Design of an Axial-Flux Synchronous Reluctance Machine with 3D-Printed Rotor

Additive manufacturing enables the design and production of complex flux paths with 3D patterns. This technique can be used to create a novel axial-flux synchronous reluctance machine (SynRM) that combines the topologies of both axial-flux and traditional radial-flux designs. In this case, a novel axial-flux SynRM with 3D-printed rotor (3DPR-AFSynRM) is proposed. The detailed design process of the proposed 3DPR-AFSynRM is presented, ranging from topology selection, parameter optimization, to performance analysis, prototype fabrication and testing. Due to the large air gap radius and compact structure as well as the utilization of toroidal winding, the developed machine features a high salient pole ratio, large torque density, and excellent heat dissipation capacity compared to its traditional radial-flux counterpart. With a 4.43-Nm/L torque density under natural air-cooling conditions, the proposed 3DPR-AFSynRM becomes a competitive candidate for direct-drive applications. A prototype has also been fabricated and tested, verifying the effectiveness analytical results.