Topology Analysis of Electric Machines for a Specific Mission Profile in Aviation Applications

In this paper, the required process for the electromagnetic design of electrical machines used in electric air-craft for a specific mission profile is exhibited. In the mission profile, 4.4 MW of power is required for the aircraft takeoff. The flight should cover 1500 km and be supplied fully with electrical energy. After analyzing the possible machine topologies through theoretical equations for covering the takeoff power, two different motor topologies were chosen for simulation in a FEM software. Multiple crucial electromagnetic and thermal boundary conditions were investigated in both topologies, and the geometry parameters of the topology that could fulfill these conditions were optimized. Since the outer stator diameter of the electrical machines is limited by the propeller diameter, the airgap diameter has been set to a constant value, and other design variables were changed within a defined range to achieve maximized power using “Quadratic response surface” optimization.