The transition towards a low carbon economy requests a deep change within the energy industry infrastructure and the power grids. The conventional technologies are in fact not fully prepared to face this challenge and have limited impact in terms of results and capabilities.
The SSTAR project starts from Solid-State Transformers (SSTs), a quite recent promising innovative technology, and aims at increasing their operational voltage level to enlarge their applications, while improving the energy sector in a more sustainable way.
These innovations will be tested in two certified labs based in Spain and Portugal.
A new biobased dielectric fluid will be developed and it will be able to increase the SSTs modules’ insulation voltage.
Expected result: given the natural origin of the raw materials, these fluids will be biodegradable with up to 50% of CO2 savings (compared to traditional mineral oils).
Design, develop and test new SST modules based on SiC (Silicon Carbide) semiconductor with a bidirectional inductive power transfer system, able to increase the individual voltage.
Expected result: Improvement of isolation between the high voltage and the low voltage; increase of the module operation voltage up to 1.5kV; reduction of the total number of modules
Implement a decentralized control cascade H-Bridge (CHB) converter to scale up the number of modules in a single SST device, making it smaller but with high performances.
Expected results: scaling up
Promote a sustainable approach in the development of the new generation of HV SSTs quantifying environmental, economic and social benefits within a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) framework.
Expected results: determining a low environmental impact over the whole SST lifecycle, from raw material extraction to decommissioning in terms of reduction of CO2, use of non-hazardous, recyclable and longer lifetime raw materials, etc
Identify and analyze the SSTAR applications with the greatest replication potential towards the energy transition beyond the energy distribution system and the technical obstacles.
Expected results: identify the sectors where the validated solution can be used (e.g. e-mobility, energy production and storage, etc.)
The main beneficiary of SSTAR results will be the energy sector and, particularly, the distribution and transmission grid. The technology will be able to maximize the penetration of RES while ensuring the correct and safe operation of the grid.
SSTAR solutions will be crucial to decarbonising the energy sector, fostering a transition to a greenhouse-gas-neutral EU economy. An exhaustive LCA study will be performed to quantify the environmental benefits of the solutions proposed.
SSTAR will combine several fields of engineering (i.e. mechanical, thermal, electromagnetic and electronical engineering and computer sciences) in order to develop the SST for high voltage grids.
SSTAR will make synergies between the electric and the biorefinery sectors, achieving an intersectoral approach through the integration of bioeconomy practices in the energy sector.
SSTAR will perform lifecycle economic (LCC) and social (S-LCA) assessment paving the way for their market uptake and social acceptance, while upscaling and expanding the beneficiary sectors (beyond the grids) and business cases.