PRODUCT PROFILE


High torque low speed direct drive electrical machines & renewables


Magnomatics has been exploring opportunities for its high torque low speed direct drive electrical machines in the renewable sector. Its Pseudo Direct Drive (PDD®) is emerging as a very good option. As part of the EU Funded INNWIND.EU project the technology has been benchmarked against a superconducting generator and other more conventional drive trains, reports UKPN.


(LCOE) for each technology in the 10 to 20 MW range. It was concluded that the Pseudo Direct Drive (PDD) generator technology provides superior properties in all performance indicators compared with the reference drive trains examined, as well as the INNWND.EU reference turbines. So what are the barriers in deploying this technology? Fundamentally there are two main risks. First, very large scale multi- megawatt PDDs have never been built. Second, wind turbine operators are reluctant to put a new technology into an application where responding to a failure is expensive. The largest PDD built and tested was for a


T


torque of 20,000 Nm for marine applications. Magnomatics is currently designing a PDD with a torque rating of 220,000 Nm which will be built early next year for a 500kW wind turbine application. The generator is being built in Norwich by


ATB Laurence Scott and will then be tested at the Offshore Renewable Energy Catapult


his project established all the performance indicators in terms of size, weight, cost, efficiency and impact on Levelized Cost of Energy


(OREC) in Blyth. This project is co-funded by BEIS and is part of the DemoWind project funded by Europe Horizon 2020. The next stage will be a real-world trial on a wind turbine.


Following on from this Magnomatics has


plans for a 3-4 MW turbine for onshore applications and then a larger 8-10MW machine for offshore. The fundamental benefit from the PDD is


the reliability and efficiency of the magnetic gear. But are magnetic gears a proven technology? For the innovative artificial lift company ZiLift, magnetic gears are proving to be the solution for some very demanding applications in the oil and gas sector. ZiLift has developed a novel artificial lift


system to replace the more conventional reci- procating pump or “nodding donkey”. The ZiLift system comprises a progressive cavity pump, an electric motor and a torque converter, or magnetic gear, all within a 3 inch (75mm) tube. As with all magnetic gears there is a point


where the gear is overloaded and slips but without causing any damage. The feature is known as a torque fuse or overload


The ZiLift system comprises a progressive cavity pump, an electric motor and a torque converter, or magnetic gear, all within a 3 inch (75mm) tube.


“The


generator is being built in Norwich by


ATB Laurence Scott and will then be tested at the


Offshore Renewable Energy


Catapult


(OREC) in Blyth. This project is co­funded by BEIS and is part of the DemoWind project funded by Europe Horizon 2020.“


NOVEMBER‐DECEMBER 2017 UK POWER NEWS


protection. The whole assembly is lowered into the oil well, often around bends (known as deviations) in the well that make life for the reciprocating shaft of a nodding donkey very difficult indeed. Once in the well, ZiLift’s Torque Drive can


be operated very precisely. With integrated real-time performance data, embedded automation takes care of matching the pump performance to changing reservoir conditions. The continuous pumping motion eliminates


cyclic pressure pulses on the formation and reduces damage to the well bore that can lead to sand influx or reduced productivity. Should the pump become clogged with


sand and seize, the inherent torque fuse of the magnetic gear prevents damage to the other drive train components. There follows some control intervention to cycle the pump, clear the blockage and continue operation. A Torque Drive system has been installed in


a highly deviated and slim-bore well in California and has recently passed 650 days operation. This is a significant milestone, the reciprocating rod pump it replaced was lasting less than 30 days. The unit is operating deeper than 1,000ft underground, exposed to hydrocarbons and other corrosive fluids in an ambient operating temperature in excess of 180*F. Despite having suffered several uninten-


tional shut-downs the Torque Drive system has been remotely restarted successfully every time. With integrated pressure and tem- perature monitoring the production operator has been able to set the pump speed so the well outflow is constantly tuned to the well inflow meaning that production is fully opti- mised to match the well optimum perfor- mance. It is therefore expected that the inherent reli-


ability of magnetics gears can be scaled up into large direct drive wind turbines resulting in fewer failures and more generating capacity. www.magnomatics.com


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