Thermal Analysis of Axial Flux Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motor using 3D Finite Elements

Abstract

This paper presents a thermal model of an axial flux permanent magnet synchronous motor (AFPMSM) with the structure of double-stator single-rotor called an axial-flux interior-rotor (AFIR) permanent magnet synchronous machine. The proposed 3D model involves formulation of the heat conduction equations of 3D model using finite element technique. The model considers most of the complexities of the AFPMSM structure to obtain the steady state temperature distribution at any specified location. All significant parameters that influence AFPMSM operation have been taken into consideration. The simulated temperature values are compared with predicted values of previous thermal resistance model and measured one by various authors. In this paper, two different cooling systems are presented and investigated which are natural air and water cooling at different flow rates.