Energy converter for flowing fluids and gases

Electrical machine for fixed locating in a flowing body of water to generate electricity from the movement of water of said flowing body, flowing through said machine, and with a high power capacity of at least 1000 Watt, comprising:

• a ring shaped stator ring (12);
• a ring shaped rotor ring (9) which can rotate within the stator ring, at least one blade (8) mounted to the rotor ring and driven by said water flowing through said machine;
• magnetic means (2, 3, 4, 5) to generate axially directed magnetic forces between the rotor ring and the stator ring;
• stabilising means to keep the rotor ring during operation in an axial stable position relative to the stator ring, wherein an in axial direction operating magnetic preload generated by magnetic means inside the machine is active in the machine and the amount of this magnetic preload is set by the mechanical bearing (13) of the rotor ring, such that merely variation is required in a dimension of the mechanical bearing, to optimise a for the rest identical machine for different nominal flow speeds of the fluid through the machine.

A method for adapting an electrical machine for fixed locating in a flowing body of water to generate electricity from the movement of water of said flowing body, flowing through said machine, and with a high power capacity of at least 1000 Watt, comprising:

• a ring shaped stator ring (12);
• a ring shaped rotor ring (9) which can rotate within the stator ring, at least one blade (8) mounted to the rotor ring and driven by said water flowing through said machine;
• magnetic means (2, 3, 4, 5) to generate axially directed magnetic forces between the rotor ring and the stator ring;
• stabilising means to keep the rotor ring during operation in an axial stable position relative to the stator ring, wherein an in axial direction operating magnetic preload generated by magnetic means inside the machine is active in the machine and the amount of this magnetic preload is set by the mechanical bearing (13) of the rotor ring, such that merely variation is required in a dimension of the mechanical bearing, to optimise a for the rest identical machine for different nominal flow speeds of the fluid through the machine, said machine being combined with a group of a plurality of mechanical bearing assemblies, wherein all to the group belonging bearing assemblies are adapted for integration in the machine, and which group is made of sub groups with each a number of bearing assemblies, which numbers together equal said plurality and wherein each time only a single sub group is integrated in the machine and wherein each sub group, if integrated in the machine, provides a different configuration of the machine with thus different magnetic preload, said method being for adapting the machine to a different nominal flow speed of the through the machine flowing fluid, wherein merely a sub group is replaced by a different sub group of the said group such that the magnetic preload is changed, while for the rest the machine is left unchanged.