Analysis for Temperature Field and Thermal Stress of the Pulsed Inductor

The pulsed inductor is a key device in the pulse power supply (PPS) in electromagnetic launch and electromagnetic propulsion systems. With the requirements of the weaponization of PPS, whether the continuous pulse discharge can be realized is an important criterion for testing the performances of the PPS. During the continuous pulse discharge, the temperature distribution and the thermal stress are created in the pulsed inductor when the electric current flows, and these greatly affect the efficiency and the mechanical structure of the pulsed inductor. The objective of this paper is to investigate the effects of the temperature distribution and the thermal stress on pulsed inductors. First, by using the finite-element method, the theoretical calculation for the temperature distribution is provided. Next, the experiment for studying the temperature distribution of the pulsed inductor is designed; a thermocouple is used to measure the temperature generated during the pulse discharge to show the reasonability of simulation results. Based on the aforementioned results, the theoretical calculation for the thermal stress is given. This paper will help to improve the mechanical structure design and the performance of the pulsed inductor.