Magnax ushers in new Innovative technology for new generation wind turbines

September 13, 2017 | Vraag & Aanbod Editorial Team |

With its motor prototype based on Axial Flux technology, the Belgian start-up Magnax ushers in a new generation of generators for wind turbines. The main advantages are higher performance, greater reliability, and a more compact volume.

The innovation of the rotor discs is in the way the magnets are retained in place at high speed and it took many iterations to arrive at a design that worked on a robust way at higher speeds. Traxial now plans to initially target manufacturers of E,F and S segment vehicles but is also open to opportunities within other segments and sectors if the business case makes sense. Typical eMobility customers are expected to be those requiring compact, lightweight motors with high power output and there is a clear vision that this technology will soon be powering the vehicles we all see and use.

Good news for wind turbine manufacturers: an innovative generation of generators is making its debut thanks to Axial Flux, a technology that opens new perspectives for the sector. The Belgian start-up Magnax, also a member of Agoria, has made a major contribution to this development with a prototype of a lighter and smaller generator that simultaneously records higher efficiency and exemplary reliability.

This new technology offers a solution to the dilemma that wind turbine manufacturers have faced until now, namely the choice between a generator with a gearbox, which is lightweight but less reliable given its complex construction, and a generator using a ‘direct drive’ system, which is more reliable but very heavy and very large.

Thanks to Axial Flux, generators combine all the advantages without the disadvantages, with engines that are lightweight, reliable, and offer high efficiency. To illustrate: an Axial Flux generator with a power output of 100 kW would weigh around 850 kg. With the same power and torque, a direct drive machine weighs as much as 4 tons, plus a shaft length that is five to eight times greater.

Six years

The development of the prototype by Magnax is the result of two years of hard work, during which various technical challenges were successfully overcome. Moreover, the actual prototyping was preceded by six years of research at Ghent University. Magnax will now further market the technology and is seeking partners for new developments.