Wind Generator Selection

[masalai]

Hi Bert,
On my monocrystalline I guess around 14% ... I selected on the basis of watts-per-$ and size to best fit my roof space (13 panels maximum)... PV panels are cheap but not really efficient, but what electrical system is really efficient?

There are other images here My little piece of peace for the start and http://www.boatdesign.net/forums/boa...-new-post.html for the most recent...

[BertKu]

Hi Captainjsw,

Pity I did not know your problem earlier with regards to your expensive 36 Volt solar charger. In principle you could make one yourself for about $ 20.
However one need to know the shortcircuit current of your 36 Volt panels.
This to know with what thickness copper you have to wind your ferrite coil.
Also to know the current size of the output Mosfet.
For any electronic hobbyist it is not too difficult to make. Maybe you have a friend who likes to play with electronics and could make it for you.

A very simple one you could do yourself, but the efficiency is low, some 30%. With 2 transistors 2N3055 parallel and a 15 Volt 7815 regulator, one resistor and a 2 x 40 Ampere single casing Schottky diode parallel connected. ($ 3.00). But like I said it is a bad solution as you waste a lot of energy. On the other hand, if your 12 Volt panels don't produce the charging voltage anymore, your 36 Volt panel will still charge your 12 Volt batteries.

I would not sell those 36 Volt panels, but keep them as a backup for overcast days and charge your batteries with your home made charger and with full blast sun via the expensive charger you bought.

Bert

[BertKu]

Originally Posted by masalai

Hi Bert,
On my monocrystalline I guess around 14% ... I selected on the basis of watts-per-$ and size to best fit my roof space (13 panels maximum)... PV panels are cheap but not really efficient, but what electrical system is really efficient?

There are other images here My little piece of peace for the start and http://www.boatdesign.net/forums/boa...-new-post.html for the most recent...

Those two photo's really gave a good impression of your boat. The ones I previous saw, did not give me an complete picture. With apology to Captainjsw, maybe he allows me to give you a quick update. I am struggling with my project. The batteries are on a 6 months lead time , due to Japan nuclear problem. Also two different motors I ordered in May will only come off the production line in November 2011. I just read the e-mail from Jeremy again and realised, that he had the same problem as I had with my circuit diagram and that it was NOT my software, but the charging energy to my MOSfets switched parallel. That was the reason why I wanted to let the motors run at 1 rpm, to make sure that whatever happens, I should be able to re-start the DC Brushless motors after stalling.
But for me it is a 4 year project. I don't want to get a divorce, just because I am working day and night on my project. I take it easy.

Captainjsw, do you want us to make a printed circuit board for the two different chargers? I don't mind doing it and putting it at no cost in the post to you as Poste Restante somewhere in the world, in case you don't want to publish your private address. But you have to get a couple of electronic foundies to help you to formulate the choke. i.e. material N22 or whatever, size, thickness copper wire, recommended P type Mostfet, etc. I am not so good in that anymore. Foregive me I am 71 nearly.
You need somebody to tell us what material to use to "pot" the electronics for protection against salt air and moisture. I am not an expert in 2 component stuff.
The rest we should be able to make together to your satisfaction.
Bert

[masalai]

Do not hold your breath on delivery from Japan... The down nuclear-power-plants will have a major adverse impact on the Japanese economy for many years into the future...

[BertKu]

Hi Captainjsw,

Just to elaborate on the charger. You have two multivibrators interlinked into each other. By exceeding the reference voltage, the multivibrators switches to near off and as soon the output voltage to the battery is below the reference Voltage, the multivibrators ar nearly fully open. The pulses are fed into a P Mosfet , which dumps the stored energy out of the choke into the output capacitor. By feeding the output voltage back from the 12 Volt to the Multivibrators, you can regulate 20 - 50 Volt input to 14,4 Volt output (or 12 Volt)
Bert

[CatBuilder]

Originally Posted by RayThackeray

Sorry, but wrong again. Even in areas of light or variable winds, I've found that I get a LOT more amp.hours/day using the wind generator (averaged out) than by solar. The problem is that you need a huge surface area of panels to gain any serious wattage. Mind you, a good wind generator isn't cheap, but you get what you pay for.

Sorry, you are wrong again. ha ha ha

I am on catamarans, so real estate for solar isn't a concern. You must be a monohull guy.

I consistently got more than double the power from my pair of solar panels than I did from my AirX wind generator. I had two standard full size panels and that's it on my last boat.

I had both and I have a LinkLite battery monitor for real time monitoring.

Wind just isn't there in terms of $/AH produced. You can get a lot more electricity by spending that money on solar. Granted, it takes up real estate, but if you have the space for the panels, it's costs less and is far more reliable - there are no moving parts.

[CatBuilder]

Originally Posted by RayThackeray

BTW, I've always found that the people who argue against wind generators the most - are people who have never had one!

...and it would seem those that argue for wind the most have never had a decent solar set up.

I had both on my last boat with a LinkLite battery monitor.

[BertKu]

Originally Posted by CatBuilder

You can get a lot more electricity by spending that money on solar. Granted, it takes up real estate, but if you have the space for the panels, it's costs less and is far more reliable - there are no moving parts.

I agree with you, also I don't think you can do without both. But the original question was, which windgenerator is the quietest. None of them, in comparison to solar panels. Wait for a few weeks and the real estate will become a lot smaller. Knowing the Germans, most likely at a price.
Bert