Direct current zonal electrical distribution system - the US Navy's Integrated Power System's baseline for integrated fight through power

摘要

In spite of considerable interest in electric propulsion in recent years, most electrical power generation and distribution systems regress to the traditional AC radial or zonal electrical distribution system with multiple independent power sources. The implementation of electrical power generation and distribution system, for a ship application, depends largely on the ship's requirements. For example, a combatant ship will have greater survivability requirements than non-combatant ships. Since military vessels must fulfill mission requirements after sustaining battle damage, survivability of the electric power distribution system is one of the primary attributes. The US Navy has seen little change in the basic architecture since the introduction of electricity aboard ships. The most predominant practice is to install a radial 450 VAC distribution system with vital loads supplied from two geographically separated power sources. Bus transfer switches are provided to switch between the normal and alternate power sources. The US Navy has recently adopted the zonal AC distribution system on its DDG-51 class ships. The US Navy is currently investigationg the implementation of a DC Zonal Electric Distribution as a vital component of the Integrated Power System (IPS) for the next generation of surface combatants. This paper describes the nesxt step forward in shipboard power system architecture - the DC Zonal Electrical Distribution System (DC-ZEDS). DC-ZEDS captialises on the advent of modern power electronics and incorporates the concept of Integrated Fight Through Power (IFTP).