Electromechanical Analysis of End Windings in Turbo Generators

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present a numerical approach for the computation of 3D magnetic fields in rotating electrical machines. The technique is suitable for the computation of flux densities and forces in the end windings of large synchronous turbo generators (TG). Design/methodology/approach – The magnetostatic FEM model of the generator end windings is carried out for different displacements of the rotor axis to the stator magnetomotive force (MMF) axis. The method is based on a parallel integral formulation allowing to substantially reduce the computational effort. Findings – The computational model requires only the discretization of magnetic materials and conductors and is fast enough for carrying out 3D analyses on a time scale fast enough for the needs of the designer. As far as the present application is concerned, the analysis of a synchronous generator in the class of 300-400 MVA has shown that the most stressed elements of the armature conductors are those closer to the stator ends. The study demonstrates that the maximum stress component on the end windings is axial and is achieved when the MMF is aligned to the direct axis. Originality/value – The present approach combining an efficient integral formulation, the sparsification of the relevant matrices and the parallel implementation of the related algorithms gives rise to an original computational tool that allows a more accurate description of the machine in comparison to other numerical simulations that can be found in the literature.