Speedy_HTS – An HTS Rotor for an Uprated Mid-Speed Wind Power Generator

This work reports on the status of the project Speedy_HTS, focusing on an HTS rotor in an oil-cooled conventional stator of an existing wind power generator. The HTS rotor replaces a permanent magnet rotor, thereby increasing the machine’s power rating, improving the power factor, and facilitating grid integration. The mid-speed, three-stage, integrated planetary gearbox results in a reduced demand and cost of HTS. The cooling concept for the rotor combines a neon thermosiphon and a copper cold bus. The approach for preparing the HTS windings involves vacuum-pressure impregnation of non-insulated turns. The research path is divided into the development of a machine for extensive characterization on a test stand and the basic design of selected technology bricks for a “real product” machine. The electromagnetic design results in a doubling of the power density, roughly. The cooling concept indicates that a single cold head (≈130 W cooling power) is sufficient to operate the final machine.