Wet Cavity Generator Stator Cooling via Oscillating Heat Pipes
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional wet cavity generator systems require external cooling jackets to manage heat, increasing complexity, weight, and cost, while components away from the cooling system can retain unwanted heat, reducing performance.
Innovation Solution
Incorporating an oscillating heat pipe with an evaporator portion within the stator windings and a condenser portion exposed to liquid coolant, allowing the working fluid to oscillate and extract heat effectively, eliminating the need for external cooling systems by enhancing internal cooling capabilities.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If external cooling jackets are added to wet cavity generator systems, then cooling performance is improved, but device complexity and weight increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the cooling function with the existing stator structure by integrating oscillating heat pipes directly into the stator core. The evaporator portions are embedded within the stator windings while condenser portions extend to the stator outer surface, merging thermal management into the generator's structural components rather than adding separate external cooling systems.
Solution Approach 2:
The oscillating heat pipes are nested within the stator structure, with evaporator portions embedded in the stator windings and condenser portions extending to the outer surface. This nested configuration allows the cooling system to be contained within the existing generator boundaries, eliminating the need for external cooling jackets.
2Temperature
If external cooling jackets are added to wet cavity generator systems, then cooling performance is improved, but weight increases
Solution Approach 1:
The cooling function is merged with the stator structure through integrated oscillating heat pipes, eliminating the need for separate external cooling jackets and their associated weight. The heat pipes utilize the existing stator material and spacing, converting structural components into thermal management elements.
Solution Approach 2:
The oscillating heat pipes provide self-contained thermal management within the stator, using internal phase change mechanisms to transport heat without requiring external pumping or additional cooling infrastructure. The working fluid oscillates autonomously between evaporator and condenser portions, providing weightless thermal regulation.
3Ease of manufacture
If components are positioned away from external cooling systems, then manufacturing flexibility is improved, but heat retention increases
Solution Approach 1:
The stator is segmented into multiple cooling zones with discrete oscillating heat pipes positioned at different locations. Each heat pipe independently manages heat from its local evaporator portion, allowing components to be positioned flexibly throughout the stator without requiring proximity to centralized external cooling systems.
Solution Approach 2:
The oscillating heat pipes act as thermal intermediaries between the stator windings and the external environment. The evaporator portions absorb heat directly from stator windings at various positions, while condenser portions discharge heat to the external cooling fluid, enabling effective heat removal from components regardless of their position within the stator.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This configuration enables the generator to operate within predetermined parameters without external cooling systems, improving efficiency, reliability, and reducing weight and complexity, while maintaining or exceeding cooling performance compared to systems with external jackets.
Implementation Method 1
at least one oscillating heat pipe having an evaporator portion extending through the set of stator windings and a condenser portion extending outside the set of stator windings
Implementation Method 2
a working fluid in the at least one oscillating heat pipe, wherein the working fluid is disposed in alternating liquid and vapor phases in the at least one oscillating heat pipe
Implementation Method 3
Liquid coolant from the at least one nozzle can be sprayed onto the condenser portion of the at least one oscillating heat pipe to cause the working fluid to oscillate and extract heat from the stator core
Data Source
AI summary
A wet cavity electric machine includes a stator core having stator poles formed by a post and a wire wound about the post to form a stator winding, with the stator winding having end turns, a rotor having two rotor poles and configured to rotate relative to the stator and a channel for liquid coolant to flow through the rotor to at least one nozzle, and liquid coolant sprays from the at least one nozzle at least a portion of the stator windings.