Electrical appliances and devices generate heat losses known as joule losses which significantly influences the thermal behavior of a device or system. Ignoring this coupling can lead to inaccurate predictions, poor design decisions, and potential failures.
Multiphysics modeling especially coupling electromagnetic and thermal simulations allows engineers to:
• Predict temperature rise due to electrical losses
• Assess thermal stresses, hotspots, and failure mechanisms
• Optimize thermal management strategies
A sequential (one-way) coupling is often employed, where the electromagnetic solution is first solved and the resulting volumetric power losses are then passed as heat sources into a thermal model.
Major Steps for Mapping Joule Losses from EM to Thermal
- Exporting heat loss data from Flux (iron losses, copper losses, etc.).
- Importing Flux loss data into SimLab Flow.
- Setting up boundary conditions for conjugate heat transfer.
- Running the Flow simulation and analyzing thermal behavior.
Here’s a video that clearly demonstrates how to map Joule losses into a thermal solution.
