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Discovery AIM tutorial – Eddy Current / Magnetic Frequency Response

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      This example is taken from Cornell University’s ANSYS AIM Learning Modules


      In this tutorial, you will learn to determine:

      • Induced Eddy currents in the aluminum plate
      •  Resulting Ohmic loss

      In this tutorial, we will consider a sinusoidal varying magnetic field, which is generated from a sinusoidal varying current in a stranded coil.  We will obtain the solution by solving the problem in the frequency domain using a magnetic frequency response solution in ANSYS AIM.

      The model consists of a stranded copper coil with a sinusoidally varying current of 2.742 Amp-turns operating at a frequency of 200 Hertz.  The sinusoidally varying magnetic field created by the coil will generate Eddy currents in the conductive aluminum plate, which sits below the coil as shown below.  We will investigate the resulting induced Eddy currents in the aluminum plate and the resulting Ohmic loss.

       width=


      Governing Equation:
      Magnetic frequency response is the study of magnetic fields in devices where the magnetic field is a steady-state, sinusoidal magnetic field at a given frequency.  Magnetic frequency response is a special case of Maxwell’s equations, which form the basis of electromagnetism.  A magnetic frequency response solution includes the calculation of Eddy currents, which are loops of electric current within conductive materials induced by a changing magnetic field.

      For sinusoidally varying magnetic fields, the induced Eddy currents will not completely penetrate into the interior of a conductive material. This is referred to as the skin effect, and the Eddy current penetration depth for a conductor can be calculated from the following equation:

       width=

      where δ is the penetration depth, f is the frequency, μ is the magnetic permeability of the material, and σ is the electrical conductivity of the material.


      Download the file here

      The following video shows how to import the geometry in Discovery AIM and specify material.


      The following video shows how to define Current and Skin Depth Resolution properties.


      The following video shows how to compute induced Eddy currents in the aluminum plate and resulting Ohmic loss.