Self regulation in capacitor excited induction generator

Increasing emphasis is being laid on harnessing locally available resources of energy like low water heads, biogas, wind etc. This has led to brisk research activities in the field of isolated power generation. An induction machine operated as a capacitor self excited induction generator (SEIG) is being favoured in such applications. Low unit cost and overall operational and maintenance simplicity are the major reasons for growing interest in the use of induction generators. Poor voltage regulation resulting in poor utilization of the machine is identified as the major problem in the applicability of SEIG. The present paper describes two different approaches to tackle this problem. In both the cases, it is motivated to reduce/eliminate the use of voltage regulator and thus, to make the SEIG self regulating. By highlighting the self regulating aspect of a 3.7 kW SEIG, a simple, rugged and cost effective system is proposed.<>