Coupled analytical and 3D numerical thermal analysis of a TEFC induction motor

This paper presents a coupled analytical and numerical thermal analysis of a 37 kW induction motor. The approach employed combines thermal network modelling with 3D numerical thermal analysis to predict the accurate temperature distribution in the motor. This is achieved by modelling convective heat transfer numerically, aided by analytically calculated heat transfer coefficients that have been calibrated against temperature measurement data. The created lumped thermal network models the machine well with temperature results that closely match the measurements. 3D FEM steady-state thermal solution of the motor's surface temperatures further corroborates these results. This approach allows the modeling of heat transfer mechanisms in the common industrial TEFC motor with relative computational ease, and can further become the basis for transient thermal analysis of the machine.