Types of Electric Generators and Their Advantages & Disadvantages.

Types of Electric Generators and Their Advantages & Disadvantages.
Different Types of Electric Generators

Power generators are devices designed to provide a durable power differential. You have to wonder why it is necessary to guarantee the existence of this differential. For the equipment, powered by an electric current, to work, it is necessary that the electric current also fulfills its function.

What happens is that there is only electric current from the moment the voltage or potential difference occurs. However, this voltage tends to disappear rapidly because the “bodies” enter a state of equilibrium and, as the electric generators are designed to extend the voltage for a longer period of time, the electric current exists and continues maintenance of equipment in good working order.

Power generators have two distinct poles:

The positive pole characterized by its permanent lack of electrons

The negative pole which is the opposite, characterized by an excess of permanent electrons

If you want to use electric generators to power certain equipment, there is a much differentiated offer for different types of needs. You can find electric generators depending on the type of operation, namely:

1. Mechanical generators: which use mechanical energy to start the generator. They are the most common generators in the industry sector and are also the ones that have, compared to others, a superior energy transformation capability, as well as the most efficient and diverse. Industrial companies generally use this type of generators

2. Solar generators: they have the function of capturing solar energy, in order to transform it into electrical energy, which can be used in the most diverse equipment. Silicon solar panels are an example of a solar generator.

3. Thermal generators: These are generators that transform thermal energy into electricity. Convert heat energy directly, using it to create energy

4. Chemical generators: are responsible for converting chemical energy into electrical energy to power different equipment. In other words, they transform the energy generated in the different chemical reactions into electrical energy. Examples of this type of generators are batteries and batteries. Usually, they are used in equipment with low energy consumption. For example, television controls radios, clocks and other equipment that we use regularly in our daily lives.

As you can see, there are several types of electric power generators that are quite different and that are able to convert solar, thermal, mechanical or chemical energy into electrical energy. In this way, we obtain a reusable energy that will ensure the operation of the equipment that wants to remain active.

The advantages and disadvantages of a generator

The proliferation of generators suggests that this market still has very good days ahead. You see so many around you that you started to be tempted to get one.

However, when you decided, you quickly realized that you were not very knowledgeable about it. This article outlining their advantages and disadvantages aims to slightly improve your knowledge on the subject.

The Advantages of using a generator

Generating sets have many advantages. First of all, they are very efficient and quite practical. Indeed, they allow you to have electrical energy wherever there are power cuts. They are therefore very useful in case of failures of the electrical system. In addition, for them to work, all you have to do is put fuel on it. So you can use it without any difficulty on your sites or when you go camping for example.

Forget all the ideas that you had generator sets difficult to get started and especially to use. Now they are designed so that they can be handled easily enough. Even if they have to be maintained fairly regularly, most of these maintenance sessions are quite easy to do on your own (when you strictly adhere to the instructions of course). Here are some tips from a job site to better choose your generator.

Although it is true that generators are not particularly lightweight devices, their mobility is very often not a problem. Indeed, you will notice that when they are a little heavy, they are always equipped with wheels or handles (and sometimes even both).

In addition, between gasoline, diesel or gas; a 2 or 4 stroke engine; a manual or electric start … (and we pass), we can say that the choices are not lacking. There is really something for everyone and for all budgets.

The Disadvantages of using a generator

Overall, we can say that what is most criticized generators is their very noisy side. More specifically, when we take the case of the groups that use diesel, we realize that they are the ones who pollute the most.

Those who work with gas are not very powerful. As for gasoline, this type of fuel can unfortunately not be stored for more than 12 months; which makes this type of generator unfit to be used in a non-extended manner.

Once seen, the advantages and disadvantages that gives us these two options. We will see why we should decant according to the use that we will give to the generator.

Single phase systems

A single-phase system is a system of production, distribution and consumption of electrical energy formed by a single alternating current or a phase and therefore all the voltage varies in the same way.

The voltage and frequency of this current depend on the country or region, 230 and 115 Volts the most common values ​​for the voltage and 50 or 60 Hertz for the frequency.

When one of the above conditions is not met (different currents or differences between them), the voltage system is unbalanced or more commonly known as unbalanced system. It receives the name of the system of unbalanced loads, the set of different impedances that cause the receiver to circulate currents of different amplitudes or with phase differences between them different at 120 °, although the voltages of the system or the line be balanced or balanced.

Advantages and disadvantages.

As we have seen in the operation of three-phase and single-phase systems , by eliminating the mechanical part, the main difference of the two systems is the number of phases.

A phase for single-phase generators.

Three phases for three-phase generators.

This involves some advantages and disadvantages.

In a single phase generator with a single phase, the total power of the group applies to this single phase. This implies that a single equipment or machine could consume up to 100% of the total power of the generator. In addition to having a single phase, it is easy to control the load that the generator supports to avoid overloading the equipment, thus avoiding problems or possible failures.

In a three-phase three- phase generator, the total power of the genset is divided into three phases. This implies that only one equipment or machine could consume up to 1/3 of the total power of the generator. If connected equipment exceeds 1/3 of the power, this would cause serious problems to the generator. Therefore, it is important to carefully monitor the load on each phase, to avoid problems and breakdowns.

Taking into account the load to be supported by the single-phase or three-phase generator is important to adjust the power of the generator during a purchase to avoid paying more energy than we need. It must be taken into account that a generator is more efficient in terms of efficiency / consumption, when it operates between 75% and 80% of its maximum power.

In three-phase generators , a new factor, the balance of phase charge , is added. This factor is important for the reasons above, as the 3 phases have a very similar charge volume to be able to minimize the power of the group and try that it still works to skim the maximum output.

The three-phase system has an advantage over the single-phase system, as far as the electrical installation is concerned, since with three lower power phases as we saw above, a smaller section cable is needed to carry energy , lower power transformers, etc. All this has an economic impact on reducing the costs of the electrical installation.

By concentrating a little on the economic question, as a general rule, although there may be exceptions, a single-phase generator is usually a little more expensive than a three-phase of the same power.

Mainly because of the increased costs of the alternator . Since to obtain the same power in the generator, it is necessary that the single-phase alternator has a power greater than three-phase, having a power development much smaller than its three-phase version, which improves the generator.

In addition to the factors that have already been discussed previously, the components, especially security, are less powerful and more economical. Although these components have a smaller impact on the final price of the generator.

If we focus on maintenance issues, they are exactly the same, whether it’s a three-phase or a single-

phase generator.

As far as failures are concerned, none of them has a higher failure rate, although, as noted above, it is possible that some components are cheaper to replace with a three-phase than a single-phase model.