An Additively Manufactured Fe-3Si Stator for a High-Performance Electrical Motor
Source abstract
Abstract
Additive manufacturing (AM) has the potential to produce novel high-performance electrical machines, enabling the direct printing of complex shapes and the simultaneous processing of multiple feedstocks in a single build. We examined the properties and functional performance of Fe-3 wt.% Si materials that were printed via selective laser melting, machined down to thin laminates, and stacked to form a stator core of a prototype brushless permanent-magnet electrical motor. Big Area Additive Manufacturing of Nd2Fe14B (NdFeB)–polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) bonded magnets was performed, with them then being magnetized and used for the rotor. The magnetic, mechanical, and electrical properties of the as-printed and various heat-treated thin laminates and the back electromotive force (EMF) of the electrical motors at different rotational speeds were measured. The thin laminates exhibit a maximum relative permeability of 7494 at an applied field of 0.8 Oe and a core loss of about 20 W/lb at 60 Hz with the maximum induction of 15 kg. In addition to the demonstration of AM printing, motor assembly, and complete characterization of printed Fe-3 wt.% Si, this report highlights the areas of improvement needed in printing technologies to achieve AM built electrical motors and the need for isotropic microstructure refinements to make the laminates appropriate for high-mechanical-strength and low-loss rotational electrical devices.
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Research context
OpenAlex topics: Additive Manufacturing Materials and Processes · High Entropy Alloys Studies · Additive Manufacturing and 3D Printing Technologies
SciVX discovery tags are terminology-based. OpenAlex topics are source-provided classifications.
Affiliations
Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Chemical Sciences Division, Oak Ridge, TN 37831, USA
Carpenter Technology Corporation, Reading, PA 19601, USA
Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Manufacturing Science Division, Oak Ridge, TN 37831, USA
National Renewable Energy Laboratory, National Wind Technology Center, Golden, CO 80401, USA
Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Materials Science and Technology Division, Oak Ridge, TN 37831, USA
Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Center for Nanophase Materials Sciences, Oak Ridge, TN 37831, USA
Funding
U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Wind Energy Technologies Office Program · U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science User Facility · Brian Post and Brian Andrews of Oak Ridge National Laboratory · U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)
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