Design and Performance Analysis of Three Phase Line Start Synchronous Reluctance Motor Using Finite Element Analysis

Abstract

Three-phase Induction Motors (TPIM) are popular in industrial applications due to their numerous advantages. However, TPIM has comparatively lower efficiency than modern motor technologies like permanent magnet synchronous motor(PMSM), synchronous reluctance motor(SynRM), or switched reluctance motor(SRM). The expensive rare earth material and the inability of line starting operation discourage the replacement of TPIM with these modern energy-efficient motors. This research proposes a novel conversion of TPIM into Line Start SynRM (LS-SynRM) to cause a cost-effective and compatible performance solution. The proposed design modifications are carried out on the existing 0.5HP, TPIM rotor and analyzed using finite element (FE) software. The optimum barrier parameters such as barrier end width, barrier position, barrier width, and rib width have been determined through parametric analysis. The considerable effect of barrier dimensions on motor performance is evident from the analysis.