Frequency converter

• US 8,587,141 B2
• Filed: 11/24/2009
• Issued: 11/19/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 11/24/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AKER Solutions As (AKER Solutions ASA)
• Original Assignee: Aker Engineering & Technology AS (Akastor ASA)
• Inventors: Bjerknes, Ole Johan, Breistein, Hallvard
• Primary Examiner(s): Patel, Tulsidas C
• Assistant Examiner(s): GUGGER, SEAN A
• Application Number:
  US13/130,359
• Publication Number:
  US 20120126628A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,456 Days
• Field of Search: 307/84, 363/157
• US Class Current: 290/44
• CPC Class Codes: F03D 15/10 using gearing not limited to rotary motion, e.g. with oscillating or reciprocating members
• CPC Class Codes: F03D 7/0224 Adjusting blade pitch
• CPC Class Codes: F03D 7/026 for starting-up
• CPC Class Codes: F03D 9/257 the wind motor being part of a wind farm
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 5/458 using semiconductor devices only
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 7/483 Converters with outputs that each can have more than two voltages levels
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 7/4833 Capacitor voltage balancing
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 7/49 Combination of the output voltage waveforms of a plurality of converters
• CPC Class Codes: H02P 2101/15 for wind-driven turbines
• CPC Class Codes: H02P 25/22 Multiple windings; Windings for more than three phases
• CPC Class Codes: H02P 9/08 Control of generator circuit during starting or stopping of driving means, e.g. for initiating excitation
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 10/72 Wind turbines with rotation axis in wind direction
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 10/76 Power conversion electric or electronic aspects

Abstract

The inventions relates to a system for conditioning of power from a turbine, the turbine comprising at least one turbine blade (1) connected to a rotating hub (2), the rotating hub (2) is arranged to drive a generator (5). The generator is a multi pole synchronous generator (5) connected via a plurality of galvanic isolated three-phase cables (11) to a multi level frequency converter (25), the generator (5) also being arranged to feed current to the frequency converter (25) through the three-phase cables (11). The multi level frequency converter (25) is constituted by a plurality of elements arranged in columns and coupled in cascading order to add inverted voltage.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

a variable speed turbine that comprises at least one turbine blade connected to a rotating hub;

a multi pole synchronous generator driven by said rotating;

a multi level frequency converter connected to said multi pole synchronous generator via a plurality of galvanic isolated three phase cable, wherein the multi pole synchronous generator is arranged to feed current to the multi level frequency converter through the plurality of galvanic isolated three-phase cables and wherein the multi level frequency converter comprises a plurality of elements arranged in columns and coupled in cascading order to add inverted voltage; and

a transformer connected to the multi level frequency converter and arranged to transform the added inverted voltage to a power grid level connected to a secondary side of the transformer, wherein the multi pole synchronous generator has at least 12 poles and galvanically isolated stator windings connected via the plurality of galvanic isolated three-phase cables to a multi level rectifier topology feeding an intermediate DC-voltage level as suited to interface an inverter of the multi level frequency converter feeding power out through the transformer.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein the multi pole synchronous generator has rotor field windings or permanent magnets.

3. The system according to claim 1, wherein the system comprises a gear.

4. The system according to claim 1, wherein stator windings of the multi pole synchronous generator are arranged in a combination of at least two of D, Y and Z variations.

5. The system according to claim 1, wherein the system comprises at least one additional turbine.

6. The system according to claim 1, wherein the transformer is selected from the group consisting of a standard transformer and a rotating transformer.

7. The system according to claim 1, wherein the multi pole synchronous generator comprises multiple electrical machines driven by a multi shaft gear solution or mounted on a common shaft.

8. The system according to claim 1, wherein the multi pole synchronous generator has a number of galvanic isolated three-phase cables is p/2 or less, where p represents said number of poles.

9. The system according to claim 1, wherein the intermediate dc-voltage level is a common intermediate dc-voltage level, and said inverter is a remotely located inverter.

10. The system according to claim 1, further comprising:

a self-starting wind turbine coupled to said variable speed turbine, wherein the variable speed turbine is a non-self starting turbine, and the at least one self-starting wind turbine is arranged to start the at least one non-self starting wind turbines by having an AC side towards the power grid level.

11. The system according to claim 1, wherein the system is gearless.

12. A method for conditioning power, the method comprising:

driving a multi pole synchronous generator with a variable speed turbine, wherein the multi pole synchronous generator has at least 12 poles and galvanically isolated stator windings;

feeding current from said multi pole synchronous generator to a multi level frequency converter through a plurality of galvanic isolated three-phase cables, wherein the multi level frequency converter comprises a plurality of elements arranged in columns and coupled in cascading order to add inverted voltage; and

feeding an intermediate DC-voltage level as suited to interface an inverter of the multi level frequency converter; and

transferring said inverted voltage received by a transformer connected to the multi level frequency converter to a power grid level connected to a secondary side of the transformer.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein the variable speed turbine comprises a gear or is a gearless turbine.

14. The method according to claim 12, wherein stator windings of the multi pole synchronous generator are arranged in a combination of at least two of D, Y and Z variations.

15. The method according to claim 12, wherein the transformer is selected from the group consisting of a standard transformer and a rotating transformer.

16. The method according to claim 12, wherein at least one additional turbine is coupled to said variable speed turbine.

17. The method according to claim 12, wherein the multi pole synchronous generator comprises multiple electrical machines driven by a multi shaft gear solution or mounted on a common shaft.

18. The method according to claim 12, wherein the multi pole synchronous generator has at least 12 and a number of galvanic isolated three-phase cables is p/2 or less, where p represents said number of poles.

19. The method according to claim 12, wherein the intermediate dc-voltage level is a common intermediate dc-voltage level, and said inverter is a remotely located inverter.

20. The method according to claim 12, further comprising:

arranging a self-starting turbine with an AC side toward a power grid level, wherein said self-starting wind turbine is coupled to said variable speed turbine, and the self-starting wind turbine is arranged to start the variable speed turbine.