Optimal design of axial-flux induction motors based on an improved analytical model

This paper presents an improved analytical model for axial-flux induction motors (AFIMs) based on solving the magnetic vector potential equations. The advantage of the proposed approach is its fast simulation time (fractions of a second against minutes/hours in FEA) while maintaining over 95 % accuracy compared to FEA that makes it suitable for an optimization purpose. This method applies a uniform distribution of the current density in the rectangular shaped rotor/stator slots. The equivalent circuit parameters of the studied AFIMs are extracted using the magnetic energy analysis. The proposed model allows the saturation effect in calculation of the motor performance parameters (power factor and efficiency). The accuracy of analytical model is validated using FEA results. A comprehensive design optimization is presented to show its capability for an optimization purpose. The objective functions in this study are maximum efficiency, maximum power factor, maximum efficiency times power factor, minimum mass, minimum price, maximum efficiency over slip, and maximum power factor over slip. The proposed analytical model can be easily used for AFIMs with different number of poles and phases. Refereed/Peer-reviewed