Hi, I have an experimental project in design phase for generating charge from a wind turbine.
I am building a small wind turbine which will provide variable charge ranging between (i think) 0v and 24v(max). My intention was to feed this into a buck converter such as:
to regulate the voltage, and then connect that output to a booster / charger module connected to the battery, so I could essentially have a self powered and charging project.
I was look at the:
which seems great. However am I still able to get sufficient statistics about the battery charge and health? Would it be better that i use the:
Can you provide more information on the Wind Turbine output ??
The 20W adjustable DC-DC buck converter is a DC to DC converter, you would use it to convert a 12VDC source to a 5VDC source; for example. I have used similar to provide a stable 5V source to a Raspberry Pi over the discharge cycle of a number of NiMH cells. ie 6 cells = 8.4V charged to 6.6V discharged.
If the wind turbine output is not DC then the buck converter may not work too well. Also if the wind turbine output varies too much the regulator can drop in and out.
Thanks Jim. This is experimental for me. I actually have 2 motors, which Iâm using as alternator like /generating turbines. One is DC and Iâm told can be used for 6v/12v/24v batteries, but the dc output is obviously variable.
The other motor was from a heating duct fan, which was 240v AC. I suppose that would require an AC/DC converter of sorts? Sorry Iâm not fully across all things electronic!
I think it might be better to buy a commercial regulator charger, designed to work with wind turbines and solar panels. Rather than using parts available here. Most likely you will have more success.
Of course it comes at a cost, but with a guarantee it will work.
Once you have the 12VDC out of the regulator you can use a DC to DC converter to get 5VDC to charge a LiPO or such.
Its the path I would follow, rather than trying to design my own.
Cheers
Jim
EDIT: You will need a 12V battery attached for the regulator to work, something to load it so you get a smooth output. (the manual for the Rutland HRSi Regulator 12/24V states to never operate without a battery connected)
This would then be used to power a 12VDC system or connected to a DC-DC converter to get 5VDC.
Some of links I found below when searching for âwind turbine regulators and chargersâ.
I suspect this one wonât doa lot for you by itself. Itâs probably an induction motor - Itâs pretty rare to see a 240V fan thatâs not powered by a single phase induction motor. Youâll likely need to supply some current from an external power source to build a magnetic field first, though once running, with the right external components, it might be self sustaining.
See:
Hereâs someone whoâs done just that:
Alternatively, you can add some strong permanent magnets to get the magnetic field, which is what Great Scott did in this video:
As for using a DC motor (assuming itâs a permanent magnet motor and not a universal motor) You wonât get DC out of a permanent magnet DC motor, youâll actually get an AC voltage out. The exact waveform will depend on the design of the motor (and of course the speed you spin it at).
Probably a practical option here is to get a second-hand alternator from a wreckers, and just use a 12V regulator from a car - which is a pretty common approach for DIY off-grid generation too.
Just be mindful that itâs possible to generate significant voltage, particularly if itâs unloaded and there can be serious hazards. Iâd recommend learning the theory on some small toy motors first - and keep it ELV ie. below 50V AC and 120V DC.
Wow thatâs super informative, thank you Oliver. I will take a good look through that material.
Rest assured everything will start with careful testing and multimeter readings before being applied to anything.
Iâll look into this AC motor, Itâs very old but not large. Itâs about 10cm in diameter and 8cm high.
Thanks again for the really informative reply.
-Leo
Hi Oliver
If it is a commutated motor you will get DC out of it. Provided it is permanent magnet type and not field coil type.
But. Motors (commutated) and generators have different brush positioning and normally different brush material. Motor copper and generator carbon.
DC generator brushes are positioned for minimal arcing and does not coincide with rotor/magnet relative position. I donât recall if the brushes lead or lag the rotor but some used to be adjustable over a short range. Usually not a good idea th turn in reverse. We tried once with an automotive type generator petrol driven to charge radio batteries. The mechanical layout dictated it had to turn the wrong direction. The result was a disaster. There was so much electrical noise generated by arcing of the brushes the whole thing was unusable while radio (HF SSB) was in use.
Cheers Bob
I should clarify, the polarity wonât reverse, but thereâll definitely be a significant AC component, more like rectified AC - itâll be about the noisiest âDCâ youâll get.
in response to your videos, I found this one which manages to obtain a stable current draw from an AC motor, without magnets, just using capacitors in the circuit.
For the record, this is still above my electronics knowledge, so I still have to get my head around this (and safely). One guy has provided a really useful comment on this video about how to calculate the capacitors required. Although I donât fully understand it, itâs still very interesting. Cheers, Leo
