System for Controlling Phase Shifting of Superconducting Electric Machines

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2021098983-A1
Application number	US-201916589272-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Oct 1, 2019
Priority date	Oct 1, 2019
Publication date	Apr 1, 2021
Grant date	—

Abstract

A wind turbine includes a superconducting generator having an armature and a superconducting field winding set. The armature includes at least one multiphase armature winding set having a plurality of armature windings. The superconducting field winding set is separated by a gap from the armature. The superconducting field winding set includes a plurality of field windings, wherein one of the armature winding set and superconducting field winding set is connectable to rotate with a rotating component of the wind turbine and another of the armature and the superconducting field winding set being non-rotating. The wind turbine also includes a controllable power converter coupled to the at least one multiphase armature winding set and a controller configured to control switching operations of the controllable power converter to effect a phase shift among the plurality of armature windings.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A wind turbine, comprising:
a superconducting generator comprising an armature and a superconducting field winding set, the armature comprising at least one multiphase armature winding set, the at least one multiphase armature winding set comprising a plurality of armature windings, the superconducting field winding set separated by a gap from the armature, the superconducting field winding set comprising a plurality of field windings, wherein one of the armature winding set and superconducting field winding set is connectable to rotate with a rotating component of the wind turbine and another of the armature and the superconducting field winding set being non-rotating; a controllable power converter coupled to the at least one multiphase armature winding set; and a controller configured to control switching operations of the controllable power converter to effect a phase shift among the plurality of armature windings.

2 . The wind turbine of claim 1 , wherein the armature comprises a plurality of multiphase armature winding sets.

3 . The wind turbine of claim 1 , further comprising controlling the phase shift among the plurality of armature windings as a function of time.

4 . The wind turbine of claim 1 , wherein the controller is configured to control switching operations of the controllable power converter to effect the phase shift at a fundamental frequency and/or a switching frequency of the controllable power converter.

5 . The wind turbine of claim 4 , wherein the controller is configured to phase shift fundamental frequencies of each of the plurality of armature windings relative to another of the plurality of armature windings.

6 . The wind turbine of claim 4 , wherein the controller is configured to phase shift carrier signals between each of the plurality of armature windings relative to another via a phase shift angle.

7 . The wind turbine of claim 1 , wherein the controller is configured to control switching operations of the controllable power converter to effect the phase shift among the plurality of armature windings by modifying one or more phase shift angles thereof as a function of one or more inputs, the one or more inputs comprising at least one of a generator-commanded power, an actual power, current, a temperature of the low-temperature region, a power supplied to a cryocooler, a current supplied to the cryocooler, a measurement of heat being rejected by the cryocooler, and/or combinations thereof.

8 . The wind turbine of claim 1 , wherein the superconducting field winding set is located in a low-temperature region of the superconducting generator during operation of the wind turbine.

9 . The wind turbine of claim 8 , wherein the at least one multiphase armature winding set is located outside of the low-temperature region of the superconducting generator.

10 . The wind turbine of claim 8 , further comprising a cryocooler for transporting heat from the low-temperature region to ambient via a thermodynamic cycle, the controller configured to minimize the heat which the cryocooler must reject by control switching operations of the controllable power converter to effect the phase shift among the plurality of armature windings.

11 . The wind turbine of claim 1 , wherein the superconducting field winding set is surrounded by a thermal shield maintained at a predetermined temperature range during operation of the wind turbine, the predetermined temperature range ranging from about 25 Kelvin to about 50 Kelvin.

12 . A superconducting electric machine system, comprising:
a superconducting electric machine comprising an armature and a superconducting field winding set, the armature comprising at least one multiphase armature winding set, the at least one multiphase armature winding set comprising a plurality of armature windings, the superconducting field winding set separated by a gap from the armature, the superconducting field winding set comprising a plurality of field windings, wherein one of the armature winding set and superconducting field winding set is connectable to rotate with a rotating component of the electric machine system and another of the armature and the superconducting field winding set being non-rotating; a controllable power converter coupled to the at least one multiphase armature winding set; and a controller configured to control switching operations of the controllable power converter to effect a phase shift among the plurality of armature windings.

13 . The superconducting electric machine system of claim 12 , further comprising controlling the phase shift among the plurality of armature windings as a function of time.

14 . The superconducting electric machine system of claim 12 , wherein the controller is configured to control switching operations of the controllable power converter to effect the phase shift at a fundamental frequency and/or a switching frequency of the controllable power converter.

15 . The superconducting electric machine system of claim 14 , wherein the controller is configured to phase shift fundamental frequencies of each of the plurality of armature windings relative to another of the plurality of armature windings and phase shift carrier signals between each of the plurality of armature windings relative to another via a phase shift angle.

16 . The superconducting electric machine system of claim 14 , wherein the superconducting field winding set is located in a low-temperature region of the superconducting generator during operation of the wind turbine.

17 . The superconducting electric machine system of claim 12 , wherein the controller is configured to control switching operations of the controllable power converter to effect the phase shift among the plurality of armature windings by modifying one or more phase shift angles thereof as a function of one or more inputs, the one or more inputs comprising at least one of a generator-commanded power, an actual power, current, a temperature of the low-temperature region, a power supplied to a cryocooler, a current supplied to the cryocooler, a measurement of heat being rejected by the cryocooler, and/or combinations thereof.

18 . A method of operating an electric machine system, the superconducting electric machine system having a superconducting electric machine having an armature and a superconducting field winding set, the armature having at least one multiphase armature winding set, the at least one multiphase armature winding set having a plurality of armature windings, the superconducting field winding set separated by a gap from the armature, the superconducting field winding set having a plurality of field windings, wherein one of the armature winding set and superconducting field winding set is connectable to rotate with a rotating component of the wind turbine and another of the armature and the superconducting field winding set being non-rotating, the method comprising:
providing the superconducting field winding set in a low-temperature region of the electric machine during operation of the electric machine system; and controlling switching operations of a controllable power converter to effect a phase shift among the plurality of armature windings so as to minimize losses within the low-temperature region.

19 . The method of claim 18 , wherein the armature comprises a plurality of multiphase armature winding sets.

20 . The method of claim 18 , further comprising controlling the phase shift among the plurality of armature windings as a fu

Assignees

• Gen Electric

Inventors

• Hawes Nathaniel Benedict
• Xu Yuntao
• Tapadia Nidhishri
• Torrey David Allan
• Wu Anbo

Classifications

• H02K3/28

  Layout of windings or of connections between windings (windings for pole-changing H02K17/06, H02K17/14, H02K19/12, H02K19/32) · CPC title

• H02K55/04 Primary

  with rotating field windings · CPC title

• H02H7/001 Primary

  for superconducting apparatus, e.g. coils, lines, machines · CPC title

• H02K1/02

  characterised by the magnetic material · CPC title

• H02K7/1838

  Generators mounted in a nacelle or similar structure of a horizontal axis wind turbine · CPC title