Thermal Analysis of Axial Permanent Magnet Flywheel Machine Based on Equivalent Thermal Network Method

The axial permanent magnet magnetic bearingless flywheel machine (APM-BFM) mostly operates under the state of high-power fast charging and discharging. Due to the characteristics of high-power density per unit volume, the centralized windings have small heat dissipation area and high thermal loads, the temperature rise on APM-BFM is a very important issue. Thermal analysis is thus of particular importance particularly for modern machines since the temperature rise and distribution are significant during their running under higher electromagnetic loads commonly used nowadays. In this paper, the equivalent thermal network method is proposed to evaluate the temperature rise of the APM-BFM. The equivalent thermal network model is established based on the basic theorem of heat transfer. The thermal resistance and heat source in the machine are analyzed and calculated, and the thermal balance equation is established. The temperature rise of each node is solved, and finally the validity of the model is verified by finite element magnetic-thermal coupling simulation.