Improvement Perspectives of a Halbach Generator Used for Low Speed Wind Turbines

Wind energy has become one of the most advantageous sources of renewable energy. The worldwide request for affordable and clean energy is increasing the demand for small-wind turbine solutions. Low wind speed determines a low frequency of the generators, and this impacts the wind energy output. To harvest the small wind energy and convert it into electricity different types of generators are proposed. Synchronous permanent magnet generators are widely used due to their brushless construction. In this work the design of an efficient permanent magnet generator for low wind turbines using segmented gap Halbach array is proposed. The two pole Halbach generator uses sintered NdFeB magnets to develop an increased magnetic field in the outside area of the rotor. Total losses of the generator in the low-frequency range are evaluated using the finite element method.