Voltage source inverter (VSI) is commonly used in industrial due to its stable operation and low cost. However, VSI needs to operate with an extra converter stage which is a DC-DC converter for voltage boosting purposes. In contrast, current source inverter (CSI) inherits voltage boosting features may become an alternative option to VSI. Yet, there were minimal research on CSI that dedicates to the voltage boosting features. This research focuses on comparing the voltage boosting features of CSI and VSI in both open-loop and closed-loop conditions. The performance of VSI and CSI are simulated using MATLAB/Simulink. Under open-loop operation, CSI produces a voltage boosting capability at approximately 55% higher than VSI. Yet, CSI suffers high THD percentage as compared to VSI for the same switching frequency. This high THD shortcoming can be easily resolved by using a simple CL filter. For closed-loop operation, VSI and CSI with voltage-controlled synchronous frame PI control systems are proven to have good reference tracking and harmonic rejection and are suitable to be implemented for household applications or for a standalone system. Interestingly, CSI closed-loop system can achieve a wider range of output due to the voltage boosting capability and provide a better quality of output waveform as compared to VSI.
