Development of a Finite Element Model of a synchronous reluctance generator

This paper describes the development of a Finite Element (FE) Model of a commercial-off-the-shelf synchronous reluctance machine. The model is necessary to design and test a control strategy that maximizes the power conversion efficiency for the machine in a variable-speed renewable energy generation application. Since the machine under analysis is not a lab prototype, but a commercial nature, none of the design and construction parameters data are available, and the machine performance as a generator is not easy to estimate. The model is first accomplished by using the data obtained by disassembling the machine and then it is adjusted to match the inductances profile predicted by the FE model and those measured experimentally. This paper includes the information about materials, geometry, and windings arrangement necessary to build the model in the FEMM (Finite Element Method Magnetics) software. The results show good agreement with those indicated by the literature allowing to the model to become an excellent tool to get a deep insight of the synchronous reluctance machine performance.