Computer-Aided Heat and Flow Management of an Electric Generator

In this paper, design of a generator is summarized which starts with the analysis of an existing generator, for which experimental measurements existed. First a system model of this existing design is analyzed and analysis results are validated by using these measurements. Then a sensitivity analysis is performed to study the critical features of the existing design. Based on the sensitivity analysis, areas for improvement are identified and modifications are suggested for these areas. One of the suggested modifications is the design of a new fan. For this purpose, a three-dimensional analysis is conducted. Again, starting with the original design of the fan, an optimized design is obtained after several iterations. The end product of the described design procedure is built and tested. Comparison of test results with the original design shows significant improvement in terms of performance and efficiency.