Portable Generator Reviews For Portable Electric Generators
A portable generator is the combination of an electrical generator and an engine mounted together to form a single piece of equipment. This combination is also called an engine-generator set or a gen-set. In many contexts, the engine is taken for granted and the combined unit is simply called a portable generator.
Components
Types
Portable generators are available in a wide range of power ratings. These include small, hand-portable units that can supply several hundred watts of power, hand-cart mounted units, as pictured below, that can supply several thousand watts and stationary or trailer-mounted units that can supply over a million watts. Regardless of the size, generators may run on gasoline, diesel, natural gas, propane, bio-diesel, sewage gas or hydrogen. Most of the smaller units are usually built to use gasoline (petrol) as a fuel, and the larger ones have various fuel types, including diesel, natural gas and propane (liquid or gas). Some engines may also operate on diesel and gas simultaneously (bi-fuel operation).
Most portable generators use a reciprocating engine as their power supply.
The generator voltage (volts), frequency (Hz) and power (watts) ratings are selected to suit the load that will be connected.
Engine driven generators fueled on natural gas fuel often form the heart of small scale less than 1,000 kW combined heat and power installations. These generators are usually not portable.
There are only a few portable three-phase generator models available in the US. Most of the portable units available are single phase power only and most of the three-phase generators manufactured are large industrial type generators. In other countries where three-phase power is more common in households, portable generators are available from a few kW and upwards.
Portable engine-generators may require an external power conditioner to safely operate some types of electronic equipment. Small portable generators may use an inverter. Inverter models can run at slower RPMs to generate the power that is necessary, thus reducing the noise of the engine and making it more fuel-efficient. Inverter generators are best to power sensitive electronic devices such as computers and lights that use a ballast.
Mid-size stationary engine-generator
Diesel engines in the UK can run on red diesel and rotate at 1,500 or 3,000 rpm. This produces power at a frequency of 50 Hz, which is the frequency used in the UK. In areas where the power frequency is 60 Hz (United States), generators rotate at 1,800 rpm or another divisor of 3600. Diesel engine-generator sets operated at their peak efficiency point can produce between 3 and 4 kilowatthours of electrical energy for each liter of diesel fuel consumed, with lower efficiency at partial load.
Most portable generators use a reciprocating engine as their power supply.
The generator voltage (volts), frequency (Hz) and power (watts) ratings are selected to suit the load that will be connected.
Engine driven generators fueled on natural gas fuel often form the heart of small scale less than 1,000 kW combined heat and power installations. These generators are usually not portable.
There are only a few portable three-phase generator models available in the US. Most of the portable units available are single phase power only and most of the three-phase generators manufactured are large industrial type generators. In other countries where three-phase power is more common in households, portable generators are available from a few kW and upwards.
Portable engine-generators may require an external power conditioner to safely operate s 00004000 ome types of electronic equipment. Small portable generators may use an inverter. Inverter models can run at slower RPMs to generate the power that is necessary, thus reducing the noise of the engine and making it more fuel-efficient. Inverter generators are best to power sensitive electronic devices such as computers and lights that use a ballast.
Mid-size stationary engine-generator
Diesel engines in the UK can run on red diesel and rotate at 1,500 or 3,000 rpm. This produces power at a frequency of 50 Hz, which is the frequency used in the UK. In areas where the power frequency is 60 Hz (United States), generators rotate at 1,800 rpm or another divisor of 3600. Diesel engine-generator sets operated at their peak efficiency point can produce between 3 and 4 kilowatthours of electrical energy for each liter of diesel fuel consumed, with lower efficiency at partial load.
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About the Author:
Rob Gormly is a retired airline pilot who enjoys reviewing various products. He is an online marketer and you can see one of his websites at http://portablegeneratorreviews.org.
Electric Power is to be generated by installing a hydraulic turbine-generator?
. Electric Power is to be generated by installing a hydraulic turbine-generator at a site 70 m below the free surface of a large water reservoir that supplies water at a rate of 1500 kg/s. If the mechanical power output of the turbine is 800 kW and the electric power generation is 750 kW, determine the turbine efficiency and the combined turbine-generator efficiency. Neglect all other losses in the system which may occur due to fluid transfer in the pipes.
electric generator from old motor?
i have an old barn fan and motor on a metal frame sitting outside. every time i see it it is rotating in the slight wind at a fairly hefty speed. since generators are the same hardware as electric motors could i just hook a fan belt back up and get power from the motor? i understand that there is a lot of resistance in the motor but that aside, i think i heard of something in the motor that prevents this (electricity generation) from happening so that the fan doesn’t send electricity back into the circuit when its windy. is this true? if so, what’s it called, where’s it located and how do i remove/bypass it? Has anyone ever done this? Any tips?(especially for increasing the efficiency)
E = mgh and power is that divided by time
P = 1500 kg/s x 9.8 x 70 = 1.029e6 watts
Turbine efficiency is 800/1029 = 77.7%
overall efficiency is 750/1029 = 72.9%
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Can a 5 hp gasoline engine power a generator that will turn a 120 Hp electric motor to peak efficiency?
No. If you could, you’d have solved the energy crisis with your perpetual motion machine. The gas engine only provides 5hp so the most you can get out of it is 5hp. The engine is a 120hp so it will need 120hp to run at full power, so your generator will need to deliver at least 120hp. If this would work, you could feed the electric motor back to the generator and use 5hp to drive the generator and leave an excess of 115hp to use as you wish.
In Reality:
Electric motors and generators are about 90% efficient.
Combined cycle electricity generation as used in power stations from natural gas and fossil fuels can give overall 60-65% efficiency and this will probably be more efficient than your motor driving a generator.
So, you will theoretically get from the shaft of the electric motor 5hp(shaft power from IC engine) *90%(generator efficiency)*90%(motor efficiency) =4.05hp at effectively 80% efficiency.
Alternatively, to run your electric motor at full power you would need an IC motor of 150hp to allow for the 80% efficiency of the generator-motor combination.
How much “mpg” does an electric generator get?
gas powered.
I am wondering if you could build one pretty small that has really high efficiency and use the electricity to power an electric car with high efficiency therefore using it to increase your gas mileage?
If you take the small engine in a generator and stick it in say a scooter, you’ll end up with something like a 50cc scooter. They typically get 100 miles per gallon (they’re not hybrid), and have a top speed of around 40mph. It’s more efficient to just power wheels than to power a generator to charge a battery to power an electric motor to drive the wheels. To save gas, it’s much easier to just slow down on the freeway.
Like Irv said, it has to be a permanent magnet type motor with brushes. Squirrel cage AC motors on fans won’t generate anything at all.