3D-FEA and experimental verification of the axial flux surface mounted PM machine parameters under saturated condition

A 3D-FEA of an axial flux PM machine for micro-generation applications is carried out. This analysis is oriented to determine dq-axis parameters under heavy saturation condition. In addition, experimental validation of these results is performed on a 9 kVA, 3/spl Phi/, 12-pole axial flux surface mounted PM machine prototype. The results show that a high nonlinearity is present in the dq-axis inductances due to the presence of the PM that generates magnetic field cross coupling. As a result, imbalances for the magnetic circuits make the surface mounted PM machine look like a salient pole synchronous machine.