on loads that pushes their collectors power dissipation for a long time because I have them mounted to a BIG heatsink. Their gate has a lot of capacitance toward pwm but they are worth the effort for pwm motors and so much more!

[@MasterIvo]

Great. correct infirmation. thanks. I do not use the reverse recovery diodes for my IGBT half bridge. Instead I use those inductive spikes differently. I need to know how I can get the igbt to switch off as fast as possible. any help would be appreciated. negative gate prevents turn on, but does it discharge the igbt charge faster (no)?

[@subcooledheatpump]

@mrCbeems This won't be easy but, here goes. The gate driver for this project is an HCPL-3120 optically isolated gate driver. an IR2101 is a half bridge driver, this circuit is whats called an "IGBT Chopper" it doesn't use the upper element, only the upper diode.So an IR2101 would work but you'd have to disconnect the "High output". As for how the IR2101 works, it uses a "bootstrap circuit" that takes power from the DC bus to charge a capacitor in a pulse this gives power to the high gate driver

[@Speeder84XL]

Very nice explanation - it have helped me a lot. But those huge IGBT's you show there is probably overkill for most of us as whe dont even have close to the power those can handle going into our houses, haha. I use just a small one mounted on a heat sink to power regulate an 8 kW furnace running on about 535 V DC - small units does have a lot less capacitance in their gates and is very easy to drive. For very low voltage applications and just a lot of current, MOSFET's probably have lower "on state conductivity" - but pretty much the same rules probably apply for those if they are big.

[@subcooledheatpump]

@blackmesa25 The SKM400 is a big IGBT.Driving that from 555 is possible in theory, but the switching frequency would need to be very low (1Khz max) and it would only drive the lower IGBT. What I would do, use a halfbridge driver like SG3525, get two opto isolaters, and two gate drivers like CLA360-ND. Then use two isolated power supplies to power each gate driver. feed the singal from the 3525 to the optical isolaters, then from the isolaters to the gate drivers. Good Luck, Thanks

[@subcooledheatpump]

Yes IGBTs are very dangerous and unstable. They can only operate under very strict conditions. There has actually been money invested into research and development for a foam packaging for IGBTs to minimize component damage in the case of explosive IGBT failure. Low temperatures can also help keep IGBTs stable as I explain in some of my other videos. Thanks for watching

[@subcooledheatpump]

For IGBT protection, the only thing you can do (besides a properly designed DC bus and correct gate resistor and driver, and proper cooling) is overcurrent detection with soft turn off. Yes isolation between the CPU and the IGBT gates is needed. You need 4 isolated power supplies, one for all the lower stages(negative) and 3 for each of the upper stages (positive) good luck

[@Nivicoman]

Go boom is right, the company I work for makes UPS's and power conditioners. Every now and then an IGBT lets go and makes a nice little explosion. From what I can gather a problem in the control section makes the wrong ones turn on or lets the inverter devices shoot through across the + and - DC rails. I heard of someone who metered an IGBT live and blew it up from current introduced into it's gate at something not high frequency PWM, likely either DC or 60 Hz. IGBT conducts too long POW!

[@subcooledheatpump]

@bejius Do you mean supply power to an IGBT with AC or use an IGBT to create an AC waveform? If you're trying to supply an IGBT with AC power, all you really need is a rectifier and a capacitor bank. To use an IGBT to create an AC waveform, then you would need a dual IGBT module, two gate drivers, two isolated power supplies and an inverter circuit to drive it. Alternatively, you could also use a single IGBT module driving an inductance to create AC, but this would act like a boost converter.

[@ohmedarick1]

Excellent explanation . Thank you for your time and effort to make this video .

[@subcooledheatpump]

IGBTs are primarily used for PWM. You might be able to use one for an electronic load, but don't attempt linear operation unless you want to destroy one

[@stridermt2k]

Very cool video! Definitely forwarded my understanding of IGBTs Thanks for taking the time to make this video.

[@rishabhsharma831988]

Hey we were using a MOSFET instead of an IGBT for a 800 W wind turbine application. We were planning to use an Arduino microcontroller to perform MPPT (max power point tracking) and hence, using the Arduino to change the duty cycle through the MOSFET. Do you think its a good idea ? Thanks

[@shodanxx]

Pretty good video, but do you need such big ass capacitors on the output for a 300W load ? Your setup doesn't seem very economical ! How trying to figure out what can be done with the 2$ to 5$ IGBTs that can be found on ebay like the G30N60, SKP15N60, FGA25N120, FGPF4633 and HGTP5N120 the HGTP5N120 is rated 21 amps 1200V, I wonder if I could drive a 5 HP 240V electrical compressor motor with it, I would like to add soft-starting and more safety features to it

[@subcooledheatpump]

sure, as long as the MOSFET voltage, current and temperature ranges are not exceeded. 800 watts is pretty small. I assume this would be fairly low voltage as well, so a MOSFET may be better suited

[@subcooledheatpump]

@high1voltage1rules Glad you're back. I was watching your videos and one day your channel disappeared. I was wondering what happend. I'll be waiting for some videos form you, if you're still making videos, I'll watch them.

[@subcooledheatpump]

@mrCbeems There is indeed a schematic of this heat controller, On my channel, watch the video "IGBT PWM controller finished" In the description there is a link at the bottom for a schematic.

[@subcooledheatpump]

on and off. The only thing required is to charge the gate capacitor to turn on, and discharge to turn off. This takes on the order of a few milliamps to a few amps. Whereas a bipolar transistor or gate turn off thyristor can take hundreds to thousands of amps to turn off. Generally speaking then you do want to avoid using an IGBT as much as possible, for example a simple low speed switch should be a mechanical relay or contactor. But for high speed and high power you will need to use an IGBT

[@subcooledheatpump]

@blackmesa25 Well I was thinking about making another video, but you've just sealed the deal, now I'm for sure making another one. I'll be playing with some more interesting electronic toys and I'll try to explain everything a little better in the next video, thanks for watching, I'm glad you are enjoying my videos.

[@leosedf]

Any ideas if IGBT's can be used on electronic dc loads? I'm building a dc load using mosfet's and i was wondering if there is a way to use them as loads.

[@fabianm.2982]

Thank you young man, great explanation.

[@tinsaeberhane4836]

Hey Dear, could you please tell me 1. purpose of capacitor bank in igbt circuit (both in motor controller and induction heater) 2. how to select and size capacitor banks 3. how to select snubber capacitor and free wheeling diodes my question answer may depend on the type and power of application but i need if there is general rule for rough estimation

[@ttthomasss77]

3. I don't know what type of snubber are you talking about But for RCD snubber the snubber capacitor, you have to select a value that doesn't make the capacitor voltage change a lot during one period : 10% seems reasonable. You also have to check if the capacitor will be ok with the ripple current. Then the resistor will be chosen with the power you have to dissipate with the capacitor voltage Don't hesitate to look for "application Notes" for your application, there is all lot of informations in it ;) For the diode check that the breakdown voltage is enough for your application and that the RMS current and peak current is ok

[@subcooledheatpump]

Yeah that's the nature of youtube. You can always ask me anything in a comment or message. I'd be glad to answer or direct you to someone who can answer

[@HowToGuys]

Nice tutorial,helped a lot

[@subcooledheatpump]

IGBT are mainly used in inverters that require switching speeds higher than what relays can provide. As I explained in this video, Mosfets and bipolar junction transistors were used before, but the IGBT was engineered to perform better than both in certain applications. Mosfets are still much faster switching than IGBTs but have greater losses. Bipolar junction transistors and thyristors can usually take more current but they aren't as fast as IGBTs The IGBT is also easier to switch (continued)

[@subcooledheatpump]

My Welder? This is to control a heater. An IGBT chopper can be used as a welder but the control would need to be setup to detect and limt current so it would behave as a current source, not a voltage source. A half bridge or full bridge inverter would be better suited as a welder

[@nelupaduraru7304]

Invertor and IGBT 100 ?

[@SaideepRokzz]

why are u using 555 timer ?

[@mattmoreira210]

I think the water gets dirty because of electrolysis caused by the magnetically-induced electric current on the outer copper, due to the higher frequency strengthening the magnetic coupling. ;)

[@Nrgypeople]

GREAT instruction man. Keep up the good work.

[@BenjaminMaggi]

How can I use an IGBT with AC ?

[@normellow]

Nice 👍 Keep making more videos!

[@TSulemanW]

Genius. Nicely Explaination

[@subcooledheatpump]

Check your math. It's a 7.2 kW load, not 300W. Heater is 16 ohms. Capacitors charged from rectified 240 volts, thats 340 peak to peak. Thats 21 amps and 340 volts. The capacitors are still a little overkill even for that but it was only for a demonstration anyway. Use caution with those small IGBTs. Their ratings look good on paper but they are small and very difficult to remove heat from.

[@suttisaksottipayapunt8871]

Can you share schematic?

[@orogundaniel9949]

Hi pls i need ur help, i want to use 4 dual igbt for ac to ac converter pls i want to know how to connect them,i want to use it for a static stabilizer pls i need your help.

[@scoobystavoren2868]

How do you control the amps??.

[@subcooledheatpump]

You can control the average output current simply by adjusting the IGBT on time, or in other words the pulse width or duty cycle. The peak output current however, is controlled by the input voltage and output resistance (impedance) IGBTs merely function as a high speed switch, so in a sense they really cannot control the output current, they can only pulse the output. Thanks for watching

[@kevinowens7082]

You charged the capacitors, changed measurements, etc and we are watching the meter. We want to SEE what your doing and the meter.

[@high1voltage1rules]

Hey the mate it's blackmesa25. Yeah sorry mate iv had to make another account! As I was getting a lot of bad flagging and comments! So here I am with another one!! Hope it hasn't coursed any problems mate. And will try to bring some great videos. Take care friend and be safe ;-)

[@BestForexBroker2024]

Hello, I wish to build an induction heater and I already have most of the parts. I have : 1 X CM300DU-24F with snubber cap ; 6 x SKM100gb123d ; 6 x 2.0 uF 1000V aerovox capacitors ; 5 rectification bridges ; many big electrolitic capacitors ; contactors ; switches ; BIG aluminium radiator and others various items. If you would of had these components what you would use: one CM300DU-24F or 2 X SKM100gb123d ? My mains power is 220V monophase. I ve saved a lot of plans on my computer but none with similar components. I don t have much electronic knowledge but I trully want to make this happen. I ve made a short video with my components and you can see the tags on all of them. Maybe you can help me decide which design to use or any advice will help hugely. Thanks

[@MuruganMurugan-mb3wz]

Sir please I want igpt driver curcute please

[@leosedf]

Sorry i ment to use a PWM controlled IGBT for a load, no need for high frequencies. Never tried it.

[@bme77]

Hey man i watch your project and is very good. But.. you must develop some good lab to test those thinks! It's very dangerous to have those caps & cables on the floor! build some wooden table to put it there.I working on power electronic's on ups systems and i always take safety measures first. Very good presentation by the way!

[@sgbgb2352]

Nice presentation

[@johnjohn-ne8fw]

what a smart kid!

[@tk-maker]

the best ever

[@rishabhsharma831988]

thanks

[@KeplerTiburcio]

Subscribed :-)

[@high1voltage1rules]

Subscribed* ;-)

[@polificante]

kkkkkk que Bagunça rsrsrsr Wow Friend tidy this mess

[@StortWeldingCoLLC]

Who cares,,you going to use this to turn on your welder????