Comparison Between Electric Excitation and Permanent Magnet Excitation in Brushless Pulsed Alternator System

In previous studies, the field winding of the brushless pulsed alternator (BPA) is embedded in the stator slots, which is supplied by dc power or variable frequency power. The advantage is that the field current can be independently adjusted. It means that the BPA system needs a standalone excitation system, which will increase the volume and cost of the system. If we substitute electric excitation for permanent magnet excitation, not only the volume and cost of the BPA system can be decreased but the efficiency and flexibility can be enhanced. In this paper, the design schemes for electric excitation and permanent magnet excitation BPA are presented. For comparison, the stator and rotor dimensions of the two kinds of BPA are both the same. The characteristics of electric excitation and permanent magnet excitation BPA are analyzed by the finite-element method and field-circuit coupling method. Finally, the BPA systems with a resistive load are established, the performances of both the two excitation modes are compared. According to the simulation results, we conclude their advantages and disadvantages.