Brushless Doubly-Fed Reluctance Machine Drive for Turbo- Electric Distributed Propulsion Systems

Abstract

Turbo-electric propulsion systems are considered to be a critical enabler for low-carbon emission in aircraft industry. Because brushless doubly-fed reluctance machines (BDFRM) use partially rated power converter, have brushless operation, and low rotor losses, they are seen as an attractive choice to drive the distributed propeller fans. This paper explores a BDFRM by computing the machine and power converter size for the rated operation. A study of a large disturbance such as a bird-strike is also conducted, to see the machine behavior.