Comparison of direct-drive and geared generator concepts for wind turbines

H Polinder, FFA van der Pijl, GJ de Vilder, P.J. Tavner

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticleScientific

    972 Citations (Scopus)

    Abstract

    The objective of this paper is to compare five different generator systems for wind turbines, namely the doubly-fed induction generator with three-stage gearbox (DFIG3G), the direct-drive synchronous generator with electrical excitation (DDSG), the direct-drive permanent-megnet generator (DDPMG), the permanent-magnet generator with single stage gearbox (PMG1G), and the doubly-fed induction generator with single-stage gearbox (DFIG1G). The comparison is based on cost and annual energy yield for a given wind climate. The DFIG3G is a cheap solution using standard components. The DFIG1G seems the most attractive in terms of energy yield divided by cost. The DDPMG has the highest energy yield, but although it is cheaper than the DDSG, it is more expensive than the generator systems with gearbox.
    Original languageUndefined/Unknown
    Pages (from-to)725-733
    Number of pages9
    JournalIEEE Transactions on Energy Conversion
    Volume21
    Issue number3
    Publication statusPublished - 2006

    Keywords

    • academic journal papers
    • CWTS JFIS < 0.75

    Cite this