INTEGREL ADVANCED GENERATOR REPLACEMENT TECHNOLOGY

The Integrel system from the UK’s Triskel Marine consists of an add-on system for diesel propulsion engines that promises to eliminate the need for a stand-alone genset, thereby eliminating a great deal of weight and complexity from many of today’s cruisers. Although it may strike the uninitiated as being somewhat complex at first glance, it is completely automatic after being put in place and requires no input from the boat’s operator. At the heart of each Integrel installation is a 9 kW 48-volt engine-mounted generator (not an alternator) coupled with a complete power generation, storage, conversion and distribution system. Because of its high output and relatively modest size, the generator has been designed both to operate at high temperatures and be governed by a proprietary Integrel System Controller as it charges a boat’s 48v 10kWh (or higher) capacity battery bank. Power for the ship’s service loads is then provided via a 48v to 12/24/36v battery-to-battery charger and/or an inverter/charger for AC loads. Because the power versus rpm curve for a diesel is inevitably much higher than the power absorbed by a propeller other than at maximum rpm, and since the most efficient operation for a diesel is typically approximately 70 percent of full load, the Integrel controller systematically ramps up its generator output to increase the load on the engine to achieve optimum efficiency, thereby resulting in overall fuel savings of up to 25 percent. The generator windings are also designed to provide unusually high power output at low revs, so that if the boat is not underway, up to 3.5 kW of DC power is available at idle. Engine candidates for Integrel installations at this time range from 40hp to 100hp. A basic system is priced at approximately $15,000. Triskel Marine, integrelmarine.com