PhD student Shibin Qin with advisor R. Pilawa-Podgurski Single-phase grid-tied converters (single-phase ac-to-dc, or dc-to-single-phase-ac) have wide applications in both energy harvesting (such as solar micro-inverters) and consumption (such as chargers for electric vehicles). High-efficiency and high-power-density converters are the most critical features for many of these applications. In this research, a power factor correction […]
Electric Field Jumping Droplet Condensation for Active Hot-Spot Cooling of High-Power-Density Electronics
PhD Thomas Foulkes with advisor R. Pilawa-Podgurski Enhanced cooling methods to remove heat generated by hot spots inside of power electronic devices, while not sacrificing weight and volume, are required to decrease overall size and weight of power electronic converters as shown in Figure 12. Leveraging recent advances in both wide-bandgap power transistors as well […]
Analysis of Volts per Hertz Scalar Control as Governor of High Pole Count, High Frequency Permanent Magnet Synchronous Machine
MS student Katherine O’Kane with advisor K. Haran This research is motivated in part by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) under Grant NNX14AL79A purposed for Space Science and Applications – Basic Research studies currently supporting the first iteration development of a permanent magnet synchronous machine (PMSM) intended for eventual use as a propulsor […]
Mechanical Development of a High-Power-Density Rotor
MS student Reed Sanchez with advisor K. Haran High-power-density electric machines are crucial to enabling electric aircraft. This work is developing a topology for these machines that addresses associated mechanical and thermal challenges, including expansion due to high speed, thin radial builds that affect rotor dynamics, and high electromagnetic loading which necessitates powerful cooling. These […]
High-Speed, High Frequency Air-Core Machine and Drive
MS student Irin Jose with advisor K. Haran This research developed a conventional hex bridge inverter to test the control algorithm developed for the 1 MW high-speed, high-frequency air-core machine drive for the NASA Fixed-Wing project. The 3-phase 220 V AC 750 W inverter which was designed and developed is shown in Figure 6. The […]
AC Loss in Fully Superconducting Electric Machines
MS student Matthew Feddersen with advisor K. Haran Superconducting electric machines have shown potential for dramatic increases in power density for applications such as offshore wind generation, turbo-electric distributed propulsion in aircraft, and ship propulsion. Superconductors exhibit zero loss when in dc conditions, though ac current produces considerable loss due to hysteresis, eddy currents, and […]
Mitigating Power Systems Variability in More Electric Aircraft Utilizing Power Electronics Implemented Dynamic Thermal Storage
PhD student Yue Cao with adviser P. Krein Increased power levels in more electric aircraft (MEA) bring opportunities to optimize energy flow in multi-physics domains to benefit the power system’s stability and aircraft fuel economy. This project introduces thermal energy inherent in the cabin air and aircraft fuel as a dynamic management solution to offset […]
High Torque Density Cycloid Electric Machines for Robotic Applications
CEME Collaborator Julia Zhang – Oregon State University Typical human-sized legged locomotion needs an output torque of around 300 Nm to accomplish motions such as walking and running. A direct-drive design using only one high-torque electric machine cannot meet these size and weight requirements. General practice uses a low-torque electric machine (about 10 to 15 […]