A P P L I C A T I O N B R I E F S F R O M F L U E N T

EX180

Electric Motor Cooling

The cooling of an electric motor is studied in this example. The motor consists of rotating and
stationary parts. It heats up because of heat transfer from the engine to which it is mounted and
because of frictional heating in the shaft bearings. Cooling is accomplished by coils mounted in the
housing and to a lesser degree by the air gap between the rotating and stationary components.
Results suggest that additional cooling is required for this particular motor and motor mount design.

The task of distributed letter "I". With the

power generation is exception of the
generally achieved by a stator, all solid motor
generator set consisting of components are
an internal combustion simulated as
(IC) engine coupled with conducting walls
an electric motor. Cooling (solid zones),
the electric motors is a throughout which the
challenging task. In energy equation is
addition to the heat solved.
released from the coils,
the motors receive The rotor is
additional heat flux from separated from the
the attached IC engine. motor housing and
The air gap, which is stator by an air gap
confined between the (blue). It contains a
rotor and stationary Figure 1: The motor geometry

components (stator and housing), Using FLUENT, a 30 degree

is generally very small and does periodic sector of the motor
not contribute significantly to the is analyzed. The calculation
cooling process. When this is the domain (Figure 1) consists
case, cooling water is circulated of the engine shaft, rotor,
through the coils in the motor stator, magnets, motor
housing to dissipate the heat. housing, and shaft and
housing adapters, which are
This example simulates one such used to bolt the motor to the
situation and predicts the heat engine. The stator, not
load distribution on various shown in the figure, lies
components of the electric motor. inside the rotor and housing,
The computational results provide extending from the region
detailed insight into the motor below the magnets to the
cooling process, and can be used region inside the outer
to guide the design of alternate portion of the motor
strategies for effectively cooling housing. It has a cross- Figure 2:Temperature
contours on the shaft
the motor. section with the shape of the and motor housing

Copyright © 2002 Fluent Inc. EX180 • Page 1 of 2

 of conducting material (the (lower right) receive inadequate
gasket) between the external cooling compared to those
boundary (the engine) and the elsewhere.
fluid or conducting wall zones
(the adapters) on the interior of In summary, a CFD analysis of an
the domain. The circular bolt- electric motor mounted onto an IC
connecting surfaces are engine has shown that water coils
described by constant are effective in cooling only part
temperature boundary of the motor section - that which
conditions. The stator surfaces is more distant from the engine.
are treated as external Regions of the motor components
boundaries with a varying closest to the engine (magnets,
temperature in the radial rotor, and housing) showed
direction. consistently higher temperatures
due to direct heat influx through
A rotating zone is used to the adapters and frictional heating
simulate the motion of the in the bearings. The computational
rotor, shaft, bearing, and shaft results showed that additional
adapter. A hybrid mesh cooling or heat protection would
containing 1.5 million be necessary in the housing
tetrahedral and hexahedral adapters to avoid damage to the
Figure 3: Temperature contours on the rotor cells was created for the magnets on the engine side. In
simulation. addition, higher coolant flow
pair of magnets (red) that rotates through the engine side tube
with the rotor. The motor is bolted Figure 2 shows contours of would yield better cooling on the
to the engine using housing and temperature on the shaft and engine side of the motor.
shaft adapters. The bolts used to motor housing. The temperature
make the connections, with cross- contours illustrate the heat influx Courtesy of Lynx Motion
sections shown in green, transfer to these components from the Technology, Inc.
a significant amount of heat from engine. Contours of temperature (www.lynxmotiontechnology.com)
the engine to the motor. Gaskets on the rotor are shown
between the adapters and engine in Figure 3. Higher
mounts are used to minimize this temperature can be seen
heat transfer. at the lower right corner
(and to a lesser extent,
Convection heat transfer the lower left corner) of
boundary conditions are applied the rotor. This is mostly
on the exterior surfaces of the due to heating from the
housing. Cooling coils, mounted shaft adapter, and partly
in the engine housing, are also due to the heat source
modeled using this boundary that is included to
condition. Temperatures are represent frictional
specified on the adapter surfaces. heating at the site of the
The faces of the adapter surfaces shaft bearings.
that are covered with gaskets are Temperature contours on
modeled using the thin wall the magnets are shown
thermal resistance boundary in Figure 4. They
condition. This special boundary illustrate that the regions
condition allows for a thin layer closest to the engine Figure 4: Temperature contours on the magnets

Copyright © 2002 Fluent Inc. EX180 • Page 2 of 2