Generator brushes
The generator is a magnet that rotates in front of coils. In the case of conventional generators, brushes are required to maintain electrical contact with the magnets. These brushes are wear parts.
On Brushless generators (brushless) there is no contact with the magnets. So no wear, but also less friction, therefore less power loss. This is the case with the generator used by the Silentwind 400.
The weight
A wind turbine is installed at the top of a mast in a situation where its weight is of great importance. With the Brushless generator, the Silentwind manages not to exceed 7 kg.
Avoid operating noise
To build a wind turbine, you have the choice of multiplying the number of blades to obtain a less noisy and less vibrating turbine, but this increase in blades is at the expense of performance. This is the case with wind turbines with 5 or 6 blades. By multiplying the number of blades, manufacturers also reduce their impact.
The most efficient wind turbines have as few blades as possible. This is the case with the Silentwind with its 3 blades. The main criticism of these wind turbines is the whistling they produce. To solve this problem, the Silentwind is equipped with carbon blades. It is a laminated sandwich construction that makes very stiff blades and avoids whistling. With a design from aeronautics and high-incidence blades, the Silentwind wind turbine has very high performance.
Limit vibrations
On a boat, a poorly mounted or unbalanced wind turbine can spread its vibrations very far aboard, sometimes making life unbearable. To operate properly, the wind turbine must be mounted on a rigid mast, well supported, but isolated from the boat by silentblocks.
To avoid vibrations, it is also necessary to balance the wind turbine well. On a Silentwind the operation is easy since it is enough to check during assembly if the three blades are equidistant.
Good electronics
Once the current from the wind turbine has been processed, it must be transformed into direct current at the right voltage for the batteries (12 or 24 V). Silentwind produces three-phase current. It comes with an MPPT charge controller that converts the current into direct current. This controller is actually a real charger with charge phases (Boost, absorption, floating). It is a true intelligent charger that protects the battery fleet. This controller also has an additional input for solar panels (max. 250 W in 12 V).
Security features
The controller is the guarantor of the safety of the wind turbine. In the event of an overload (+32 Adjustable value), an electric brake on the wind turbine is activated to slow down the rotation. If you wish to stop the wind turbine, you can also manually activate this brake.
Best of all, this controller shares its Bluetooth information via a mobile phone that has the application. All the information (loads, voltage...), but also some settings are available wirelessly on the mobile screen.
Load curve
A wind turbine must work in light airs. Indeed, it is rare to anchor your boat in windy anchorages. Looking at the load curve of the Silentwind, we can see that as soon as the wind reaches 10 N, the wind turbine produces and that the power increases rapidly with the wind. Above 30 N, the wind turbine brakes automatically.
The Silentwind wind turbine is distributed by Navicom (Price 2018)
- Silentwind 12V + Hybrid 600W Bluetooth controller: 1819 euros including VAT
- Silentwind 24V + Hybrid 600W Bluetooth controller: 1919 euros including VAT
