The core of an independent energy solution is the generator, and the core of the generator is the alternator. An alternator converts the mechanical energy from the engine into electricity. The alternator must be rugged, reliable, and efficient. Our alternators that we use are completely different from the rest. Besides our Husky Belt Drive AC range, we only use permanent magnet alternators.
Permanent Magnet DC Alternator
Our DC alternators are designed and manufactured by us, Eniquest, which are made in Australia. We use a permanent magnet alternator setup which requires no electronics to regulate the output voltages.
Our DC alternator is a totally enclosed design, which protects its internal components from exposure to corrosive or abrasive environments. For all models, cooling is achieved by a heat-conducting, finned aluminium body.
For our Outback DC and Husky DC models, the alternator is totally air cooled by convection. For our Ranger DC and Cruise DC models, the alternator is coupled to a water-cooled engine and the alternator is water cooled. Neither the air-cooled nor water-cooled alternator needs a cooling fan, which increases efficiency and reliability.
The alternator has no bearings. Its rotor is mounted directly onto the engine crankshaft, and its body is mounted directly onto the engine. Without bearings or a coupling between the engine and the alternator friction is reduced, and reliability is increased because the construction is simplified.
The Eniquest DC alternator is optimised for DC generation with a high-frequency, 12-pole, 3-phase alternator winding, and a high efficiency rectifier to convert the AC electricity it inherently produces to ripple-free DC electricity.
The Eniquest alternator uses permanent neodymium magnets rather than a field winding to create the magnetic field that it needs to make electricity.
This makes the generator more reliable as this simplifies construction and increases its efficiency because it avoids using generated electricity to create the magnetic field. With these innovative design features, our DC alternators are up to 50% more efficient than conventional alternators.
Permanent Magnet AC Alternator
Permanent magnet AC alternators are far superior to the conventional or inverter type alternators for a lot of reasons. This is to do with its design characteristics. The alternators have no electronics controlling voltages as the alternators design self regulates voltages by the design of the rotor. The rotor naturally regulates the AC waveforms under load. No electronics, less risks of issues. AVR’s (automatic voltage regulators) are the common cause for alternator failures due to the electronics failing.
The permanent magnet alternators are 30% smaller than most competing alternators and have the highest efficiency on the market. This is achieved by the patented technology with the rotor design allowing minimal energy losses. With efficiencies around 93%, this helps a lot with fuel economy and a reduction in power losses or wasted power from the engine.
Less than 3% THD is also another advantage with our alternators which is perfect for sensitive electronics. This is a benefit in the way that it loads safely and stops damaging voltage overshoot on load.
Our alternators have over 300% starting capacity and this is a big advantage with permanent magnet alternators. There is no impact of nonlinear or unbalanced loads to provide excitation power. They provide an adequate voltage build-up on start-up without having to rely on residual magnetism. This also avoids parasitic losses due to excitation current in the rotor.
To summarise, the permanent magnet alternator is the better choice for so many reasons. It’s the most efficient meaning less fuel being used and a greener solution, uses less components and has a longer life span, but also not using any electronics to control voltages. This makes it the most reliable on the market. But also, the most compact and lightweight alternative to any conventional alternator.
These are becoming more popular and is the latest in technology for reliable power. It’s been proven to work over many years and used in the most intensive applications including military.
Pros:
- Compact and uses less raw materials to manufacture
- Simple mechanical design that uses no electronics to regulate voltage
- Less components
- Best motor starting capabilities
- Can handle unbalanced single and three phase loads simultaneously
- 20% more efficient than conventional alternators
Cons:
- Currently can only achieve 50 kVA continuous output
- A little unknown in the market as its only been around for 25 years
- Expensive to manufacture
Conventional Type AC Alternator
A conventional style alternator is the most commonly used style of generating AC electricity. It consists of essentially two alternators on a single rotor- one being the main output alternator and the other being the exciter.
The exciter has fixed field coils with a rotating armature. The main alternator is the opposite of this. The exciter is required to produce DC power to the rotating field of the main alternator and is controlled by an electronic automatic voltage regulator (AVR). The AVR’s job is to regulate the AC voltage output by regulating the amount of current from the exciter field coils.
This is rather old and bulky technology which consumes a lot of natural resources to manufacture, but also opens up a lot of vulnerabilities when it comes to reliability of parts. Typically, the AVR is the common failure point for this style of alternators.
We also see lower efficiencies with these style alternators due to its design nature of utilizing so many components for the end result. Its important that when choosing a generator with a conventional type AC alternator, you are choosing a high quality brand that uses high quality components. We only use the highest quality brand on the market which have been around since 1947, and now a global brand.
In summary, whilst there are no issues with using conventional type alternators and we use them on our belt drive Husky’s, it is dated technology that has greater points of failure. It is however the most common way of producing electricity and is cheaper to manufacture.
Pros:
- A product that has been around for decades
- Well known design
- Has the ability to provide up to 5000kVA output
- Cheap to manufacture
Cons:
- A lot more potential fail points including electronics
- Uses a lot more raw material to manufacture
- Due to its design it is quite inefficient with power losses
- Cannot handle unbalanced loads
- Lots of cheap and poor quality alternatives