Design and Performance Evaluation of Conventional and Finite Control Set Model Predictive Control-Based 270 VDC Transformer Rectifier Units for More-Electric Aircraft

The increasing adoption of 270 VDC distribution in More-Electric Aircraft (MEA) demands improved power quality, voltage regulation, and dynamic performance from aircraft power conversion systems. However, conventional passive Transformer Rectifier Units (TRUs) have limited capability to regulate the DC output voltage and shape the input current. To address these limitations, this paper presents the design and performance evaluation of an actively controlled 12 kW, 270 VDC TRU employing a Finite Control Set Model Predictive Control (FCS-MPC) strategy, with reference to MIL-STD-704F and RTCA DO-160G aerospace standards. The active TRU design is evaluated through detailed MATLAB/Simulink R2024a simulations and compared with an experimentally investigated passive 12-pulse TRU of identical ratings. The assessment covers voltage regulation and ripple, input current harmonics, inrush current, voltage transient, power factor, efficiency, estimated cost, weight and volume. FFT-based analysis shows that the active topology reduces total harmonic distortion (THD) from 10.99–11.77% to 2.83–3.47% under no-load and full-load conditions, respectively. The controller maintained the DC output voltage within 270 ± 5 VDC, reduced DC voltage ripple by up to 66.7%, and reduced peak inrush current by approximately 55–57% under the controlled energization conditions. These results demonstrate the potential of FCS-MPC-based active rectification for 270 VDC MEA applications.