Impact of stator slot geometry on the performance of a permanent magnet synchronous generator for wave energy converters

In this work, variations of the stator slot geometry are investigated, in order to identify the correlation between the selected stator design and the machine behaviour. The slot height and width are varied in constant steps from the base design and their corresponding impacts on the torque and speed performance are studied. Furthermore, the resulting annual energy losses of each design are compared and their economical impact is evaluated through the life cycle cost analysis. The study shows that a 10% decrease of the slot height results in a 650 kWh energy loss decrease, per annum. A 2900 € improvement is achieved on the net present value of losses by increasing the slot width by 10%.