Suitable design of a PMSG for a large-scale wind power generator

The objective of this paper is to determine a suitable rotor structure for high-power performance for a large-scale direct-drive wind power permanent magnet synchronous generator (PMSG). The rotor structure generally uses a surface-mounted permanent magnet (SPM). Salient pole machines which use both magnet and reluctance torque are examined to obtain high-power performance in the PMSG. Four types of rotor structures with similarly sized magnets, including a SPM, a tangentially-magnetized interior permanent magnet (IPM), a radially-magnetized IPM, and an inset PM, are compared using the 2-D finite element method to determine the average torque, power, and efficiency of the structures for rated condition. As a result, the suitable rotor structure with high-power performance is the inset PM.