Improved Thermal Modeling and Experimental Validation of Oil-Flooded High-Performance Machines with Slot-Channel Cooling

Fengyu Zhang, David Gerada, Zeyuan Xu, Xiaochen Zhang, He Zhang, Chris Gerada, Mingjun Zhu, Liqun Xia, Wei Zhang, Michele Degano

Research output: Journal PublicationArticlepeer-review

21 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Thermal management is often considered a bottleneck in the pursuit of the next-generation electrical machines for electrified transportation with a step change in power density. Slot-channel cooling is considered to be an effective cooling technique, either as an independent method or as a secondary heat transfer path, which compliments traditional cooling systems. The slot-channel specific geometry and position effects on the thermal benefits are not thoroughly investigated in the literature, while previous work focuses on passing fluid through the unused space left in between coils forming concentrated windings. In this article, slot-channel cooling is implemented within an oil-flooded cooling system for a high power density motor that is used as a pump. A flexible and detailed lumped parameter thermal network (LPTN) is proposed for the cooling system, with the LPTN used to optimize the slot-channel dimensions and location for obtaining maximum thermal benefits. Finally, a surface-mount permanent magnet (SPM) machine with the optimized slot channel geometry is built and tested to validate the thermal model, experimentally achieving an armature continuous current density in excess of 30 A/mm2.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)312-324
Number of pages13
JournalIEEE Transactions on Transportation Electrification
Volume8
Issue number1
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Mar 2022

Keywords

  • Fully flooded oil cooling
  • high power density
  • high speed
  • slot cooling
  • thermal management
  • thermal network

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Automotive Engineering
  • Transportation
  • Energy Engineering and Power Technology
  • Electrical and Electronic Engineering

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