small trial axial flux generator

[tinkerer]

Hi

 My name is Bryan (KG4ENB) and I have been lurking for several years, about when Dan learned why steel banding strap was not great.

 I am finally getting around to trying my first axial flux generator. I am starting off small, my magnet plates are around 1 3/4" diameter and I am using 8  3/4 by 1/8 magnets per plate, yes it will have two magnet plates. The steel is from an old vcr cover and was the most attractive to the magnets. The thickness of the steel is a hair under 1/16.

 I was going to stack the steel so the plates would be thicker but I ran into a funny promblem. After I doubled the first plate( note the 8 magnets are attached in place) I lost magnetic stickness on the back side. I am not sure if this is good or bad. If anyone can explain this I would surely be grateful.

 As far as the coils go I have not done any figures yet becaues I am just playing around learning and want to see first hand how this all works. And yes I have Hugh's book.      

 I greatly appreciate all the hard work that has gone into otherpower.com over the years and everyone's openness on how to do the things yall do

                            Thanks  Bryan   Maryville TN        

[TomW]

Bryan;

I think you will find that laminated magnet [rotor] plates are less than ideal. However, lots of times it comes down to "use what you have". Generally magnet plate [rotor] thickness is "best" when there is no magnetic attraction on the back side from the magnets. Ideal is not always necessary to making it work, however.

I think laminating backing plates leads to strange flux through the different layers compared to a solid piece. How this will affect the finished unit I cannot say.

I am not a builder so I am just regurgitating what I have learned here.

Cheers.

TomW

[thirteen]

The easiest way is each peice of iron has different magetic field created. some sheets have a + and a - charge in the iron sheet it's self. In specilized places iron sheets are made that way to attract or repel certain particle types. Some plates are not as magetic and others. Just a side note.

[wooferhound]

Are you sure that you are alternating the magnets poles on your rotors

North - South - North - South - North - South - North - South

If all the Poles are the same then there will be repulsion

you don't mean that your magnet rotors are 1 and 3/4 inch do you ?

[tinkerer]

 Yes wooferhound my rotor plates are 1 and 3/4 inch diameter. And yes the magnets are correct N S N S N S N S.

 This is just a trial version so I can get some hands on experience before I take on a larger and more costly version. All of the materials are or are going to be from what I have got on hand. That is excluding the magnets but they were only around 20 dollars 20 of them.