Numerical simulation and investigation of induction through-heaters in dynamic operation mode

Purpose - Because of their widespread use in industry, induction through-heaters of various metal products must be of high effectiveness not only in "quasi" steady-state operation but in different transient modes as well. Nowadays, they are usually designed to provide the required characteristics in "quasi" steady-state operation mode mainly. The purpose of this paper is to examine numerical simulation of transient processes in induction through-heating lines generally and investigate dynamic temperature fields during the first start of the heaters particularly. Design/methodology/ approach - The research methodology is based on coupled numerical electromagnetic and thermal analyses using FEM approach. ANSYS simulations are supported with the developed tools for imitation of mass transfer effects in continuous induction heating lines. Findings - The results show that transient temperature fields in the heated strip or slab significantly differ from their "quasi" steady-state descriptions. Local temperature variations acquired in longitudinal as well as transverse flux induction heaters during the first start have been predicted. Practical implications - The received results can be used for design of induction through-heaters and improvement of their characteristics in dynamic operation modes. Originality/value - Investigation of dynamic characteristics of the heaters in dynamic modes can be only done by numerical modelling based on special algorithms providing a time loop additional to coupling between electromagnetic and thermal analyses. Such algorithms have been developed and used for investigation of two types of induction installations: through-heaters of cylindrical billets for forging and heating lines of strip or thin slab for rolling mills. © 2011 Emerald Group Publishing Limited. All rights reserved

Design of a medium voltage generator with dc-cascade for high power wind energy conversion systems

This paper shows a new concept to generate medium voltage (MV) in wind power application to avoid an additional transformer. Therefore, the generator must be redesigned with additional constraints and a new topology for the power rectifier system by using multiple low voltage (LV) power rectifiers connected in series and parallel to increase the DC output voltage. The combination of parallel and series connection of rectifiers is further introduced as DC-cascade. With the resulting DC-cascade, medium output voltage is achieved with low voltage rectifiers and without a bulky transformer. This approach to form a DC-cascade reduces the effort required to achieve medium DC voltage with a simple rectifier system. In this context, a suitable DC-cascade control was presented and verified with a laboratory test setup. A gearless synchronous generator, which is highly segmented so that each segment can be connected to its own power rectifier, is investigated. Due to the mixed AC and DC voltage given by the DC-cascade structure, it becomes more demanding to the design of the generator insulation, which influences the copper fill factor and the design of the cooling system. A design strategy for the overall generator design is carried out considering the new boundary conditions. © 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland

Design of a Medium Voltage Generator with DC-Cascade for High Power Wind Energy Conversion Systems

This paper shows a new concept to generate medium voltage (MV) in wind power application to avoid an additional transformer. Therefore, the generator must be redesigned with additional constraints and a new topology for the power rectifier system by using multiple low voltage (LV) power rectifiers connected in series and parallel to increase the DC output voltage. The combination of parallel and series connection of rectifiers is further introduced as DC-cascade. With the resulting DC-cascade, medium output voltage is achieved with low voltage rectifiers and without a bulky transformer. This approach to form a DC-cascade reduces the effort required to achieve medium DC voltage with a simple rectifier system. In this context, a suitable DC-cascade control was presented and verified with a laboratory test setup. A gearless synchronous generator, which is highly segmented so that each segment can be connected to its own power rectifier, is investigated. Due to the mixed AC and DC voltage given by the DC-cascade structure, it becomes more demanding to the design of the generator insulation, which influences the copper fill factor and the design of the cooling system. A design strategy for the overall generator design is carried out considering the new boundary conditions