Less maintenance for new wind turbine

Siemans Energy announced today the new SWT-3.0.101 with a rated power of 3 megawatts (MW) offers innovation through a new direct drive concept introducing a permanent magnet generator. With half the parts of a conventional geared wind turbine, and much less than half the number of moving parts, the new wind turbine will require less maintenance and increase profitability for customers. The new direct drive wind turbine features a rotor diameter of 101 meters and is now available for sale for on-shore and off-shore projects around the world.

The picture shows the new SWT-3.0-101 DD wind turbine. The new prototype is a gearless machine with a power rating of three megawatts (MW) and has a rotor diameter of 101 meters.

The new SWT-3.0-101 features a gearless drive train design with a compact, synchronous generator, excited by permanent magnets. The generator of the first prototype machine, which was installed in Denmark in 2009, was produced by the Large Drives Business Unit within the Siemens Industry Sector. The main advantage of permanent magnet generators is their simple and robust design that requires no excitation power, slip rings or excitation control systems.

With a length of 6.8 meters and a diameter of only 4.2 meters, the nacelle can be transported using standard vehicles commonly available in most major markets. “The nacelle of SWT-3.0-101 weighs only 73 tons, which is less than the nacelle of our standard 2.3-MW wind turbine”, added Henrik Stiesdal. “But despite the compact design, we have actually given our service technicians more space to operate – simply because we radically reduced the number of parts”.

Of the five key components in a wind turbine – the blade, rotor hub, nacelle, tower and the controller – all but the nacelle are adapted from Siemens existing portfolio. By utilizing proven components, Siemens has endeavored to eliminate the risks traditionally associated with the introduction of such an innovative product.

Gearbox, generator, and controls in one package

GE Drivetrain Technologies, a unit of GE Transportation, Erie, Pa, says the company has launched a wind generator and control systems division to serve wind turbine owners around the globe.

The new company will immediately offer doubly-fed induction and permanent magnet generators in the 2 to 6 MW power range. The company produces more than 3,000, 2 MW and greater generators annually and has sold more than one million generators and motors globally. The company says these generators have been proven reliable in extreme environments in applications as diverse as railway locomotives, mining trucks, and off shore drilling rigs.

“Our objective is to apply GE Transportation’s capability to advance the state of the art in wind energy generation technology,” says GE Drivetrain Business Leader Prescott Logan. “GE Transportation’s global supply chain, including existing generator-manufacturing facilities in Erie, Pa. and Monterrey, Mexico creates near-term production capability.”