Increasing the Performance of High-Speed Solid Rotor Induction Motor by Plunge Type Electrical Discharge Machining

Abstract

Although it is very well-known that narrow and deep slits exhibit an effective torque production, there is still room to find out, since the verified data is limited by tooling techniques. This study presents a comprehensive numerical optimization approach on optimizing the slit dimensions of an Axially-Slitted Solid Rotor Induction Motor (AS-SRIM) while benefits of plunge type electrical discharge method was used to open narrower slots. First, slit dimensions of an AS-SRIM were optimized parametrically to determine the optimum slit width and depth, and the designs were analyzed numerically by finite elements method. During the manufacturing process, the optimized slit dimensions were shifted to the narrowest applicable ones. In the practical stage of the study, the AS-SRIM accommodating the narrowest slits up-to-date was tested. A good agreement between the numerical and experimental performance results was obtained. All-in-all, this experimental case study extends the limits of known practical data by applying plunge type electrical discharge method to open slits and the crucial point is the implementation of the narrowest slit width up-to-date.

Keywords

• solid rotor induction motor
• axial-slit
• slit optimization
• parametrical modeling
• plunge type electrical discharge method
• finite element method