Numerical Analysis of an Electric High-Speed Rim-Driven Rotor

Abstract

Finite element analysis was conducted to study the stress behaviour in a generic electric high-revolution rimdriven rotor in relation to the number of spokes and rotational speed using the maximum distortion energy failure criterion. The paper analysed the stresses on an electric high-revolution rotor and locate the failure’s potential origins. Upon analysing the FEA results, it is found that the maximum equivalent von-Mises stress is related to the square of revolution in RPM. It is concluded that it is possible to create a general formula that can predict the stresses, simplifying the development stage of an electric rim-driven rotor for high-speed applications.