Performance Analysis of PM Assisted Synchronous Reluctance Motor for Different PM Materials for Electric Vehicular Application

Since the rotor winding is not excited in Synchronous Reluctance Motor (SynRM), it offers low power factor and poor power density. Thus, in this paper, permanent magnet-assisted synchronous reluctance motor (PMASynRM) is introduced in which these problems of SynRM can be eliminated with a permanent magnet in rotor flux barrier. For automotive application of PMASynRM, it is desired to use rare-earth magnets to get the high-power density. However, the higher cost of rare-earth material, scarcity and volatility in procurement restrict the researchers to reduce the use of rare-earth materials. Instead, ferrites can prove to be a better option but ferrites possess a drawback of offering a low field strength. Despite this, researchers have introduced the PMASynRM designs which show the improved performance. Also, hybrid PM material is a feasible option to be used in PMASynRM. The objective is to find the best suitable cost effective PM material without compromising the performance parameters. This paper presents a novel design approach of PMASynRM by employing rare-earth magnets, ferrites and hybrid PM materials and the analysis is done using Finite Element Method (FEM). Further, Thermal FE analysis is conducted to determine the maximum temperature in various parts of the motor to verify the temperature withstand capacity of various PM materials.