For electrified aircraft propulsion, SiC MOSFET inverter design with power redundancy in both escape event and failure

To reduce carbon dioxide emissions, electrified aircraft propulsion has been extensively studied worldwide. Among electrified aircraft, urban air mobility features short-range flying times. Both fully electric and hybrid types have been developed, undergoing field tests and awaiting commercial service induction. This paper describes a virtual electrical aircraft propulsion system designed as a 600 kW-rated aviation system for five passengers and one pilot, with some luggage, simulating a real flight. The propulsion system is powered by batteries and motors, comprising 12 distributed electric propulsion (DEP) systems. Each DEP inverter circuit is a two-level, three-phase inverter. A silicon carbide (SiC) metal–oxide–semiconductor field-effect transistor (MOSFET) module and an isolation gate driver Integrated Circuit (IC) are used to evaluate this inverter system. Through a virtual power profile, power redundancy is analyzed under normal conditions and unplanned worst-case scenarios. For a planned trajectory, the system's power profile is assessed during the takeoff, cruise, and landing phases. The DC-link voltage discharged is also reviewed for these flight stages. In some cases, due to external conditions, a quick escape motion during the cruise phase requires the propulsion system to operate at maximum power for a specific duration. In such unplanned events, flight time extends, leading to greater DC-link voltage discharge compared with a planned trajectory. To calculate power loss, switching losses are measured using a demo power board. These measurement results are used in loss simulation instead of datasheet values. Each DEP's output power value is derived from the system's virtual profile, and each DEP inverter's power loss is calculated through measurement-based simulation. Maximum power and current are evaluated as critical conditions in each virtual profile. Through loss and thermal simulations, the power redundancy of the proposed DEP inverter system is validated for use in electric propulsion systems.