Life Estimation of Electrical Machine using Aging Model

The drive for more electric aircraft (MEA) architecture has resulted in the introduction of high power density electric machines for aircraft propulsion applications. The reliability of the electrical machines in such harsh environments is a challenge that is seldom addressed. The paper proposes, through simulation, the use of aging model to accurately estimate the lifetime of a machine with turn-to-turn short-circuit (TTSC) condition. The proposed aging model considers all the aging factors due to electrical, mechanical and thermal phenomena. The paper also puts forth a cumulative stress curve for various loading & environmental constraints and uses the stress curve with winding temperature to create an aging model to accurately predict and estimate the lifetime of the machine. A bottom-up approach through the developed model can be used to estimate the lifetime of the machine in real-time.