Hello,
Was wondering about the wind powered turbines/generators that will apparently become more and more popular in the future. e.g., the large wind farm they are trying to push through off of Cape Cod in MA.
Question: do most of these new designs use an AC generator, or a DC one ?
Why ?
Thanks, Bob
The final output is AC. So it can interface directly with the existing electrical grid.
Now, the details can vary, but most are AC generators and have an electronics module to deal with interfacing to the grid. Wound-rotor induction generators with slip recovery is one popular technique for this. Why? AC generators have inherently lower maintenance requirements than traditional DC generators. And at over 100 ft up in the air, hi maintenance equipment is the last thing you want (especially if you have to get there by boat)
daestrom
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