Additive manufacturing (AM) is a term used to describe various manufacturing processes in which a three-dimensional body is produced layer-by-layer by adding material. Process-related special features and the associated potentials open up new design possibilities and at the same time bring new challenges. The potential of additive processing of soft magnetic materials and windings in the manufacturing of rotating electrical machines (EM) and the free constructive design in all three spatial directions distinguishes it from conventional manufacturing, which is usually based on two-dimensional iron sheet lamellas. Solid materials can be replaced by lightweight lattice structures or by cavities in places where it is not needed from an electromagnetic, mechanical or thermal (multi-physics) point of view. In addition, additive manufacturing eliminates the need for component-specific tools, which is particularly relevant for the production of prototypes and niche applications, hence accelerating the development cycle of innovative drive solutions. Despite the promising prospects of 3D-printed electrical machines, there is no commercially additively manufactured EM yet and the state-of-the-art of application of AM in EM is solely limited to some diverse research projects. The time-consuming process of 3D printing and the higher costs of AM EMs are not yet balanced with the evidence to date of the improvements in functionality provided by 3D-printed electrical machines. The break-through technology is the multi-material additive manufacturing of electrical machines. In this case, not only considerable, multi-physics modifications can be achieved, but also AM makes the ground-breaking progress to reach a new generation of high-performance electrical machines for diverse applications. Concrete examples are extremely high gravimetric power density EM for electrical aircrafts with AM, direct cooled, transposed stator windings for very high current densities or the additive manufacturing of hairpin windings for electrical vehicles. The impact of these technologies in the context of climate change and decarbonisation is obvious.
It is therefore essential to study not only the potential of this technology to achieve a new-generation of electrical machines, but also to prepare the required tools and methods for design, calculation and construction of these machines. Only then new AM EM can reach the required performance, which cannot be achieved by conventionally manufactured EMs and, in the longer term, can become a cost-effective competitor to established manufacturing techniques. To summarise, the main objectives of the project are:
- Conceiving new concepts of electrical machines that benefit from the 3D geometrical freedom of AM
- Studying the potential and laying the foundations of multi-material additive manufacturing to enhance the EM performance
- Establishing a network for educating qualified engineers with deep knowledge on both additive manufacturing processes and electrical machines
- Establishing a founded knowledge-based group of experts from academic and industry to represent a solid European innovation and to maintain the pioneering role of the EU in this field
- Reducing the stringent material requirements, particularly focusing on rare-earth magnets, in the light of raw materials shortages.
The goal of the EMByAM project is to establish a consortium of renowned institutes and industry partners in the field of electrical machines and additive manufacturing for a comprehensive, multi-disciplinary development of these objectives.
